A busy week in August

It was a busy week. Besides our walks along the boardwalk, time with family and friends this past week has kept us busy. It included time on one of the most beautiful beaches on the island, at Thunder Cove on the north shore. It ended with a sleepover for the grandchildren, always fun, though exhausting.

There are certain expectations with a walk along the boardwalk, depending on the time of year. The Great Blue Herons which summer on Prince Edward Island are often visible in Bedeque Bay. 

The bands of colour and texture at low tide on a sunny day in the bay make us stop to take in the scene as one of the large birds feeds in the tidal pools.

By late August, shorebird migration has begun and some of the birds stop in the bay on their way south. Yellowlegs are common visitors and this one was alerting the animals to the predator sitting on the bank of the stream.

I managed a photo of the Red Fox running into the bulrushes. It was a few minutes before the bird stopped its alert!

Another day, sailboats were out on the bay as they often are but sails were furled. The wind was high that day.

At Thunder Cove, fun at the beach was the order of the day. The expanse of shoreline is a great place for sand castles, lying in the sun, a walk

or a frisbee. 

The local colony of gulls was watchful for morsels of food and were entertaining, as usual, as they explored areas vacated by beachgoers.

At sunset, the beach took on a glow in the diminished light. 

As the sun settled lower, the approaching night has a look of its own.

We headed back over the dune path, looked back at the peaceful scene and were thankful for our good fortune to live in this time and place.

Spring by the sea

The spring lobster fishery has begun on parts of Prince Edward Island and another area opens today. My husband and I like to visit Malpeque prior to the season opening to see the activity around the wharf after a quiet winter. 

This week, all of the boats are ready to go. The traps have the buoys attached and will be baited before loading.

This past week we had our first meal of crab this season. Crab and lobster are wonderful treats from the sea and we look forward to our first lobster for Mother’s Day.

Meanwhile, at Malpeque, we always watch for herons and one was nearby feeding in the marsh.

In the river nearby, cormorants took flight and the water sparkled around them.

We walked the beach at Brander’s Pond one day too. It was another beautiful day but cold. Winter clothes are still in use since even without any wind, the air is still frigid. Meanwhile, the sea stack at Brander’s survived another winter and the sea sparkled in the April sun.

From the boardwalk this week, it was easy to see the Confederation Bridge in the distance. 

Along the Rotary Trail, the path disappears in the distance and is intriguing enough to keep us going.

We look forward to new adventures this week. Maybe it will be warm enough to have our first picnic for this year.

Friends along the boardwalk

The boardwalk in Summerside is a great place for exercise throughout the year. We are never bored with the section which we frequent because there is always something different to see. Each season brings its own beauty and summer doesn’t disappoint. These are some of the animal friends of the boardwalk which we have enjoyed on our walks the last several weeks.

Red squirrels are as busy as ever and approach walkers for food which many provide. 

The tiny rodents have favourite areas, such as the bridge or a favourite bench where walkers pause and enjoy their company. 

Eastern Chipmunks collect maple seeds which fall on the boardwalk. 

They also take sunflower seeds from walkers although they are not as bold as their fellow rodents, the squirrels.

Dozens of Blue Jays hang out near the bridge too. 

They gather if one stops on the bridge. If you leave peanuts, they will quickly take them. The birds also provide the alarm system for the other animals if a predator comes into the area.

The Common Grackles are noisy and spend time around the bridge as well. 

They will eat seeds left in various feeders but are not as willing to be around people as the jays are.  

Red-winged blackbirds are their usual noisy selves. 

The males will chase off any crows who get too close to their nests among the bulrushes, where the females tend the young.

Every June, Sora visit the stream along the boardwalk. 

These birds are elusive and can be difficult to photograph. I was lucky enough to be there at the right time. Notice the length of its claws.

Herring gulls frequent the area 

and American Black Ducks live along the stream too. We didn’t see any ducklings this year however.

Recently, another walker pointed out a Leopard Frog in the grass along by the boardwalk. 

It was well camouflaged as it watched the proceedings. It stayed quiet and barely moved as we watched it for ten minutes. We had never see a frog there before.

The Song Sparrows are numerous along the length of the boardwalk. One doesn’t have to walk far to hear them perform.

Great Blue Herons visit the bay throughout the season and often stop by the salt water marsh and stream. 

Recently one took flight as we arrived at the gazebo and landed in a tree overlooking the boardwalk.

One great sight along the boardwalk this summer has been a pair of Belted Kingfishers. They perch in the trees along the shore and fish along the coastline. They fly to an area, hover, look below in the water and dive into the water to catch food such as fish, then fly into the trees with it. I have watched them on several occasions now and was lucky enough to take video of one such fishing expedition. You can see it here.

Finally, the last photo is of the end of a culvert which empties by the side of the boardwalk. A young fox on the walkway escaped into the culvert when people came along. We saw it poke its head out once and waited for another glimpse, to no avail. We hope to get its photo one day.

 

  

Late afternoon in the bay

It was 5 p.m. as we headed home after a day on the northeast coast of Prince Edward Island. As we passed by the bay, we noticed a flock of Great Blue Herons just off-shore. Of course we stopped to take in the scene.

While we were stopped for the herons, the scene on the horizon made us linger as the sun highlighted a band of clouds beneath thick blue cloud cover. The water below looked silver as birds, probably gulls, foraged in the intertidal zone. 

Wading and floating in the water, geese looked peaceful as well. 

However the most dramatic scene became the long shot of the Indian Head Lighthouse with a shimmer of light on its north side, the band of lighter cloud directly behind it and the dark blue cloud overhead. The intertidal zone provided interest in the foreground. The pools of water in that zone reflected the dark blue overhead. That lone white cloud highlighted the lighthouse.

Nature surprises us constantly.

Along the shoreline

The boardwalk at Summerside is undergoing repair work and the popular section of the trail where many of the birds, squirrels and chipmunks hang out has been closed to walkers. 

With replacement of the bridge over the stream, workers have drained the area to facilitate construction and the setting has changed a great deal. 

Ducks who frequented the salt marsh have moved on but the usual late summer shorebirds still frequent the shoreline. We walk near the section under construction and enjoy the gazebo and shoreline. We have seen a few birds new to the area this month and enjoy our time observing them.

Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs are walking and feeding along the shoreline these days. The two species are so similar but beak size is a distinguishing feature. They appear to live in harmony together.

One day, watching from the gazebo, I noticed what looked like a small flock of sparrows land on the beach which would be an unusual sight. I watched the birds, obviously not sparrows but Least Sandpipers, the smallest of the sandpipers. They stayed long enough for me to take a photo.

Another day, Black-bellied Plovers stopped for a visit. Eventually I managed a good photo.

One of my favourite days brought the Double-crested Cormorants from the breakwater

to a sandbar near the old Rifle Range. A few Great Black-backed Gulls sat among them. One could imagine the birds chatting, moving around to speak to friends they spot nearby, waiting for fish to enter the channel. Poor fish, though I would have liked to see that fishery.

                                                                           The Stand

Great Blue Herons were vigilant nearby as well, watching everything with those eagle…rather, heron eyes.

The next day, the cormorants were back at The Stand again, this time, a flock of Bonaparte’s Gulls rested on a sand bar in front of them. There is quite a contrast in size between the cormorants and these tiny gulls.

As often as I can, I sit for a time on a rock or a bench, enjoying the breeze with the sun shining and the wonder of birds spread before me. It is a time when the troubles of the world disappear and all is well for a few precious minutes. Perfect!

Birds around the estuary

Slowly, over the last several years, a love of birds, their appearance and behaviour, crept up on me and seeped into my bones. My husband supports my interest in every way possible. Everywhere we go these days, we watch and listen for the birds in that area. Sometimes I recognize the birds by sight and/or sound, other times, I need the reference book or a website check at home for identification. Usually, the camera is nearby for photos.

Recently, we visited our family at a beach house on the estuary of the Hillsborough River near Charlottetown, the capital of Prince Edward Island. 

We spent the day on the beach with the kids and enjoyed every minute. Some of our time was spent birdwatching with the family.

Bird listening is a better description when it comes to the Common Terns. 

The birds probably nest in the area and their in-flight acrobatics in the sky around the house and their voices were hard to ignore. In one area of the beach, they were loud and looked to be distracting us with aerial antics above our heads. I didn’t get any photos but their behaviour was amazing to watch.

One of the shorebirds, I later identified as a Willet, appeared to be nesting in the same area. We could hear noise among the grasses in the marsh and the bird put on a display a short distance from the noise. 

This bird stood on the beach and chirped its loudest as we approached and walked by. When we passed, it took to the air, the beautiful markings on its wings were easy to see but hard to photograph.

From our beach chairs, we observed the Willet and several terns being noisy and aggressive towards a Bald Eagle.

The birds flew towards the eagle, veering off at the last second. The eagle stayed around for a few minutes then flew to the trees a distance away. The smaller birds saw the eagle for the predator it was.

In the water, a flock of eleven Great Blue Herons caught our attention as well.

As the tide rose, the bird moved from one position to another, to shallow water. Eventually they flew off together. 

Watching the birds with family and sharing an interest with them was fun.