I had a fabulous outing in Stony Swamp this morning. I started the morning by birding at Sarsaparilla Trail where I found a pair of Pied-billed Grebes and a Merlin perched in one of the dead trees at the north end of the pond; it was so far off that I had to return to the car and get my scope to identify it. I was glad I had brought my scope, for as I was scanning the vegetation along the shoreline I discovered two heron species skulking at the edge of the pond: a tiny Green Heron poised on a log, and an American Bittern that was almost invisible in a gap in the reeds! It made me wonder what other birds were present, going about their lives while remaining hidden from view.
After that I went to the Beaver Trail, mostly to look for butterflies and dragonflies in the wildflower meadow, but also to check for migrants along the boardwalk at the back. My best bird there was a Barred Owl that I found when I startled it on the ground next to the trail! It flew up in front of me, landed in a tree, then silently flew deeper into the woods. This is the first time I’ve seen one at this trail, which makes three Stony Swamp trails where I’ve seen them – all but Jack Pine Trail, where they are most often reported! A perching Broad-winged Hawk was also a nice surprise.
I found a great group of migrants and resident birds just before reaching the second boardwalk at the back of the trail. I found two Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, two Red-eyed Vireos, a Black-and-white Warbler, a Bay-breasted Warbler, and a Chestnut-sided Warbler all in the same area, along with an unidentified flycatcher. Both the Bay-breasted Warbler and the Chestnut-sided Warbler were new for my list of birds seen at the Beaver Trail.
After I finished birding the boardwalk area I headed over to the meadow. The large patch of wildflowers is always worth checking for insects in the summer, and I was not disappointed. I saw a White-faced Meadowhawk…
…and a dirty-faced meadowhawk. My net was back in the car, so I wasn’t able to catch it and identify it. This isn’t the first time I’ve seen these reddish-faced mystery meadowhawks here, but their appearance are so infrequent that it seems I never have my net when I spot one.
A large dragonfly was buzzing over the flowers, and when it landed in the vegetation close to the ground I made a note of the location and tracked it down. As I suspected, it was a Common Green Darner, a rather common species but a beautiful one when seen up close. The colours always make me think of living stained glass.
Common Green Darners have a black and blue bulls-eye pattern on top of the face; this is always a neat field mark to watch for in the field.
I spent about half an hour in the meadow before heading back to the parking lot. I had just reached my car and was just putting my gear away when I noticed a medium-sized dragonfly patrolling the gravel parking lot at about shoulder-height. The last time I had seen an interesting dragonfly cruising the same area it had turned out to be a Williamson’s Emerald; this one was orange, not black, and I knew it was one of the gliders. I rushed over to my car to grab my net, then promptly caught it and identified it as a Wandering Glider.
These dragonflies migrate from the south every summer, breed here, and then migrate south. They are most commonly seen in August and early September; repeat spots for this species include Andrew Haydon Park and Hurdman Park. This is the first time I’ve seen one in Stony Swamp.
Both gliders are more often seen in flight than they are perching. I’ve gotten lucky three times in seeing them land: my first-ever glider, the Spot-winged Glider, which dropped out of the sky to land in the vegetation in front of me while I was roaming the trails near the airport; and two Wandering Gliders which landed close by me at Hurdman Park in successive years. They are not common dragonflies, and I usually only see a few each summer, patrolling open areas where they are quick to evade capture. This is the first glider that I’ve caught, so I was really thrilled. I don’t see them that often, and when I do (such as when I’m at Hurdman) I don’t always have my net, which really limits my opportunities! Once I had finished examining and photographing the Wandering Glider I placed it in a shrub and photographed it there. To my surprised the dragonfly stayed put for a couple of minutes before flying off.
This Wandering Glider and the owl were my best finds of the day. A close third was this Band-winged Meadowhawk hunting in the same area where I had posed the Wandering Glider. This was only my third sighting this summer; these dragonflies seem to have become scarce in recent years.
I really enjoyed my outing in Stony Swamp. The American Bittern and the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds were awesome to see, even if I didn’t get a photo; and the bugs at the Beaver Trail were fabulous. I’m not sure why the Beaver Trail has such a wonderful diversity of insects, but every time I go I seem to see something new and interesting.
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