Our recent string of very nice mornings continued in Estabrook Park today, and I even needed a light jacket for the first hour or so. That’ll keep the mosquitos down, at least for a while.
The pond wasn’t quite as busy today, as it was yesterday, so my first treat didn’t come until the islands in the river, where I found this beauty grazing on the pale smartweed that has come up on a sandbar.
A pair of belted kingfishers were as active as ever around the upstream island, and here’s a young male again, but not hiding behind a branch this time.
Once again, I failed to see any warblers, but I did get to lay eyes on this amazing creature, so we still have at least one ruby-throated hummingbird hanging around.
The great crested flycatchers have long gone silent, and nobody has reported seeing one in Estabrook all month, so I sure wasn’t expecting to see this guy, but maybe he’s just passing through on his way south from farther up north. “Safe travels, Buddy!”
The woodpeckers have quieted down, too, if not gone completely silent, so I gotta get back in the habit of finding them with my eyes, and here’s one of the red-bellied variety that made my job easier. “Thanks, Sweetie!”
The big surprise of the morning was spotting this stunning creature on the weeds that remain beside the southern soccer fields. The wings span about 4 inches, and they’re quite shiny, so when they first caught my eye near the top of a stand of joe-pye weed, I figured it was a sliver of clear plastic that I should collect. Thank goodness I approached carefully anyway, because this turns out to be the very first shadow darner dragonfly (Aeshna umbrosa) that I have ever seen. I read that it “flies at dusk and in shaded areas,” so it really is some kind of a miracle that I caught one out in the daylight. Yippee ki-yay!
Finally, the thistle there continues to attract and feed butterflies, and here’s a gorgeous black swallowtail soaking up some sun while it sips nectar.
Lastly, tomorrow morning is forecast to look like a repeat of today, so it should be a great time for our weekly wildlife walk. The sun won’t rise until 6:07 am, so let’s revert back to the single, 8 am start time, and give me a chance to reach the beer garden parking lot without breaking a sweat. Plus, that should give the sun time to warm up the bugs and the birds that hunt for them, so we have something to look at.
Signs of Life in Estabrook Park 