Great-spangled Fritillary
On June 20, 2021 I accompanied fellow OFNC members Derek and Erik to the Carp Barrens Trail off of Thomas Dolan Parkway to assist them in a survey of breeding birds and other wildlife. Because of the sensitivity of the ecosystem and number of at-risk species which breed here, this trail is closed to the public during the summer. In order for us to access the site, Derek had acquired a permit to allow us to look for unique breeding birds such as Black-billed Cuckoo, Eastern Towhee, Common Nighthawks and Whippoorwills. Derek and Erik started around dawn to listen for both nightjars, but heard none. I joined them at 6:00 am while they were still walking along Thomas Dolan Parkway, and together we entered the trail system.
The trail follows a rocky outcrop around a long slough. Many birds were already singing, and we heard the typical open field and woodland edge species: Field Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, Veery, Scarlet Tanager, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and many warblers, the best of which (in my humble opinion) included two Pine Warblers, two Yellow-rumped and two Nashville Warblers.
We got lucky and found a perching Black-billed Cuckoo only a few minutes into our walk. It was sitting in a tree, and didn’t make any noise to attract our attention; I don’t recall who spotted it first, but I was thrilled when I got my binoculars on this bird as I have heard many so far this spring without seeing nary a one!
Black-billed Cuckoo
In my experience, you can either see a cuckoo or you can hear a cuckoo, but you can never see a vocalizing cuckoo in order to distinguish Black-billed from Yellow-billed, as both can mimic each other’s songs and calls. Yellow-billed Cuckoos are rare in our area, but seem to be becoming a bit more common, especially in the southern part of the OFNC study area in areas like Marlborough Forest near Kettles Road. It will be interesting to see if this species is indeed making its way further north. In the meantime, most cuckoos that are heard in our area are likely to be Black-billed Cuckoos.
Black-billed Cuckoo
We followed the trail around the pond, and as it warmed up we started seeing more and more dragonflies, mainly skimmers perching in the sunlight to warm up their flight muscles. This Twelve-spotted Skimmer posed nicely for us:
Twelve-spotted Skimmer
There were also quite a few whitefaces around, although the only ones I managed to photograph were Belted Whitefaces:
Belted Whiteface
This male Eastern Pondhawk was a lovely sight perching on the white lichen mat:
Eastern Pondhawk
As we walked deeper into the trail we heard more birds. We came across several Black-and-white Warblers, a few Red-breasted Nuthatches, a Blue Jay carrying food, a family of Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, and even a male Eastern Towhee singing out in the open! We also heard and saw at least three Hermit Thrushes at the far end of the trail. One of my favourite songsters, it was a delight to hear and I took a brief recording of its song for our eBird checklist.
We returned via the loop on the opposite side of the pond and had our first opportunity to get down to the water where I was eager to search for more odes, particularly damselflies. Although the habitat looked great, it was sadly lacking in dragonflies and damselflies. I was a bit baffled to see only a few Frosted Whitefaces and Sedge Sprites in the sparse vegetation around the shoreline and a single Dot-tailed Whiteface perching on a lily pad.
Carp Barrens Trail Pond
The most bizarre sighting was that of a Blandings Turtle resting with its head below the water. We spent several minutes watching it and waiting for it to move, which it never did. We assumed it was deceased.
Blandings Turtle
When I reviewed my photos at home, I was intrigued to see a small moth on the lily pad attached to the turtle. It was suggested to be a Waterlily Borer Moth via iNaturalist’s Computer Vision (AI), although no one has chimed in to agree or disagree yet. The markings on it were lovely and I wished I had spent some time seeking out other adults on the pond vegetation for a better photo.
Waterlily Borer Moth
In fact, I was surprised by how few lepidoptera (moths and butterflies) we found as well – a Little Wood Satyr and a lovely Great-spangled Fritillary were the only ones I recorded. It was certainly warm enough and late enough in the morning at that point for more insects to be flying.
Great-spangled Fritillary
Erik noticed that several of the lily pads had small red flowers blooming, enabling him to identify them as Watershield (Brasenia schreberi). Usually the only plants that interest me are those that attract insects or have colourful flowers, so I was delighted to make this one’s acquaintance. This perennial herb grows in ponds, streams, and lakes and can be identified by the oval shape of its leaves which attach to the underwater plant stem at the center of the leaf. The leaves are small, growing no wider than 2.5 inches. Although the top side of the leaves are bright green, the underside is reddish-purple, as are the stems. The underparts are covered with a thick coat of slime to help prevent the plant from drying out and may possibly be a deterrent to hungry mammals.
Watershield
On the way back we saw a spreadwing which I couldn’t get close enough to in order to identify and a Racket-tailed Emerald patrolling a small clearing. I was hoping that it might be some more interesting than this common and widespread species, but when it landed I was able to see the yellow collar at the top of the club-tipped abdomen that make this emerald unique.
Racket-tailed Emerald
I also saw a single bluet perching in the vegetation along the trail and caught it; it turned out to be a Marsh Bluet. It was hard to believe that it was the only bluet in the area.
Marsh Bluet
The trail wound its way along a second, much larger pond on the opposite side, and I noticed it was full of dragonfly activity. I saw a couple of dragonflies emerging from their larval shells on stems just below a small lookout; many skimmers, including Twelve-spotted Skimmers, were buzzing over the water. It was completely different from the pond we had just circled, and I was curious as to why this one was so full of life. We even saw a few Killdeer and a Wilson’s Snipe in the area!
While I was watching the water a large dragonfly with bright red wings flew in close toward me and spent some time patrolling the shoreline. I was a bit puzzled because the only dragonfly we have in the area with candy apple red patches on the wings is the Calico Pennant, which has a few small red spots and is itself a small dragonfly. It also spends more time perching than flying. It occurred to me that it might be saddlebags, and the more I watched it the more certain I was that it was one! There are two species in Ontario; the Carolina Saddlebags which is common south and west of Kingston, and the Red Saddlebags, which has an even smaller range in the southwest of the province and is much less common. It is more likely to have been the former than the latter, but even so it was an astounding find for our region, and I waited a good half hour with Derek and Erik to see if it would come in close enough for me to take a swing at it with the net. Unfortunately it zipped off over the water to parts unknown, and taking all opportunity to catch or photograph it as well.
Saddlebags are skimmers with long, wide wings and are known to venture beyond their typical range – Black Saddlebags has been found in Ottawa before, and the gliders are famous for their long travels. It would have been amazing to have gotten some photographic evidence of this large, beautiful red dragonfly and add it to the region’s list of odonata; unfortunately it may have only been a one-time wonder not likely to be repeated. Still, it was the highlight of my day, and a sight I will not soon forget!
The Pathless Wood 