Spring Time at the Pond

Still no sign of the Blue Heron, and Warblers aren’t here yet. But we have other attractions. I’m happy with just seeing a Robin looking smart and handsome:

Robin

Or this Red-winged Blackbird, calling across the pond to a hopeful prospect:

Redwinged Blackbird

 

Signs too of someone working hard. Soon we’ll have no more trees:

Beaver's work

Beaver's work 1

The usual suspects? Leave it to the Beavers. It runs in the family. The little one learns the trade early. Here he is. Look at that face, can you blame him?

Beaver babe

Beaver babe 1

Wait… I need to check my eyes.

B3

Is that Paddington Bear swimming in the pond?

The main attraction by the pond is definitely the Owlington Family. There are always nature paparazzi gathering outside their home about 40 ft. up in a hollow tree trunk, huge lens and tripods set up below waiting for the tiniest movement. The babies are showing their faces a bit more now, although still snuggling up in their nest all day:

Owlets

The eyes

Interesting that there’s always one that’s more alert and nosy while the other rather sleeps in:

Owlet 1

Looks like he’s got his Mama’s eyes:

Mama

More photos to come as spring warms up more… and as the owlets fledge.

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Published by

Arti

If she’s not birding by the Pond, Arti’s likely watching a movie, reading, or writing a review. Creator of Ripple Effects, bylines in Asian American Press, Vague Visages, Curator Magazine.

21 thoughts on “Spring Time at the Pond”

  1. This post made me think of “Grey Owl,” the movie that made me fall in love with beavers. Their vocalizations sound so sweet. Love the great pictures of the baby owls! I wonder what sort of noises they make…

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    1. Barbara,

      I’ve never heard the Beaver’s sound. Usually they just swim so quietly like a semi-submerged submarine. But I’ve heard the Great Horned Owl hoot, mom or dad, not the owlets. The sound is haunting. Come to think of it, quite like the Loon’s call.

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  3. Oh Arti the photos of the beaver and birds, especially the owls, were amazing. Thank you for sharing. You are a treasure and with your talent with words I can envision a children’s book about this whole community!! (That you would write of course)

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  4. Great shots, Arti! Everyone looks so wonderful hanging out in their natural habitat. The beavers do look very Paddington Bear, albeit in the nude. I went birding for the first time in my life in Central Park last Saturday. It was a guided tour with a guy who is seriously for the birds. I loved that! We only saw a few glimpses of feathered friends, but it was a lot of fun. We did see a few people with cameras with lenses longer than my leg and we came across a rival group of birders whose guide plays recordings of bird calls in hopes of bringing out more birds, something me, my guide and group felt was unethical. It messes with nature.

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    1. LA,

      You’re so fortunate to be living so close to one of N. America’s best birdwatching spots, Central Park. I envy you. One day if I visit NYC, I’ll definitely make that one of the must-see or do activities. Did you follow Birding Bob? Your birding leader is right. I was told the same thing from our birding leader: never use bird calls (apps from iPhone very convenient) or else you’ll disturb the natural behaviour of the birds. I must admit, as a novice birder, I did use that ‘trick’ to lure birds out from hiding. But later I’d decided to just wait them out, benefits are plenty: other than patience developed, I got to train my hearing and eyesight.

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    1. Ellen,

      But I just wonder what’s the benefits of the beaver’s work. This spring in particular, tree chomping has become an epidemic … sure looks like it from the pics.

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  6. Wow — spring IS coming to your world! What a wonderful post to awaken to. How I love seeing the Owlingtons! Baby is getting big. But I especially loved the beaver photo — he DOES look like Paddington Bear!

    Most of all, I’m glad you are back to your pond and able to record these wonderful bits of nature for us! What a treat!

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    1. Jeanie,

      Spring has arrived for some time already, albeit our ‘vegetations’ take time to turn colour. And since I’m so overwhelmed with care giving, I haven’t much chance to head out into the woods. And the babies take time to fledge, which maybe in a couple more weeks. Hopefully I’ll have something more spectacular for you then. 🙂

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    1. Stefanie,

      I was told by other birders that the previous year’s Papa owl was dead and this is a new male. Don’t know how they know. Anyway, I’m not that interested in the parents, but the babies. So, what do you think? I have my Owlingtons, you have your Dashwoods. 😉

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  9. Two weeks ago, a friend and I were at a wildlife refuge when the young woman staffing the learning center asked if we had been to the birding center in Quintana. Been there? We’d never even heard of it. When we found it, it was delightful: very small, but designed to attract and shelter birds. They provide water and food for the migrating species that land in the area, exhausted after their Gulf crossing. The birds themselves are magnets for photographers with some of those lenses you’ve talked about. I’ve never seen anything like them! No wonder some of the photos we see are so great.

    Have I told you about Mia McPherson’s blog? I can’t remember. I subscribed to her daily posts, and am learning so much. She publishes the details for each photo — shutter speed, aperture, ISO, etc. — and for a newbie like me, it’s been a wonderful way to begin understanding how to improve my own photos.

    I love that you have beavers, although it must be disconcerting to see them so effective with their gnawing. And the redwing blackbird is another we have in common. I managed a photo of one at the wildlife refuge. They’re hard to see there, because they like to hide in the reeds. When I was still in the midwest, they liked to perch on cornstalks. They sing so beautifully — a real sound of summer.

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    1. Linda,

      These are the easy ones for photos. I’m waiting for the Warblers to arrive and they are very hard to capture. I still consider myself a hobbyist, amateur birder and photographer. Simply don’t have time to dwell into the techniques and go deeper into nature photography. Main thrust is still film reviewing. Amidst all the obligations and duties at home, I’m glad I can get a breath of fresh air heading to the pond birding in between tasks. 😉

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