All Creatures Great and Small

On today's walk through the Dykeman Spring Nature Park on the way to the grocery store it became evident that the critters are out and stirring. The place was loud with bird song - Baltimore Orioles, Catbirds, both House and Carolina Wrens, Cardinals, Robins, Song Sparrows... Unfortunately most of them stayed out of reach of my camera, although I did manage to catch a male Oriole at the very outer limit of my zoom lens. There were also lots of other creatures - turtles, rabbits, and such. And to top it off, up on the upland meadow the butterfly population is booming, mostly the Spring appearances like the Cabbage and Mustard Whites, Spring Azures, Painted Ladies; I managed to get a shot of an Eastern Tailed-Blue, a relative of the Spring Azure. So come on, let's take a walk.

Baltimore Orioles like to hang out way up in the tops of trees; I just barely caught this one at the end of the range of my zoom

A Painted Turtle dozing in the Dykeman Spring wetland

Two Eastern Cottontails on the Dykeman Walking Trail

A huge and ancient Snapping Turtle coming up for air in the Dykeman Spring wetland

A young Green Frog in the grass by the northern duck pond

A trio of handsome Mallard drakes in the grass beside the northern duck pond

A Tailed-Blue butterfly on the upland meadow

© 2015 by A. Roy Hilbinger