Enchanting Essex

Tag: wildlife

  • Ode to a Mosquito

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    We had an interesting but unpleasant experience today. It was mid-afternoon, we were sitting outside enjoying the forest behind us, it was not damp, neither was it sunset time, yet we were suddenly bombarded by Asian Tiger Mosquitoes. And they were biting. Ode to a Mosquito A striped little monster from Hell,Decided that mid-day went…

  • Pecking Order

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    Pecking Order [Or the beach drama of the Killdeer, the Seagull, and the Turkey Vulture.] I witnessed a power struggle between a Turkey Vulture, a Seagull, and a Killdeer—three very differently sized species—all vying for some meat off a dead fish that had washed ashore. This took place on the wee beach at the Port…

  • The Bee’s Teacup

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    Cup Plant is an herbaceous, native, hardy perennial in the Daisy family. These beauties adorn the meadow beneath the Caldwell First Nations’ Boardwalk from August to September. Fun Fact: Cup Plant is fancifully known as the Indigenous “Chewing Gum”. The Anishinaabe peoples (including the Chippewa/Ojibwe, of which the Caldwell First Nation is a part) historically…

  • Carolinian Cutie

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    Gosh, did we ever have a lovely visitor this evening! We knew immediately that this wee guy was a fledgling by his teeny-tiny peeps — that were constant:  Mum, Mum, Mum, I need food!  His mum and dad are sure to be close-by keeping an eye on their kiddo and foraging for insects for him. …

  • Sunday Stills:  The Odonates Redux* — Gargantuan Green

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    A vibrant knight in sparkling vest,He chose my bricks to pause and rest.A three-inch giant, fierce and blue,A flash of wild that journeyed through. ‘Though all my photography buddies have many pictures of Green Darners, the species has been my white whale.  Until this afternoon.  Until five hours (5!!!) after I posted my insects for…

  • Sunday Stills:  The Odonates of Essex County

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    For Sunday Stills, Terri writes, this week I challenge you to share images of insects.  Ohmigosh!  I was beaming from ear to ear when I read that line.  This is, at last, a prompt/challenge for which my photography catalogue is very well-equipped.  Terri started us off with Hart’s “Dog and Butterfly” — I ask you,…

  • Sage is the Bee

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    Sage is the Bee A chubby bee hums in the sun,To find the sweetest purple prize.She lands upon a velvet leaf,And hugs the sage in glad surprise. She tickles every fragrant bloom,While dancing “The Bumblebee Jive”Then whispers to her purple friend,Before she flies home to her hive. ‘Til next time, y’all…

  • The Flower Hour #44 M, N, O — Quaint Quadrilles

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    Wild and Free Soft grass bends beneath our feet.Milkweed smells so cool and sweet.Thistles form like little drums.Bees fly past with gentle hums. Trees stretch high to catch the sun.Silver brooks gurgle and run.Asters wear their sapphire ring.Bumblebees begin to sing. Petals brush our wandering knees.Oxeyes flutter in the breeze.We are wild and we are…

  • Lens-Artists Challenge #409 – My Wannabe Best Ever Images

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     I scoured my MacBook for five perfect views,By Lens-Artists standards, there’s not much to choose!A laneway a skyline and a barn of stone,An eagle, a crown where a butterfly’s flown. My photography skill is a work in progress so, being perfectly honest with myself, “best-ever” is, as yet, a goal not an actuality. But I…

  • Fireweed’s Finale

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    Fireweed is an herbaceous, native perennial, sometimes regionally known as Rosebay Willowherb.  Why Fireweed?  This species is a forest fire endurance specialist.  Its tough roots survive despite high underground temperatures.  They sprout very quickly after a fire which helps prevent soil loss.  A single plant can produce up to 80,000 tiny seeds (which they produce…

  • The Bee And Her Blossom

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    Pink Turtlehead is an herbaceous, native perennial, and we have a bumper crop in our pollinator garden this summer. It is a valuable, late-summer and early-fall food source for Bumble Bees, which are (near as I can tell) the only species strong enough to pry open the tight, snapdragon-like blossoms.  I was lucky enough to…

  • Forbidden Bloom

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    She invaded our marshland green,Sweetest face, this forbidden queen. The Flowering Rush, not to be confused with the Bulrush, is an aquatic perennial of the Plantain family.  Despite its delicate, pink beauty, it is listed as an invasive species here in Ontario.  They do, perhaps, have a redeeming quality — the pollinators love them.  One…

  • Whimsical Waltz

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    Finding a creek bank painted with pale yellow Sulphur Cinquefoil, and watching its lively hoverfly visitors is always a wonderful summertime discovery. The plant has a slightly fuzzy stem and its blossoms have very delicate, heart-shaped petals. They draw Hoverflies by the droves which is wonderful because the more pollinators, the better.  Plus, they devour…

  • August Poetry Challenge: Wild Hearts

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    Dawn breaks; wild hearts leap,Young hooves dance through rising green,Life feels sweet and new. Many thanks to Rebecca Cuningham who, in her blog post titled Chilean Citizen Scientists Find Ancient Fossils, asked us, Got haiku poetry? Sign up for the August Poetry Challenge.  I’ve never participated before, but this time I’m trying.  Rebecca tells us For August’s…

  • Carolinian Banquet

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    There is nothing quite like that rush of excitement when nature decides to put on a little show just for you. This afternoon, two teeny-tiny, spotted fawns confidently walked out of the woods behind our home, noshing away while we watched.  ‘Though there was no sign of Mum, we think they are perfectly safe! Mother…

  • Date Night in the Forest

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    We have a regular visitor, an Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) that I’ve named Bismarck (our squirrel in Cobourg was Fargo).  Squirrels are known to be meticulous groomers, often spending a significant amount of time licking their fur, rubbing their limbs, and using their front paws to wipe their faces and ears.  Bismarck put on…

  • A Tiny Surprise

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    Passing through a meadow filled with blooming Milkweed and spotting a hovering, Hummingbird Clearwing Moth, was a truly magical summer experience. A Tiny Surprise Flashes of pink all through the green,Where meadow milkweed reigns supreme,A tiny guest upon the breeze,That flits among the rosy frieze. With whirring wings and see-through flight,A feathered shadow in the…

  • Lens-Artists Challenge #406:  The Lazy “Daze” of Summer

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    Summer Daze Summer is the flutter of a painted wing,Where sleepy pollinators and beetles sing.A rustle in the stalks of emerald corn,As raindrops reflect the light of early morn. Summer is feathered, marine and furry folk,Within and beneath the shade of ancient oak.Where petals proudly unfurl in vibrant hues,And painted boats go cruising Lake Erie’s…

  • Cerulean Snub

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    Blue Jays are very intelligent (if loud) birds but often, in our woods, they seem to be a wee bit mischievous. Tricksters, perhaps. For all the world, after a bit of a ruckus in the branches, these two looked to be having a bit of a lovers’ tiff. Cerulean Snub A cerulean snub! A cobalt…

  • Camouflage

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    Female Northern Cardinals wear warm, pale-brown and olive-tan plumage, accented with subtle dusty-reds on their crest, wings, and tail. When pressed against the textured, earthy grays and browns of an old-growth tree bark, this rich earth-tone colouration serves as highly effective natural camouflage. Camouflage A shadow carved of root and wood,Where time’s slow, textured bark…

  • Garden Gold

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    There is a joyous humming in our laneway garden as bees galore feast on the pollen and nectar in the masses of Cutleaf Coneflowers.  An absolute haven (and heaven) for our local pollinators, and pure delight for me. Garden Gold Upraised against the summer sky,Golden coneflowers reach up high.With lobed and leafy stems they stand,A…

  • Impish Grace

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    Impish Grace Along the creek, the sunbeams dance,On purple spikes that caught my eye,A fuzzy bee is in a trance —she’s bobbing, buzzing, bumbling, by! She rolls in pollen, head to toe,And takes a sunny, fuchsia seat,Uncaring this is a “no-grow,”She knows she’s found a tasty treat. So pretty in the afternoon,Magenta splash of impish…

  • Wash and a Brush-Up

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    I caught a juvenile male robin grooming himself, sitting on the top of our fence. He was comical. Robins really do have the best personalities, especially when they think no one is watching. Wash and a Brush-Up Upon the fence a feathered knight,A flash of rust and belly white,With twitchy tail and awkward pose,He preens…

  • Lens-Artists Challenge #399: Stuck in Place – The Angels of Kingsville

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    You cannot get through a single day without having an impact on the world around you. What you do makes a difference, and you have to decide what kind of difference you want to make.†  The Challenge:  …let’s get stuck in one place. Ideally, you should carve out thirty minutes to an hour to do…

  • Essex Erato #15

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    Young Bismark Standing on the steps,delicacy in his grasp,hungry but wary. But in every walk with Nature one receives far more than he seeks.† ’Til next time, y’all… †John Muir, “Steep Trails” — Page 1343, Chapter IX Mormon Lilies from his anthology “John Muir: Ultimate Collection”.