Monday, July 15, 2013

Caught With My Mouth Full



We spend a week at a cottage or cabin most summers. Planning and shopping ahead for all our meals takes time and effort as we never stay close to a grocery store. When our three children were young, food was the biggest consideration when packing. Lately I keep lists of what we take and what we bring home unused but the task still seems daunting. Although my husband is a good fisherman we never count on fish meals just in case he is skunked. The last couple of years we stopped at a discount grocery store in Espanola ON, just an hour from our destination, in order to buy fruit, vegetables and perishable items. That gives me a final chance to go over lists and menus while we are driving. No one wants to be hungry while on vacation.


Last week most of the birds I observed were very busy feeding their young families from dawn to dusk. The insects were plentiful this year due to the wet weather and mosquitoes were a nuisance which is unusual on the shores of the big lake. It was a good year to be a flycatcher or warbler,


or a Bobolink taking food to her nest in the tall meadow grass,


or a Robin looking for grubs in the wet ground,


or a Sandhill Crane foraging in the freshly mown hay field,


or a bumblebee with overfull pollen sacks visiting the many wildflowers along the roadside.


A pair of Eastern Phoebes lived under the little bridge over the creek where the boats were docked. I think this one was just waiting for a mosquito to fly in its mouth.

We all ate well this year but the birds and bees worked longer and harder at getting meals than I did!

5 comments:

  1. A marvelous series of photos, gorgeous nature shots and I see you had some tasty fish for supper :)

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  2. Thanks, and yes we did have more than one fresh fish meal.

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  3. When I see birds or animals with food in their mouths, I am enthralled. Less so when it is people.
    Great photos.

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  4. What a cute post with lots of wonderful wildlife shots! Loved it!

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