August 14th, 2010 § 0
Another large turtle combs the bottom of the pond looking for something to nibble on. Snapping turtles often lie in wait for their prey to swim by, but they also are good at doing maintenance work. They clean up the pond by eating dead things they find in their vicinity through their vision and excellent sense of smell.
August 13th, 2010 § 1
For the past two weeks, I’ve been looking under every bush for the HussyHen. I suspected she was sitting on a nest somewhere near the millpond and hoped to find her during one of her 2-3 daily trips to the pond to bathe. Ducks do that to grab a bite and rewet their belly feathers so the moisture transfers to the eggs. I never spotted her.
She was an inattentive nester during her first attempt this summer as detailed in this blog, but she apparently learned her lesson. I never saw her cavorting with other ducks during the nesting period. But as predicted, I saw her for the first time in more than a month last night with four tiny day-old ducklings trailing behind her.
The markings on the ducks are an interesting mix. Each is distinctive at this stage. I hope, as they grow, they continue to have unique markings so I can watch and record their maturation. Let’s hope the large turtles don’t snatch any of them, but I’ll be surprised if all four survive to adulthood. The morbidity rate of newborn ducks is very high. I’ll keep you posted.
August 13th, 2010 § 0
Normally, the wild grapes I see near the millpond are a sorry lot. They don’t grow in large clusters. There are usually just a few along each vine. But this plant has done exceptionally well and the grapes look full and delicious. Too bad this wild stock isn’t growing near one of Michigan’s Wineries. It might hold a gene that could jazz up the commercial root stocks. Our state is the 8th largest producer of wine with more than 2,000 acres in production. At the 2010 Michigan Wine and Spirits Competition, 221 medals were awarded (PDF). Michigan is also receiving recognition at many national competitions.
August 12th, 2010 § 0
I’m surprised I don’t see more chipmunks along the millpond trail. The public likes to feed them and in other nearby parks, they are abundant. This is one of the few I’ve seen and he’ll be easy to identify in the future. He’s had an unfortunate encounter with another beast or a slammed door. His tail has been clipped. But he looks very healthy otherwise and was kind enough to pose for me … until he discovered I didn’t have any treats for him.
August 12th, 2010 § 0
It’s difficult to spot a large Snapping Turtle at night because their coloring blends so well with the murky water. Sometimes, the only thing above the surface is the tip of their nose and they’re very careful not to cause ripples in the water around them. But when they extend their legs, you can see lighter skin. When they are lying in wait for their prey, their legs are tucked into their shells or buried in the weeds at the bottom of the pond.
August 11th, 2010 § 0
Even though we are in mid-summer, some plants have fulfilled their duties of flowering and forming seeds to guarantee next year’s plants. They are ready to call it a day. While this plant has vibrant colors and decorative berries, don’t take a bouquet home with you. It’s Poison Ivy!
August 11th, 2010 § 0
When turtles are at the surface and spot a threat (like me pointing a camera at them), they spin around and their limbs flail like a young child’s who doesn’t want to be held anymore. Then they head for the weeds as this one is doing. Once they hit their stride, they move quickly even though it seems impossible with their movements constrained by their shells.
August 10th, 2010 § 0
A Bluegill and Painted Turtle confer under a water lilypad. Maybe they’re planning some sort of demonstration for the humans watching them. Troops of bluegills hover near the millpond turtles. Turtles are sloppy eaters. When they rip into their food, scraps float around them that the bluegills are happy to snatch. Even though the turtles could take a chunk out of the fish, there seems to be some sort of understanding between the two species.
August 9th, 2010 § 1
Most of the time, they stay in the trees where they feed on tree sap and spend summer months rapidly contracting their timbal muscles to fill the air with loud buzzings. Cicada is Latin for “buzzer.” While they are harmless, if you catch one in your hands, their violent thrashing will encourage you to drop it. I did when I picked this one up to place him on a clean part of the sidewalk for his portrait. I like how their chunky bodies contrast with their clear wings. Last year, I photographed one covered in raindrops.
August 9th, 2010 § 0
When a large Common Snapping Turtle lumbers into the heavily visited part of the millpond, the visitors gather on the Tridge to watch it. Saturday evening was a good time to amuse the crowd for this veteran of many summers. His shell measures 15-18″ from head to tail and his shell and tail are covered with algae which helps camouflage him as he lies in wait for his next meal of a fish, duckling or other unlucky prey. I suspect this one has dined on many of the ducklings that have gone missing this summer. In captivity, they may live into their late 40s, but in the wild, 30 years is a long life and this one has to be close to that age. The light-colored object in the upper left is a Tridge pier and a discarded swan feather floats nearby.
August 8th, 2010 § 0
While it won’t rival the drama of the Discovery Channel’s Shark Week, maybe you’ll find something interesting here during Turtle Week. :-)
I didn’t see any turtles in the millpond until early July. Now they are really active and seen daily. This Painted Turtle cannot be considered “wildlife.” He’s part of the pond’s “tamelife.: He’s so acclimated to humans that, as soon as I walked up to the railing on the boardwalk, he swam over to me and expected me to drop some food down to him. Perhaps he spent time in someone’s aquarium and was released once he grew too large or maybe he’s found humans at the pond typically very generous with their bread. He’s fully grown, about 10″ long, and is one of many of that size. It’s rare to see babies. I think they hide in the weedy areas to avoid snapping turtles who might dine on them.
August 8th, 2010 § 0
At the northern end of the Brighton Millpond, the water enters through a narrow culvert and moves quickly. This seems to attract fish that wait for tidbits coming from upstream. This Common Carp basking in the late afternoon sun is one of the largest I’ve seen in the pond, probably measuring 30″ long. They grow larger in other states including these whoppers in California, but Michigan carp bring hours of entertainment to fishermen at the pond. While I don’t usually alter image colors very much on Words4It, the strong blue surface reflection of the sky required it on this image. I wanted you to see this 20+ pounder clearly.
August 8th, 2010 § 0
You’d think bumblebees and other pollinators would have more respect for the flowers they visit. In their gathering of nectar and pollen, the guests have left a mess on this Rose of Sharon shrub next to the Downtown Main Martini Bar.
The name of this plant is wildly misleading. It’s not a rose and probably never grew on Sharon (”the plain”) in Israel although many think it has biblical origins. The flower mentioned in the Bible was probably a crocus. This one is actually a perennial hibiscus native to east Asia and is the national flower or South Korea where it is called Hanja, “immortal flower.” These shrubs are in full bloom now and will continue until frost.
August 6th, 2010 § 0
I can tell a Mallard from a Pekin. That’s about the extent of my duck knowledge. But the Internet is helping me learn more about them. I’ll drag you along with me. The white duck is a Pekin, a typical domestic duck raised for meat. The others in this shot are mutts, mixes of breeds. The one directly behind the pekin is mostly a mallard but lacks the white neckband and light gray body. The one with the fancy hairdo is probably part Bali, a domestic breed raised for show, and the one of the right is probably a mix of mallard and pekin, but might be a Magpie /Mallard mix.
Note the difference in posture. The two the right stand more upright because their bodies are lighter in weight. That’s often a characteristic of ducks raised for egg production instead of meat. I’ve noticed the more upright ducks tend to scurry around and stir up the Mallards and Pekins. One of them is especially ornery but not in this picture. Duck mavens reading this are welcome to correct me when I’m wrong.
August 5th, 2010 § 0
Another muskrat photo so soon? Hey, they’re really active lately so they get my attention. I like this shot just from an aesthetic point of view. The muskrat looks more like a mink because he’s dry above the waterline. He must that just entered the water before I found him. You can see his ear tuffs, too. I really like the multitude of flashbacks from my camera surrounding him with firefly-like glints and ripples. It’s about as glintzy as you can get for a muskrat. Download the larger image for more detail.
August 4th, 2010 § 2
Even when one stops on the milpond boardwalk to look down at this patch of blooming water plants, it’s difficult to appreciate them. The bright sun, sheen on the leaves and harsh shadows obliterates the details. But at night it’s a different story with the help of my camera’s flash. The white flowers clearly contrast with the dark green foliage and deep shadows. Since nothing in the images identifies the scale, it looks like a tall grass prairie filled with soaring stalks of flowers.
My zoom isn’t adequate to get crisp close ups of the flowers. The photo to the right is the best I can do. Each stalk is only about 8-12″ above the water and has 20-50 tiny flowers on it. I’m unable to identify the plant. Sorry.
August 3rd, 2010 § 0
The sun is acting up again after a long dormant period. This is what www.spaceweather.com says happened Monday:
On August 1st, the entire Earth-facing side of the sun erupted in a tumult of activity. There was a C3-class solar flare, a solar tsunami, multiple filaments of magnetism lifting off the stellar surface, large-scale shaking of the solar corona, radio bursts, a coronal mass ejection and more.
So watch the skies tonight and tomorrow night. You might see some magical things happening! SpaceWeather.com is a good site to bookmark. It provides great information and photo galleries of weather/solar phenomena.
Photo: NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory
August 3rd, 2010 § 0
Two events happened within the past two days that are tied together in a rather depressing way:
Last night, on the corner of West and North Streets, I photographed what I would call a grove of 50 milkweed plants. Some were almost five feet high in this sunny corner lot where a vacant house awaits its fate. The plants were vigorous and sported a multitude of pods. When photographed with my flash, the undersides of the leaves appear the same color as the still-green pods. It’s a dark corner, and I planned to return during the day to see if any monarch butterfly caterpillars had found these plants. It’s their prime food source and place to form their chrysalises before the next generation leaves for its wintering grounds in Mexico.
I posted a “glamor shot” of the pond’s only all black duck last February that hinted at her beauty. But she’s had a hard time of it since. In early spring, she developed a limp. She’s a large duck so it made it difficult for her to waddle. Then I noticed the back of her neck was defeathered, a clear sign drakes had mated with her and ripped them out, a rather violent courtship ritual I don’t understand. No nesting took place afterward but her limping stopped. Now mid-summer, the sun has bleached her beautiful black coat to brown. She’s molting and looks bedraggled (below) with broken feathers.
Two nights ago, I found the black duck had a newborn duckling at her side! The duckling was so small I didn’t get too close because it would stress mom. Consequently, my shots are blurry. I watched her share parenting with another hen. Each took turns guarding the little fellow, not typical duck behavior. I attributed it to her being an inexperienced, first time mom. I looked forward to watching this black duckling with a brown chest grow up. His unique coloration makes him easy to identify.
The grove of milkweeds were mowed down today. Only two of the plants were left to grow. The black duck doesn’t have the little duckling following her anymore. I suspect a turtle got him although there’s a slight chance he was duckknapped by another hen. That sometimes happens. I’ll check around the pond for him. Within the blink of an eye, these events happened and probably no one is aware except the readers of this blog. They’re minor events in the grander scope of Life, but they have an impact here. Now.
August 2nd, 2010 § 0
While the parents are hauling in all sorts of stuff during the Muskrat Jamboree, the MuskBrat is acting like a typical young teenager. He stays close to the burrow and eats everything in sight. He’s not as wary as his parents. Sometimes he lets me photograph him without flinching or diving for cover. These two shots were done within six feet of the critter and clearly show his whiskers and formidable claws. What is he nibbling? I’m not sure. I think it’s just the pond weeds but it might be seeds of some sort. He eats like squirrels do, holding the snack with both forepaws. My flash makes him appear lighter in color than he is. Click the images to see them larger.
August 1st, 2010 § 0
What better way to welcome August than with a zinnia that thrives in the sun and heat. This one was blooming in a container along Brighton’s Main Street. See the entire flower in the larger image. It’s so round and perfect, it looks more like a deliciously frosted cake.
July 31st, 2010 § 0
Last week, I stopped by the Station 31 in Brighton to find a dozen firefighters there, most of them working with no pay, maintaining the station and equipment and helping a colleague achieve Black Hat status. Several junior firefighters/cadets were hanging hoses to dry and learning other maintenance tasks. This is a typical night at the station as well as the other four in the district. Only 8 full time employees handle the daily tasks and 81 paid-on-call firefighters handle about 1600 calls each year.
While the state-wide focus are the primaries for governor, a more important local issue is refunding the Brighton Area Fire Department. Renewing the millage (no increase requested this year) will cost local homeowners an average of 35 cents a day for all of the services the department provides Brighton along with Brighton and Genoa Townships, a small price to pay for emergency services. Please vote YES August 3rd.
July 31st, 2010 § 0
A yellow daisy plant is blooming with such vigor in the corner of a background near the Brighton railroad tracks it’s spilling onto the sidewalk. Since the center of these flowers is brown, they’re called Brown Betties and shouldn’t be confused with the dessert although they look delicious at Midnight in mid-summer.
July 30th, 2010 § 0
Here’s another attempt at catching a barn swallow in flight. The nesting season will soon end, and they will leave their nests under the millpond boardwalks. I don’t have much more time to get a whole bird in the frame of my camera. Because they move so quickly, it’s not a matter of skill. It’s a matter of luck. At least this image is relatively clear and shows some of the brilliant blue iradescence.
July 29th, 2010 § 0
While it looks monumental in this image, the top of this marble gravestone in the historic Old Village Cemetery is only about 12″ across. Its surface is now peppered with moss and lichen growing in the shade of mature trees beside the millpond. Some visitors probably would like to see the stones cleaned and brought back to their original pristine condition. Not me. I find the patterns of these tiny plants and fungi give the marble a stability, an enduring presence. As the rest of the city grows and changes, these markers have not. They stand firm as a tribute to those who have come before us.
There are hundreds of Lichen species in the United States. Lichen is actually a combination of a fungus with a plant that brings photosynthesis to the party. Read more about them at Wikipedia. And if you want to see how varied they are, visit SharnoffPhotos.com to see more than 6,300 photos of them.
July 28th, 2010 § 0
Nervous chirping and the sound of claws-on-bark made me stop and look up. A quick point-and-shoot helped me identify the critter, the raccoon sow I’ve come to know with one headlight. I was surprised to find her and her four cubs a fifth of a mile (yes, I measured the distance) away from her favorite midnight diner (a trash can). It would have been quite a hike while keeping the kids in check.
Maybe the favored trash cans (3 of them near the Dairy Queen) didn’t offer enough Blizzards® and cones to feed the brood so they ventured to find their grub near Hungry Howie’s pizza and the JAZ Deli along the shoreline upstream.
July 28th, 2010 § 1
Less than 300 feet beyond where I found the nomadic raccoon family, I found this sign that they had already caused havoc in the neighborhood. Ten feet from shore, a broken duck egg dripped off the edge of the millpond’s cement sidewalk. It’s the only broken egg I could find but the underbrush is thick nearby. When the raccoons found the duck nest, they surely emptied it. Eggs provide the growing cubs with high quality protein. That sure beats the empty calories offered at Diary Queen.
July 27th, 2010 § 1
The snow white duck with the questionable character was last seen at the millpond cavorting with four attentive suitors on July 12. Shown here preening to curry the favors of unattached drakes on June 26th, her disappearance is a mystery. Foul play isn’t suspected, but fowl play is.
Unless she’s entertaining the troops on another pond, chances are she’s meandered a short distance from the millpond hubbub and built a nest. Ducks sit on eggs for about 28 days so we might not see her until the week of August 8th unless we are lucky enough to be at the pond when she takes a daily break to bathe. She’s the only all-white duck with a dark bill. There are other white ducks but they have bright orange ones. Local readers, please comment if you see her.
July 26th, 2010 § 1
A summer storm passed through Brighton, Michigan last Friday evening. As the sky cleared at sunset, it caught fire and the reflection on the pond doubled the pleasure. The colors in this image are not punched up. If anything, the blues aren’t as rich as they were that night. This image was an Approver’s Choice at the Weather Underground.
July 25th, 2010 § 0
It looks so beautiful beside the millpond. The purple spires are just beginning to come into flower now. It’s difficult to believe this plant is a smothering alien first introduced in America in the early 1800s. It isn’t a serious pest at the millpond yet, but in some places, it blankets the wetlands. Throughout most of America, efforts are made to eradicate Purple Loosestrife.
July 24th, 2010 § 1
Apparently, there’s a party going on inside the burrow of my favorite muskrat family. They’ve been dragging everything they can find home with them. The one above has a mouth full of leaves from underwater plants while the one below is lugging dried cattail reeds four times longer than his body. The larger image shows more of the reeds than this small image. The light gray orbs in the image are raindrops. They work rain or shine or dark of night. Brace yourself for more muskrat shots ahead. The critters are very active, and I’m having a good time watching the festivities.
