Pond Tag

This busy muskrat was annoying the ducks today. From the information I've gathered, muskrats are very territorial but will not actually harm the ducks.

Small residents around the pond

Here are some portraits of the smaller critters I've seen recently:

Such a sunny color!

Monarch caterpillar on milkweed

Red milkweed beetle

Black swallowtail on daylily.

Happy Critters Pre-Rain

We've had a week of rain. The pond has overflowed its banks, and the turtles have stayed underwater. This photos was taken when the sun was still shining. Hope we'll see the turtles (and the frogs: see the bullfrog in the top left corner?) again soon!

Secret Paths Revealed

Wild turkey and squirrel prints in Gobble, Gobble. Published by Dawn Publications, 2011.


robin tracks
I love going out into the woods in winter to look for animal tracks. In wet snow, the solid tracks of deer leave their two-toed trails all through the woods. After a light snow, it's easy to spot even the delicate prints of birds and mice.

If conditions are right, you can find "reverse prints"-- tracks formed when the animal's footprints compacted the snow. When the snow begins to melt away, these areas, because they've been compressed, melt more slowly. The tracks become raised areas like these deer prints:

Voles tunnel under the snow. When the top layer melts, their secret trails, looking like a maze of highways, are revealed:

Winter Robins

The Hawthorne tree has been Go Food for a flock of robins over the past few days. These robins might be on their way from Canada--they seem more robust than the genteel variety we usually see around here in warmer weather. In any case, there are several dozens of them, and they are quite fond of hawthorne berries. The tree is looking a little sparse, but a great many of the berries are now on the ground--waiting for the next round of diners.

Same tree... a week apart

Strange weather, here in Maine. I don't know what the critters are thinking, but this little Hawthorne tree near the pond must have been pretty shocked.

Early Autumn at the Pond

Summer lingers around the rim, but Autumn is making it's way to Frog Song Pong. The pond babies of Spring have grown up to swim and fly and feed on their own. This little wood duckling is more of a teenager now. (Photo was taken through my window--they're too skittish to get close). We've seen five of them swimming around. Maybe the next book should be Pond Teens...

The chickadees are busily harvesting pine nuts from the cones.

Some critters avoid being the harvest themselves by clever camouflage. See this moth? Can you see it in the next photo?
Stay tuned for more Fall images.

Frog & Friends

Well, maybe "frog & lunch" would be more accurate--I'm not sure. But anyway, this handsome fellow wasn't anywhere near these lovely moths. The black and white one is a leopard moth, and is nocturnal. I have no idea what the other one might be, but would love to know. First I've seen of either one of them. Gorgeous!

Froggy time at the pond

So great to see the frogs again!

Turkey Crossing

A parade of turkeys crossed the snow-heaped pond today, leaving zig-zag trails.

November Turtles

Two Chrysemys picta picta took advantage of a strangely balmy day in Maine to soak up some sun. Two weeks ago there was a thin skim of ice on the pond.

Last frog of the season

See the tadpole here? Hope he makes it through the winter to become a singer in the spring!


Autumn's color dazzle has actually come and gone. I took these photos just last week, but a strong-winded storm raged through two nights ago, ripping the leaves from the trees. They now stand stark and gloomy. The pond has a blanket of leaves, too, rippling gently when the windmill produces rings of bubbles on the surface. The turtles and frogs will hibernate through the winter, and hopefully we will have good ice for skating.

Fluttering by

Mourning Cloak

Monarch

Black Swallowtail

Great Spangled Fritillary

These lovely creatures--little works of art-- flit near the pond, and stop for nectar in the flower garden nearby. The Mourning Cloak prefers tree sap to flowers, though.

Sunday frogs

Fascinating froggies meditating at the pond today.

Munching Bunch

Dining at Frog Song Pond:

A lone sandpiper searches for snacks along the muddy bank, dragonflies dart for dinner, and a dozen or more Cedar Waxwings soar for supper.

Blowin' in the Wind

The newest addition to Frog Song Pond is a very cool way to aerate the water. Tiny bubbles generated by the new windmill will add much-needed oxygen so that the microorganisms will break down the heavy leaf matter that has accumulated at the bottom of the pond. The frogs and turtles will be SO happy!

We hired a very smart pond biologist and his equally smart (and strong!) wife for the job. The multi-talented Jesse & Stacey Coleman also own and operate Gorham Fitness Studio. Check out their blog, too, for great ideas for healthy families.