The young birds are all around. Some are still in the nest.
Some have just left the nest and are watched over by a parent.
Others are off on their own.
And there are a few adults, too.
Dragonflies and butterflies put in their appearances too.
We visited our usual haunts this week: the Connecticut River out of Wilder, the Ompompanoosuc River and the North Hartland Lake. The wildlife did not disappoint.
The kingbirds on the Connecticut are sitting on their nests again.
The young mallards are nearly full grown and seem to enjoy snails for lunch.
We saw a couple of mammals on the Pompy.
We rounded a corner and came across this doe only about 15 feet away.
North Hartland Lake presented some of its usual suspects. Both adult eagles were near the nest, but we only saw one juvenile.
We also saw a couple of great blue herons.
and of course a painted turtle.
We were the first people at the lake this morning and it makes a difference on what we see. We started by watching a family of killdeer at the beach.
We saw at least 4 groups of deer, mostly at a distance, but one fawn swam across the river near us.
A great blue heron flew down the river, the first we’ve seen this year.
The eagle’s nest was a center of activity. An adult was in a nearby tree, being attacked by a kingbird.
There were two immature eagles on branches near the nest. And a second adult eagle was across the lake.
The wildflowers were different than last week.
And the painted turtles were out sunning themselves.
One of our favorite paddling spots, North Hartland Lake, is now open Wednesday-Sunday! The eagles have built a nest, but we didn’t see any evidence of eaglets.
We saw the usual painted turtles and spotted sandpipers and were treated with some deer.
The next day, on the Connecticut River, we came across a large snapping turtle sunning himself. Over the years, we have seen him a few times before, but always underwater.
The kingbirds are trying for a second clutch of eggs in at least two nests.
And the damselflies are out and about.
Today on the Ompompanoosuc, we found the family of geese, now getting their adult feathers.
We also saw a family of common mergansers.
Yesterday we made our annual pilgrimage to the Eshqua Bog, a fen in Hartland, VT. The showy lady slippers were in full bloom.
We also saw other flowers.
