Foxy Finds in Ontario

Since it has not been a productive week with the camera, I decided to look through my archives and select animals that don't have wings!  We have come across some great photo opportunities with foxes up in Algonquin Park as well as in Lambton County.

In 2014, while vacationing near the Trent-Severn Waterway, we found a Mom and kit fox walking along the side of the road.  They ran up the hill when our car approached but we had some great views before they disappeared!

Two more views of the young fox.

While driving on our way to walk the Mizzy Trail in Algonquin Park, we found this cutie near the road edge.  All of our fox shots have been taken from our vehicle.

Deryl spied this fox while driving along Lakeshore Road near Camlachie in 2018.

He stopped for a bite to eat...

Then licked his lips following the satisfying meal!

Prior to publishing this blog post, I would have said that I don't encounter foxes very often, but the pictures have proven me wrong.  We are often luckier than we remember!

Life Bird in Dundas, Nov. 23

My plans were to visit Dundas this weekend to support my life long friend, Christine Robinson, as she was hosting a book launch for a memoir of life with her husband.  "Our Life Our Way" is a memoir of Active Faith, Profound Love and Courageous Disability Rights.  I thought I would give her a quick plug for the book, available on Amazon.

It just so happened that Deryl and I were able to get a life bird, thanks to our visit to Dundas.  A Western Kingbird has been hanging out at a local Butterfly Garden for the past few weeks.  Lady luck was with us and we found the beautiful bird with little effort!  He was very busy hunting for food and we watched him successfully earn his lunch. We will keep our fingers crossed that he migrates south or manages to find enough food in the cold weather. He is very close to a sewage treatment plant where insects may still be found throughout the winter months.

Just down the road from the Kingbird, 3 Black-crowned Night Herons could be seen fishing.

LaSalle Park, Burlington, Nov. 24

LaSalle Park did not disappoint us this morning.  In addition to a White-breasted Nuthatch, we found 40 other bird species!!!  This Nuthatch would not land on my hand, but instead searched for the sunflower seed caches hidden by the braver Black-capped Chickadees more willing to hand feed.

I closely watched a Winter Wren foraging for food, and was pleased when he emerged from the undergrowth of plants alongside the trail.

3 of his cousins, the Carolina Wrens were spotted nearby.

Burlington Lift Bridge

Another birding goal for the day was to find a King Eider.  Upon arriving at the pier under the lift bridge, we quickly learned it was easier to see the Eider from the Burlington side of the water.  There is a pedestrian walkway across the bridge, so I made my first crossing by foot along that stretch of road. 

As we started to walk along the pier, a Northern Mockingbird sat in a bush right beside us. (Deryl had walked by without noticing!)

There was no shortage of Ring-billed Gulls!

This Surf Scoter was one of my favourite birds of the day!

We also saw his "goofy looking" cousin, a White-winged Scoter munch on a mouthful of zebra mussels.

The immature male King Eider came within 75 feet of us.

I noticed a freighter in the Lake heading towards the Bay and wanted to cross the lift bridge before we were stuck on the wrong side of the channel. We were still walking across the bridge when the warning horn began to blast, but we made it safely back to the car! (The Burlington Skyway is shown behind the lift bridge.)

We estimated there were 750 Long-tailed Ducks hanging out at the pier.  This group took flight when the freighter approached.

One of the Long-tailed ducks floated close to the pier after they settled down again.

A White-winged Scoter had a big yawn! He may have been having a drink of water.

November 11-17, 2019

We found our first Northern Shrike of the season on Saturday.  He was hanging out along a rural Middlesex County Road.

A couple of dark-phase, Rough-legged Hawks were spotted soaring across the fields....

And a Red-tailed hawk was hunting for his supper.

Earlier in the day, 15 Sandhill Cranes flew over the beach parking lot at Canatara Park.

During a morning walk today near Petrolia, we found 5 Yellow-rumped warblers!  They, along with some nearby Hermit Thrush, need to start thinking seriously about migration!

Black-capped Chickadees were grabbing seed that had fallen from our hands.

A Red-bellied Woodpecker was finding lots of snacks under the feeders at a camp site.

Daylight ended with a beautiful sunset in Middlesex County last evening.

Beauty in Nature!

This week's early snow and frosty weather, combined with freshly falling leaves created a little bit of magic for me.  I hope you enjoy these images that caught my eye!

Snow Day! - Backyard Birds

Many birds visited the backyard feeders today!

The first birds spotted were Dark-eyed Juncos.  20 could be seen foraging for seed.

A few American Tree Sparrows with their central breast spot and two-toned beaks were the next visitors.

I love it when Red-bellied Woodpeckers show up in our yard! This male was very wary of camera clicking noises, but he stayed long enough to eat some peanuts.

Once the larger woodpecker left, two Downy Woodpeckers made appearances.

It has been several weeks since I last saw a Carolina Wren.  Usually I find them because they are so noisy, but this one was as quiet as a mouse.

This is the closest I have ever been to a Starling that was in the sun. We don't usually see them in our yard. The light really enhances the "stars" on the feathers of this invasive bird.

Another acrobat spending time on the peanut feeder was a White-breasted Nuthatch.

A couple of ground feeders made appearances including this Hermit Thrush.  

I also saw a Fox Sparrow but it didn't stay long enough for pictures.

A White-throated Sparrow hung out with the juncos for awhile.

One of the most regular visitors to our feeders are cardinals.  

They are usually the last visitors on any given day.

November 3-10, 2019

We had our first taste of winter in Petrolia this week, which was little more than a dusting.  Some cars exiting off the 402 showed signs of some serious snow just to the east of Sarnia.

Ice formations were beautiful in Lake Chipican on Friday!

A local mallard gang was showing passersby what they thought of the cold weather!

A couple of American Black Ducks found a calm spot in the Sarnia Bay for a rest.

I was curious as to why this Red-bellied Woodpecker was frozen in place.  When the Coopers Hawk cruised by, I had the answer to my question.  5 minutes later the woodpecker continued his search for food.

A beautiful Blue Jay added some colour to our backyard today!