Enjoying Algonquin’ s Fall Colours

Shadow Darner

Deb and I went to Algonquin Park last Sunday to enjoy some birds, fall colours, and late-season odonates. The fall colours were said to be at their peak, and with the temperature expected to reach a beautiful, sunny 20°C, we couldn’t have asked for a better day. Unfortunately the great weather enticed several other carloads and busloads of people to visit, so the park was the busiest we had ever seen it. Police were stopping people before they drove into the park to remind them of the speed limit (only 80 km/h in the park, and 50 km/h at the gate), and the parking lots along Highway 60 were full of cars – most even had a tour bus or two parked at the entrance. Some trails (such as the Lookout Trail and Peck Lake Trail) were so busy the cars had spilled out of the parking lot and were parked along the narrow shoulder of Highway 60.

Dragonfly Swarm!

I went to Hurdman yesterday at lunch to look for migrating warblers since the birding was so fantastic at Mud Lake last weekend. Well, I didn’t see any warblers, but I did find two singing Warbling Vireos, one Red-eyed Vireo, two Gray Catbirds, and a Turkey Vulture as I walked my regular route. I also saw two large dragonflies (likely darners) zip by overhead while I was in a wooded spot, but didn’t think much of this other than to wish they would land in front of me.

A couple of Autumn Meadowhawks and a few damselflies were still around, including one Stream Bluet in the vegetation near where I’d seen the Black-shouldered Spinyleg, a couple of Powdered Dancers along the bike path, and not one, but three Spotted Spreadwings.

Spotted Spreadwing

Grundy Lake Part II: A Lifer Dragonfly!

Lake Darner

By the second day of our camping trip at Grundy Lake Provincial Park we had become aware of just how BUSY a park it was. The roads were filled with people walking dogs, people strolling to the bathrooms or the lake, people driving cars or trailers, people on bikes, and kids on bikes from sun-up to sun-down and even after that. There also were lots of people hanging out at the sandy beaches on Grundy Lake every time we drove by. Fortunately we had booked a site in a radio-free campground, so we weren’t disturbed by people noise at night. Instead, we often heard the loons calling on the lake and the horn of a train that passed by so frequently that we wondered if it was just driving back and forth through the same intersection all day and all night long.

Birding in Gatineau Park

Chalk-fronted Corporal

On June 15th I participated in the Ottawa Field-Naturalists’ Club (OFNC) excursion to Gatineau Park led by Justin Peter. Although cool at first (it was only about 12°C when I left at 6:00am), the sky was clear and it quickly warmed up as the sun rose higher in the sky. We spent the first half of the outing birding along Meech Lake Road and the second half along the trail at the end of the Champlain Parkway. We met at a parking area (P8) along Meech Lake Road where we heard A Pileated Woodpecker, a White-throated Sparrow, an Eastern Phoebe, and an Alder Flycatcher as soon as we got out of the car. A lovely male Purple Finch landed in one of the large trees next to the parking lot, and we saw a Common Raven fly over carrying food in its mouth. A couple of Chipping Sparrows, American Goldfinches, Yellow Warblers, and Red-winged Blackbirds also made an appearance.

Dragon-hunting and Turtle-watching

Snapping Turtle

On the second Sunday in June Chris Lewis invited me to go dragon-hunting with her and Mike Tate at Mud Lake. I didn’t have the car and had to rely on the bus; OC Transpo’s Sunday schedules can be horrendous, but I managed to get there without any trouble (though I had to leave the dragonfly net at home). Chris, however, let me borrow one of hers.

We spent most of our time searching for odonates along the northeast shore of the lake. Clouds of Hagen’s Bluets were resting in the vegetation; they flew up into the air as we walked by, some the almost colourless shade of purple of a teneral, others the deep blue and black of a mature adult.

Finally: Dragonflies!

Lilypad Clubtail

Although I saw my first dragonflies of the year just outside of Cambridge on May 9, 2013 (three Common Green Darners and one unidentified ode flying above a pond at the Pinehurst Lake Conservation Area), I didn’t see my first dragonflies in Ottawa until May 18th. The weather in May was not conducive for dragonflies or butterflies to emerge, as it was too cold and too wet for most of the month. Further, the rain has continued well into June, making it a strange month for dragon-hunting, as some species emerged later than usual, while others appeared much earlier than usual.

Bug Hunting in Late Summer

White-faced Meadowhawk

I returned to Mud Lake in mid-August in the hope of finding some interesting dragonflies. It was a much a nicer day than we’d had for the OFNC dragonfly outing, but there were fewer dragonflies flying, and nothing as interesting as the Spot-winged Glider and Swift River Cruiser we’d found two weeks ago. June and July are the best months for finding a good diversity of odonates; by mid-August a number of species have already finished flying for the year, including many emeralds and common summer species such as the Dot-tailed Whiteface. However, other species are just becoming abundant around this time, such as the mosaic darners, and it was these that I was hoping to find.

An OFNC Dragonfly Outing

Spot-winged Glider

I had planned to lead a dragonfly outing on Sunday, August 5th with Chris Lewis for the OFNC, but by the time the weekend arrived I knew I was in trouble with a particularly bad sinus cold that left me feeling stuffed up, headachy and drained of energy. I went out for a little while on Saturday to see how I felt to be out; the beautiful day turned out to be a pleasant distraction, and I managed to last for a couple of hours before returning home to rest. I didn’t see much at Sarsaparilla Trail, but I did hear a Gray Catbird mewing somewhere along the water’s edge (a new species for that location) and see a couple of Pied-billed Grebes on the water. A Slender Spreadwing in the cattails at the end of the boardwalk was a great find, as I had never seen one here before.

Alberta 2012: Hinton

Ring-necked Duck (male)

After arriving in Hinton I dropped Doran off at his friend’s house and then drove over to the Beaver Boardwalk on Maxwell Lake. I had learned about this spot through the internet, and it sounded intriguing. Built by volunteers, the Beaver Boardwalk is a unique, 3.0 kilometer trail that winds its way through wetlands and an active beaver pond in the town of Hinton, Alberta. The Boardwalk features seating areas, an outdoor classroom, interpretive signs and two observation towers, and provides a wonderful opportunity for people to experience nature up close. Indeed, the signage along the trail shows that Hinton has a much different attitude toward beavers than the city of Ottawa does, as the town seems quite happy to have a family of them (sometimes up to nine individuals) in the wetland. One of the signs reminds us that wildlife has the right of way at all times – we are guests in their home. I also read online that aspen branches are brought to Maxwell Lake by truck each September for the beavers to add to their winter food cache. It appears that in Hinton, the beavers are seen as part of the community rather than a pest to be destroyed.

Presqu’ile Part III: The Butterfly Field

Deb and I enjoyed our picnic by the water, though there were few ducks to be seen on the lake. One of my favourite spots in the park is the field of wildflowers behind the picnic area, where I enjoy spending time looking for butterflies. It is also a good spot for dragonflies, which can often be seen patrolling the skies above. Common Green Darners, mosaic darners, and Black Saddlebags are the chief species seen here, and I always hope to find them perching in the vegetation.

After we had finished our lunch I grabbed my net and my camera and went looking for butterflies. We saw and photographed Monarchs, crescents, Cabbage Whites, Clouded and Orange Sulphurs, Eastern Tailed Blues and, best of all, at least two Common Buckeyes!