Wildlife at Home, the Wetlands and Lakeside Park

Having moved from the UK to Canada almost 19 years ago, I have to say that I do at times miss some of the native British birds. For example, the different finches with their bold colours, the kestrel which can hover motionless in the strongest winds, the dipper from the rivers and streams which swims under the water as it hunts for food and is aptly named for its bobbing motion. But on balance, what I miss has been replaced by birds that are just as captivating. One definite plus in Ontario is the cardinal with its flamboyant head crest and its ridiculously bright red feathers. These photos were taken on a gloriously mild and sunny February the 3rd. The contrast of the bright morning sunlight really brought out the vivid red of this cardinal's feathers.  But why are cardinals so red? Well, they do say that you are what you eat, and cardinals do love red berries. Cardinals do actually create the redness in their feathers from the red foods in their diet. Without ...

I rode my bike to Lakeside Park this morning. It was a cold start to the day with a heavy frost on the low lying grass. There was not a great deal of activity. The sun was low in the sky, providing beautiful contrast to everything it touched, but where were the birds? I could hear the squirrels complaining and this chipmunk was keeping well out of sight as it had a little nibble: I walked further up the lake, near the top edge where I noticed the reason for the bird's inactivity. Sitting on its favourite perch was the merlin: It surveyed the world around it: Basking in the sun as it did so: And also keeping one eye on me: I was happy for the photo opportunity but the merlin soon took to flight in search of its next meal. In the merlin's absence, the birds now started to appear. Finches, song sparrows, white-throated sparrows, a ruby-crowned kinglet: And a cardinal which was silhouetted with the sun behind it: A number of ring-billed gulls st...

This morning started off quite cold. I tucked my camera under my arm, keeping my hands warm in my jacket pockets. Everything was covered in the morning's dew including this banded garden spider in the pollinator meadow: And this dragonfly whose wings were bejewelled in water droplets: Where there are insects, there are birds, and the warblers came through Lakeside Park in waves this morning, seemingly blown by the colder easterly winds. At times it was hard to pick out the warblers from the swirling fall leaves; both seemed to merge in one fluent colourful movement. Not just warblers, but blue jays, crows, robins, northern flickers and starlings appeared to be amassing in their own individual groups. It was at times difficult to know which way to look for the best photo opportunity. I decided to concentrate on one area of bushes and managed to pick up where I left off on my last post, with a much better photo of a white-throated sparrow as it moved through with the warb...

I decided to catch up with the beaver for a short while this morning. The beaver was very active, but unseen for the most part. A trail of bubbles and the larger, rounder ripples which it produces gave away its whereabouts. The beaver did surface for this photo as it selected a large sapling before submerging, taking the sapling with it: There was a lot of activity in the trees beside the pollinator meadow: Chickadees worked through the fir trees looking for insects and seeds: A young cardinal asked to be fed by its parents while sitting in the shade: The starlings again found the tops of the fir trees to sing, and that was just close enough for a photograph: I decided to make my way up the path before I had to leave. The kingfishers are still very active over the lake but are just as difficult to take a photo of: As I neared the top of the lake, the great egret flew overhead. It was hotly pursued by the great blue heron who seemed determi...