End of June Already?

I can't believe the month of June is over already. After being out birding almost every day in May, I guess I kind of slacked in June. Well, sort of. I did spend a whole week in Colorado where I bird watched there too, but all in all I didn't get to Palmer Lake Park very much in June. This Sunday was a beautiful day to wrap up the month though with clear blue skies and warm temperatures. I've been seeing a lot of new little wildflowers blooming now including Marsh Milkweed, Nightshade and Crown Vetch. Some birds I saw today but not pictured were Yellow Warbler, American Redstart, Brown-headed Cowbird, Barn Swallow, Mourning Dove and Red-winged Blackbird. One bird I'm seeing a awful lot of lately are Gray Catbirds. Every late spring & summer it seems like they make up about every other bird I see in the park. Second to when Red-winged Blackbirds arrive in the spring, the Grey Catbird might be the next most prolific bird in the park. They can be heard making either their "cat-like" meeow calls, or a constant chatter of dozens of different notes and phrases strung together. When they do this they kind of don't shut up and it goes on for who knows how long. Despite how common they are this time of year, I've not had a good opportunity to photograph one and this is probably my best for the year so far. I've also been seeing another returning visitor to the park this season –the Osprey. Today at least one of them was hovering over the south end of the park, keeping an eye out for fish in the water below. I've been trying for years to catch one actually diving into the water but with the tall cattails this can be tricky. It is equally as neat to watch them "hover" in mid air though. It is quite a unique skill for such a large raptor to be able do so I would say. Raptors are generally built for "soaring" but the Osprey can hover in one single place almost as well as a Hummingbird! Yet more return visitors to the park this time of year are not so welcome. Because of all the rain this month, the mosquitoes have been quite thick lately. Honestly they have a tendency to affect my photos this time of year because in certain places you really just can't hold still for too long. That was the case with the American Redstart I tried to photograph today and I gave up easily after just one shot. But with the mosquitoes come other insects as well and Dragonflies and Damselflies are plentiful now as well. I wish I knew more of them but I'm content to focus and learn more birds for a while before moving onto this much tougher category! I spotted this very interesting one today with completely black wings. I believe it would be a Damselfly because of how it's wings are built to fold backwards unlike a Dragonfly. He also had a bright emerald green body and called to be photographed. Later in the day I spotted more of them at a different park in Golden Valley later in the day.

Nature Blogging for 4 Years!

In early June of 2009 I made my very first post on this Blog. At that time I had no idea where the blog would lead me. About all I knew at the time was that I really enjoyed walking around the park and seeing deer without leaving the city! But what I found out by routinely visiting Palmer Lake Park is that there is an endless amount of things to learn about nature; from birds to mammals, insects, plants –and phenology which is the study of all of these things and how they are influenced by seasons and climate. Had I signed up for class or course in naturalism, I probably would have been overwhelmed by how much there was to learn. Instead I found that because I knew little to nothing about the subject, I wasn't afraid to make mistakes. And through what I call "slow and curious observation," I was realizing that I was learning something new every single time I visited the park! Sometimes these were very small things –something I might now take for granted– but was completely new to me at the time. And each of those small things continued to lead me to newer things still. My tools early on were a fairly inexpensive point-and-shoot camera, one field guide to Birds of Minnesota by Stan Tekela, and a cheap pair of binoculars. Though I've added to and upgraded my tools since then, the one most important tool I have is simply my own curiosity –and I doubt it will ever need to be upgraded or replaced. Even now after a solid 4 years of observing nature, I still feel an endless sense of exploration towards nature. What started out as simple walks around a city park has evolved into a full fledged passion for bird watching. And this year I completed my own "Big Month" in which I went out bird watching for a record 26 days in the month of May alone. Even in my travels now to other parts of the state –or other states, my first thought is "what kind of birds might I see there?" During a trip to Colorado this June I set my sights on finding an American Dipper –a truly unique song bird. I was lucky enough to observe and photograph one on the last day of our trip and it was probably the highlight of my entire year as far as my new hobby goes. Whether I'm observing nature in Minnesota or any other part of the world, I've found a passionate appreciation for wildlife and the natural world. I have Palmer Lake Park –a marsh in the middle of the city– to thank for showing me that. It will always be my favorite park. Finally here are a few photos to share from today; young goslings making their way through the new cattails watched over by their parents, A Hairy Woodpecker feeding preparing to feeds it's young inside a Boxelder tree, and a Great-crested Flycatcher spotted on the north end of the park.

A New Month

Well my "Big Month" of May is officially over now and today is the first day of June. June is also a great time of year to see some neat birds in the park and today was no exception. Among other birds today I spotted a Great Blue Heron, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Yellow Warbler, my first Hummingbird of the year, and even a Turkey Vulture! Off the wood chip trail on the southwest side I spotted a small drab colored bird hopping around quickly in a pile of dead branches. Since I couldn't quickly identify it I watched for a while until I could see it out in the open and realized it was a Wren. I had a heck of a time getting a decent photo as he just wouldn't stay put for more than a brief second or so. I've seen a few earlier in the season when there was much less foliage for them to hide. I know there are different types of Wrens but going strictly by the time of year I saw this one I'm guessing it is a House Wren. The next item I really want to share on my blog here is not a bird but a plant that I've become very familiar with over the past few years. This is a Jack-in-the-Pulpit I also spotted along the same wood chip trail but nearer the end where it meets back up with the paved path on the west side. I don't claim to know much about them yet, other than what they look like with big, broad, dark green leaves that look like they would fit right into the Amazon jungle or something. And then there's the flower portion which is a very unique looking growth that includes a "hood" that folds over the top. They are fairly common in the park this time of year. and this particular one was quite large making it easy to spot growing only a few feet off the trail. Later near the baseball diamonds on the west side I spotted a male Bluebird perched on the chain link fencing. I kept sneaking in closer and closer for a better photo but every time I would scare him off into the neighboring treeline. Eventually he would come back though onto the fence but never in the same place. Finally I just walked along the treeline and was able to get close enough for a good photo. Bluebirds have just not been as plentiful in the park as in past years and this year it is quite a treat just to see one. A short time later on the north side I had another good photo opportunity, this time of a Common Yellowthroat in some thick Buckthorn trees. Luckily he perched out near the edge in a more open space. Come late June and July the Common Yellowthroat can be heard singing constantly in the park. They have a very easy to recognize and remember "whichety–whichety–wichety" song that I often try to imitate poorly! Click here to listen to it for yourself.