Black-capped Chickadees

I often mumble to myself about all of the Chickadee photos that I take, but I can't help myself as they are so cute.  I was recently asked by Lambton Wildlife to do a species presentation on any vertebrate of my choosing. While scrolling through my photo files, I realized that I now had a use for all those Chickadee pictures!

"Did I just get a tweet?" It is a joy to watch their curious nature!

During the winter months, chickadees eat enough food daily to equal their body weight, and spend almost all of their waking hours looking for food.

One Chickadee weighs 11-12 grams, the equivalent of 5 pennies!

Chickadees develop a pecking order around food, and younger birds need to wait for their elders to eat first.

Black-capped Chickadees are able to increase the size of their brains by 30% in the winter, allowing them to remember a thousand hiding spots for their cached seeds.  I have watched many a seed be tucked into tree bark by this species.  Brain size returns to normal in the spring when they no longer need the extra memory space.

Nests are excavated by both adults in decaying stumps.  The nest is about 21 cm deep.  Bark and moss is often used for the foundation and animal fur, feathers, or man made materials are used as a lining.

The number of eggs can range from 1 to over 10. Incubation lasts 12-13 days and the hatched chicks stay in the nest for another 12-16 days before venturing out into the world.

The oldest known banded bird lived to be 12 years, 5 months.  

The average age of a wild bird is 2.5 years.

Insects make up 70% of their food. Chickadees provide an excellent form of natural pest control eating insect eggs and larva. They apparently have a particular fondness for ants.

Adult Males can be identified as they have a larger black bib than the female.  In my experience, Chickadees are so active, that I have not learned to recognize the difference in bib size.

If you ever have the chance to hand feed chickadees, I highly recommend it!  

Experiencing "that chickadee feeling" provides an excellent opportunity to connect with nature!!

Dream big, little one!!

January 20-26, 2020

Another week of mainly grey skies. Other birders had been reporting robins, but they had eluded us until this morning.  The berries on the Juniper trees provided a snack and shelter for them. We typically find Robins in the winter, so these ones are unfortunately not a sign of spring being around the corner.

Deryl had some luck finding a Rough-legged hawk this week.  It sat in a tree at roadside, and he was able to shoot these photos from the car.

One early morning before work, a quick walk in Canatara earned me a Red-bellied Woodpecker, above, and a Bald Eagle, below.

The eagle was high in a tree on the lake shore, near the Lifeguard building.

While walking along the Blackwell Trails, Deryl spotted a Greater White-fronted Goose.  One had been seen around Port Franks 2 weeks ago, so we have been hoping and watching for it to arrive in the Sarnia area.

It flew off with a large flock of Canada Geese, but we expect it will stay in the area for at least a couple of days, as long as we have open water.

Canoeing at Cloud Bay

The general lack of sunshine and birds this past weekend compelled me to reminisce about a couple of recent trips to Cloud Bay (west of Thunder Bay) to visit my brother and his family.

We enjoyed a relatively leisurely paddle around Cloud Bay and managed to get surprisingly close to 3 Common Loons.

Lake Superior is not often as smooth as glass.  We couldn't have asked for better paddling conditions!

A vein of beautiful purple amethyst was visible in the rock!

We stopped to hike to the top of McKellar Point.  

This ridge is visible from the front window of my brother's home.

3 dragonflies were busy hunting for bugs to eat at this high elevation. 

The scenery was spectacular.  

Sharon and Deryl taking a break at the top.

A rather tattered looking Bald Eagle soared past.

Another stop to explore an island.

My brother has nick named this area "Peggy's Cove".

Wonderful reflections were found in the rock pools. 

These White Pelicans were not viewed from the canoe, but were one of many trip highlights!  It was impressive being so close to such large birds!

Mid-January

I have been faithfully carrying my camera around, despite the dreary weather.  Once in awhile the sun pops out.  Yesterday at lunch was one of those times and I found a grey Screech Owl peeking out of a wood duck box.  He too, was enjoying the sunshine!

Carolina Wrens continue to come to our backyard peanut feeder.  This bird was keeping both eyes on me.  I had to take the photo through the glass window.

Deryl had a close encounter with a Canada Goose recently.  It's amazing that Lake Chipican is still mostly ice free.  I hope hibernating creatures don't wake up thinking that spring has sprung!

Near Strathroy, I encountered a large flock of Snow Buntings (1,000+), my first of the year!  

While touring around the county on the weekend, we found a few dead ends thanks to flooded roads.

The main trails to the back of Henderson Conservation Area have been flooded this winter more often than not.

Following the rainfall, muddy creeks and rivers are making it more difficult for fishing birds to find food.  A Kingfisher moved from Talfourd Creek to the St. Clair River in his quest for a meal.

Despite the rain, there was enough of a chill in the air to frost the trees.

Even the trees on Stag Island, in the St. Clair River, were frosted white.

This weekend's rains inspired me to look through some old photos for today's post.

Rascally Raccoons!

Raccoons show a lot of character and I enjoy photographing them while we are out and about looking for birds.

This fellow was "bathing" in the top of a tree snag, relaxing on his back....not at all concerned about hikers on the nearby trail.

One early morning in June 2018 I looked out my kitchen window to find this family of 5 navigating along the chain link fence in our backyard.

They were headed in the direction of Canatara Park and didn't hang around long. The youngsters were having a very difficult time balancing on the metal rod!

One month later I found a family of 5 in the park. Perhaps it was the same group that paraded through my backyard in June?

Some times the whole coon doesn't quite fit into the sleeping hole.

This pair of "teenagers" appeared to be "out back" having a smoke!

Although a mostly nocturnal creature, they can be very curious during daylight hours.

"The morning after the night before!"  Must have been a long night!