Wildlife at Home, the Wetlands and Lakeside Park

My attention has been focused on the warblers for a while now at Lakeside Park and so I decided to check up on the beaver: The beaver was busy clearing the channels in the bed of the stream which runs from the lake: At the opposite side of the lake and nicely lit on such a beautifully sunny morning, I spotted the great blue heron, uncharacteristically standing at the seated area, preening its feathers. I made my way around on the path, changing to a 200mm manual lens and captured this photo of the great blue heron with its crest fanned out: Further along the bank of the lake I came across a white-throated sparrow quite happily sunning itself: A painted lady was feeding on the flowers in the pollinator meadow: I was almost ready to leave the park when I noticed a spec of white in the distance. The great egret was working the edge of the reeds at the top end of the lake: I could not resist taking a few photos as the egret fished and then took time to preen i...

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...

A large eagle-sized bird of prey flew along the treeline this morning. It skirted the tops of the trees before landing in a fir tree at the top of the bank. I gave chase on foot along the path. I wasn't sure at all if these photos would turn out as it was overcast this morning, but they are good enough to show what the large bird was. I have seen turkey vultures rising on the thermals over Lakeside Park, but never landing. Another first for me: Fall colours are gradually transforming the park, the leaves are already falling, but there is still a lot of activity from the insects. I came across this brightly-coloured insect on some goldenrod after walking down the bank from the turkey vulture: A woodlouse standing out in the open: This grasshopper was also standing out with its bright red colouration: Another brightly-coloured insect, a damselfly: I did, as usual, take photos of the hickory tussock moth caterpillars which are everywhere at the moment, but thi...

I posted a photo of one of these white hickory tussock moth caterpillars yesterday. They appear to be everywhere at the moment, fattening up before overwintering in a cocoon which will be hidden in this fall's leaf litter. As I mentioned yesterday, do not touch them; they are beautiful but also poisonous: It appears to be becoming something of a morning ritual. This cormorant will circle Lakeside Park at approximately the same time every morning and occasionally touch down for a snack. The cormorant dived a few times and caught what looked like a goldfish this morning before moving on: I wanted to concentrate on insects this morning, using the flash on my camera, but unfortunately, the flash drained my batteries as I was taking photos of a striped bug. I turned to my telephoto camera, but the warblers and finches were still not cooperating. The great egret was hunting in front of the reeds to my left, but a little too far away for anything of any detail. Disappointed, I d...

So many photographers at Lakeside Park this morning, and I'm sure it is the warblers migration that is attracting everyone. It's good to see people at the lake who have a real enthusiasm for nature, but for me, it was just a little too much company and I felt the need for some solitude. I headed to the far edge of the lake, walking carefully through the branch-laden undergrowth and out into the open, where I was met by this stunning great blue heron who had also put some distance between itself and the photographers who were at the base of the lake: I took a few photos as I approached the heron, walking with slow deliberate steps, making my intention clear that I was simply passing through. The heron is perhaps also becoming used to me as it never moved at all as I walked directly underneath its perch and further along the edge of the lake. I have posted photos of the larger birds of prey at Lakeside Park, while the smaller raptors have been eluding me. That is, unti...

This morning saw me waiting for the sun to rise and cast some light on a bumblebee that was resting on what I believe was a sneezeweed flower. I'd invested in a monopod on Wednesday, primarily for close up work and this was going to be my first chance to try it out with my older Pentax and my DIY macro lens. It's a full 45 minutes now before the sun rises after I leave my workplace at 6 AM. The nights are gradually closing in, and I am now reluctantly coming to terms with the fact that I soon won't be able to continue my photography at Lakeside Park in the mornings, stopping off on my way home from work. It is simply too dark. I was resigned to my soon-to-be fate and thinking to myself that I probably wouldn't see much of anything before it was time to leave the lake when this beautiful great egret flew in, landing very close to me. I apologize for the blur in this photo, but I simply had to include the egret's flight: Closely watched by myself and the great b...