Showing posts with label perch. Show all posts
Showing posts with label perch. Show all posts

7/16/2022

turtle chases ducks off favorite rock

Mallard was sunning her ducklings on the favorite rock in the pond. Turtle appeared a few feet away, nosing his way toward the rock, also his favorite. When turtle got to the rock, ducklings jumped off. 

6/17/2021

meal for green heron



This bird is at it again!  The Green Heron visits the pond several times a week during this hot season.  They are year-around residents of Florida and tropic regions, but migrate to breed in the eastern half of the US nearly as far as the Canadian border.  

Green Herons nest in trees and shrubs near water, or dry woods and orchards as long as it provides seclusion and there is water nearby for foraging fish or frogs.

Last year we saw a Green Heron Butorides virescens several times here on the pond shore, hunting for a meal. To see those previous photos and information about how these birds use tools to hunt, enter heron in the search box at top left then press return.





6/14/2021

bug on daisy

I was admiring the daisies.  A Squash Bug was also admiring it, close up!  

5/03/2021

fox sparrow

A chunky long tailed Fox Sparrow Passerella iliaca posed for the camera by the pond.  It is probably migrating to breeding grounds north of here, and stopped to snag some seeds or insects here.

8/28/2020

green frogs on rocks






Usually, the frogs who live here sit on shore hiding among grasses looking for prey insects or invertebrates.

But when a rock is available, Green Frogs Rana clamitans prefer to sit in the sun and wait for a meal to present itself.  


8/12/2020

sandpiper

 A hot sultry day in August.  The pond was quiet.  Several rocks appeared offshore in the last few days, exposed by the lack of rain and lower water level.  Good for sandpipers hunting lunch.  This Solitary Sandpiper Tringa solitaria shows off its white eye ring while it waits on a rock to spot a meal in or on the water -- aquatic invertebrates such as larvae, worms, flies, or mollusks.  


8/05/2020

Eastern Forktail damselfly



This damselfly, a young orange female Eastern Forktail, is of a species often seen near ponds in Minnesota.  The male Eastern Forktail is mostly green and black.  Older females look blue or frosty violet.  Forktails Ischnura verticalis live through winter in the water as nymphs, feeding on smaller aquatic critters.  But they are also prey for larger aquatic creatures.  If they make it through to springtime, they emerge out of the water as adult damselflies.  If they can avoid being eaten by a bird, they will mate and deposit eggs into plant stems or floating material.  The eggs later hatch and release new nymphs into the pond for next year's damselflies.

7/25/2020

pennant






Walking along the shore near the pond on an overcast hot day, I noticed a dragonfly perched on a stem of Horsetail.

This is a Halloween Pennant Celithemis eponina dragonfly.  They usually perch horizontally like this, waving in the breeze pennant-style, at the top of vegetation.

At 1-1/2 inches long, this dragonfly would be a juicy meal for a predator.



7/22/2020

birds on the branch











Eastern Bluebirds also like to sit on the branch over the pond.

Many flying creatures use this branch as a place to spot a prey item to eat, or a place to rest, or a place to socialize.

In this photo, after some rain, the rock behind the Bluebirds is under water.  It is our gauge for the water level in the pond.

Below, a turtle sits on the same rock on a day when the water level is lower.

7/20/2020

dragonflies on branch

We love the branch over the pond, since it is a platform for all flying creatures to settle on for a short time.  Usually we get a close look at birds pausing there.  Now, in mid-summer, the dragonflies and damselflies use it too. 
12-Spotted Skimmer

Eastern Pondhawk or Blue Dasher


6/29/2020

high water




This morning, after
7 inches of rain fell overnight, the pond is higher than usual and some of the shoreline around it is under water.  The critters are trying to find their favorite places to feed or soak up the sun.


I was watching a turtle crawl slowly up on a small rise among the grasses.


Then a frog croaked, and I noticed him right near the turtle.  We've been hearing these Green Frogs
Rana (Aquarana) clamitans
for several weeks.  They are usually secretive; this is first time I've seen one here.  Do you see him in the photo below?



5/29/2020

Phoebe







The Eastern Phoebe Sayornis phoebe is one species in the family of Tyrant Flycatchers.  Phoebe is mostly insectivorous. It forages by watching from a perch, flying out for insects, and catching them in mid-air.  This is called a "sallying" style – flying up  directly from their perch to catch an insect and then immediately return to the same perch.  In some cases, Phoebe will take an insect from foliage while hovering briefly.  The pond area is replete with insects in the air and on the plants around it.  The branch on the feeder pole is a good 'sallying' perch.