Nature in small packages

Humid morning today. Seems like the carp in Shingle Creek are getting bigger every day. On the east side of the park I noticed a green heron in a little slough. He was stalking something so I stopped to watch. Right after I took this picture he darted his head into the water and came up with something in his beak. Could have been a frog but I was too far away to tell. Coming back to the south side I started to notice the small snails again that I'd seen after first setting out. Seems like they're always trying to cross the foot path for some reason. Or maybe that's the only place you'd notice such a small, slow moving creature.





Lastly, per suggestion, I wanted to post a photo of something I see everyday...garbage. I sure wish people would be more careful with their plastic bottles and aluminum cans. Eventually, all this stuff ends up in the lowest places in the park -the very same areas that collect water essential to the wildlife here. I try to pick up items here and there before they end up in the water, but geez is there a lot of it. Considering a Palmer Lake clean-up day sometime soon...

Rabbits galore

Gotta begin this post by noting the caterpillar from previous post is a "Mourning Cloak caterpillar." Walked and jogged tonight. 85 degrees and humid. Almost ran right into this first deer while jogging for a bit. Was only about 8 feet away before I noticed it standing in the low ditch next to the trail. I stopped, then backed up slowly before attempting to take any photos. The next thing I saw is something I've been hoping to get a photo of forever but have only seen twice. There it was, a deer wading right in the creek, eating from along the bank. I watched for quite a while before it finally hopped up onto the high bank. After crossing the creek again on the south side I spotted a Heron and snapped a quick pic before he got spooked and flew off. Around the whole park I was spotting rabbits left and right. On the very last wood chip trail I saw a little bunny munching on grass. I decided to take a few pics so I stood very still. He must have thought I was a tree 'cause he walked right up underneath me. It was funny as I didn't realize how little he was while I was looking through the camera lens. Total deer spotted: 4. Rabbits: 7.

Warm Sunday

Pretty uneventful walk today. Temp was 81 degrees and there were no deer to be seen. Unfortunately there's a lot of wildlife that never makes it onto my camera as it's too far away or moving too fast. Such was the case today with a Baltimore Oriole and a Great Blue Heron. One thing I did manage to catch was this spiny caterpillar. Been seeing a ton of them lately. Not sure what kind it is so I will have to look it up.

Wildlife on the water

Red-wing blackbirds are everywhere lately. Been tryin' to get a decent photo of one but they don't stay put for very long. Here's a recent attempt. Didn't think I was gonna see much this walk as I hadn't seen anything until I got half way around to the bridge over Shingle Creek. There I spotted about 20 Carp and a Wood Duck with babies. A little further I noticed a huge Snapping Turtle in a little swampy area. He went under right away so I couldn't get a photo. On the last corner, crossing Shingle Creek again, I spotted another Snapping Turtle right up by the bank. I stopped quickly to avoid spooking him and he just kinda floated there. Eventually he poked his head out and I got some photos of him. They are cool to see as they're so large and their long necks make them look even bigger. I'm guessing this guy's shell alone was about 18" long. Also spotted another female Wood Duck with babies in the same area.