Heatwave Relief!

Yesterday was a lovely day for walkng....Gracie and I walked at the CJ Brown Prairieview area, Kirby Preserve and Old Reid.
Here's a few of our sights.

Twin fawns enjoying the lovely day at CJ Brown

 Silvery Checkerspot Butterflies

       Cabbage White Butterfly                                      Siver Spotted Skipper                

Black Swallowtail                                                         Viceroy            

Everybody obelisk!

Everybody obelisk! Dragonflies utilize a posture called obelisking to prevent overheating during our summer heatwave. By pointing their abdomens straight upward, they minimize the amount of body surface area absorbing the sun's rays. A few snaps from these hot days. Names in captions.

White-Faced Meadowhawk                                   Blue Dasher 

    

Elfin Skimmer (male)                                            Elfin Skimmer (female)

Elfin Skimmer (male)                                          Eastern Pondhawk   

Blue Dasher                                        Eastern Amberwing

Cicada Time!

 Cicada emerging a few nights ago. These guys will soon fill the summer days with sound. As they emerge, I'm reminded of the colors of an intricate enameled brooch. This is not the "periodic cicada" that emerges every 17 years.... it's the "annual" cicada.... meaning it appears every summer. Even so, this one still lives underground in its nymph stage for 2-5 years, emerging as an adult and then spending only a few weeks mating and laying eggs before dying.

A Unique Micrathena Spider

 Yesterday, while exploring George Rogers Clark Park, I saw and photographed a very unique Spined Micrathena Spider. These spiders are normally black and white in various patterns. This one was a vivid blueberry color. 

A Bold Jumping Spider Family

 A female Bold Jumping Spider made her nest and laid her eggs under our deck railing. It's been fun watching her raise her brood of spiderlings. "
If I get too close, she doesn't hesitate to "throw hands" until I back off. Such a good momma. 

Momma Bold Jumping Spider under the deck railing

The spiderlings 

Momma and spiderlings. They are starting to explore.

Momma threatening to "throw hands" if I get too close.

A spiderling

Momma close-up

Momma feasting on a Lacewing

American White Pelicans

 Let's talk Pelicans....they put on a real show over the weekend along Lake Erie! We love watching their antics as they use their huge bills to slap and chomp at each other. The American White Pelican is a large aquatic soaring bird. It breeds in interior North America, moving south and to the coasts, as far as Costa Rica, in winter. In recent years, their nesting territory has been expanding, particularly into the Great Lakes region. They have been observed nesting in areas previously not considered part of their breeding range, like Lake Erie in Ohio. This expansion is likely due to several factors, including the availability of suitable nesting islands and changing environmental conditions. While these were observed along Lake Erie, there's an almost year-round population now at Grand Lake St. Mary's in central Ohio. Within driving distance for a nice daytrip! Here's some looks from the Magee Marsh Estuary trail on Monday morning.

Magee Kirtland's Warbler

 Today we were treated to a rare sight....a male Kirtland's Warbler here at Magee Marsh!
The bird showed off & on all day on the Estuary Trail. David and I both captured numerous pics. 

From All About Birds....
"The Kirtland’s Warbler is a neat gray-and-yellow bird and one of the rarest songbirds in North America. A true habitat specialist, it breeds only in young jack pine forests in Michigan and adjacent parts of Wisconsin and Ontario. During the past century, timber rotations and fire suppression proved incompatible with the bird’s needs, and Kirtland’s Warblers spent nearly 50 years on the Endangered Species List. Intensive conservation, including suppression of Brown-headed Cowbirds, allowed the population to increase tenfold, and the species was delisted in 2019."