Canatara, Naturally!

This was possibly my best ever look at a Philadelphia Vireo! They breed in the boreal forest and are most often seen during Spring and Fall Migration in southern Ontario. They are smaller and less aggressive than Red-eyed Vireos and tend to forage for food in the upper canopy of trees to avoid competition with the larger vireo. Favourite foods include caterpillars, spiders, beetles, wasps, ants, moths and flies. Philadelphia and Red-eyed Vireos sing very similar songs. Where these two species overlap on the nesting grounds, the Philadelphia Vireo may sing perfect imitations of Red-eyed song. Scientists speculate that these imitations might help the smaller Philadelphia to avoid aggression by the larger, heavier Red-eyed Vireo.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Philadelphia_Vireo/overview

I was lucky to find this Bay-breasted Warbler still wearing fairly bright spring colours. Typically in the fall, they become a greenish colour, making identification difficult. Their population numbers vary from year to year and are likely to increase quickly during population explosions of the Spruce Budworm.

https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/bay-breasted-warbler

Bay-breasted Warbler with a larva snack!

On the cooler mornings, if you look in "just the right places", it is possible to find Common Green Darner Dragonflies and other species drying off their wings and waiting for the sun to warm them!

Shadow Darner

Paper nest made by Bald Faced Hornets (Yellowjackets.)

Great Blue Heron

House Wren - a very noisy chatterbox!

This Asteroid Moth Caterpillar was so well camouflaged that I had to take a couple of looks to determine I was actually looking at a caterpillar and not a leaf!

Young Male Rose-breasted Grosbeak that likely was raised in Canatara Park.

I followed a "murder" of American Crows as they cawed incessantly. Often it means they have uncovered the hiding spot of a Hawk, Owl or Eagle, but this time I think they "just wanted to make noise!!"

The noisy crows led me down a path where I noticed this White Underwing Moth. These moths which are members of the 'Family Noctuidae' have evolved a trick for dealing with bats. They can actually hear the bats as they are attuned to the exact frequencies of sound that bats use for echo-location. When the moths are flying about and hear a hunting bat, they will fly downward in an erratic manner, seeking a place to hide until the bat departs!

http://naturenorth.com/fall/underwing/uwingF2.html

Ring-billed Gull Play time! A Ring-billed Gull spent several minutes playing with the short stick. It kept dropping it and picking it up before the waves could carry it away!