Fun Finds!

I stumbled upon a plant I had not noticed before, or at least not at this time of year. The decomposition of the seed case caught my eye. I believe it is a type of Groundcherry. I will need to check the location earlier next fall to try to identify the species.

Ash tree bud scar:  It reminded me of Aladdin with a large, heart-shaped mouth, nose and topped off with a fez!

Mallard Drake just before he swallowed the whole acorn!

Beetle Larvae tracks in dead wood.

Wild Bergamot flower seed head.

One of these things is not like the other! The centre of the photo shows a Cattle Egret, adult, non breeding, mixed in with hundreds of Ring-billed Gulls. Can you see it?? It was originally found by Deryl this morning, then re-found by Anne at Hiawatha. Great to find this tropical heron in Lambton County. Fun Fact: Cattle Egrets will fly towards smoke from long distances away to catch insects fleeing a fire! Cornell Lab, All About Birds.

 Dueling Woodpeckers!

I wandered into Canatara Park this afternoon not expecting to see much on this drizzly day until a pair of very vocal Red-bellied Woodpeckers caught my attention.

I witnessed several interactions but this was the only aerial battle I was able to capture with the camera. The arguing continued for a full 10 minutes!

Sometimes they fed in peace on separate trees.

But most of the time was spent "in battle".

Look out below!!

Other animals had to watch their backs! A Black Squirrel kept an eye on the pair after being dive-bombed by one of the woodpeckers!

Clever Bird!

Our backyard wildlife has been entertaining lately. This Blue Jay watches for me to place peanuts on the feeder each morning. He then imitates the call of a Coopers Hawk, scaring away the rest of the birds and swoops down for his prize! These hawk imitations may provide information to other birds about the presence of a predator, but also are used to deceive birds into believing a hawk is present! Cornell Lab, All About Birds.

Tufted Titmice have been frequenting our platform backyard feeder! I hope we continue to see them through the winter! Like Chickadees, Tufted Titmice hoard food in the fall and winter. They take advantage of a bird feeder's bounty by storing collected seeds, usually within 40 metres of the feeder. Titmice take only one seed per trip and usually shell the seeds before hiding them. Cornell Lab, All About Birds.

Dark-eyed Juncos are showing up in larger numbers.

We sometimes have 40+ Juncos in our backyard! They like the "weed seeds" where the grass won't grow! Their bright white tail feathers help to identify this species when in flight.

We can watch many species flying overhead from our yard. Every once in awhile, something comes down for a closer look, such as this Turkey Vulture! They will be heading for warmer climates in the next few weeks.

 A Foggy, Frosty, Morning!

Before leaving my yard for the park this morning, I found frosted dandelion fluff covered in beads of moisture.

Lake Chipican was showing signs of the fog lifting.

The Lighthouse in Fort Gratiot, MI was visible above the fog.

Deryl found a fish skeleton on the Lake Huron beach also boasting beads of moisture.

In the Canatara Meadow, I saw 3 Leafhoppers "huddled" on a single leaf with beads of melting frost on their wings. I didn't stick around to find out if the day got warm enough for them to move around. Perhaps last night's frost will signal the end of mosquito season!!

 Beach Life, Pinery style in October!

We headed to Pinery Provincial Park a few days ago hoping for Red-throated Loons in the windy conditions. We didn't find the loons, saw very few birds but did find lots of insects!

Countless beetles were sheltering on the beach drift wood. Even though there is a great variety of colour, pattern and number of spots on these individuals, they appear to all be Multi Coloured Asian Beetles. They can be identified by a black 'M' shaped marking behind the head.

Multi Coloured Asian Beetles were first found in Ontario in 1994. They spread rapidly after being introduced in the United States as a control for aphids.  https://www.ojibway.ca/lady.htm

Deryl captured one with its wings outstretched.

 Canatara, Mid-October:

A group of 6 Great Egrets appear to be making migration plans. The next day they were gone!  (A seventh Egret supervised from above.) 

On a recent walk, I spied a Great Egret that was a little closer to the trail than the others. As I was preparing to take a photo, my view was "photo-bombed" by another Egret.

Kinglets have been abundant in wooded areas recently. The Golden-crowned Kinglet also has golden coloured feet!

A male Ruby-crowned Kinglet is sporting his fall colours!

I learned recently that the heartwood of Cottonwood Trees is star-shaped. I wanted to see for myself and collected half a dozen sticks off the ground. Only 1 twig showed a good star. Its important to find twigs that aren't too green or too rotten.

This morning I watched a Cooper's Hawk swoop down to the ground from higher up in a tree. Warning: If you don't want to see the cute little woodland creature that he caught in his talons, don't look at the next picture.....

Chipmunk is on the menu for today's lunch.

Sunset at Canatara Beach October 18th.

 Arrowhead Provincial Park:

We spent a few hours at Arrowhead Provincial Park after leaving Limberlost Forest. Beautiful fall colours were in abundance here as well!

Photo opportunities for birds were few and far between on this trip. We did find some White-crowned Sparrows looking for seeds on the ground. (female top, male bottom photo)

While admiring the fall colours and "matching" canoes, 

a Ring-billed Gull landed in front of us on the beach.

I always enjoy watching Red Squirrels. This fellow was obviously used to people and was hoping for a hand out, but we had no food to offer.

We weren't the only ones enjoying the fabulous fall colours!

Limberlost Forest and Wildlife Reserve:

We learned about this jewel of a property from a friend the day before leaving for Huntsville. Limberlost practices a form of land management referred to as Conscientious Forest Management which focuses on ensuring the sustainability of their management objectives and actions for generations to come. There are over 70 kilometres of hiking trails and 20 lakes on the10,000 acre property.  https://limberlostforest.com/

The above photos were taken along the trail circling Turtle and Clear Lakes.

After hiking the 8.5 km Turtle and Clear Lake Trails, we hiked to a lookout point along Solitaire Lake. We made it to the rock outcrop visible in the upper third of the picture, known as Echo Rock Lookout. Completing the Solitaire Lake trail is a 13 km commitment which will need to wait for a future visit!

View from Echo Rock Lookout.

I haven't been able to identify these tiny orange fungus balls. They were only 2mm in diameter.

Mourning Cloak sunning on October 6th.

A rock garden was being maintained by one of the property owners on the side of a hill.

The Rock Garden also housed some wild animal art!

Orange Hawkweed