It is a perversely human perception that animals in their native habitat are running wild.
~Robert Brault
Summer is that wonderful time of year when we get to see young animals learn to fend for themselves. I've posted about baby geese and raccoons semi-recently but I've collected a few more images of maturing babies to share with you. I hope you enjoy them.
I had a wonderful morning watching a crow family, early in July. The young were almost fully-grown but their behaviour told me that they were still newbies. They allowed me to approach within a few feet - that wouldn't happen with adult crows. Their parents, atop a nearby tree grew a bit concerned and tried to caw-tion them about the crazy two-footed beast with a lens growing out of its face.
The fledglings seemed unconcerned about me but responded to their parents with pleas of "Come feed me!" Note the bright red mouth on this youngster. According to a few birding sites, crows (and some other birds) call attention to their parents with their red mouths. It makes these otherwise black birds easier to locate than by just the sound of their calls.
Last year, we happened upon quite a few robin's nests but I never saw a single one, this year. That doesn't mean that the robin population is struggling - not by a long shot. I've seen numerous fledglings around and about - like this lovely speckled-breasted cutie.
Meet the triplets - Daffy, Dawn and Della. Daffy and Della are quiet but as you can see, Dawn is rather vocal. At this age, they do more peeping than quacking but that won't keep me from captioning this image "The Quack of Dawn."
Della is not amused.
Looking down at the dam, I spotted the triplets out for a little stroll one day. It must have been fowl weather.
Beautiful blue jays - they're sharp, no-nonsense kind of birds. The adults, that is. The young ones are a bit awkward, kind of goofy and awfully cute. This one is looking just a little perplexed about where to find the peanuts that Frank has scattered for them. When in doubt, it's best to call in the experts.
Wings droop and and mouth gapes - international bird sign language for "Take care of me!"
This is a juvenile Black-crowned night heron. He's yet to grow his black cap but he was quite capable of fishing for himself. Aren't those red eyes wonderful?
In case you're curious, this is what he'll look like when he begins to grow into his adult feathers.
This young gull kept a wary eye on me. It's interesting how much their feathers will change as they reach maturity. Adult gulls are mostly pure white with black.
Of course birds are not the only baby game in town. There are several bunnies to be seen most evenings. This little one was keeping very still as bunnies tend to do. I'm sure he believed himself invisible. He's a cute little thing, don't you think?
And speaking of cute little ones, I couldn't possibly complete this post without a photo of one of my favourite little kittens - my sweet neighbour, Lily.
That's it for today. My posting and visits to your fine blogs seems to have slowed down a bit. That's par for the course during summer, for me. I'll be around eventually. That's a promise!
