Wildlife at Home, the Wetlands and Lakeside Park

I had a small window this morning to visit Lakeside Park. I had to be back home before 9 AM, and it looked like it was raining outside. Perhaps I should just stay home. I was undecided and so let my google assistant decide for me. Was it going to rain this morning? No, came the reply. I hurriedly got my things together and set off on my bike. It was really humid this morning and the ground still showed signs of the rain which had passed through. Lakeside Park seemed quiet, with not many ducks or geese. I spotted the great blue heron on the far side of the lake, preening its feathers. The kingfisher was perched high up in the willow tree. A large bird flew over from my left, perhaps another heron, but the markings on the wings looked different; it was an osprey. It landed at the other end of the lake in the far left corner on an outstretched branch. I made my way on foot, up the trail and then down through the undergrowth, doing my best to keep out of sight while I looked for a good ...

Something I should have mentioned in yesterday's post but didn't was the circling of Lakeside Park by a cormorant. The cormorant circled the lake 6 times before finally moving on, and I did take a photo of its flight that I never included as it was really blurry. This morning at the same time, the cormorant again circled the lake, but gradually lowered with each lap. It seemed for a moment to change its mind as it started to ascend before finally coming down, landing in the middle of the lake. I stayed well out of sight behind the willow trees and watched as the cormorant craned its neck, looking all around. It seemed to be unsettled, perhaps there was some movement on the trail. Whatever was moving was cause enough for the cormorant to take back to the air after only a minute or two. I was lucky to catch a blurred photo of the cormorant leaving a huge splash behind as it took off on another dark, overcast morning: I have been complaining to no end about the dark morning...