Some early autumn outings: birds, herps, leps and odes

 The autumn weather so far has been a boon to birds, and birders alike. I have spent a few outings exploring some of the wetland areas along Lake St. Clair. The skies at sunset can be impressive, especially when there are myriad individuals of waterfowl in the air. This first image was taken from the trail at St. Clair NWA. There were almost always some groups of waterfowl in the air nearby, but I was taken with the larger numbers of them almost continually flying along the shoreline. It was a beautiful sight.

Waterfowl of various species are building in numbers and diversity. On one or more outings to SCNWA, I was treated to the following.

Mallards are by far the most common duck.

A bit of a surprise was a group of three Trumpeter Swans, two of which are shown in the next two images. I first saw them from afar, but as they emerged from an open part of the marsh, circled around and flew by in a good range and in good light.

Trumpeters are not common here in the southwest, although they have been around in slightly increasing numbers in recent years. Given the time of year when the much more likely Tundra Swan is around, a little more careful look shows the broad black area in front of the eye, and no yellow colour on the bill.

Right about the same time, Tundra Swans are showing up, with several dozen being in view during my last outing. Here you can see the narrower black area in front of the eye, and a spot of yellow on the bill.

The next photo shows a family of three Tundras, with a young bird on the left. Being mixed in with Canada Geese, is a good size comparison. There was a good variety of other waterfowl species mixed in and widely scattered amongst the geese and swans.

There are other birds to see while being out and about. American Tree Sparrows, next, are increasing in numbers.

A sub-adult Bald Eagle was soaring high overhead.

A Red-tailed Hawk was also noted flying through.

A few White-crowned Sparrows were observed right along the trail.

There are usually a few non-birdy things to enjoy, especially given the sunny, mild weather. Common Buckeyes are fairly common this year, and always nice to see.

Leopard Frog

Next is a young Northern Water Snake, which was reluctant to move off of the sunny trail.

Up along the Mitchell's Bay North Shore Trail, there are more of the same types of things, but with its own variety. Great Egrets continue, although the numbers are gradually declining.

I came across this Long-billed Dowitcher feeding along the muddy shoreline. It is very similar to its relative the Short-billed Dowitcher, but the gray tertials and the split eye-ring are helpful.

The occasional Monarch is still flying through. Many I have seen look rather worn, but this individual looked quite fresh.

In some of the dead trees not far off the trail, there can be dozens and dozens of Tree Swallow taking a rest in between forays out over the marsh prowling for insects.

This pair of Wilson's Snipe was along the muddy shoreline, but didn't linger before disappearing behind some vegetation.

I have been out to Rondeau on several occasions, but mainly to chat with the park staff, deliver some canvas prints of things relevant to Rondeau and to follow the change in colour of the forest. More on that in a future post. The Visitor Centre is currently open Thursday-Sunday. 

I have managed to photograph a few other things, as follows:

Dragonflies were fairly abundant along the trails, on those bright sunny days. Here a male Autumn Meadowhawk is resting on the boardwalk.

There were a few less brightly coloured females as well. This one is munching on a midge, and allowed me to get fairly close.

Blue-headed Vireos were scattered here and there....

...Brown Creepers were seen on occasion.

Another Common Buckeye!

I have seen a few Eastern Bluebirds. This one was perched in the shade with a bright background. I tried to pull out as much detail as I could in the processing.

Eastern Phoebes, even though it is a flycatcher, will likely be seen into December depending on the weather.

An Eastern Gartersnake was enjoying an open sunny spot along one of the trails.

Ruby-crowned Kinglets are quite plentiful, although challenging to photograph due to their constant, rather frenetic, activity.

Turkey Vultures have been passing through steadily, in some impressive numbers. Many are quite high up...

...but on occasion one will be quite low.

Certainly the most abundant warbler to be seen is the Yellow-rumped Warbler. Some will likely be present all winter.

If you would like to subscribe, or unsubscribe, to Nature Nuggets, send an email to: prairietramper@gmail.com

Birds, orchids and a bit of catching up

 Birds continue to be one of my things of focus when I am out of doors, of course. An outing yesterday to Rondeau resulted in seeing a good variety, especially of warblers and other small passeriformes, but they were hard to get photos of as they darted in and out of berry bushes that lined the trails and roads. I also scanned the lake, hoping that my first of season Red-throated Loon might be in sight, but it was not to be. I did see about a dozen Common Loons, however, and relatively close.

There likely were more, as they spent a lot of time diving under, and so it was hard to tell exact numbers. I'm sure a scope and more time would have revealed quite a few more. They will be increasing in numbers as they move southwards from their northern lakes.

The only warbler that I got on camera was one of the dozens and dozens of Yellow-rumped Warblers, which greatly outnumbered all other species.

I did take a bit of time to photograph a few tree species that I hadn't bothered much with in the past. Some are native such as Green Ash

Many fruit

This species shows moderately long leaf petioles, not as long as those on White Ash, but certainly a lot longer as those on Black Ash.

Eastern Cottonwood

Swamp White Oak, from a few years ago

....and White Ash, which has much longer leaf petioles. All native ash species are considered to be at risk, since the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) that arrived a couple of decades ago has killed off many. Fortunately even relatively young individuals produce seeds, so that there is a lot of regeneration going on, and maybe eventually the species will once again dominate native forests. They may not reach the longevity and large sizes of before the EAB days. Time will tell.

under side

upper side

And some that I photographed are not native, but fairly abundant, such as Black Locust. The first photo shows the typical leaf arrangement, with the leaves showing signs of a mining insect.

This next photo shows the typical double thorn at the base of some of the leaves on a main stem.

Northern Catalpa, shown next, is also a non-native species. It had been planted by various cottagers many years ago, and some of the fruits, and therefore new individuals, are showing up in places between Lakeshore Road and Harrison Trail.

Another non-native species, and the origin in the park is unclear, is White Popular, which can grow in large clones, especially in the sandy openings along the lake shore. The leaves are distinctive with their white edges, and quite whitish undersides.

On one occasion I took a quick look at a fallen branch along the trail, and noted this nest. It is likely a vireo nest, and given the location in the main part of the beech-maple forest, is a Red-eyed Vireo nest. This vireo species is by far the most abundant of the vireos at Rondeau,

I also saw this Northern Watersnake out for a stroll along Harrison Trail. It is quite a ways from what I would consider its normal habitat, but there it was.

One of the things I hadn't really discussed much in blog posts of a few weeks ago, is the current status of one of Canada's rarest orchids, the Nodding Pogonia. It wasn't a great year for them, although I did see several dozen in the general vicinity of the main patch. It was quite a few less than the sometimes several hundred I see here.

Most were singles, and were predominantly white. I always look forward to seeing the more magenta colour forms, but it didn't happen this year. And I missed the actual single flowering day on a few occasions, so sometimes I just saw them the day past their flowering, and the photo below shows what they look like then. We are looking at trying to be more accurate in knowing which day they will flower as it is very much a factor of overnight temperature, but that is a topic for another post.

Most were single blooms, but I did see a couple of double blooms. No triple blooms that I saw this year.

Another orchid that isn't nearly as rare, but still not a common species, is this next one, the Great Plain's Ladies' Tresses, which was at its peak in late September. The individual flowers don't last long, as you can see from this next photo, as the lowest flowers are already finishing up while the uppermost ones haven't begun to open. The unusual warmth at the time likely had some role to play.

And finally, just an update regarding my book 'Life on a Sandspit'.

I have expanded the locations where it is available. People have already been purchasing some for Christmas gifts! 

The locations now include the following:

Bayview Market, Rondeau

Book Brothers, Chatham

Mindful, Blenheim

Mitton's Jeweller's and gifts, Ridgetown

Five-Eau, Erieau

Molly and OJ's, Erieau

Sydenham Field Naturalists, Wallaceburg

Friend's of Rondeau, Rondeau Visitor Centre (although very reduced hours, and that gift shop may be closed until the Christmas break)

If you would like to subscribe, or unsubscribe, to Nature Nuggets, send an email to: prairietramper@gmail.com