Toads, Warblers and a Cowbird

We have experienced some really changeable weather of late. From grey overcast days with cold winds that made everyone wrap up again in their winter clothes to warm and beautifully sunny days which gave the illusion that summer is finally here. There has been plenty of activity at Lakeside Park, but I am falling a little behind with my posts and that is purely down to how much time I have to process the images I have been taking. I'll try to recap, starting from the second of May with a pair of Canada geese flying down from the lake to Shoemaker Creek. As you can see it was really overcast.

And from the same grainy day, a swamp sparrow sang out at the edge of the reed beds at the top of Shoemaker Lake.

Now on to the third of May which really contrasted to the previous day in regards to temperature and visibility. The bright sunlight added a splash of colour to this female red-winged blackbird.

Not that it was needed at all, but the strong morning sunlight also livened up the colours of this common grackle as it peeked out from behind a tree stump at the very bottom of Shoemaker Lake.

From the same location, and with the help of the high temperature on that day, American toads could be heard from the reed beds.

They appeared to be completely invisible until I stopped for a second to look closer. They were everywhere!

They took turns in calling out, overlapping their calls in a series of cascading crescendos. The males inflate their vocal sac to amplify their calls.

With the addition of the Canada geese in the background, it sounded like this:

As I watched and listened to the frogs a muskrat swam out from the reeds, heading I thought for the opposite side of Shoemaker Lake, but it turned around and came back to the now flooded area at the bottom of the lake and directly in front of me.

It was in search of the roots of the submerged plants which it pulled up, washed and then consumed.

Forward to the following day and a freezing wind which chilled everyone and everything. Only a few of the toads I had listened to on the previous day could be heard. All of the birdwatchers and photographers who had been at Lakeside Park for the warbler migration had also disappeared with the drop in temperature. But the warblers were still at Lakeside Park. A Nashville warbler.

It was looking in every nook and cranny for any insects hiding from the cold wind.

The sunlight soon faded, but I was still able to capture a black and white warbler under much dimmer conditions.

I also spotted a downy woodpecker in the same location as the black and white warbler as it paused for a second between searching for food.

And working through the undergrowth below the woodpecker was a beautiful hermit thrush.

I remember how cold it was with the strong winds that day and that I only lasted a few hours before the cold got the better of me, but just before I reached my car I spotted a female brown-headed cowbird as she searched for someone else's nest to lay an egg in.

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