Turtles: Painteds and Sliders

May 19th, 2012 § 1

Even though bigger with a higher domed shell, Red-Eared Slider turtles are often thought to be Painted Turtles because of their colorful markings. The top photo shows the two breeds next to each other so you can easily see the differences. The Painted turtle is on the left and probably isn’t full sized (4-10″ shells) yet. The shells of Red-Eared Sliders can reach 10-13″ in length. When these pictures were taken, two of the Painteds were following behind the Red-Eared Slider. Maybe they were hoping for scraps of a future meal or just having a nice afternoon at the millpond.

Salads for cygnets

May 18th, 2012 § 2

The mute swans are bringing their three cygnets to the southern end of the Brighton millpond daily now and the park visitors are enjoying the pastel gray balls of fluff with their tiny wings and charcoal-colored bills. The pen and cob (mom and dad respectively) tip up (lower left) to reach the bottom of the pond to bring submerged vegetation to the surface for their young (lower right). Sometimes one of them unintentionally dons a necklace of seaweed as a result of this activity.

Ducklings facing the world alone

May 16th, 2012 § 0

Five days ago, I reported the brood of nine abandoned ducklings had been reduced to seven. I’m happy to report the brood is thriving and all of the little ones appear healthy. The same can’t be said for the white bibbed hen’s ducklings first mentioned two weeks ago. Their numbers have dwindled from four down to two. Their mom has left them in the care of the seven other abandoned chicks (above and below).  She’s been swept her off her webbed feet by two handsome drakes and remains nearby but pays no attention to her little ones.

Last evening, I was telling park visitors about these nine ducklings and had my back to them as they left shore for an evening paddle. I heard a violent splash, turned around, and only eight ducklings remained. The survivors darted toward shore and huddled together (below) following the attack of a snapping turtle or large bass. That’s how quickly life ends for ducklings. One minute here, the next, gone. It was one of the two white-bibbed hen’s chicks.

Who pecks who and why?

May 16th, 2012 § 0

The pecking order isn’t limited to chickens. Many bird species use it to establish their dominance hierarchy. Millpond ducks take jabs at each other continously as I’ve explained before.

Why do they do it? Once the pecking order is established through minor scrimmages, it reduces the chance of intense conflicts that require expenditures of far more energy and might risk war wounds. A higher ranked duck can signal his intentions to underlings by subtle visual cues — the lowering of its head or a couple of steps toward. Ducks of lesser stature get the message and get out of striking range. Ducks in the bottom rung spend a lot of time dodging the others or waiting for their turn to eat.

Ducklings start pecking at each other as soon as they start foraging for food. Adult ducks often take swipes at them for minor transgressions. I’ve seen drakes pick up youngsters and toss them a foot or more away. Above, mom bites the rump of one of her own chicks to get him moving.

Lullabies in fading sunlight

May 15th, 2012 § 5

When the sun sinks toward the horizon, the goslings begin to gather for a peaceful night’s rest even in the middle of the city with its traffic noises and occasional sirens. Like ducks, adult Canada Geese don’t cuddle to share their warmth, but that’s not the case for the young birds. They huddle together to fend off the crisp night air we are still experiencing in the northern tier. Hypothermia takes its toll on young waterfowl each year in our region.

More mothers from Mother’s Day

May 14th, 2012 § 7

Mother’s Day introduced the year’s third brood of ducklings to the Brighton millpond. This hen is now the front runner in the 2012 Brighton Millpond Fertility Tournament with her entry of eleven. Just a day or two old, they scurry from lily pads and shorelines searching for things to eat as their mom leads them from place to place.

Several families of goslings can be found near the Brighton City Hall. Both parents tend their offspring and vigorously keep other Canada Goose families from getting too close.

About eight days old, the trio of mute swan cygnets stick close to mom as they tour the southern part of the pond near Main Street. Each evening, the parents escort them back to the nest where mom can keep them warm and out of the water. Dad stands guard in the pond shooing those pesky Canada Geese away from the nesting, often with noisy wing flapping charges that send the geese flying.

I’ll be posting several more Mother’s Day photographs of millpond wildfowl babies in the next few days. If you don’t like looking at cute little baby animals, you’d better find another blog to read for a while. My camera has been busy.

Dining with mom, sorta

May 14th, 2012 § 0

Muskrats will never have Facebook pages even if they learn to operate computers. They aren’t social creatures. In fact, they rarely even acknowledge each other if they swim past each other at the Brighton millpond. Each just goes about its own business.

Perhaps muskrats dote on their children when they are very young and still in the burrow, but this half-grown “teenager” (above and below left) explores his world alone and teethes on twigs while his parent (I’m assuming it’s mom since it was Mother’s Day) dines alone 30 feet downstream. Then again, many human moms might prefer dining in peace in a beautiful setting without the whining, spilling, and commotion of their offspring on their special day if they had a choice.

A bit of Siberia

May 13th, 2012 § 1

When visiting the administrative offices of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Brighton, Michigan, you might miss the small clump of Siberian Iris near its entrance. The flowers are small compared to some of the showier Iris, but they are richly marked and dramatically colored if you stop for a moment to observe them.

The top close up is rotated 90 degrees just to highlight its color and patterns. An almost-ready-to-open bud is pushing the flower aside (right) and it adds its own color to the display.

Ospreys fishing

May 12th, 2012 § 6

I still haven’t seen the ospreys fishing at the Brighton millpond nor has anyone told them of their visits, but I found this short video at YouTube and thought I’d share it. I’d sure like to see this happen in our pond!

It flies but isn’t a fish

May 12th, 2012 § 0

So clean and beautiful as it perched on a boardwalk railing, I have a hunch this large insect just emerged and spread out to dry its wings. Note how perfect they are. There’s no signs of wear and tear on them!

Online sources say it’s a male Spring Fishfly (Chauliodes rastricornis), about two inches long from nose to tail, wings not included. The top photo is at my camera’s full resolution. Click on it to see delicious detail.

At first, I wondered if bright yellow pollen had lodged itself between the otherwise dull colored wings and thorax. Turns out it’s a trait of the species. Look at the burgundy eye and those incredible feathery antennae! Some female fishfly is going to find this gent very attractive. :-)

Missing: Mother of nine

May 11th, 2012 § 2

The hen who brought her nine ducklings to meet me on May 7th has vanished and has left behind her entire brood. On May 8th, her ducklings paid me a visit in the north end of the pond where they had met me the night before, but their mom wasn’t with them. I chalked it off to her being out foraging. On May 9th, I saw her ducklings again but they were without mom and their numbers were down to seven. The previous night was cold. Young ducklings succumb to hypothermia if not shielded by hens.

I’m hopeful this group can survive on their own because of their vigor. Hens sometimes accept wayward ducklings if they follow their own chicks home (creching) but that’s more common with Canada Geese. Last year, Valiant was abandoned at 2 days old and managed to survive.

Although they were older when it happened, eight out of ten ducklings in another brood reached adulthood by sticking together. The pictures here were all taken as the seven ducklings huddled together on shore. They have almost identical markings. Since there can never be too many pictures of cute little baby animals, I’ve included several pictures of the group. I couldn’t stand the thought of leaving them unseen.

The last two photographs (below) were taken on May 8th when there were nine siblings in the group.

Their mom may have been killed by a predator when she was guarding the chicks at night. Hens stand firm when their kids are endangered. Then again, she might have been swept off her webbed feet by some sweet talking drake who wants a family of his own. Since she has a missing toe, she’ll be easier to identify if I our paths cross in the months ahead.

Advanced duckwatching follow up

May 11th, 2012 § 2

Yesterday’s post contained two photographs taken on May 6th of the season’s second brood of ducklings. I hadn’t noticed it when I took those photos, but this duckling was smaller and his posture was different than the others. In the larger image he is the darkest duckling on the far left. In the other image, he’s in the center. Note how his head is resting on his shoulders and his body is rounder than the others.

By May 9th, when these two pictures were taken, he was two-thirds the size of his siblings, but he had a chipper, quick step when he ran around my feet looking for tidbits to eat. Atypically, he didn’t follow his nest mates around, and let me get very close to take the top picture. The way his head rested on his shoulders reminded me of the last days for SweetPea’s yellow duckling in August, 2010. Sadly, these photos were taken on the last night of his life. He was missing on May 10th.

Cold clouds at dusk

May 10th, 2012 § 3

Illuminated breaks in the darkening sky are seen in the water but not the sky because they are out of the picture frame. As a result, the bright, rippled reflections have a mystic quality. Winter-like clouds rolled into Brighton last night along with crisp temperatures. That’s not unusual at this time of year, but since we’ve had such a warm spring, the change seems significant. This is turning into a very long spring with many shifts from warm to cool and back again.

Intro to advanced duckwatching

May 10th, 2012 § 4

Remember in early elementary school how you’d be asked to select “which one is different” on a page of similar things? That’s your assignment again today. There’s only one restriction: ignore color variations. Click the images to see them larger.

Let’s face it. Most ducks look alike and I’m always trying to figure out ways I can tell one from another. Unless they are obviously different because of color markings, I look for subtle differences and that’s what I’m asking you to do now. I’ll post the answer tomorrow, but don’t worry. You won’t be graded.

Looking for crayfish

May 8th, 2012 § 1

The young raccoon I watched rumaging through trash cans a week ago, has appeared two more evenings this past week. Last night, I found him near Main Street hunting for his dinner at the edge of the millpond.

I have a hunch this is a dumped raccoon, one raised by someone and only recently released at the pond. He lets me get close to him while wild raccoons usually flee as humans approach. He also moves toward me like he’s expecting to be fed. I won’t ever do that. In fact, I intentionally scare him so he’ll run away. If he becomes too friendly with humans in the park, he’ll eventually end up being trapped and relocated or killed when he bites someone.

As he moved down the shoreline, he stopped at each crack in the cement embankment and stuck his forepaw in up to the elbow (below left). Crayfish were probably his intended prey, but I didn’t see him find any. Instead, he’d occasionally munch on a bit of plant material (below right). A few ducks stayed nearby but out of his reach. They didn’t sound the alarm to alert other ducks to the danger, but simply casually watched has he searched for food (left).

Moving northward past where the cement ends, he’d reach under the grassy edge of the pond looking for deep pockets where crayfish might hide (below). He was careful not to get his belly wet. Then he walked along the dilapidated  seawall near city hall exhibiting adept balance (top photo).

An overdose of cute

May 7th, 2012 § 2

What better way to start a Monday than to see a full troupe of ducklings out for a Sunday walk with their proud parents? I’m almost sure this is the season’s first batch of ducklings I spotted just a week ago and photographed the mom on a rainy night this past week when I couldn’t count heads under her wings. With the help of a few duck chow pellets, the parents brought the whole clan to meet me Sunday near the fire station. Click the top photo to see the entire family including dad from which this close up was taken.

Although I can’t be sure of it, I think mom was one of the ducklings or hens I befriended last summer. If she had any fear of me, she wouldn’t let her babes get so close. I vaguely remember her because she has an identifying trait: she’s missing her outermost left toe. I’m sure you’ll see more of this family as the weeks go by. It’s hard to believe in seven weeks these tiny balls of fluff will be starting to fly, isn’t it?

A nymph at the millpond

May 6th, 2012 § 0

From what I can find online, I believe this is a dragonfly nymph in its last stage before becoming a full-fledged adult. Note its still-small wings. I found him crawling on the millpond trail at night. He was on his way to find a place where his exoskeleton can split and his adult form can emerge.  Click the picture to see him larger and in crisp detail. He’s only about an inch long and you’ll see tiny cubes of sand stuck to his body and legs. I found Identifying Aquatic Insects From Your Pond (PDF) helpful in identifying it.

This is a test

May 5th, 2012 § 0

Okay, duck watchers. Here’s a test of your observation skills. What’s unusual about this picture taken at the Brighton millpond? Don’t read further until you’ve given it some thought.

Here’s the answer: There isn’t a female duck in the bunch. Why? They’ve all gone to nest. Just days ago, when night fell, pairs of ducks would be seen lying a few feet apart. Now the drakes have regrouped while the hens are tending to the family chores. Most literature says mallard drakes aren’t involved in raising their offspring, but I’ve seen about half of them in Brighton sticking with their mates for a few days once the young are born. They aren’t as attentive to the ducklings as the hens, but they stand guard nearby. Then they hang out with their buds for a couple of months while the hens do the housework. Groups of drakes, however, aren’t idle. They remain on the prowl. With and without permission from the hens, they find opportunities to commingle and possibly father another nest full of ducklings with their brand on them.

Once hens to which they are pair-bonded for the summer are ready to mate again, males usually return. Hens might nests three times during the season, but most don’t if their nestings run full term (about 28 days) and they raise their brood to adulthood. SweetPea, however, has already nested twice this year and might nest more than three since she rarely bothers to hatch the eggs.

Playing peek-a-boo with babies

May 3rd, 2012 § 2

The 2012 Brighton Millpond Fertility Tournament has begun! Canada Geese aren’t part of the tournament because of creching, but they are exofficio participants due to their abundance on the millpond. Above, one of five week old goslings peeks out to see why my camera’s flash is lighting up the night. Eventually, all of the goslings left the warmth of mom’s belly to meet me. On another night (below left), mom and dad were teaching their brood to beg park visitors for food. They’ll need all they can get. They grow really fast and will reach the weight of their parents (up to 18 pounds) by the end of summer.

I saw the very first ducklings (day-old) last Sunday night, but it was near dark and they were in the distance so I couldn’t count their numbers. There were 8-10, I think. Below might be that mother. I photographed her the next night during a light rain. I didn’t disturb her so I still couldn’t get a count, but the spread of her wings indicates she has a sizable number under her. Note how nicely she blends in with her environment. The hens cryptic color and markings help protect her while she’s nesting and guarding her young.

Farther north on the pond, a dark bird of unknown species with a white bib and vivid teal green wing patch gave birth to four tykes today (below). They are tiny balls of fuzz. She let me come close because she recognizes me from winter feedings.

All four of her prodigy are darkly marked like she is although her mate for the summer is a typically marked mallard. There are only about four white-bibbed ducks on the pond so these might add to their numbers.

Perhaps their dark coloration will help them stay invisible to predators on land. In the water, they will be just as endangered as lighter ducklings. Bass and turtles will see them. Mortality of ducklings during the first two weeks of their lives is very high. It’s reasonable to expect half of the ducklings pictured in this post to disappear in their first 14 days.

What surprises me about these early ducklings is that their moms started nesting about April first. That means they kept their eggs warm through nighttime temperatures below 20 degrees! That’s quite a feat. Stay tuned. The tournament is just getting started. There will be lots of entries from now until at least early August.

Hats off to May Day!

May 1st, 2012 § 2

This naturally grown court jester’s hat would be the perfect cap to wear on May Day, if it was larger. It’s actually the developing seed pods from a deep red peony that has lost all of it’s petals. Its shape caught my eye. Many of the millpond’s plants have bloomed early this year, but oddly, some of them have not wavered from their standard schedule. In preparing this May Day post, I looked at previous years on this blog to see how our spring is progressing. Daffodils were in full bloom as May rolled in last year. They bloomed three weeks ago this year.

I photographed this Bridal Wreath Spirea (aka Meadowsweet) on May 11th, 2010 so it’s about 10 days early (below). Many trees, however, didn’t jump the gun when our temperatures soared in March. Neither did vines like wild grape. They are just beginning to sprout leaves. Happy May Day, Everyone!

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