It was a very nice week weather-wise—if you liked the conditions going into the Fourth of July that went from summer to spring-like.
At the start of the week it was super hot, but then Hurricane Arthur came up the east coast and changed everything.
We had another two-inch rain out with a quick moving storm on Tuesday afternoon and a real gully washer on Wednesday afternoon.
I spent nearly three hours at the far end of Woodhull Lake in the state boathouse waiting for that one to end.
I think my canoe would have been half-full of water had I been out in that one.
When I came back down the lake after the storm I found a couple pairs of loons with chicks.
I didn’t get a chance to check two other pairs at the far end of the lake by the lean-to as the t-storms came on me very quickly.
The weatherman said they wouldn’t be arriving until about five p.m., but he was wrong.
It came two hours early and was gone from the area by 6 p.m.
I’m sure many shore nesting birds lost most of their nests or nestlings when Hurricane Arthur came up the east coastline.
I checked the Audubon webcam that is on a puffin nest on the coast of Maine to see how they did during and after the storm and saw that the chick is still alive and well.
Those heavy downpours aren’t very good for our nesting songbirds either. I feel that we have lost many of the local nests.
A lot of people have been asking where the tree and barn swallows are.
I’ve only seen a few feeding out on the lakes and very few in my nest boxes.
Some tree swallows were just about ready to fledge and then others were just building a nest.
Their weather map is just about as screwed up as ours is.
It’s hard on the babies when it rains two or three days straight as the parents have trouble getting enough food to them.
Almost every year I see cedar waxwings and swallows catching green drake flies over the lakes.
So far this year I’ve seen blue jays, grackles and even a robin or two flying out from shore and snagging these big flies which are enough of a meal for even the bigger birds.
I saw lots of ducklings this week, also some mallards and common mergansers.
When I came upon them last Wednesday up at Beaver Lake by Number Four a bald eagle was scoping them out.
The eagle was so intent on his hunt that I guess he didn’t see me coming. He let me paddle right under him before he flew off.
Even when he did see me he was reluctant to leave his perch over the ducks.
A scarlet tanager was singing in my yard this morning (7/7). It may have lost its first nest and is looking for a new nest site.
Normally I have a pair around the yard.
The pileated, hairy and downy woodpeckers all fledged their young this week and so did the yellow-bellied sapsucker, which were all nested around the house.
The moose was a no show every day I went to see it this week. Maybe the hot weather had him feeding all night and sleeping in during the day.
Some loons have renested and others are just getting on the water with their young from the first nest.
If you come upon a loon family give them some space and take your pictures with a long lens on your camera, not a cell phone.
On sun-shiney days the butterflies were very active. They were mostly white admirals, but there were also red admirals and some fritillaries.
I haven’t seen any monarchs yet but the flowers on the milkweeds are about ready to pick and eat by humans.
Give them a try as they taste as good as they smell. Boil in a pot of water for seven to ten minutes, drain, add a little butter, vinegar and seasoning and enjoy.
Hummer bander Ted Hicks and I went to Stillwater on Sunday morning where he banded 54 new birds.
A few more males than females were caught along with one bird that we had banded two years ago.
Several observers got to have a hummer in-hand and many photos were taken.
With all these birds and animal babies out and about they are often encountered by humans.
If you come across a baby bird or animal just take its picture and leave it where you found it as that’s where their mother left them.
Even though you may think its been abandoned she will come back and feed it.
If you own a cat, it’s a good time of year to keep it indoors as they catch like to catch small, vulnerable birds and mammals that are just out of the nest for the first time.
My milkweeds are again waiting for monarchs, but that’s another story. See ya.