Wood ducks return to our region in late March and remain until the first severe frost. This photograph was taken in early May and the ducks are in their finest breeding colours. Along with american wigeons, wood ducks are among the most colourful ducks in this part of Canada. We haven’t seen many broods this spring and we’re hoping that things are just a bit slow. Wood ducks build their nests in the cavities of trees, which explains their name. The other day we saw a female fly into a nesting hole in the same tree that was also occupied by a pileated woodpecker’s nest! If the duck is sitting on a nest we should be seeing her young anytime now.

Every March as the snow melts, the Ottawa River overflows its banks making the walk to the river’s edge impossible. As there had been so little rain this past spring we thought it likely that the water had receded. As it had we followed the path to the edge of the river and found this grackle in the shallows. The bird was totally engaged in his bath and even though we were standing within feet of it, I was able to take this series of shots. I’m not sure who was having more fun, the bird or us!

It’s a great time in our favourite reserve. Young animals are starting to appear. We’ve seen some geese with offspring but so far these are the first of the ducklings. The adult female looks pretty content with her lot as do her chicks, if ducks could grin I’d say these were! The merganser is a diving duck that feeds mainly on fish. We watched as the adult dove to fish and the chicks followed her lead.

The bay-breasted warbler is the third warbler variety I have featured on my blog. Like the palm and yellow-rumped warblers, the bay-breasted is a challenge to shoot as it flies in and out of the pine trees, your neck is on a perpetual pivot to get one in your camera sight. This handsome bird is in full breeding colours but I think he moved further afield to find a mate as we only saw this species for a couple of days in the reserve.

This variety of nuthatch is less common in Eastern Ontario than the larger white-breasted nuthatch. They are little acrobats, moving up, down and sideways along the tree trunks. This bird was in deep shade but I took many shots as it was a cooperative subject. The photo was dark out of camera, only the plant material near its beak was nicely lit. I made some contrast and exposure adjustments in Lightroom and Photoshop to get the photo you see here.

This gosling and his brood are the first chicks we’ve seen this spring. We came across the chicks and three adult birds as they filed out of the lake. I believe we were looking at a blended family as a few of the chicks were larger than the others. Like myself, other photographers at the reserve are waiting for more young to appear. It shouldn’t be long now. I’ve noticed a lot of single male ducks on the lake, the females must be sitting on the nests.

Palm Warblers are a new species for me. A friend in the reserve told us that there were warblers in a grove of pine trees and pointed us in their direction. The birds kept flying through and around the tree boughs catching insects as they flew past. I kept panning the trees hoping to catch sight of one. I think warblers are among the most challenging of birds to photograph given their quick movements. Their striking colours set them off against the green of the pines and with a bit of luck and patience I was rewarded with these photographs.

These photos were taken in late March when the trees were still bare of leaves. The crimson red of the cardinal on that bright cold morning was a sight to see. He was pretty easy to track and flew from the shade into the sun all within several metres of me. I couldn’t have asked for a more obliging subject!

This mallard was hard to miss as I walked along the path. It wasn’t too cold that day so I couldn’t quite figure out why he was all puffed up.  Maybe the duck was showing off, realigning its feathers, looking defensive or just sleepy.  Whatever was going on I had never seen a duck strike this pose before and took a shot.

Another seasonal migrant, hearing the blackbird’s song in early spring gives all of us “Northerners” a lift! I usually see blackbirds perched on rushes or in branches. I spotted this bird on a log and it stayed put while I took some shots. Although their diet consists mainly of seeds, other plant material and insects, they will also eat small frogs, snails and mollusks. I think this bird was about to go on the hunt and wasn’t going to budge because I was close by.

I took this photograph on an overcast day in late November. It reflects the mood of the season, no longer summer and not yet winter. The lake where this was taken is home to a wide variety of water birds. While there might be a few disputes amongst themselves, geese and ducks seem to get along for the most part. Or maybe it’s just that they ignore each other!

Black-capped chickadees are all season birds in our area. You’d think that such tiny birds would head south over the winter but they remain, you’ve got to admire them for that! Although you might be tempted to pass them by and concentrate on photographing the spring migrants when they come through, chickadees just call out for some notice any time of year. They’re little acrobats and when one strikes this kind of pose I can’t resist.

The season for black-crowned night herons was quite short in our region last year. When we did spot a heron, it was usually in a clear sight line and often amazingly well posed and poised like this one was. Way to go Surfer Girl!

We were finishing our walk and decided to take one last look along the edge of the lake. This mallard seemed to be waiting for his close-up so I obliged. It’s always a challenge taking a dark subject against a snowy background because the subject can appear too dark. Getting the white balance right is another challenge as snow will often look grey or blue. I selectively adjusted the exposure and shadows to correct these issues.

Last April we spotted this flicker at the entrance to its nest. Over a period of several weeks we saw the bird return to feed its young. Spring is a great time in a reserve, there’s always something to see and photograph! Returning to the same places often enough, you become very familiar with the terrain and with the activity of its inhabitants. Since the weather has improved and we’re out with our cameras again we’ve noticed some nest building underway. Later in the season I hope to feature some shots of this year’s new arrivals.

Someone had turned the dead tree into a bird feeder. The chickadee had discovered the seed and I took these photos as it flew back and forth to retrieve it. I debated whether to remove the blurred plant material that appeared in the background of these shots but decided to keep it in as it looked more natural than the unbroken blue of the water.

The sight and sound of song sparrows is a sure sign that spring has finally arrived. A few overwinter in our region but the majority are “snow birds” returning when the weather improves. Like all small birds you often hear them but they can be challenging to spot. I took this shot last spring but I hope to take more this year as I walk along the trails. As the season starts up they are a terrific subject to photograph.

Female hooded mergansers have a distinctive crest. This one was about to dive so her crest showed to best advantage. Like many diving ducks mergansers tend to remain in the middle of lakes, usually just beyond my lens’ ability to capture them. They are excellent fishers and are often rewarded for their dives. This shot was taken late in the season when the ducks come closer to the shore than usual.

I believe this is an American Redstart. We came upon this nesting female last spring. She was barely off the path we were on. The nest was almost at eye level so we took our shots and then moved on quickly so as not to disturb the bird anymore than we had. It’s the first time I’ve been this close to a bird on her nest and felt lucky we chose to walk that path that day.

The Downy Woodpecker is common in our area and you often hear them before you see them. The Downy is smaller than the Hairy Woodpecker but its basic colouring is the same. I took this photo at a small F-stop and narrow depth of field which contributed to the background effect you see. I find that it sets the bird off nicely and adds to the photograph.

Several weeks ago I posted a photograph taken last spring of a woodpecker preparing a nest. In this shot I show the same bird feeding his chick. If you look closely, to the right and left of the chick you can just see the beaks of two other nestlings. We passed this same nesting site a few days back. Once again, a male woodpecker was cleaning it up for this year’s young. The last time we checked we saw that a squirrel had taken up residence. I know that squirrels often occupy vacant nests but this one seemed to have had a tenant, maybe the woodpecker changed its mind.

I have featured mallards several times before and they will continue to show up on my blog. I have a soft spot for these ducks. I like to watch their behaviour and they rarely disappoint! While the light looks even, the photo was taken with the sun directly overhead (shadow under the beak) and in this case illuminates the bird quite nicely.