Wildlife at Home, the Wetlands and Lakeside Park

I have missed a few mornings since my last post, partly due to the rain. Today, I was determined to go to Lakeside Park and capture some detail in my photos. The warblers were in evidence but still would not pause long enough for me to focus. This cardinal, however, did sit for a while as it preened its feathers: Woodpeckers, chickadees, northern flickers, robins, a catbird and this nuthatch passed through the trees with the warblers: I switched to my macro camera when I saw the strangest looking insect. It was very aware of my presence, moving around the stem of this plant to avoid my gaze. I had to produce some movement with my hand on the opposite side to persuade it to move into my camera's focus: From above, it looked just as weird with its hammer-shaped head. It appears to be a treehopper, possibly a buffalo treehopper, but I have yet to match the markings exactly: Snails have hairs, or at least their shells do. I was completely unaware of that fact unt...