Nature in the Summer

     For the second year in a row I have been involved in monitoring an artificial mound designed to encourage Sand Martins (Riparia riparia) to nest there. 

     Unfortunately, this structure has been a complete failure both years. There has not been the slightest interest in it; in fact, I have never even seen a Sand Martin in the vicinity of it. I think there are various reasons why it has not been used and I hope that a serious reevaluation will be made by the Land Trust responsible for it. I will be happy to share my ideas and I hope that if anyone reading this account has experience with a structure like this they will offer any critiques or suggestions they may have.
     I know that in Europe walls with pipes filled with sand have been used successfully and perhaps that is the answer here. Whether a wall has even been tried in North America I have no idea, but I have been unable to find evidence of it. Location is certainly a factor too.
     Butterflies abound in mid summer and there were lots of Northern Pearly-eye (Enodia anthedon) flitting around in the meadows. Fortunately the odd one landed on a desirable piece of vegetation, at least long enough to take a picture.

     A male Baltimore Oriole (Icterus galbula) was singing its head off; I am not quite sure why at this late stage in the breeding season, perhaps in defence of territory.

     After such a strenuous performance a little preening was in order.

     Upon leaving the reserve, as I pulled away in my car, I spotted a large Eastern Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis) basking in the middle of the gravel road. I stopped the car and got out gingerly and walked around the vehicle to the back so that the sun would be behind me for a picture. Careful as I might have been, I had obviously spooked the snake and it was slithering away quickly into the grass. I succeeded in getting only one picture before it disappeared from view. At least it was no longer in danger of being run over.

     After lunch Miriam and I decided to go out and check a few local spots, given the fact that the temperature was a pleasant 24 degrees, in sharp contrast with the hot spell we have been having recently, when air temperatures have been soaring to 35 degrees, and with humidity factored in, into the low forties - not pleasant at all.
     A pair of Western Ospreys (Pandion haliaeetus) have nested on a communications tower for the past few years and two birds were on the nest.

     I suspect that these two birds are the young of the year, now as big as their parents and ready to fledge at any time.
     Cedar Waxwings (Bombycilla cedrorum) are common and we were surprised to see only one individual.

     In fact birds were very scarce, perhaps resting during the heat of the day. Turkey Vultures (Cathartes aura) were taking advantage of the thermals and it was rarely that we looked up without seeing a couple soaring overhead.
     It was easier to find butterflies, with Cabbage White (Pieris rapae) being the most common species.

    Clouded Sulphur (Colias philodice) was a close second.

  
     A lone Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus), feeding at the edge of a pond which is rapidly drying up, appeared to be benefitting from the lack of competition.

     We spotted several Eastern Commas (Polygonia comma) but it took a bit of patience to wait for one to land. In fact, no sooner had one landed than a second one joined it.

     Queen Anne's Lace (Daucus carota) is blooming everywhere, and we checked for the caterpillar of the Carrot Seed Moth ((Sitochroa palealis) which uses Queen Anne's Lace as a host plant and we were able to find a few.

     The meadows are a riot of wildflowers at present.

     Lots of Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) was in bloom but try as we might we were unable to locate even one caterpillar of a Monarch (Danaus plexippus), and we have seen only two or three of this enigmatic butterfly this year.

     Japanese Beetle (Popilla japonica) is a serious invasive pest and seems to be quite catholic in its taste. I have lost count of the number of native plants on which I have seen it feeding.

     A couple of other butterflies rounded out our walk. If I am not mistaken this is our first Spring Azure (Celastrina lucia) of the year and it is already July!

     A Northern Crescent (Phyciodes cocyta) was partially hidden in the grasses, but Miriam managed to capture this shot.

     We saw several other interesting species of various taxa during our walk, most without photographs and a couple upon which we are awaiting ID confirmation. 
     It was great to be out and about on a fine summer's day. We will do it many times again before the cool winds of fall nip at our cheeks.

Rock Point Provincial Park

03 August 2016

     Rock Point Provincial Park is situated near Dunnville (Haldimand County), Ontario, on the north shore of Lake Erie. We had not previously visited this park and, having bought an annual pass to our provincial parks this year, we decided to visit it to see what it was like.

     We had asked our friends John and Geraldine Sanderson if they would like to accompany us and they too looked forward to visiting a park previously unknown to them. We picked them up at 08:00 and set off together for the day's adventure.

     Once inside the park we found an area by the lake that seemed to hold the promise of good birding - and we were not disappointed. Perhaps most impressive was the sheer number of American Yellow Warblers Setophaga aestiva already migrating south, a stark reminder that summer is waning and fall will soon be here.

American Yellow Warbler - male

     We were attracted to the clamour of a fledgling Brown-headed Cowbird Molothrus ater begging incessantly for its surrogate Song Sparrow Melospiza melodia parent to feed it. It seemed that no matter how many insects the dedicated "parent" stuffed into the cowbird's gape it was never enough.  

Song Sparrow feeding Brown-headed Cowbird

       Many butterflies were found in this area, the most ubiquitous being Cabbage White Pieris rapae.

Cabbage White

     We have not seen many Monarchs Danaus plexippus this year but a few have started to show up here and there, and small numbers of this archetypal species were present in the park.

Monarch

     Not to be outdone the diminutive Spring Azure Celestrina lucia was often observed flitting from plant to plant, alighting only briefly and often concealed by foliage.

Spring Azure

     Actually the whole azure complex has recently undergone taxonomic revision and I believe that the Spring Azure may have been merged with another azure species. Butterflies not being my field of expertise, I am not sure whether the name has been retained or not.

     Eastern Tiger Swallowtail Papilo glaucus, large and majestic, drifted everywhere, always an impressive sight.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

     The final butterfly species I was able to photograph was Red-spotted Purple Limenitis arthemis astyanax, a distinctive member of the Nymphalidae.

Red-spotted Purple

Red-spotted Purple

     There are various species of Katydid and I am not proficient enough to know which species this one is, but it was certainly an interesting looking creature.

Katydid sp.

     Periodically along the beach small groups of gulls were sighted, both American Herring Gull Larus smithsonianus and Ring-billed Gull Larus delawarensis.

American Herring Gull

Ring-billed Gull

     When we had lunch we were entertained by a family of Barn Swallows Hirundo rustica. The adults were providing a constant stream of food to young birds that looked just about ready to fledge.

Barn Swallow

Barn Swallow

     After lunch we returned to the car and drove around the park to explore its different features.

     There were several dead fish on the beach, mostly quite large, and of unknown species. As you can see from the following picture nothing had gone to waste.

     The shoreline at this point was predominantly a limestone shelf with sporadic stands of vegetation.

     This sub adult American Herring Gull had located a dead fish in the water and was enjoying easy pickings.

     This park has a sandy beach for families who come to enjoy the water, but the limestone formations prevail for most of the area, especially in the southeast corner of the park.

     Miriam was able to snap this Spotted Sandpiper Actitis macularius, darting in and out of cover to feed. 

     This park is renowned for its fossil formations dating back to the Devonian period, some 300 million years ago, and it was not hard to find them embedded in the limestone and bedrock.

     We all had a splendid day and we will look forward to visiting this interesting park again, perhaps in different seasons, and getting to know some of its secrets.

All bird species observed en route: Canada Goose, Mallard, Wild Turkey, Great Blue Heron, Turkey Vulture, Red-tailed Hawk, Killdeer, Ring-billed Gull, Rock Dove, Mourning Dove, American Crow, Barn Swallow, Common Starling, American Robin, House Sparrow, American Goldfinch, Common Grackle, Indigo Bunting.

All bird species observed at Rock Point Provincial Park: Canada Goose, Mallard, Double-crested Cormorant, Turkey Vulture, Killdeer, Spotted Sandpiper, Ring-billed Gull, American Herring Gull, Caspian Tern, Mourning Dove, Downy Woodpecker, Northern Flicker, Blue Jay, Black-capped Chickadee, Tree Swallow, Barn Swallow, House Wren, Grey Catbird, American Robin, American Goldfinch, American Yellow Warbler, Baltimore Oriole, Brown-headed Cowbird, Song Sparrow, Chipping Sparrow, Northern Cardinal.

Total species: 35