Red foxes, blue wings

A late morning walk today brought some surprises. First, this very calm Red Fox at the pond:

In the undergrowth along Florrie's Path there was a nice mixed flock: a silent Warbling Vireo, Common Yellowthroat, Black-and-white Warbler, a Chestnut-sided Warbler, and this Blue-winged Warbler. None of them cooperated very well with my camera!

Ruby-throated Hummingbirds and Blue-gray Gnatcatchers were also present in good numbers, as well as this Swallowtail and

this Twelve-spotted Skimmer.

Summer's Bounty

Donna's Zinnias

8:00, 63 degrees, clear and sunny. A perfect summer day.

I'm sure I take pictures of Donna's zinnias every year, but who can help it? They're so spectacular and colorful.

The lower gardens were surprisingly busy. I'd been feeling like I was a little late at 8:00, but everywhere I looked there was a bird singing, calling or flying from here to there.

The gardens look like they've had a great summer. They're at the height of their growth. The vegetables are starting to bear fruit and the flowers are spectacular. One gardener has some lilies that must be close to 7 feet tall!

A vocalizing red-tailed hawk flew overhead. There were several trees/shrubs with berries that are partially responsible for all the bird activity. Saw cedar waxwings, orioles, song sparrows, titmice, chickadees, a black poll (I think), blue-gray gnatcatchers, yellow warblers (most have moved on though), a flicker, house wrens, eastern phoebe, 2 hummers, blue jays, downy woodpeckers, goldfinches, catbirds, cardinals and house finches. The upper gardens had similar fare.

Down by the soccer field, the barn swallows were performing their aerial insect catching acrobatics. I

Native Raised Bed Garden

saw a vireo but it was so quick that I couldn't be sure which one. At first, I thought it was a red-eyed and then I thought it might be a warbling, but really didn't have time to properly identify. A nuthatch was combing the bark high up in an oak tree.

In the pond was a family of ducks - 10 of them to be exact and a sandpiper.

Interns from Newton Conservators have filled a neglected raised bed from a boyscout project a few years back with perennial natives and it is looking fantastic.

Thank you Beth and interns!