Today's colour is black

A black beauty near Kettleby, Ontario

Black Jelly Fungus among us

AMERICAN CROW ~ Corvus brachyrhynchos

Black-crowned Night Heron in Holland Marsh

Please comment if you wish.

BtheB

Painted Turtle ~ now you see him...

Photo by BarrytheBirder

A Painted Turtle moves about a pond on the newly connected, Tom Taylor/Nokiidaa Trail between Newmarket and Aurora and only the very watchful see it appear, like a surfacing submarine under the Duckweed and algae.    Fellow blogger, Anna, of 'Living in Aurora', wrote to say that Black-crowned Night Herons, which I wrote about earlier this week, have also been seen and photographed on the Tom Taylor/Nokiidaa Trail.   The Trail and adjacent MacKenzie Marsh are home to hundreds of ducks, including a few interesting cross-breeds.   Below, a home is what you make of it.

Please comment if you wish.

BtheB 

More Herons ~ lots more

A Black-crowned Night Heron comes in for a landing at the Holland Marsh near Bradford today.

A Great Blue Heron in a very green world

An immature Black-crowned Night Heron retreats from the canal to dine on a small fish it caught.

The Holland Marsh rivers are favourite fishing spots for more than just herons.

 

I returned to the Holland Marsh today to try my hand at seeing more herons.   I was not disappointed.   The first heron I saw today was once again a Black-crowned Night Heron in the same spot I spotted one yesterday.   I thought that might be it for today...the same bird.   Over the course of the next hour I came across 10 Black-crowned Night Herons.   It was once again around the noon-hour and I was starting to feel a little foolish for saying just three days ago that this was a bird best seen around dusk.   All of these herons were actively hunting for food.   The only heron a saw today with a fish in its beak was an immature Black-crowned Night Heron.   As I made my way along the Holland Marsh canals, I also spotted a nine Great Blue Herons.   I stopped counting at this point even though they continued to show up.   I had spotted more Black-crowned Night Herons in one hour than I had in a lifetime and was most grateful.   I also spotted Belted Kingfishers, Wood Ducks, Barn Swallows, and a few turtles.   I suspect this heron activity is not customary in that the Holland Marsh canals are being relocated away from the major roads that run beside them.  It is being done in the interest of road safety.   Over the years, many cars have plunged into the canals and a number of deaths have resulted.   Its a huge relocation job but one that seems to be a boon for wildlife, especially birds, that have a plethora of new perching/feeding locations to choose from.   The new spots are also at a greater distance from the roadways, thereby giving creatures a greater comfort zone while feeding.   The narrow canal roads are hazardous for birdwatchers, like me, because we are constantly slowing down. pulling over, and generally being a pain in the butt for local marsh farmers.   Care is to be cautioned when wandering about here.   Nevertheless, the Holland Marsh canals are excellent for local herons at this time of year.

Please comment if you wish.

BtheB                                                                                                        All photos by BarrytheBirder

Ps. This very satisfying outing was capped off at the Kettleby General Store, with a Strawberry Shortcake ice cream cone.  "Barry, Barry, Barry...will ye never learn, lad?" 

Old grader and geese

One is sometimes unsure about the combination of subject matter in a photo.   This could be one of those occasions.   An antique road-grader and Canada Geese doesn't sound like a particularly promising picture, but something catches your eye and you press the shutter anyway.   This was one of those occassions.   The scene was early evening near the main gate to Eaton Hall/Seneca College, just north of King City.

Please comment if you wish.

BtheB 

Corn among the carrots

The photo above is a recent shot from the Holland Marsh, in northern King Township.   It shows acre upon acre of carrots destined for markets all over Ontario and the U.S.A.   It also shows, on the left hand side, a small patch of corn, which I think is destined for personal consumption by the marsh farmers who grow it.   The small patchs might have a hundred or so plants and show up here and there on the edge of fields that hold hundreds or thousands of acres or carrots and onions and other marsh produce.   Waste not, want not.

Please comment if you wish.

BtheB

Black-crowned Night Heron in Holland Marsh

BarrytheBirder photo

MMBlack-crowned Night HeronMM

Nycticorax nycticorax

The Black-crowned Night Heron is a nocturnal feeder and is most often heard at dusk.   The one above was feeding in the Holland Marsh, north of Toronto, during the noon-hour today as can be seen by its shadow, cast by the sun almost directly overhead.   I rarely seen this bird close to my home, because although it is common, it is also described as local.   That means it is very picky about where it likes to feed, find shelter, meet mates and raise young.   It is highly successful at living in marshes and shorelines and roosts in trees.   Although I rarely see one, it's not because it doesn't get around.   In fact, it ranges from Southern Canada to Argentina, Eurasia, Africa and the Pacific Islands.   I really must pay more attention.  

Please comment if you wish.

BtheB     

'Orange Dog' pays us a visit

Photo by Barry the Birder

GIANT SWALLOWTAIL

Papilio cresphontes 

'Orange Dog', a.k.a. the Giant Swallowtail, paid a visit to our backyard today.   I don't recall ever seeing one around here before, which shouldn't be a surprise seeing how they are a lot more at home in the USA, Mexico, Central and South america.   In fact, it's fair to say they are downright rare and local in much of the northeast.   They are 4 - 6" (102-152 mm) wide.   It is citrus growers who most often call them Orange Dogs. This butterfly is sometimes considered a pest by citrus growers who subject them to widespread spraying.   It is one of the largest North American butterflies and has a somewhat slow, floppy, endearing flight at times but is also able to fly great distances.

Please comment if you wish.

BtheB     

Recent sightings on Prince Edward Island...

I had trouble identifying this bird in P.E.I., so called on my 'go-to-guy' and King City neighbour, Gerry Binsfeld, who identified it as a Common Yellowthroat.   It appears to be an immature female, hence the pale yellow on only the throat. 

Here's a Ruby-throated 'hummer' at my sister's house in Prince Edward Island.

Young Cliff Swallows look out over the Gulf of St. Lawrence

Please comment if you wish.

BtheB

The last of P.E.I. photos...I promise

The barns at Green Gables near Cavendish

Harry Potter look-alike serving ice cream in Charlottetown Park

Salt-water therapy for harness racer

The beaches of P.E.I. ~ we are seduced

Please comment if you wish.                                                                                                         Photos by BarrytheBirder

BtheB

More P.E.I. photos

Red cliffs along the north shore

Officially signed 'Moderate' waves on this particular day

South of Charlottetown ~ way out at the end of Point Prim in Hillsborough Bay

Tough times fishing reflected in boat's name

Please comment if you wish.                                                                               Photos by BarrytheBirder

BtheB

A few days in Canada's smallest province...

Prince Edward Island

My wife, Linda, and I just returned from a week visiting my sister, Diane, on Prince Edward Island...the only Canadian Province I had never been in before.    As it turned out, it reminded me of my home province, Ontario, with three big exceptions however: the red soil underfoot, the broad tidal rivers, and the breathtaking seascapes around every turn.   Here are a few pictures I took from a little fishing village called Victoria, near the island end of the one-of-a-kind Confederation Bridge.   Hope you enjoy.

The Orient Hotel

Sculpture for sale

At the small harbour

Community Hall and Playhouse

        More local artwork                                        Heading out on a warm sunny day

Photos by BtheB

No comment needed.

From an email ~ photographer unknown

BtheB

Meet Mr and Mrs. Stoneman, an inukshuk couple, at the entrance to Stoneman's Valley Inc., at Jane Street and Hwy. 9, in King Township.   It seems all things stone are available here and inukshuks are regular features.   This is, however, the first time I have see a welcoming pair such as these two.   I found them quite charming, although they did have little to say.

BtheB

Along the sideroads...

West of Schomberg

BarrytheBirder Photo

Scenes from the sideroads...

Photo by BarrytheBirder

I photographed this hot, humid, King Township scene along the 15th Sideroad this afternoon and the posers were quite co-operative, especially the heron and the frog.   A fifth pedestal was unoccupied and I wondered what might take the last spot.   A dragonfly perhaps, or  maybe a muskrat?   Sadly, I could not wait to see, but I enjoyed the scene while I could.   Please comment if you wish.

BtheB   

Raspberry Social At Laskay Hall

The annual Raspberry Social at Laskay Hall was its usual success on July 12.   Hot humid weather made the cake and pie, fresh raspberries and ice cream all the more enjoyable.   Linda and I met an old high school classmate, Penny Parmenter, from 50 years ago, and celebrated a mini-reunion of sorts.   This small community gathering is a form of  time-travel for many who attend, and little personal celebrations put smiles on the faces who underwent a brief, Brigadoon-type passage.In the photo at right, I got to turn the tables on Laskay resident and award-winning, professional photographer, Gary Conway, by taking his photo.   Gary was kept busy by making many pots of tea, among others things.   A small questionnaire was circulated during the lovely July evening soliciting comments for a King Township Sustainability Report.   Many people dutifully listed what they thought King should and should not do in the future.   There was no need to look beyond the Laskay Raspberry Social itself to focus one's thoughts.

Please comment if you wish.

BtheB                                                                                                                      Photos by BarrytheBirder  

Just in case you missed it...

Michael Kesterton, in his Globe & Mail Social Studies column today, quotes Warren G. Bennis (1925- ), U.S. scholar and organizational consultant, as follows:

The factory of the future will have

only two employees: a man and a dog.

The man will be there to feed the dog.

The dog will be there to keep the man from

touching the equipment. 

I can only hope that my grandchildren will have a broader view of the world than me.  

Please comment if you wish.

BtheB



A garden water feature perfectly executed

Photo by BarrytheBirder

MMHERONWOOD FARMMM



My wife and I, and a couple of her good friends, went on the Nobleton and King City Horticultural Society Garden Tour today and were once again treated to a couple of hours where the world is quiet and at peace.   I took a few photos but am showing only one photograph in this space.   I could have picked any one of a hundred shots and they all would be lovely, but for me the photo above records the most aesthetically pleasing subject matter of the entire tour.   It is a water feature.   There are lots of heron statues around and about in King Township.   And there are a number of heron statues with fish in their beaks also.   This statue of a heron with a fish in its beak (above) also had water dripping from the heron's catch.   The effect was of being close to a real bird at the moment it had caught a meal and was comtemplating the best way to turn it around for swallowing.   The trickling sound of the water made one stand quietly and  still, while absorbing the shaded scene.   This Elysian patch at Heronwood Farm was worth the price of admission all by itself.   Please comment if you wish.

BtheB 

Where are all the birds coming from?

Many people have commented to me this summer that they are seeing and hearing a lot more birds, both familiar and unfamiliar, than usual.   I reply that, yes, I have noticed the same thing.   It's well known that global warming and other environmental factors seem to be responsible for many species  here in south-central Canada pushing up their northern boundaries for the past several years.   In my personal opinion, this year's cold, wet, late spring stalled the annual northern migration considerably, and many birds (insectivores) threw up their wings in frustration and started nesting wherever they happened to be.   From a birdwatching point of view it's not a bad thing.   Many non-birders have actually taken the time to identify birds with which they were not previously familiar.   Some of the bird names that I hear popping up with regularity are Baltimore Oriole, Scarlet Tanager, Indigo Bunting and Cedar Waxwing, among others.  It's an ill wind that blows no one some good, I guess.   Please comment if you wish.   (Kingfisher photo by BarrytheBirder)

BtheB  

Today's colour is green

Ferns in our backyard

Holland Marsh seedlings ready for transplanting

Lloydtown Cemetery

Green tunnel to Marylake Augustinian Monastery

 Fern for milady's hat

Nature's pure design

Photos by BarrytheBirder

Please comment if you wish.

BtheB 

And how did your barber get to work today?

This is my barber, Palma, who rode her new Suzuki 650cc Boulevard to her barbershop, in King City, this morning.   What is it with bike-riders?   Palma's already talking about trading in her wheels for something larger.   Bikers, sheesh!   I hope she doesn't ask me to let her shave the words ZOOM into my temples.   Please comment if you wish.

BtheB

Today's colour is orange

Male Baltimore Oriole at our backyard hummingbird feeder

 Guard-kittens in Kettleby at the Around the Bend Farm Market

One of my grandfather's favourites ~ nasturtiums

Schomberg Supplies feed mill on Main Street, Schomberg

Photos by BarrytheBirder

Please comment if you wish

BtheB



Red-winged Blackbird skewers hawk

BarrytheBirder photo

I stopped off in Temperanceville to take a picture of a Great Blue Heron this morning but wasn't able to get the photo I wanted.   I turned away, a bit disappointed, glanced up and there was a Red-tailed Hawk on a wire, totally ignoring the protests of two Red-winged Blackbirds and two American Robins that wanted no part of the intuder to their territory.   One the blackbirds became so frustrated with the hawk's imperious disregard of them, that it took one last plunge, swooped low, and with its outstretched beak, skewered the hawk right in the middle of its belly.   Shocked, The Red-tail lurched backwards, shrieked, and headed off for the friendlier fields.   The small birds immediately disappeared into nearby trees and shrubs and all was calm and quiet.   Please comment if you wish.

BtheB