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/

A Hike to the Long Lake Wetlands. A Post to My World Tuesday.

Lower Long Lake Wetlands.

I laid this post out exactly as the hike took place except the scenes are the final destination of the hike. It really wasn't too far today for a few reasons. It's Sunday and the first nice day in four or five days of rain. This means the bugs will be bad, and gloves, netting and heavy clothing will be necessary, but it's also hot, and sunny so you really feel it in all the gear. The first nice weekend day will also bring out the ATV morons and I don't feel like even seeing them.




Wetland.




Tree Swallow




Tree Swallow.



I was really lucky to catch this male  Tree Swallow at the start of the hike.



Female Red-Winged Blackbird.





Female Red-Winged Blackbird.




Same Female.




Male Red-winged Blackbird.





I literally bump into this pair of blackbirds when I take a shortcut to start my hike. I'm going to post more photos of these guys on Wednesday to WBW with the full story. As for the crow I'm not sure its mine,but it sure is strange that there is always one around.


My Crow.




Male Goldfinch.




Male Yellow Warbler in Flight



Same Yellow Warbler.

All these fellows were in the same area, and I chased the warbler around a pine tree getting some good shots.

The photo of the Cedar Waxwing is not great but where there is one there will be a whole flock. These guys like their relatives, the Bohemians, are social and hang out in flocks, stripping the trees of berries. This is my first sighting.

Northern Flickers are a ground woodpeckers feeding on ants, but I caught him in the trees so something must have frightened him.


Male Northern Flicker.




Cedar Waxwing.




Bladder Campion




Coltsfoot.




Wild Daisy.




I always leave the flower photography until the end of the hike as I have to change lens and usually crawl around on the ground.


Devil's Paintbrush.




The First Tree Berries.




Johnny-Jump -Ups




Long-Headed Anemone?




Lupin Patch.




Purple Lupins.



You can see the size of the lupin patch and this isn't the only one. So you easily understand the colour impact in the forest clearings.


Red Clover




Red Clover.




Mountain -Laurel.




Viper's- Bugloss.




Close Up.




The Bugloss is another electric colour in the clearings of the forest. Interesting flower isn't it?


Eastern Swallowtail.



Dragonfly.

With all these blooms the butterflies are pretty busy, and I hope the dragonflies are eating their weight in biting insects. Today I missed shots of Black Swallowtails, and a couple of birds that I had never seen before. Also in the creek where the berries were, there was a four legged creature that I couldn't catch sight of because of the thick bush.

 I was trying to give you an impression of a normal if somewhat short hike, because many of you have expressed interest. This is a wilderness,not a park. There are no rangers or guides. You're on your own. The trails are snowmobile trails, RR right of ways, abandoned tracks, or maintenance roads.  The hike duration was about three hours and maybe a mile there and back, as I said short. I shot about 350 raw photos, and garbaged about 10 percent, which explains my storage problem.



A Post to My World Tuesday @http://showyourworld.blogspot.com/