Roaming around Chatham-Kent, excluding Rondeau

 I've been getting out to a few places, including Rondeau, but will save the Rondeau highlights for the next post. Instead, I will draw attention to things elsewhere in C-K!

Certainly a highlight now, is to note that Bald Eagle nests are being occupied, at least in a few places. Fortunately Bald Eagles have re-bounded from their endangered status of a few years ago! Some nests are fairly visible right from a road, as is the case of this nest along the south end of Fargo Road. 

It is a new nest this season, and I'm not sure how long it will last, as it appears that the tree is totally dead. Hopefully it lasts at least this season! It is easily viewed from the road, although binoculars are helpful. Being a dead tree, at least any growth of the young up to fledging time should be more visible.

This next photo is one of my favourites, although it was not taken of this nesting pair. But I like it so much, I had a 12" X 24" canvas print made of it!

Closer to home, literally, I have been watching the neighbourhood squirrels maintaining their winter nest. Once the snow left the yard, there were at least two squirrels busily gathering up even more leaves and scampering up the tree trunk to add them to the existing nest.

Not sure if they are just patching things up due to the high winds scattering some of the nest leaves, or whether they are just shoring it up to allow some protection for probable recently born nestling from the weather. Or maybe they know there is more winter to come, and want to improve on the original design.

Now that SCNWA is open, and the trail is free of snow, it is somewhere I will be going to again fairly regularly, especially as it is relatively close to home.

Not that long ago, it was solid ice everywhere. 

Late February

The waterfowl are now able to make use of the openness.

March 8

 Red-winged Blackbirds are abundant, staking out territory.

The occasional Great Blue Heron is around, but not offering the greatest photos (or maybe I just wasn't prepared with the proper settings :-)

Canada Geese are getting paired up...

..or just moving around looking for a mate?

American Tree Sparrows are still hanging around, picking away at whatever they can find on the trail to nibble on.

Nearby one can find the occasional Belted Kingfisher, waiting for something to surface at a recently open spot. They are skittish, and this one didn't allow a very close photo op. It is heavily cropped.

Of the several Wood Duck boxes just north of the NWA, an Eastern Screech Owl continues to hang out, at least for now. Wood Ducks are starting to return, so no doubt they will oust the owl before long.

Sandhill Cranes are around in increasing numbers, and often are paired up. I suspect they are already beginning the nesting process!

More unusual are a couple of Trumpeter Swans. This pair was just hanging out in a local corn stubble field without any other waterfowl nearby. Maybe they will stick around and nest? This species has been suspected of nesting in recent years, but not confirmed that I am aware of. They like the large, open and secluded wetland areas.

The NWA can be a great spot for sunsets!

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"Only" birds here and there

 In spite of the winter, there have been opportunities to get out, go for a long walk, explore and even get a few photos to feature the season.

A recent eBird post indicated a Snowy Owl had been seen not far from St. Clair NWA. Since I was heading out somewhere anyway, I decided to swing that way since it was only a couple of hours later. Unfortunately, even with slow and careful viewing, the owl was not to be seen. It wasn't reported by anyone else either. But I did get photographs of a few other things while I was in that vicinity.

Sub-adult Bald Eagle

As I crossed over a wide creek, I noticed this Great Blue Heron standing on the ice, waiting for....something. Maybe spring????

A little further down the channel, was another one. At least it was standing in some water. I am amazed that in spite of standing in almost freezing water, on ice, it apparently doesn't seem to bother them. And even farther down the channel was a third heron.

In a field nearby, were 7 Sandhill Cranes.....

...and a few Tundra Swans flew overhead.

But no Snowy Owl to be seen.

An outing at Rondeau and area didn't produce a lot to photograph, but there always seems to be something. 

White-throated Sparrow

It was bright/heavy overcast, which didn't produce great lighting for a mostly dark House Finch perched on a branch against the sky. It seemed to be busy feeding on the numerous berries of some of the Red Cedars in the campground.

A Hairy Woodpecker was busy searching for insects.

American Tree Sparrows are relatively common, or at least somewhat regular at the moment. They often travel in small flocks.

A single photo gives a good view....

In other odds and ends, there are often Canada Geese somewhere around...

...or a Ruddy Duck...

...or even a Red-tailed Hawk.

No butterflies, insects, or plants to photograph these days, but at least there are a few birds!

 

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St. Clair National Wildlife Area, one of the highlights of southwestern Ontario

 St. Clair National Wildlife Area (SCNWA) has always been a favourite place of mine to go. It is special in its own right due to the high quality wetlands, and even better it is quite close to home and so accessible!

Many of my previous posts include some of the things I find there along with things from other sites, but this one will focus only on this NWA. Being ~600 acres (~240 ha) in size provides lots of opportunities for wildlife, especially wetland birds. A further benefit is that there are other wetlands immediately north and southwest of it, to improve the overall wetland features for wildlife. 

The hiking trail that crosses the heart of the wetland is invaluable to appreciate what it has to offer. The presence of an observation tower enhances a visit. These first two photos were taken from the tower, and the first one shows the hiking trail leading to the tower.

The second photo gives an idea of the expanse of the marsh, with some open areas scattered throughout, making it ideal for many water birds.

One never knows what to expect, so being constantly on alert for anything flying by is essential. One of the highlights of a recent evening visit was to observe both an adult Bald Eagle and an Osprey, with the eagle harassing the Osprey. I watched them for several minutes, as at one point they were flying almost right overhead. The down side was that it was getting close to 8 p.m. so the light wasn't great and they were against a bland sky, but I rattled off a bunch of shots. Here are some of the more satisfying ones. It was hard to tell, but it appeared that the Osprey had something in its talons, and the eagle was trying to get it to let it go so it could pounce on whatever it had. I didn't see any success of this, and eventually the two birds separated and moved off.

 

 

On another occasion when I was out in the evening, I enjoyed an attractive sunset.

Sometimes one can see things like Sandhill Cranes passing by against the colourful sky.

Sunrise photography is also quite fun and rewarding. These next two were not taken recently, but a few years ago when I had a special interest in capturing sunrise shots from various points in Chatham-Kent.

 Aside from the landscape, er, waterscape photography, the main purpose for many visitors is to see the wonderful diversity of flora and fauna. Here are a few things from mostly recent visits, starting with butterflies.

Black Swallowtail

Clouded Sulphur 

The first two butterflies are to be expected. This next one is a Common Buckeye, and it is anything but common. This was the first one I had seen this season. A bit of a surprise was to see three of them, and they were vying for a spot to land. This one was the successful one, and I saw the same one (based on the wear and tear on the left forewing) in the same place two days later.

Monarchs, of course, were fairly abundant which wasn't surprising due to the plentiful milkweed on which to lay eggs when they weren't feeding on Missouri Ironweed.

Red Admiral

Viceroy

The flowers are more abundant in the later part the season, with lots of goldenrod and sunflower species lining the trail these days. One of the highlight species to see is this next one, the Marsh Tickseed, which is an endangered species, but fairly common along at the waters edge along both sides of the trail.

Another rarity, although not as rare as the previous one, is Missouri Ironweed.

 

Another rarity is Field Thistle, next.

 Not a rarity at all, and actually fairly common, is Evening Primrose.

 

Of course there are quite a few Leopard Frogs hopping along the trail.

 But birds are one of the main reasons people are visiting, and for good reason. The views and diversity are great, with some giving good photo opportunities, and others just views through binoculars as they scoot through the skies. Waterfowl are building in numbers, and once the hunting season starts, they will be increasingly abundant at the NWA as it is a safe haven for them. Here are a few waterbirds that I have recently encountered and photographed.

Great Blue Heron

Less frequently the herons will be up in a tree along the edge.

Great Egret

One of the highlights of a few years ago, when the water in the NWA was lower, was to photograph a large group of Great Egrets at their overnight roost. This photo was taken in late September just before sunrise. I had to use a very slow shutter speed, due to the very early morning light, but the birds remained motionless.

Waterfowl, especially Mallards will be quite abundant in the next few weeks.

Mallard

Okay, not a waterbird in one sense, but Northern Harriers frequently nest in wetlands, and are often hunting for something to feed on.

The first two photos were taken from the tower. And then the bird landed a short ways just off the trail, and allowed me to get this next photo.

Pied-billed Grebes are more often heard than seen.

Sandhill Cranes are often in the area, and will nest in or adjacent to the wetland. When feeding in the shallow water, they can sometimes be almost obscured by the tall wetland vegetation. This was taken from the tower.

 Wood Ducks are a favourite, and are one of the more common duck species present at the moment.

Young female Wood Ducks

 

So many photo opportunities to enjoy at this nationally significant natural area. Enjoy it when you can!

UPDATE: I have been informed that as of Oct 1, 2025, public access to the SCNWA is not available, as there is some upgrading to the trail system/bridge getting underway. Public access is restricted until Jan 1, 2026.

 

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