Strathroy Stuff and Sydenham River Nature Reserve Stuff

 Wednesday was brutally cold and windy, so my activities were limited.  It was a little drizzly in the morning, so I just checked out some spots along the St. Clair River.  I later went for a short, but uncomfortable walk at Reid CA just looking at plants.

Kidneyleaf Buttercup

Largeflower Bellwort

Dwarf Ginseng

Early Blue Cohosh

Red Trillium

Large White Trillium (with a pink hue!)

Today was calm and sunny, but cool!  Looks like the weather has settled down and it will get quite warm this weekend.  Watch for lots of new birds!

I went to Strathroy this morning, first stopping at the lagoons.  A Black-necked Stilt has arrived for the third year in a row!  Its mate should be arriving soon.

There was lots to look at and I spent over an hour and a half there.  Another notable bird was an early Eastern Kingbird.  Probably the earliest I have seen one.  Unfortunately, I was unable to get a photograph.

Other migrant shorebirds included six Greater Yellowlegs, two Lesser Yellowlegs, and a dozen Pectoral Sandpipers.  But, they were distant and a scope was necessary.

I also checked out Strathroy Conservation Area.  This was only the second time I have ever been there.  Not much in the way of birds, but this Eastern Screech-Owl was keeping an eye on things.

The place has an abundant supply of Eastern Skunk Cabbage.

And Marsh Marigold in the wet areas.

Next stop was Clark Wright CA on Walker's Line.  A Pine Warbler has already arrived on territory there.

I then drove some roads, but it seemed too early for Upland Sandpiper yet, or at least I could not find any!  They should be around starting now.

The next stop was Sydenham River Nature Reserve, where a planned outing of Lambton Wildlife was to take place.  I arrived over an hour early, so looked around on my own at the end of Buttonwood Road in Middlesex.

This a premier place to see Virginia Bluebells, an endangered plant.

Most were not in full bloom yet, but it is impressive the amount that is there, especially on the other side of the creek.

Generally, the SRNR is not open to the public, as it is a reserve owned by Ontario Nature (ON).  That is a good thing, as there are many rare and precious things there.  But, we often have special planned outings there, as I have covered in the past.

In the retired field acquired in recent years by ON, Mark Buchanan spotted a small butterfly.  It turned out to be Meadow Fritillary!  It is a bit early, but they can be seen this time of year.  It was another species not on the list.  I had difficult time trying to get a photo.

We also spotted  a Juvenal's Duskywing.

I noticed various insects, and randomly photographed this one.  It is an Eastern Catkin Fly, which is vulnerable in Ontario.  Another one not on the SRNR list, although I am sure they have been there.

Another insect was a Six-spotted Tiger Beetle, a common beetle.

There is a beaver dam along the little creek, that has the water backed up.

One could cross the creek here, as there is little water downstream of the dam.  There is some shale exposed here, and within that I found a brachiopod of some sort.

Here are some other views of the area.

Some birds included Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers (they nest here), Wilson's Snipe, and a Greater Yellowlegs.  The yellowlegs was a new one for the bird list here.

It was a productive day with some decent finds!