More flowers in the rain

This picture of an Orange Jewelweed show what the weather was like today. The other picture is a Common Sunflower(?).

Lock #61

No, these are not ancient Roman ruins. They are lock #61 on the old Erie Canal. They are 18feet wide x 110 feet long with a 10 foot drop. We were walking along the Current Erie Canal near Macedon, NY and decided to go have a look at the lock 61 park. As you can see it is a nice well maintained area,but it is quite well hidden.

In-the-soup

Sorry but no birds today. We went to the Rochester water supply. The frog-in-the-soup is in part of that supply. That particular pond was much thicker than the others.
I haven't taken the time to look up the name of this dragonfly, but I just like the picture as a work of art.
We are looking down on Honeoye Lake. On the horizon is Lake Ontario, visible on a clear day.

A little lunch for the twins beside the road.

More birds ...

I do not set out to take pictures of any particular subject or type of subject as a general rule. I do go places that I know will have a type of subject ie. landscapes, animals, flowers etc. However, most of these places have a variety of subjects that might show up at any given time.

In 2007 I made a bird book because I took a lot of bird pictures. Last year and up 'til recently this year, I haven't seen many birds to photograph, so today has been bountiful. Above is a Green Heron (Butorides virescens).

Belted Kingfisher (Ceryle alcon)

Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Pheucticus ludovicianus)

American Goldfinch (Carduelis tristis)

Butterfly and Thistle

Can't add anything to this.

Birds down in the swamp

Later that night ... Heard some booms and I realized they were fireworks not thunder. I just grabbed my camera and ran out on my front steps to take some pictures. I didn't have time for a tripod or long lens, but this is what I got. Not great, but kind neat never the less.
We were hiking through the swamp this morning and found a load of birds that I don't normally see. The guy above is a Baltimore Oriole.
When I first saw this guy I thought it was an Oriole, but on closer inspection I think it is a Barn Swallow from the color, but the tail isn't quit long enough. Don't know ...
As bird pictures go this is not much for id use, but I love the way the Common Yellowthroat is looking around the leaf at me.
Not sure what we have here. It might be a female Scarlet Tanager or it might be a Warbler.
Some how we disturbed this Blue Heron and he flew up with much squawking and circling until he finally left.
The female Northern Cardinal had something for lunch.

This mornings walk

I have been looking for this Northern Water Snake all summer and was very glad to see not only this one but 2 more sunning them selves. I was afraid some thing had happened to them.
Northern Flicker
Male and female Scarlet Tanagers

Watercolor Black-eyed Susan

Went out this morning and didn't get anything worth while. We did see a Muskrat swimming away which is always great, but he was to far to get a picture.

I took this picture of a Black-eyed Susan several days ago, but just got around to Photoshopping it. Since I don't have any thing current now must be a good time for this image.

A foggy morning

Heavy rain last night left the mountains in a bit of fog. The sun did start to peek through in small spots making god beams in the forest.
This Garter Snake (Thamnophis sirtalis) was crossing the path as we came by. He stopped for a couple pictures then disappeared into the underbrush. A minute later I went looking for him and couldn't find hide-nor-hair of him. He just disappeared like magic.

Fort Hill

The view from the top of Fort Hill. Fort Hill was the granary for the local Seneca tribes and had a palisade around it giving the impression of a fort. It is part of the Gonandagon State Park.
This Indian Pipe (Monotropa uniflora) was growing near the path to the top of Fort Hill. It grows with a fungus that gets nutrients from green plant roots.

Vulture or Eagle ...

I found this Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) impersonating an Eagle on the end of a flag pole. He must have been trying to convince anyone who could see that the Eagle was a mistake, the national bird should have been the Turkey Vulture.
The Orange Jewelweed (Impatiens capensis) is not only cool to look at, but can be use to sooth insect bites, poison ivy and other skin irritations. A good thing to know.

Waxwinging

This Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) was having a difficult time settling down on the branch in the wind.
He finally made it. I think the Cedar Waxwing is one of the prettiest birds. It is just great with the subtle yellow/brown breast and the bright yellow accent band on the tail feathers. It is subtle color not the flamboyant color of a Pheasant or Parrot.

Feeding the mosquitoes

This Day Lily was by the Auburn Trail where we went for a walk today. It was an overcast day with no wind and temp about 70°F. I only mention this because we took a side trail off into the woods and swamp. This is the ideal weather for mosquitoes and the swampy woods is the ideal breeding ground. We managed to get through it by walking fast and not stopping. The insect repellent was marginally effective.

The shows the Auburn Trail and the Rabbits that can be found along it. Grenville loves Rabbits.

Tiger Swallowtail

Found this Tiger Swallowtail on the clover blossom, but he was on the Milkweed blossoms earlier. I was looking in the Milkweed for Monarchs or Viceroys, but have not seen either all summer.

Red Tail

This Red Tail Hawk(Buteo jamaicensis) looks for lunch on the top of Stid Hill.

Birds ...

A Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas) with dinner.
I didn't see what the attraction was for these Turkey Vultures (Cathartes aura). When I first saw them 3 or 4 had their wings up like they were protecting their diners. There were several more that I couldn't get in one picture.

Geneseo Airshow

Cabbage White

The Cabbage Whites have been flying around since the very earliest spring days. This is one of the better pictures I have gotten of one.

A view up the lake

The view from county rd #12 looking north toward Canandaigua. This is a picture I have taken many times before and probably will make hundreds more. It is just a neat spot to stop and enjoy the view.

Checkerspot

Yet again today it looks like rain, but may or may not depending where you are standing. This Baltimore Checkerspot (Euphydryas phaeton) was flying in the field where went for a walk today.

Gonondagon

I have not seen many Dragonflies in the past week, but this Widow Skimmer (Libellula luctuosa ) was flying around and landed in front of me just so I could get her picture.

The end of the Holiday weekend

This Great Spangled Fritillary (Speyeria cybele) kept flitting from milkweed to milkweed and managed to not give me a good shot. He would put the milkweed between us or some weeds etc. In the woods we came across this bouquet of Indian Pipes (Monotropa uniflora). They are a flower which don't need chlorofil because they get nutrients from fungus in their roots.

This past week has been a rainy, overcast miserable week limiting just where we can walk so I haven't posted much. These 2 little Wood Duck (Aix sponsa) ducklings were at the end of Canandaigua Lake. This coming week is supposed to be better so hopefully I will be able to post more frequently.