Scenes, Butterflies, Birds and Squirrels of the Vermilon River. A Post to SWF.

River before Rapids.

 The skies as you can see are not especially vivid. They range from overcast to a bit of sun, although we have had rain, which we needed. So for the post today I included some shots that I like from my hikes, and not much copy.

A Post to SWF @ http://skyley.blogspot.com/

River Wetland showing the Ridge

River before Rapids.

Far Side of Rapids.

Rapids at old Bridge Abutment.

Black Swallowtail.

Song Sparrow

Female Yellow Throat Warbler.

Yellow-rumped Warbler.

Turkey Vulture.

Turtle.

Red Squirrel.

More Hiking on the West Side of the Vermilon River. A Post to MWT.

Subsidiary river

 Today we're hiking on the abandoned RR line on the west side of the river to the rapids. I put the scenes in a sort of order to give you the feel that you're with me. The river is at its widest in the area before the rapids, and feeds both wetlands, and a little area ( first photo) that appears like a stream in a rain forest.The RR line is raised, so we're above the water.

Photo 3 is the wetlands on my right side as we head to the rapids. Photo #4 shows the river as it winds around one of the lower islands. The main current would be on the side away from us. Photo 5 shows the sudden narrowing and then the rapids. The river looks bucolic because the water is low due to lack of rain. The last time we hiked the rapids the water was high, and I said that it would be better to stay away from the the far side of the island, as the current would likely sweep you into the chute between the bridge abutments. Now you could paddle to the far side, and portage over the bridge to avoid the chute.

White Water Lily

River Wetland. #3

Wide Area Above the Rapids. #4

Just Above The Rapids. #5

Rapids

The chute between the bridge abutments.

The Quiet Area at the end of the Island that separates the rapids..

Black Swallowtail

Black Swallowtail

Song Sparrow

Song Sparrow

Yellow-rumped Warbler.

Oven Bird.

Female Yellow throat Warbler. 

Immature Robin

 The Swallowtails are starting to show summer wear. All of the birds,except the Yellow-rumped, were shot just before the wetland in a group of pin cherry trees, where they were feeding. An Oven Bird is a warbler that gets its name from the style of nest it builds. I had to chase the Yellow-rumped around the tree to get him.

I saw bear dung on the trail, which was blue in colour and fresh. There are no blueberries on this trail. So she/he swims the river and crosses here. When I was coming back, there was fresh dung and pin cherries spilled on the trail. Bears love pin cherries too. Clearly she hid out on me, and headed out when she heard me returning. So no bear photos.

A Post to MWT @ http://showyourworld.blogspot.com/

Some Birds of the Vermilon River. A Post to WBW.

Tree Sparrow

 I was initially going to call this post "favourites of mine", but I soon realized that all the animals or birds that I see become favourites of mine. I suppose I glory in nature. I was also going to call it " Sparrows of the Vermilon", but I hold that one until the wild sunflowers, smaller than the domestic variety, in my garden go to seed. They're growing now and will soon be ready. When they're ready, I bait the whole area with seeds and see what shows up. Last year I got a great collection of sparrows, and I hope it works again this year. So that explains my current title.

Having said that here is a selection of sparrows.

Tree Sparrow.

Tree Sparrow

White-throated Sparrow.

Whit-throated Sparrow

Song Sparrow

Song Sparrow Signing his Heart Out.

Male Goldfinch.

The Dark-eyed Junco should be with the sparrows as he is actually a sparrow. They've left me now and moved further north to the boreal forest.

Dark-eyed Junco

As I said earlier I have seen more Yellow-rumped Warblers this year, and this fellow is perservering in a wind storm, singing nevertheless.

Yellow-rumped Warbler.

Male Purple Finch.

Robin

I never tire of the Robin who wakes Boom & I in the morning. I think this fellow looks especially majestic.

Add caption

Certainly this Grackle looks slightly mad.

 The Buffleheads below are new to me. They're named "Bufflehead" Because the male's head is reminiscent of a buffalo head.


 I put this post together in the new dashboard format that Blogger/Google is so proud of. It then disappears and I have to go to the old format, post a blank, and call up this post and delete the blank. Isn't Google a marvel??



A Post to WBW @ http://pineriverreview.blogspot.com.

Female Bufflehead.

Male Bufflehead.

New And Old Friends of the Vermilon River. A Post to WBW

Yellow Warbler

This post started off as a new friends post, but I ran into instant problems. Should that include winter birds, the new black birds, woodpeckers,swallows etc.; and I'm in a negative mood with Blogger and its dictatorial, and its incompetent ways. So the post became a sort of new warbler post with some other friends included. I'll just explain why I put them in. I think seeing all these new birds is the result of having the new lens, the healthy state of the forest, and global warming which is bringing new wildlife this way. The yellow Warbler is new for me and our ten mile stretch that we travel in.( For new readers the forest runs for hundreds of miles as I explained in another post, but we limit ourselves to a ten mile stretch.)

Yellow Warbler

American Redstart.

American Redstarts are not new to me or the area, but this is the first time I have been able to capture them so well.

American Redstart.

I think the lens makes quite a difference, because all these birds are small and the forest canopy is thick. It's one thing to see them, but it's a double thrill to have good photos of them. Redstarts are warblers by the way.

Common Yellowthroat.

This was a real thrill as the Common Yellowthroats are new to me. And the colours are so vivid.

Common Yellowthroat.

Yellow-rumped Warbler.

I both saw and photographed these guys last year. But I have the impression that there are more around this year, and I got some good photos of an especially handsome bird with a dumb name.

Chestnut-sided Warbler.

The chestnut-sided Warblers seemed to be more abundant, in more areas, and easier to photograph, except my guys are always in a windstorm.

Chestnut sided Warbler.

Chestnut-sided Warbler.

Nashville Warbler?

Nashville Warbler?

I have this guy pegged as a Nashville or Connecticut immature, but I'm not certain got any idea?

Female Pine Sisken

Female Pine Sisken.

If anyone remembers an earlier post, I featured a little female pine sisken on my picnic table who in the midst of food was napping. I'm sure this is her again, and she's all grown up.

American Woodcock.

American Woodcock.

Definitely not Warblers! These photos of an American Woodcock were a first for me. I'm amazed that the bird was on this trail as the fox hunts here regularly.






A Post to WBW@http://pinerivereview.blogspot.com/