I saw a weasel in my backyard in the west end of Peterborough a couple of weaks ago. Maybe 8″ long. Came from under the deck by the hot tub. Appeared on two separate days around 8:30am. May explain why I haven’t seen any mice this year! Disappeared after 10 Read more…
The countryside along the north shore of Rice Lake is beginning to smell of autumn now. Last night, I took a walk over to a friend’s farm where I plant a vegetable garden. Over the years he’s created trails throughout the woodland and I was fortunate enough to catch the Read more…
I received a telephone call from a property owner near Presqu’ile Provincial Park, who reported that in her fairly large alfalfa/cover field, which was cut early and now has lots of blooming plants, she has seen “hundreds” of monarchs this week. 142 monarchs reported yesterday at Detroit River Hawk Watch. Read more…
Here is a sequence of photos of a pair of White-breasted Nuthatches that nested this summer in our backyard bluebird box (two compartments). The pictures include feeding the chicks and the nest box after the chicks fledged on July 20, 2015. A beautiful experience. Unfortunately they fledged when we were Read more…
August 16: Our hummingbird feeder has been busy this summer. The hummers of course enjoy it, but also we have had orioles feeding almost the entire summer. This morning, this a Downy Woodpecker thought he might give it a try…..sweet tooth I guess !! Regards, Nancy Cafik
AUGUST 25: “We have four juvenile Merlins that we see and hear playing and squawking in our yard almost daily, albeit less in the last few days. We even saw one of them flying briefly with a Bald Eagle. We live on Young’s Point Road, between Lakefield and Young’s Point.” Read more…
August 26: Always nice to come across something new (to us) almost literally on our own doorstep, a Blue-spotted salamander, or maybe that should be Blue spotted/Jefferson salamander, as the very informative Ontario Nature website explains. Click here. I’ve included a small photo for scale – from tip to tail, Read more…
I have a Blue Jay with only her bottom beak. She shovels seed onto her beak by putting her head sideways. Since the baby jays are now feeding out of the bird feeder I have noticed one that also has only the bottom beak. I tried to find information out Read more…
After last night’s rain and cooler temperatures, there was a mini fallout of migrants along the Trent River this morning just south of Trent University alongside the South Drumlin. Probably other similar spots in Peterborough would be productive too. Warblers included 6 Chestnut-sided, 4 Black-throated Green, 3 Blackburnian, 2 Black Read more…
Redhead (Aythya americana) (2) – Reported Aug 13, 2015 07:02 by Daniel Williams – Lakefield–Sewage Lagoons, Peterborough, Ontario – Map: – Checklist: – Comments: “Pair.” Lesser Scaup (Aythya affinis) (1) – Reported Aug 13, 2015 18:34 by Luke Berg – Lakefield–Sewage Lagoons, Peterborough, Ontario – Map: – Checklist: – Comments: Read more…
May be beautiful weather but fall is near. The Barn Swallows at my farm have been departing over the last week. The last left yesterday, August 8. With the amount of mosquitos still around, I wondered if they might delay a bit, but they seem to be keeping to their Read more…
A Least Bittern was found this morning on the sidewalk in front of Jeff Purvey’s Restaurant at Brookdale Plaza in Peterborough. It was easily captured and put in a cardboard box. Late this afternoon, it was taken to an animal hospital for x-rays and may end up going to a Read more…
This evening, a Great Egret flew over our house on Algonquin Boulevard near the zoo. It was heading north up the Otonabee. Having a beer on the deck and looked up at the right time ! Mike Barker
This morning I spotted a sow Black Bear with three cubs on the Second Line of Belmont (east of Havelock) off of Highway 7. The bears were about 300 metres north of Sama Park. Sadly, I took too long to get my camera out. Ulrike Kullik
My backyard crows managed to raise one fledgling this year. He seems to be a bit behind in maturity from the other crows I see. This is the first time he has come to the deck. I find baby crows so curious and clumsy. They investigate everything…learning how different plants Read more…
At about 9:30 pm on July 13, we were driving home from a lovely cottage weekend. We were heading north on Northey’s Bay Road, along the north shore of Upper Stoney Lake, 1 km before the community centre (at Highway 28). There was no moon and therefore not much light Read more…
This picture was taken from inside the cottage kitchen on Deer Bay Reach Road, Lower Buckhorn, at 5 pm on Sunday, July 12. The young Black Bear was climbing an oak tree beside the cottage, possibly to get acorns on the roof. My husband was trying to shoo it off Read more…
We have a cottage on Kosh Lake (Kasshabog Lake). We have been on the lake, on an island for the past 11 years. Traditionally we have Common Ravens on our island. They nest here, raise their young and wake us up very early in the morning. This spring we witnessed Read more…
We were on the Incredible Edibles Farm Tour yesterday (July 10, 2015) in Campbellford and came upon this beautiful Luna Moth on the side of the house at the Haute-Goat Farm. The time was about 10:45 a.m. Jill Purcell
The baby Kestrels fledged today and left the nesting box. Unfortunately there was no camera in the car at the time, and so I had to return home and get one and then return. There were three young on the roof of the box and one adult initially, but when Read more…
For the past two years a handsome Ring-billed Gull that I call Stanley has visited my campsite for the odd treat. He appeared one day when he saw the crows feeding at my site, and he has been a regular visitor since. He warns other gulls off, and every time Read more…
I have a couple of beautiful Serviceberry (Juneberry) trees at the corner of my house, which the Cedar Waxwings just love. This year, however, I have noticed that I have at least three – and maybe four – waxwings nesting in the shrubs right beside the Serviceberries. Outside, I can’t Read more…
I have been having quite a bit of “unusual for my yard” activity lately. For some unknown reason woodpeckers have taken notice of my peanut feeder so I have kept it up. I rarely see any. This year I have numerous Downy Woodpeckers including a male feeding peanuts to a Read more…
I have been entertained at the camp (Woodland Campsite near Buckhorn) each night for the past couple of weeks by a flocking of smallish birds. I could not capture photos as they are too fast, and until today I did not know what they were. I finally found them: Marsh Read more…
Today (June 26) my daughter, Cathy, and I decided to take my aluminum boat into the marsh wetland in front of my trailer at the Woodland Campsite near Buckhorn. We were looking for any possible photo opportunities. We arrived at a small clearing in the cattails and while bemusing a Read more…
Last weekend I stayed at my daughter’s house on Northey Bay, Stoney Lake. A Blanding’s turtle was seen for 3 evenings in a row attempting to lay eggs in the driveway. Not sure if she succeeded as we came back to town. I counted over a dozen sunfish nests along Read more…
Prairie Warbler (Setophaga discolor) – Reported Jun 15, 2015 13:46 by Tyler L. Hoar – Sandy Lake Pine barrens/Sedge marshes, Peterborough, Ontario – Map: – Checklist: – Comments: “one singing bird approximately 2km in from the north end of road”
I would be interested in knowing if people have been noticing more and bigger Poison Ivy plants in recent years. This is certainly my experience. Not only do larger areas seem to be covered by this native plant, but the plants themselves seem to be much larger. In many places, Read more…
Prairie Warbler (Setophaga discolor) (1) – Reported Jun 11, 2015 13:46 by Travis Cameron – KHSSP – Lou Phillips Rd., Peterborough, Ontario – Map: – Checklist: – Comments: “At old fire tower lookout. Flying westward, perching and singing approximately every 50m. Stopped and sang about 20 feet from me. Seemingly Read more…
My deck went up in 1998. I received a “deck warming” gift of a bird house which was installed the same year. Every year since then a pair of chickadees have nested in the bird house. I even noticed in the early spring, the chickadees would have to chase off Read more…