Sunny Day Walks

Wednesday was a write-off with the wicked weather, but Tuesday and Thursday I took advantage of the sunny skies and wandered about.

I was overdue for a really long walk to unwind, so Tuesday I opted to head out Rondeau's marsh trail all the way to Long Pond.  It was not as birdy as I had hoped, but the walk did me some good!

Eastern Phoebe

Along the way, this Brown Creeper was busy on a tree beside the trail.

There are still thousands of ducks on Rondeau Bay, but this day they were way out.  Many puddle ducks were in the wet areas along the trail, but always flushed before one could get close.

Insects are emerging, and the most common one lately is Narrow-headed Marsh Fly.

I have always looked at this Eastern White Pine out marsh trail.

I believe this deformity is called a witch's broom, common on pines.

Today we had a complete turn-around in temperature from the previous day.  Quite balmy!

First thing in the morning, I checked out the south shore nature trail at Mitchell's Bay.  I saw my  first-of-year Purple Martins already checking out the nesting houses.

Also new for the year were several Forster's Terns on the Bay.

This afternoon, I could not pass up a walk at Reid CA.  Lots of Eastern Commas were flying.

As well, a couple of Mourning Cloaks were soaking up the sun.

There were lots of Narrow-headed Marsh Flies here as well.

Much smaller, I noticed an Eastern Calligrapher at one point.  They are quite tiny, so difficult to photograph.

Harbinger of Spring is popping up in the usual spots.  This small and delicate plant is easily overlooked.

Not much else in flower yet, but some Virginia Spring Beauty were in bloom.

Reid has lots of Wild Leek, coming along nicely now.

I can never get enough of what Reid CA has to offer!  It is so nice to wander through the woods.  Here are some scenes.

I thought this tree was unique.

Lots of large Black Walnut trees here.

I usually do not go to Reid for birds since it has so much else to offer.  Some early spring birds today included Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (although the last two summers, one was resident).

And of course, the Eastern Phoebe.

As I got back to the parking lot, I heard some croaking.  To the south in the distance, were three Common Ravens.  I am sure they are nesting nearby, but I have not determined where yet.

Simply ravenous!

Early December Views

 Tuesday was a fairly nice day so I went for a couple of walks locally.  My old hotspot of Brander Park has changed a bit, and not for the good.  The obsession of cleaning out ditches and drains continues.  The little creek through the woodlot has been dredged out.

It seems to me a lot of this is not necessary, further drying out the land and lowering the water table.  If only they knew how much wildlife they are killing off!  Oblivious to that no doubt.

Later, I went for a walk at Reid CA.  

Scene at the old rivercourse

One can look for long distances through the forest with all the vegetation died back.  Some trees stand out.

Not many birds of course, but there are lots of Dark-eyed Juncos kicking around this winter.

Wednesday I went up to Sarnia (did some shopping!).  A walk at Perch Creek was virtually birdless!  Some winters this is a good spot, but when one sees only six birds in an hour, that is not good.

I drove back roads heading back home, and stopped briefly at Moore WMA.  River was a bit high for some reason.

Mussels washed up included Mapleleaf.  One of the easiest ones to ID.

Usually this is an excellent place for birds in winter, but not this day.  It was very windy, as it has been all week.  Highlight was a tardy Ruby-crowned Kinglet in horrible lighting.

Thursday I went down to Rondeau for a  walk.  It was extremely windy, so birds were few and far between.  Just wanted to get there for a bit before the park is closed this weekend.

Drove some back roads on the way to Blenheim.  A large flock of Snow Buntings/Horned Larks/Lapland Longspurs was along Mull Road.  Not the best opportunity for photos out the car window!

Horned Lark

Today, I had little ambition and did not go far.  A walk near Wilkesport was somewhat productive, as a Common Raven was flying around, and croaking!

Common Ravens are somewhat regular anymore in Lambton, so not a big deal.

Also came across a couple of Long-eared Owls (trailside).  Sometimes one has to look hard for them, but these two were out in the open.

I noticed the one had a meal ready for later!  Might be a small muskrat?

Some Eastern Bluebirds were also flying around here.  Always nice to hear, but they were flyovers.

Also stopped by McKeough.  Probably Long--eared Owls around here too.  I used to get lots here quite regularly in winter.

McKeough Floodway

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For a historical note today, here is an airview looking to the east side of Wallaceburg in the early 1900's.  My house is within this area, near the top right.  It was once all farmland.  Over the years I have turned up things in the soil such as horseshoes, nails and other things.  Even an 1837 US penny!

More Rondeau Visits and Middlesex Meanderings

 Tuesday it was down to Rondeau Park once again.  It seems like the best option for long walks and looking for birds and other things. The St. Clair River is useless this winter and there is not much around Wallaceburg.

I headed to south point trail first thing.  A rain cloud came over just after I started walking, but it did not last long.  I was on the trail to the light beacon when a light rain fell.  It produced a rainbow, as seen in the current header of this blog.

The sun soon came back out for a nice day.

While on the trail, an Eastern Towhee was calling in the underbrush.  We had not encountered one here recently, so I do not know where it came from.  I ventured slightly off trail to look at it, but that was a mistake.  Black-legged Ticks are in full force!  I picked off at least five from my pantlegs.  Not doing that again!  We never used to worry much about these ticks, but in recent years they have exploded in population it seems.

Later, I walked all of Black Oak trail.  Here is another common lichens.

Common Greenshield Lichens

Another, I think is Bark Scribble (the little black marks).  Lichens is not a popular subject on iNaturalist, so I am not sure.

A visit to Rondeau is not complete this time of year without walking the campground.  I finally came across the wintering Yellow-bellied Sapsucker.  It moved around quite a bit, so was difficult to get on.

Only two regular Yellow-rumped Warblers were encountered.  The Audubon's is likely still lurking around.

One last walk was at Keith McLean C. L.  Nothing of note, but shorebirds will soon be appearing.  A Turkey Vulture was lazily soaring over during my visit.

Nothing to report on Wednesday.  A large branch came off the Silver Maple in the yard, which had some lichens on it.  A common species, the Star Rosette is quite interesting-looking when one gets up close.

Thursday was another nice day, so it was back to Rondeau.  I walked marsh trail to half way point.  Nothing new, other than a few more Song Sparrow arrivals.

There were lots of ducks on the Bay.  Before leaving the marsh trail, I scoped from the dock.  It took only a minute to get on a Eurasian Wigeon male!  It is quite possible there is more than one on the Bay, but this one was I assume was the same one spotted by the Pye brothers on Tuesday.  It was just too far for a photo, as one can see from this useless photo!

Mussels always catch my eye, and of course there was one at the dock.  Another Fatmucket, which seems very common at Rondeau.

Today, I had to do something different.  I went as far as Strathroy and checked out the sewage lagoons.  This site is easily accessible to the public with no permit required.  Too bad others were not like this.  It is a superb birding hotspot.

Oodles of ducks here, most being Ring-necked.  Upwards of 200!

A number of Northern Shovelers, early for the locale, had already arrived.

Some Yellow-rumped Warblers winter here in the back woods.  I encountered four today.

Along the back dike, I encountered some Dark-eyed Juncos.  One stood out with a defined hood and crisp breast line.  I suspected it might be of the Cassiar type.

Juncos are highly variable and can exhibit characteristics of the different subspecies.  The Cassiar type include the subspecies cismontanus which are normally found in the Rocky Mountains.  There are numerous records in Ontario and the midwest.  However, they are quiet variable in appearance.  Basically it is a cross between Oregon and Dark-eyed Junco.  This one may be approaching that type.

After the lagoon visit, I headed back west and checked out the Winter Line area.  A pair of Common Ravens were croaking in one pasture.  These are not rare anymore in Middlesex and Lambton!

I worked my way home via Skunk's Misery, and walked my favourite trail off Sassafras Road.  Unfortunately this trail was decimated earlier last year by some unnecessary dredging.  However, it still can be a good place to walk.

The spoils brought up some interesting creatures.  Tiny molluscs called fingernail (or pea) clams can be seen. This one appears to be Striated Fingernail Clam.

Also some ramshorn snails, another tiny creature, are here.

Later, driving through the misery, I got lucky and saw a Golden Eagle.  Although they regularly winter in the area, sometimes they can be missed.

Next walk was at Wardsville Woods.  The morning had been gloomy, but thankfully the sun came out for this walk. It was almost warm enough for butterflies, but I saw none.  The only insects were various flies.

This Red Squirrel posed for a bit while I was there.

Weather deteriorated the rest of the day, so nothing to report after Wardsville.