Monday, July 6, 2009

Love is in the Air

We went back to Tommy Thompson Park on July 1st. The weather was great- hot and sunny, and we saw a lot of the usual birds. There were some species missing, but we did get to see some Common Terns bathing in the water, close up. My husband got some really great shots of that; mine were of them flying about or perching on rocks with their catch. There was a lot of them chasing each other around whenever one of them caught a fish. I think that even the ones who caught something would sing about it to all and sundry.

It's nice to see babies everywhere, darting about: ducklings, goslings, baby sandpipers, baby everything...

Today we went to Colonel Sam Smith Park to check on the Red-necked Grebe pair that were nesting. They were still there, but I think they were on nest number 2. They were no hatchlings about, and it appeared that this brood consisted of one egg. Regardless, it was great to see they were being so vigilant, and taking turns staying on the nest. In fact, when one mallard was silly enough to get within a metre of the nest, the other parent dove under the water, and surprised it from below. the result was a shocked duck that took off like a shot, and scared all the other ducks around.

Of note, today were a young Orchard Oriole pair. I think they were courting, and we were cutting in his act. The male was very young, and looked like a Hooded Oriole. This really bothers me, because my first thought whenever I see an immature O.O. is that it's a Hooded. Well, maybe someday I'll see one here.