Baby Tern/Birding

 Baby common tern

This baby was AWOL and roaming the Pickering waterfront on Lake Ontario.

 Concerned parent

The tern parents were watching from above and...

Hovering over baby

tried to distract anyone who got anywhere near the baby.

FYI: I wasn't as close as it looks. I cropped the photos considerably.

I am linking with I'd Rather B Birdin'  HERE.

Tiger Swallowtail/Top Shot

Tiger swallowtail

I like the shades of yellow and green in this photo.

I am linking to Madge's Weekly Top Shot.

Summer Fishing/Weekend Reflections

A lazy summer day

I hope the fishing was good!

To enjoy reflections from around the world, visit James at Weekend Reflections HERE

Ba-a-a/Friday Fences

 Barking at the fence line

Apparently my camera and I were not welcome there. This working dog was warning me to go away.

 A friendlier face

But first, this little guy wanted to say hello and...

Many friendly faces

so did all his friends and relatives.

I am linking to Friday Fences here.

F/Alphabe-Thursday

 Fog over Lake Ontario

F is for FOG

Sunday was hot, humid...and foggy. But that didn't keep some people indoors.

 Same beach, looking the other way

A few dogs demanded they get their walkies. Note that the guy in the foreground had a doggy bag with him. Good dog owner!

 Grandma with three grandkids

Kids needed some fresh air. (I'm thinking grandma might have needed it too.)

Sailing in the fog

And even sailors were out. The boat had just motored out of the harbour and the captain was about to raise the sails. This looks like a challenge to me - very little wind and low visibility. Hmmm. I don't get it...but I'm a land lubber.

I am linking to Jenny Matlock at Alphabe-Thursday HERE 

Heronry/ Wild Bird

 Great blue heron on its way to get snacks for the kids

The heronry near where I live is busy, busy, BUSY! While the adults are rarely at home...

 Heron Condos

 the kids are still in their nests asking squawking what's for breakfast, lunch, dinner...and snacks.

 Siblings waiting for Mom or Pop to return

These kids look patient now, but you'd be amazing to hear the squawking once a parent appears on the horizon!

Off again for some more treats!

I missed this heron landing to feed its young, but caught it taking off to find more grub.

I am joining Stewart M's Wild Bird Wednesday HERE

Early Summer/Nature Notes

Summer's here!

It has been hot and muggy here. Yesterday we were out and about but today we plan to stay indoors. It definitely feel like summer.

Largest square: a green-eyed bee (a sweat bee, I think) on daisy fleabane (Erigeron annuus), wild mustard (Sinapsis arvensis), pasque flower seed head (Pulsatilla). snail and yellow hawkweed (Hieracium caespitosum).

Please visit Michelle at Rambling Woods for more NATURE NOTES.

Turtles/Our World

Mama turtle is cautiously waiting...but for what?

 I walked by after taking this photo. The turtle was hiding and didn't want to be discovered. Besides, I was looking for birds, not turtles!

Still there!

When I walked back over the path, she was still there...but laying eggs. I wonder if she knew...

Another nest

there was a marauder in the area - a very hungry raccoon.

More photos from Our World can be seen by clicking HERE.

Bald Eagle/Birding

Bald eagle  (Haliaeetus leucocephhalus)

This bald eagle nests on the south side of Lake Simcoe. Although I know where the nest is, I'd need to wear hip waders to get anywhere close enough to take good photos as it's in the middle of a swamp. Smart eagle, right?

But another large raptor lives in the same area - an osprey - and on Friday the eagle had ticked the osprey off. I didn't see the incident, but I did see the osprey chase the eagle to within view of my camera lens.

I am linking with I'd Rather B Birdin'  HERE.

Damselfly/Top Shot

Male familiar bluet (a pond damsel)

This is a damselfly found in southern Canada, most of the United States and into Mexico - this one living in a wetland area where I like to photograph birds.

I am linking to Madge's Weekly Top Shot.

Yellow Water Lilies/Weekend Reflections

Waterlily floating and reflecting in Tiny Marsh

To enjoy reflections from around the world, visit James at Weekend Reflections HERE

Soggy/Friday Fences

On a soggy day

It's time for some fence repair, me thinks.

As seen from a bit further away

Closer look at the flowers in the water

I don't know what these are. Does anyone know?

I am linking to Friday Fences here.

E/Alphabe-Thursday

 Great egret (Ardea alba)

E is for EGRET

Hunted nearly to EXTINCTION more than a century ago, great egrets are now EXTENDING their territories so that a bird that once seemed EXOTIC here is becoming more and more common.

Dropping in for a landing

Great egrets hunt for food in both fresh and salt water. This one is fishing in Lake Ontario.

Wading in shallow water on the edge of Lake Ontario

Like other herons, the Great Egret  stands motionless as they hunt frogs, fish and other small aquatic animals.

I am linking to Jenny Matlock at Alphabe-Thursday HERE 

Indigo Bunting/Wild Bird

 Male indigo bunting (Passerina cyanea)

I wanted this indigo bunting to move in closer (I cropped this photo way more than I really would have liked), but he preferred to sit and sing from his high-up perch. Isn't he handsome in his  brilliant blue breeding plumage?

Stopping for a moment between songs

This one lives on the edge of a local forest where his mostly brown mate has likely built a nest in shrubbery about a metre above ground.  I must go back to see if I can find it.

Since indigo buntings eat flies, mosquitoes, grasshoppers and aphids, they would certainly be welcomed visitors in my yard!

I am joining Stewart M's Wild Bird Wednesday HERE

Mid June/Nature Notes

Late spring in Ontario

Everything looks so green and fresh this time of year. And lately I've noticed a ton of butterflies, more than in the past few years. Could it be all the rain we've had this year?

Largest square: bee on fleabane (Erigeron pholadelphicus). The fleabane I've seen this year appears to be especially lush.

Moving clockwise:
1. purple-flowering raspberry(Rubus odoratus)
2.White Admiral butterfly
3. Bladder campion (Silene cucubalus)
4. Dames rocket (Hesperis matronalis)
5. Pearl Crescent butterfly

Please visit Michelle at Rambling Woods for more NATURE NOTES.

The Big Pull/Our World

Truckload of invasive weeds

When my husband and I visited Tiny Marsh about a week ago,  volunteers were pulling invasive weeds - garlic mustard to be exact.

Wheelbarrow in the path

Tiny Marsh is not tiny but in the township of Tiny, a rural community south of Lake Huron. We like to visit it to see the wildlife there.

Shallow water where pied-billed grebes among other waterfowl breed

I was hoping to see pied-billed grebes, but they were too shy to come out.

Boardwalk through part of the marsh

I was also hoping to see wood ducks but was told to return in another month.

Garden tools

The volunteers were replacing the invasive weeds with indigenous species such as mayapples, trillium and bloodroot that grow in shade and bloom in spring.

Native species grown from seeds

More photos from Our World can be seen by clicking HERE.

Hairy Beardtongue

 Hairy beardtongue (Pentstemon hirsutus) 

Hummingbirds love these wildflowers and I do too. If you look closely at this plant's stem. you can see why it's called "hairy."

A lovely clumping flower

What a pleasure to find a field of these!

Wilson's Snipe/Birding

 Wilson's snipe (Gallinago delicata)

Wilson's snipes are usually quite common on the Carden Alvar northeast of where I live. The alvar is a wet, grassy place in spring, although quite dry in summer.

Last time we visited the alvar, we could hear them but they were otherwise elusive until late afternoon when one suddenly flew out of a ditch, circled in the air above and then landed on this post.

On another post, this one looks a bit wind blown

Notice this one's very long beak. It's used to probe muddy areas for small invertebrates. The Wilson's snipe's beak is flexible. The tips can be opened and closed without moving the beak at its base.

Flying high

Here's an interesting fact: the femlae lays four eggs. The male takes the first two that hatch to raise them. The female raises the second two.

I am linking with I'd Rather B Birdin'  HERE.

Rosa Glauca/Top Shot

A shrub rose with lovely grey-green leaves and red veins

This rose doesn't bloom for very long but that's okay since I grow it for its leaves. Having said that, every year when it blooms I take my camera out to take photos of this shrub's tiny (an inch to 1 1/2 inches in diameter) flowers.

I am linking to Madge's Weekly Top Shot.

Red Canoe/Weekend Reflections

Red Canoe paddling through Tiny Marsh

What fun to explore a marsh in a canoe...and it was a beautiful day to do just that.

To enjoy reflections from around the world, visit James at Weekend Reflections HERE

Orange/Friday Fences

At the side of a house on ariver

Not just anyone could paint a fence orange and make it look so good.  I think it works well here where there are several other artsy properties.

I am linking to Friday Fences here.

D/Alphabe-Thursday

 Dilapidated house, Shelburne, Ontario

D is for DILAPIDATED, DECAYED, DETERIORATED

Some of you may remember this old house from when I posted about it HERE. This is what it looks like now.

Almost DOWN, almost DONE

DANGEROUS, eh?

I am linking to Jenny Matlock at Alphabe-Thursday HERE 

Nesting Warbler/Wild Bird

 Female yellow warbler (Dendroica petechia)

In my imagination I could hear this warbler saying "Ha ha! You can't see me." And then she flit to another spot to make sure she was correct.

 Below her nest

But I knew she wouldn't go far because  I had spied her nest.

Close up of nest

Do you see her in her nest?

I am joining Stewart M's Wild Bird Wednesday HERE