Wood duck redo times two

It was a perfect morning in Estabrook Park, with not a cloud in the sky and barely a breeze, and thus nice cool air. When I stopped by the river on my way to the pond, I counted a few mallards, a couple of geese, and nearly a dozen northern rough-winged swallows. Then I started to collect the fishing tackle left over from the weekend, and I nearly fell over when I glanced up and saw seven young-looking wood duck ducklings following their mom across the river to our side. Hot diggity dog! They are trying again.

After getting some pictures and taking a moment to look around for what else I had missed, I hiked up to the pond, and look who I found along the way.

At the pond, I counted a few mallards, a couple of wood duck hens, looked for the green heron, and started collecting fishing tackle left over from the weekend. When I glanced up, I could not believe my eyes, because there were seven more youngish-looking wood duck ducklings following their mom across the pond. Fantastic! They’ve doubled their odds.

After that, I took a moment to sit on the bench to see who else I might have missed. That’s when the female belted kingfisher perched over the near shore a couple dozen yards a way. She still looks soaking wet, but on a day like today, you know she’s soaked by choice, and she’ll be able to dry out pretty quickly.

I eventually continued to the north end, and spotted the great blue heron fishing on our side of the river.

At the bridges, the cliff and barn swallows continue to go about their business, and on my way back south, I stopped by the pond one more time in hopes of spotting the green heron. I had no luck with that, but instead I got to watch the single remaining and now nearly-grown wood duck duckling from the first batches wrestle with its mom over a tadpole she had caught. It’s tricky enough to get a good picture when they are just wrestling with the tadpole, but adding in another hungry duck meant that this picture was the best I could do. Mom’s got the tadpole in her bill just under water, and the duckling is just about to make another grab for it, but Mom won out in the end.

At the south end of the pond, I could hear one of the many fledglings around these days begging for food in a tree right overhead, and as I searched for it, this Baltimore oriole poked out of the leaves and stole the shot.

Once the oriole got what it was after and took off, I did find the little crier, and it appears to be a northern cardinal, based on its short and stout beak.

Continuing south, I stopped by the pollinator garden, and found this powdered dancer (Argia moesta), which I suspect we’ve seen before, but never in this detail. Oh, and it is posing on the mat they have put down to kill the sod grass before expanding the garden, in case you are wondering.

Just to the west of the dancer, also eschewing all the pretty flowers, I found this female blue dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis), which we have seen before, but only in the male form. If you click on the image and zoom in, you can see the individual lenses of its compound eye, especially in the bright spot on the left eye reflecting the sun. I’m not sure I’ve managed to pull that off before.

At the weeds beside the soccer fields, there was another buckeye warming itself in the sun.

There was a male widow skimmer, and perhaps only the third male I’ve ever seen.

Finally, I spotted another monarch, and like the buckeye, it appeared to be more hungry for warmth than sugar at the moment.

Lastly, I’m thrilled to report that someone, perhaps an angler thanking me for all my help with his gear, left me my first park beer of the year, and a fine one at that. What a nice way to start July. Thanks!