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.

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April showers bring flooding; also some more birds

 The sunny, clear weather has made it great to be out. I'm not a big fan of temperatures in early April that are close to mid-day temperatures of July, however. I hope we have a relatively normal spring!

I've been out to the Lake St. Clair wetland area a few times, and one is almost assured of getting good views, and photographs, of Great Egrets, not surprisingly. They nest at nearby Walpole Island, as well as some of the grassy islands in the lake just west of Mitchell's Bay. They can be a bit hard to get close to if they are on the ground, at the edge of a wetland. But if they are up in a tree, they seem to be a lot more tolerant of how close they allow you to be. Looking down at you seems to give them a sense of security. These two cooperated nicely.

Killdeer have been back in the area for a few weeks, and their nesting season is well underway.

Colourful breeding plumaged Ruddy Ducks are fairly plentiful, and occasionally the distance and light make for a good photo.

Red-winged Blackbirds are aggressively announcing and defending their territory.

Tree Swallows have returned in good numbers these last few days.

These nice sunny days are a good distraction from those recent days with lots of rain. We got about 3 inches of rain over the wettest period, and given the already fairly saturated ground, led to some local flooding.This was exacerbated given the widespread nature of the rain upstream throughout the rather large overall drainage area, which typically causes the lower Thames River to flood.  McGregor Creek, one of the tributaries of the river in Chatham-Kent, showed just how much water we had to deal with even within its relatively small drainage area. This next photo is from a few kilometres southeast of Chatham, and is usually an indicator of potential flooding of south Chatham.

It was for this ongoing flooding risk from this creek to Chatham residents a few years ago, that the McGregor Creek diversion channel was constructed, to divert the water to the Thames River before going through Chatham. After this most recent rainfall, that diversion was running at least half full. Parts of the creek that went through southern Chatham still overflowed, but remained on the flood plain and posed minimal risk to local residents.

After taking the above photo I continued on my way to Rondeau. There were a lot of wet fields, and some had large groups of gulls. I looked carefully at some gatherings, hoping that a Franklin's or Little Gull might be there, but if there was, I did not find them.

This next photo shows the same area of McGregor Creek from the same vantage point, about a week later, and the creek is confined to its normal channel.

I have been out to Rondeau on a couple of occasion, to enjoy the solitude and even shoot a few birds. Song Sparrows are frequently seen, and singing regularly.

I got one of my first Eastern Phoebes of the season, and they have become more numerous in the last few days.

There has been a good incursion of Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers. This one was actively defending a Basswood tree full of holes made by the sapsucker, causing a bit of sap to seep out. Two other sapsuckers were trying to take advantage of this one's work, but it successfully kept the others away, at least while I was watching.

I got my first of several Yellow-rumped Warblers at the south end of the campground, which is now open for camping.

The various access points at Erieau are always good for bird diversity at this time of year. Lots of the common things, but with the limited habitat, it concentrates some of the earlier arrivals.

American Coot are visible by the hundreds, although not often from very close up.

Bonaparte's Gulls have been building in numbers, and it is common to see several hundred. Their plumage varies.

There are still some Bufflehead around.

Golden-crowned Kinglets are present in small numbers....

...and I managed to get a record shot of a Ruby-crowned Kinglet, a relatively recent arrival. As kinglets are almost constantly flitting amongst shrubs, it is difficult to get an unobstructed photo.

Tree Swallows are a challenge to photograph as they are mostly in flight. But when they need a break from their aerial search for insects, they can be shot much more easily.

I got my first of the year Barn Swallow.

I had watched this female Red-breasted Merganser swimming underwater, chasing a school of minnows close to shore. When it surfaced and swam by quickly, I managed this.

One of the highlights of the most recent visit to Erieau was to have this Common Loon in good breeding plumage, swimming slowly in the small boat marina. The light wasn't always the best angle, but this photo seemed to be the best one. It is hardly cropped at all. It isn't often here in the south we get to see such a fine-looking loon at such a close distance, unlike many northern lakes where one or more are often seen and heard throughout the breeding season.

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