Wildlife at Squam

I’ve been seeing a variety of wildlife on my paddles. Of course we’ve seen loons,

Loon -- Church Island, Squam Lake
Loon — Church Island, Squam Lake

Loon -- Squam Lake
Loon — Squam Lake

but also other birds such as gulls,

Black-backed gull --Squam Lake
Black-backed gull –Squam Lake

Black-backed gull --Squam Lake, NH
Black-backed gull –Squam Lake, NH

mergansers,

Mergansers
Mergansers

Mergansers with a swimmer off of Church Island, Squam Lake, NH
Mergansers with a swimmer off of Church Island, Squam Lake, NH

and song sparrows.

Song sparrow -- Squam Lake, NH
Song sparrow — Squam Lake, NH

Song Sparrow --Squam Lake
Song Sparrow –Squam Lake

I also saw dragonflies and damselflies

dragon fly
dragon fly

and a squirrel.
Squirrel
Squirrel

Loons

We watched a family of loons off the dock this morning and saw them a little later when kayaking.

Loon with fish for baby.
Loon with fish for baby.

Feeding baby loon
Feeding baby loon
Adult loon stretch
Adult loon stretch
Baby loon stretch
Baby loon stretch

July 29-Aug 4

We paddled a few times this week, mostly on the Connecticut River between Wilder and Hanover, but also the North Hartland Lake. We saw beaver,

Beaver -- Connecticut River
Beaver — Connecticut River

Getting ready for a warning splash
Getting ready for a warning splash
Splash
Splash

cormorants,

Cormorant --Connecticut River
Cormorant –Connecticut River

mergansers,

Mergansers --North Hartland Lake
Mergansers –North Hartland Lake

great blue herons,

Great blue heron fishing --North Hartland Lake
Great blue heron fishing –North Hartland Lake
Great blue heron caught something
Great blue heron caught something

an indigo bunting,

Indigo bunting -- North Hartland Lake
Indigo bunting — North Hartland Lake

kingfishers,

Kingfisher --North Hartland Lake
Kingfisher –North Hartland Lake

a yellowthroat,

Yellowthroat --North Hartland Lake
Yellowthroat –North Hartland Lake

damsel flies,

Damsel flies --Connecticut River
Damsel flies –Connecticut River

merlins,

Merlins --Connecticut River
Merlins –Connecticut River

and lots of mallards and wood ducks.

Duck stretch  --Connecticut River
Duck stretch –Connecticut River

Ducklings had a successful snail hunt --Connecticut River
Ducklings had a successful snail hunt –Connecticut River
Mallard reflection --Connecticut River
Mallard reflection –Connecticut River
Mallard preening --Connecticut River
Mallard preening –Connecticut River
Wood duck --Connecticut River
Wood duck –Connecticut River

On Tuesday, our friends Diane Langley and Mardrey Swenson (and Gemma) came with us.

Gemma isn't sure she wants to be in the kayak with Mardrey Swenson --Connecticut River.
Gemma isn’t sure she wants to be in the kayak with Mardrey Swenson –Connecticut River.
Diane Langley -- Connecticut River
Diane Langley — Connecticut River

Deer in the backyard

We had a couple of visitors to the backyard on Saturday. They were only about 15 feet from the house, and just sat and watched as I opened the door to photograph them.

deer-8248

deer-8271

deer-8261

deer-8258

Paddling 7/27-28

We paddled several times this week. An evening paddle on the Connecticut on Sunday didn’t yield a lot but this eagle may have been a reason.

Eagle -- Connecticut River
Eagle — Connecticut River

We found a family of green herons on the Pompy on Monday (we saw 3 at the same time).

Green heron -- Ompompanoosuc River
Green heron — Ompompanoosuc River

They were very good at hiding.

Green heron hiding
Green heron hiding

The swallows had fledged from their nest under the bridge.

Immature barn swallows under bridge -- Ompompanoosuc
Immature barn swallows under bridge — Ompompanoosuc

The Joe-Pye weed was in full bloom.
Joe Pye weed --Ompomanoosuc
Joe Pye weed –Ompomanoosuc

Tuesday found us on North Hartland Lake. We found the heron that likes to stick out his tongue on the beach,

Young great blue heron. We've seen this heron a few times, usually with his tongue hanging out. --North Hartland Lake
Young great blue heron. We’ve seen this heron a few times, usually with his tongue hanging out. –North Hartland Lake

a kildeer,
Kildeer -- North Hartland Lake
Kildeer — North Hartland Lake

and watched a duck trying to swallow a snail.

Mallard eating a snail -- North Hartland Lake
Mallard eating a snail — North Hartland Lake
Mallard swallowing snail -- North Hartland Lake
Mallard swallowing snail — North Hartland Lake
Mallard swallowing snail, final stretch --North Hartland Lake
Mallard swallowing snail, final stretch –North Hartland Lake

We watched a broad-winged hawk in a tree and overhead.

Immature broad winged hawk -- North Hartland Lake
Immature broad winged hawk — North Hartland Lake

Thursday was wood duck day. We saw more wood ducks than the usual mallards

Wood duck -- Mink Brook, Hanover, NH
Wood duck — Mink Brook, Hanover, NH

The merlins were in a tree across from Kilowatt Park.

Merlins in a tree -- Connecticut River
Merlins in a tree — Connecticut River