Soras to Sulphurs

 Tuesday morning I went for a long walk at Rondeau Park.  Marsh trail was the best option this day, and I needed the exercise anyway!  Out to Long Pond is a 11 km round trip.

There were quite a few birds, but nothing unexpected.  Even the 45 Soras I heard or saw was not unusual.  Dozens gather in the marshes here in late summer.

An American Mink scooted across the trail at one point.

I stopped by Keith McLean C. L. afterwards.  Looks inviting for shorebirds, but nothing new!

Greater Yellowlegs and Short-billed Dowitcher

In the afternoon I went for long walk at Reid CA.  

My usual walk is around the back field.

Shadow Darners keep popping up!

Lots of Common Buckeyes were flitting about and a few more Common Checkered-Skippers have arrived.

Question Mark

Wednesday I stayed fairly local, going for a walk at Mitchell's Bay.  A few birds kept me busy.  Along the shoreline various plants can be seen, including Marsh Tickseed.

In the afternoon I had the urge to go the Tecumseh Monument park along the Thames.  Nothing new, but I wanted to check it out!

Smoky Rubyspot

American Rubyspot

Pimpleback

Mucket

I also went over to Wardsville Woods for a walk.  Nothing unusual caught my eye though.  You never know until you look!

Wild Indigo Duskywing

Broad-leaved Goldenrod

Thursday I went down to Keith McLean C. L. hoping for something different.  However, with this stagnant weather, not much change.  A few shorebirds were there, including one peep that had Steve and I stumped.  We had fairly good scope views, but it did not fit anything familiar. Oh well.

In the ponds and around the edges, other flowers are very similar to Marsh Tickseed.  These beggar ticks are in the same family.  Only going by what comes up on iNaturalist!

Nodding Beggarticks

Smooth Beggarticks

The one pond is full of those!

I later stopped by the Blenheim lagoons.  Some shorebirds were in, including a pair of Red-necked Phalaropes.  A bit too distant in harsh lighting for my camera.

This Black-bellied Plover kept flying around and landing on the dike.

At home, I keep checking the garden for insects.  This very tiny one was new, which I inadvertently photographed.

Insidious Flower Bug

Today, after birding the shore trail at Mitchell's Bay, I went down to Point Pelee.  I wanted to get more looks at Dogface Sulphurs.  I found four.

At one point, an individual was competing with an Orange Sulphur for a knapweed flower.

At least I got some better flight shots to show the characteristic pattern.

There were lots of Orange Sulphurs as well.  Some were really orange!

I found only one Fiery Skipper, and a fleeting glimpse of a Grey Hairstreak.

Fiery Skipper

Some September Sightings and a Dogface!

Back to warm weather!  Birding has been patchy, but we experienced a highlight in the butterfly department at Point Pelee.  More on that in a bit.

Yesterday (Wednesday) I went down to Point Pelee to look for butterflies.  Things seemed to have picked up lately.  We may see some more highlights there in coming weeks!

I had hoped to find a Grey Hairstreak, but that never materialized.  Common Buckeyes are everywhere now and are a common sight.

I did find one female Fiery Skipper at one point.

I also saw a Cloudless Sulphur flutter by, but as usual it was on a mission.

I also saw a Pipevine Swallowtail, but it too was on a mission.

An American Snout was in the VC parking lot.  My first for this year.

Along west beach trail, there were lots of butterflies, especially sulphurs.  One would think a rarity in that family would pop up.

Late in the day, I got word that a Southern Dogface-Sulphur was photographed at the north end of the park.  There you go!

In retrospect, I also saw one there just after lunch but did not realize what it was, hence I did not pursue it.  Duh!  After seeing Bob's photos last night, that was 100% what I saw!

Word this morning was that several were being seen.  Back to Pelee I went! Sigh!

Several friends were on the creatures when I arrived, and I saw three in short order.  They were quite active, but while at perch, they do not look much different than an Orange Sulphur.

One even sat on the beach for a time.

One has to see them in flight to see the characteristic "money-shot" pattern.  Something difficult to photograph, but I managed some record shots.

This sulphur gets its name from the pattern on the upper wing which resembles the face of a dog.

The last record at Point Pelee was in 2008, and I have certainly not seen one to my knowledge until yesterday.

The State of Ohio has reported an influx recently, so it stands to reason that Point Pelee would experience some.

Certainly worth the trip to Point Pelee today!  We saw at least ten in the beach area after several of us wandered around.

Perhaps others will show up at different locations. 

There are lots of insects around right now at Point Pelee and other things to watch for.  Here is a Four-toothed Mason Wasp that I photographed in Sparrow Field.  It is apparently imperiled elsewhere in Canada, but not here.

Tuesday, I walked the south shore nature trail at Mitchell's Bay.  It has been very calm and clear this week, so viewing conditions were great.  There were lots of birds.

Highlight I suppose, were some Common Nighthawks flying around in the day.  At first I noticed one perched, which was preening at the time.  They are easy to miss when perched.  I happened to sit down on one of the benches and looked up.

Then I saw two working the skies overhead.

Another highlight was a large dragonfly that I saw flying around.  It eventually went to perch.  I thought, why does that look like a Royal River Cruiser?  Because it is!  Not something I expected at this location.

In the afternoon, it was too nice not to got for a walk at Reid CA.  

Not much happening there, but I saw a couple more Shadow Darners, not to mention Royal River Cruisers.  Getting late for the cruisers.

Shadow Darner

This katydid was in the parking lot when I arrived.  Not sure what species, as nobody wants to try and ID on iNaturalist!

Of course, Common Buckeyes were there as well as Common Painted-Lady.

So, things are happening!  Keep your eyes peeled.