Backyard, Countryside and City

     The Backyard

     Our backyard is always a tiny oasis of calm, comfort and delight for us, and I suspect that its role in that regard has been even greater than usual during the pandemic.

     It was here that Miriam "broke" the isolation curse by inviting three good friends over for lunch last week.
     A Giant Swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes) was there to welcome everyone.

     Grey Squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) are a part of urban life in Canada and for people who feed birds they can be a cause of substantial irritation, and a challenge too. They are in fact charming little creatures and as long as they stay off my bird feeders we get along well together.

     The black morph of this animal is only found in the northern part of its range, principally in Canada, leading to speculation that the black colour gene carries some unknown adaptation. 

     It is equally welcome, however, free of discrimination, and with no knee on the throat, figurative or otherwise.

     An Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) could easily be the poster child for the oft used expression "cute as a bunny." 

     Miriam might be reluctant to agree with that assessment, however! It is the bane of her garden and seems to chew off whatever plant looks best. It is not only a catholic diner, it seems to enjoy sampling flowers not to its taste, nibbling them down to the ground and leaving them uneaten.

     It does well to hide from her wrath!

     This squirrel was seen chewing on the stump of a branch that was broken off, for what purpose we are not quite sure. Perhaps sweet sap oozes into the wound on the tree; whatever the inducement it attracted the attention of the squirrel for several minutes.

     Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Archilocus colubris) has been a visitor to the garden this year, but nowhere near as frequently as in previous years. Miriam was lucky to photograph this female perched on a branch.

     One of our most predictable visitors, flashy, gaudy in the best possible way, bold and determined, and a sonorous musician is Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis). One was singing this morning to enliven first light, a maestro of sostenuto.

     And this is the object of his ardour.

The City

     Peregrine Falcons (Falco peregrinus) have become permanent residents in the City of Kitchener, and this year again four young have been fledged from their urban nest.

     When I visited them recently the male had just delivered food and you can see the female tearing it apart in the picture below, with one of the fledged young perched out on a spar of the tower where the nest is located.

The Countryside

     

     England has long been identified as a "green and pleasant land" and I tried to find a source for the expression, without success. It seems to have been used as far back as antiquity, and justifiably so.

    I would contend, however, that the Great Lakes country of southern Ontario could lay equal claim to such an appellation. The area close to our home is evidence of this.

     

     Surely you must agree! 

     A female Mallard (Anas platyrynchos) ambled along the side of a country road, seemingly without a care in the world.

     Perhaps she too contemplated her green and pleasant home, where cows rested contentedly.

     I have introduced you before to the Western Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) that nests alongside the Conestogo River on the way to Hawkesville, and I have no doubt that I will be featuring more pictures of this accessible nest. Here the female is feeding on a fish delivered earlier by the male.

     Savannah Sparrow (Passerculus sandwichensis) is a familiar grassland species from spring through fall and an ardent male may often be seen singing from atop a fence post.

     And, just another example of our green and pleasant land!

     At SpruceHaven our success continues apace, and of the six next boxes that I check weekly on behalf of WRN Teens, five are occupied, and having cleaned out the sixth a couple of days ago, who knows what surprises might be in store next week?

     Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) young are growing strong, due to the diligence of devoted parents who spend most of their waking hours feeding them.

         A pair of Black-capped Chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) has claimed possession of another box and if you look carefully you can see the female staring out at me from inside the nest box.

     A quick check inside revealed six eggs.

     On the way home I saw three different male Indigo Buntings (Passerina cyanea) all in full voice.

     The first cut of hay is exceptionally early in recent years and this portends the end of any possibility of a successful breeding season for ground-nesting species.

     I do not have statistics on the impact on species such as Northern Harrier (Circus hudsonius), Bobolink (Dolichonyx oryzivorus), Eastern Meadowlark (Sturnella magna), and others, but it must be substantial.

     Classic products of our area are Maple Syrup and Apple Butter, and signs are frequently posted at the end of the driveway to a farm - in this case rendered as one word in each instance!

     I can attest that both products are delicious!

     Quite frequently one sees signs extolling the virtues of Canadian milk, which is purer and contains less chemical additives than imported milk.

     And I can't resist one more shot of the Osprey on the nest.

Back at home

     We started off in the backyard so let's finish off there. 

     This young American Robin (Turdus migratorius), recently out of the nest and quite capable of taking care of itself, nevertheless continued to beg from its parents. 

     A free meal is always a good thing I suppose.

     And finally, this morning we found eggs of Giant Swallowtail on our Common Rue (Ruta graveolens). We located two eggs but I suspect there are more.

  

     We will keep an eye out for the first caterpillars and perhaps bring them inside to raise them indoors free from the threat of predation.

     We will see!