It was a fine morning in Estabrook Park. Not too hot, not too cold, not too wet, not too dry, and, not too windy. The bugs were up, and so the birds were happy.

One of the first birds I saw was an old friend, but new for the season, this tiny blue-gray gnatcatcher.

The pond was pretty quiet this morning, but I did catch this handsome quartet of blue-winged teals taking a break after breakfast.

Back beside the river, I was happy to find one more winter wren, before they’ve all moved on.

Closer to the water, I finally captured a nice image of one of the spotted sandpipers I’ve been seeing for a while.

On my way back south, I found another quartet of ducks, but this time they were wood ducks all nicely lined up on this branch at eyelevel.

Best of all, there was nice light, and they were oddly tolerant of my presence. A couple of weeks ago, merely walking 50 feet below them would have been enough to chase them away.

And that’s when the memory card in my camera filled up. Oops! I thought I had plenty of room, but I must not have been keeping close enough track. The good news is that I should have another one before tomorrow morning, when the weather is forecast to be just as nice.

The radar looked worse this morning than Friday morning, but I didn’t want to miss another day, so I went out anyway. Happily, after a couple of short showers early on, the radar forecast turned out to be way off, and it didn’t rain again until after I got home. Ha!

When I arrived at the pond, I found a green heron again, but this might be a different individual from the one we saw yesterday because it has much less yellow between its eye and its beak. Great! The more, the merrier!

I also spotted another palm warbler and my first common yellowthroat of the season, but failed to get pictures of either one, so I headed down to the river. On my way, I spotted another red squirrel from the bridge north of the beer garden.

At the river, as I was checking on the great horned owl, who was “in” this morning, but too deep for a good picture, I saw our first island deer of the season right below it.

At the north end, a green heron perched for a moment at the top of one of the trees on the island, but I don’t know if it was a third individual or one of the previous two, a pair of belted kingfishers were very excited to see each other, and a pair of sandpipers took off for the far shore before I could get a picture.

On my way back south, I finally managed to capture an image, this time of a great blue heron back to fishing at the falls.

Farther south, at the “bottom” below the southern playground, I spotted our first northern waterthrush of the season, who looks a lot like the Louisiana waterthrush we saw a couple of weeks ago.

As I was trying to get a better picture of the waterthrush, there was a big splash at the water’s edge, and this young, male, red-winged blackbird shot up to perch on this branch, preen a bit, and make his call. My guess is that a big catfish made a try for him, and he had to dry off and collect is nerves. Either way, I did not realize that these young ones would be adding to the cacophony. Perhaps he just wanted to let everyone know he was okay and he meant to do that.

So, besides the common yellowthroat picture I didn’t get, and northern waterthrush picture that it’s best you don’t zoom in on, I did manage to get a few presentable images of our first black-and-white warbler of the season, which Charlotte actually spotted first. They winter in Mexico, Central America, or South America, so I bet it was famished after that long flight.

Finally, the bloodroots have blossomed beside the Oak Leaf Trail, perhaps due to the warm weather just yesterday. Yay!

Lastly, we counted nearly 50 white-throated sparrows this morning, hopping around on the grass as if they had just rained down from the sky, which is probably pretty close to what actually happened. Until today, they were rare enough that I was excited to get the picture I had just yesterday, but now they are everywhere, so if you’ve always wanted to see one, this is your big chance!

Perhaps to make up for yesterday, this morning turned out to be even nicer than forecast. The skies were clear, the temps were mild, and the wind seemed even calm at times.

I was able to get a nice early start and was treated by the sight of this palm warbler, just in from the Gulf of Mexico, and if not my first for the season, then certainly the first I’ve managed to capture on film for the season. The picture is pretty grainy because it was still so dark, but I’ll take what I can get, and it is certainly good enough for a positive ID.

Just north of the palm warbler, I could hear a high-pitched but clear call close by that I didn’t recognize, so I asked Merlin®, who confidently picked “brown creeper”, and sure enough, I spotted our little singer not 10 feet away. We’ve seen plenty of them already this spring, but I don’t recall hearing one sing before, so that was fun.

Just before I turned east to swing by the pond, I checked in on our nesting robin, and she was home at the moment, so I couldn’t get an egg-count today. Maybe tomorrow.

I was surprised and thrilled to have the pond to myself for a few minutes, and these wood ducks came over to see if I had any snacks for them. “Not today, sweeties, but it’s a beautiful Saturday morning, and I bet some old guys with snacks will arrive pretty soon.”

Even better, right on the lawn I spotted a white-throated sparrow, a field sparrow, and this yellow-rumped warbler already lit up by the warm morning sun.

The resident red-breasted merganser was there again, and took advantage of the perfect conditions to show off a bit.

If that wasn’t enough, a belted kingfisher came by looking for his breakfast.

By then other folks were starting to arrive, so I headed back over to the river and bumped into my spotter, Lisa, who pointed out this female kingfisher who had already caught her breakfast. She was a long way off, so the picture’s not great, but she was thrashing her catch pretty good to subdue it before she gulped it down. By the little legs I can just make out on it, I’d guess it’s a crayfish. Mm, mm, good!

I didn’t get any better pictures at the river, so I risked the crowds and hiked back over to the pond. There I finally got a picture of one of the white-throated sparrows I’d been hearing singing their ode to Canada and maybe even the one who had been on the lawn earlier.

Finally, as I was about to head on home, someone mentioned that a green heron had been spotted, and Mike was willing to point out to me where it was hiding in the brush at the water’s edge. Happily, it came out into the sun after a while, and so I hustled around to the east side to get the sun at my back. I really didn’t want to spook it and miss the shot, so I remembered my lessons from earlier this spring and prostrated myself on the path to inch close enough to capture this image. “Welcome back, you emerald beauty!”

By then, the park was full of river cleanup volunteers, sure glad to see’em, marathon runners, good for them, and cow-bell ringing fans, so I didn’t expect to see much more wildlife and got the heck out of Dodge.

The radar made it look like I wouldn’t have much time in the park this morning before the rain came, plus it was pretty dark, so I stayed home and hoped for a break in the weather later today. Well, it appears that a break is not in the cards and so I’ve missed my window. Darn. We’ll have to reach into the vault for something to tide us over.

Here’s a cute sequence of yellow-rumped warbler images from yesterday that didn’t make the cut. He’s deep in some brush and preening with his head on a swivel to also keep an eye on the sky.

Here’s one more turtle picture from yesterday, and this one is a red-eared slider.

Here’s another look at the blue-winged teal drake on the pond back on Saturday, April 16, 2022

After I showed you the picture of a beaver hauling dried grass upstream on Tuesday, I read that kits are born from April to July and that “parents routinely clean out the young’s ‘bedding’, pushing out the decaying plants and bringing in new material.” It sure would be great if that’s what this picture means. Here’s another image from Tuesday, April 19, 2022

Paul Smith had a nice article in yesterday’s Journal Sentinel about “tracking birds during migrations,” and one example he cites is the Swainson’s thrush we saw last fall that could be from Ontario or, just as likely, could have flown all the way from western British Columbia. Here’s an image from last fall, and let’s hope we see them again on their return trip.

The current forecast is for the rain to be gone by tomorrow morning, so cross your fingers!

It was cloudy again before class this morning, so I opted to wait until I got back home to visit Estabrook, when the forecast was for clear skies and temps in the 60s, and that forecast did not disappoint!

Perhaps it was the warm weather and high winds that brought us a surprise visitor way ahead of schedule. This picture is nowhere near as nice as the one I got last June, but I’m pretty sure it is good enough to identify our first common green darner (Anax junius) aka “Lord of June dragonfly”. As I wrote last May, the Pedia of Wik reports that they are “well known for [their] great migration distance from the northern United States south into Texas and Mexico.”

Other critters enticed out into the bright light of day by the warm sun are these turtles on the pond, and they both look like painted turtles.

As does this little one, too.

If you’ve been outside today, you may have noticed the bugs in the air, and even if you haven’t, this yellow-rumped warbler by the pond sure has.

The wood ducks were also up and about at the pond, and this drake appears to be wondering if I brought it any snacks. Sorry, little dude.

There were a lot of raptors in the air this afternoon, and I counted three turkey vultures, one red-tailed hawk, and one Cooper’s hawk, but the only picture I managed to capture is of this young bald eagle.

Closer to the ground, this red squirrel was having its lunch.

Even lower, I found a fox sparrow. A couple of weeks ago, they were ubiquitous, but now they’ve mostly moved on, and I hardly see them anymore.

Finally, back on the ground, there are more flowers up. First is this daffodil by the pond.

And last are these violets in the lawn beside the maintenance building.

Keep your fingers crossed that I get to see something tomorrow morning before the showers roll back in.

It was cool, grey, and windy in Estabrook Park this morning, and there was plenty of activity to see, but not much of it was photogenic. Happily, some little birds took short breaks from their busy schedules to provide us with a couple of images anyway.

Here are a couple of black-capped chickadees by the river showing off how much they can change their shape.

Here’s a yellow-rumped warbler showing off three of his four yellow patches.

And here’s a downy woodpecker who was foraging on the ground when I first spotted her, but she decided to work her way up to eye level once she spotted me.

That’s it for today, I’m afraid. I did see a great blue heron on the river, the red-breasted merganser drake on the pond, the great horned owl deep in its hiding place on the island, and even the red morph screech owl, without breakfast this time, but nobody had time for pictures. There were also some tantalizing new bird calls I didn’t recognize, but I couldn’t find the sources yet. Here’s hoping for better luck tomorrow, eh?

There is now enough of a time window for me to sneak into Estabrook for a quick visit before school, we even had a little bit of sun this morning, and that sure lit up the pond water nicely around this dapper, red-breasted merganser drake.

Poor guy. All that beautiful plumage and no one to share it with.

Meanwhile, our newly visiting common mergansers were on the river again. There was even a second hen today, but she didn’t want to get in the picture.

At the north end, a female kestrel was taking a break, perhaps post breakfast, on an old tree high above the northern island.

The big surprise on the river, however, at least for me, was spotting this beaver hauling a clump of dried grass up stream, I can only suppose it is for nesting material, and I have not seen that behavior before.

I first spotted it before it stopped for the grass, and while I was far from the riverbank. I tried to get ahead of it for a picture as I approached the river, but I thought I had lost it when it didn’t appear on schedule. Just as I was about to give up and move on, there it came with the cargo it had just acquired.

Back on the mainland, I have yet another entry for my continuing effort to show you how yellow-bellied sapsuckers got that name. This female has quite a nice yellow streak down the middle of her belly.

Finally, I found the red morph screech-owl again, and heads-up before you scroll down, it appears to be in the middle of its breakfast.

I warned you.

Yesterday, while I was enjoying my mother-in-law’s deviled eggs (thanks again, Joanne!) I got a hot tip from Estabrook about an extraordinary sighting, and when Anne and I got home, I waited till dusk before venturing back into the park. I could not believe my luck when I found the target of my quest seemingly waiting for me to arrive. Here’s a red morph eastern screech-owl, just like the one we saw in Cambridge Woods last month but finally in Estabrook for the first time that I’ve ever seen. Woo Hoo!

Since I was already in the park, I checked in on the great horned owl at the river, and I found it beautifully out in the open for a change. It must have been dinner time.

This morning, we awoke to snow on the lawn, but the radar suggested there would be a gap in the precipitation. Well, the seals must be going on those clouds, because they just kept leaking. Luckily, most of the critters are built for this, and here’s our intrepid robin keeping her nest dry. On a subsequent pass, she was away, so I got a peek inside, and I couldn’t see any eggs yet, but watch this space.

There were at least 5 wood ducks on the pond, and here’s a male checking to see if I brought anything. Sorry, Buddy. I’m not that guy.

Back at the river, I was stunned to see a pair of common mergansers for the first time since the start of spring back in March. Here’s the hen,

And here’s the drake. I wonder what brings them to Estabrook at this late date.

On my way back south, a male belted kingfisher stopped by and uncharacteristically allowed me to sneak this picture. Thanks, Pal!

Just beyond the kingfisher, this pair of blue-winged teals were foraging for breakfast under the snow.

Finally, this female northern flicker was on break from digging in the dirt for bugs.

I had a breakfast to get to this morning, but I managed to sneak into Estabrook for a couple of hours first anyway, and the pink moon was still up in the west as I stepped across the Oak Leaf Trail.

Thankfully, the critters were not taking the holiday off, and I was soon greeted by the actual Easter Bunny.

At the river, I spotted two great blue herons on the river, for the first time this season I believe, and here’s one of them.

The robin we saw working on her nest yesterday was at it again this morning.

The wood ducks on the pond were especially friendly.

This hen even came up on the west lawn as I sat on the bench.

Perhaps because of the special day, this crow allowed me to get a lot closer than usual.

This male northern flicker followed the lead of cardinals, robins, and hermit thrushes before him and sampled the staghorn sumac.

He seemed to like it.

One killdeer was back on the lawn.

Despite the killdeer, there were four real deer also up on the lawn

One of whom appears to be going through some things this spring. Check his forehead.

Finally, after I left and was enjoying the breakfast buffet, I received word from Ms Szablewski at Friends of Estabrook Park that she spotted two screech owls in the park, “one red and one grey”. Perhaps they’re our pair from Cambridge Woods, and I hope I get the chance to get a picture of them in Estabrook soon.

It was cold, just below freezing, but the sun was out, and the winds were almost back to normal, so it was a picture-perfect morning in Estabrook Park.

I found another robin by the dog park still working on her nest.

I saw blue-winged teals on the river and on the pond, but the lighting was much better at the pond.

Here’s an eastern phoebe in that same light.

Meanwhile, on the grass, the ruby-crowned kinglets were so thick this morning, I tried to be careful where I stepped. Plus, they were finally showing off their ruby crowns.

Finally, at the pond I saw my first brown thrasher for the season, and it was singing up a storm.

It looks a bit like a hermit thrush but with a longer tail, a longer beak, and bright yellow eyes.

At the river, the robin we saw yesterday was still on her nest,

A squadron of cormorants flew over on their way to Lake Michigan to compete with the fishing industry,

And a pair of chickadees were preparing a nesting cavity.

Lastly, as I was almost home another yellow-bellied sapsucker did an even better job of showing off her yellow “belly”, which looks more like a collar or label than a belly.

and even demonstrated some sap sucking from the trunk of what appears to be a black birch, aka river birch or water birch (Betula nigra).

So, it turns out that I should have saved at least one of the flower pictures from yesterday for today, but oh well. Live and learn, we can only hope. Right?