Right off, we missed a Garter Snake. I just couldn't get a decent shot. Next up, we missed a Pickerel Frog. I never even saw it. At long last, I finally got a photo of a basking Painter through some trees.
There were some noisy families along the trails but we waited our turns and enjoyed the sights we, the quiet, well behaved, and intelligent folks, could see. Like this Bullfrog.
Some distant Painters didn't care about screaming brats. They were chilling 20 feet out, hiding in plain sight.
We finally had the path back to ourselves. That's what this Chipmunk thought, too. He stayed right in the path, chewing on a root while we stood 5 feet away, waiting for him to finish.
Andrea spied another sneaky Garter slithering away from us, but this time I could (just about) get a shot through the bushes.
The next pond had some more Painters up. I'm amused by these two with their similar positions but completely different interests. The first one likes flowers, the second one barbed-wire. Hippy and punk.
Andrea approached this log with the intent of flipping it, but this calm Garter suggested she wait until later.
We got to our planned destination, a field that has been plowed for turtles to nest in. There are Blanding's Turtles present at this refuge, though it is not yet known if they have actually been nesting yet. Still, they keep the field cleared every year. Sadly, we saw no live turtles there. There was lots of nest predation and four dead, headless Painters. Something was partially eating them before, during or after nesting. It made us sad.
From a trail alongside the field, we could see some turtles basking in a pond down below... secret Painters.
I had a shot lined up with 7 or 8 Painters in it but they must have sensed me, even though I was easily 50 feet away, and this is what I wound up with.
Oh, well... there were other Painters about.
This picture is interesting... lots of Painters...
... and that one in the upper right corner.
I tried to get a better shot. I didn't, really, but I got this.
Thinking I might have a Blanding's (more domed shell, non-Painterly scutes), I zoomed in again and it had it's head out! I went to snap the shot and a screeching Hawk flew overhead and scared it in. *sigh* After uploading the photo, I conferred with my friend Mike Z, who is having a stellar turtle year, and he and I both think it's probable that it's a Blanding's.
Some more Painted Turtles...
Look over your shoulder, Marv.
Bask like nobody is looking.
Remember that log that the Garter wouldn't let Andrea flip? Well, the snake had moved on and we saw this pretty Redback underneath!
I was watching this Bullfrog. There was a small Painted Turtle that was foraging around near it and it kept bumping into him. The frog was getting annoyed and kept moving away. Eventually, he got near this lily and I got a nice shot.
Thank you, asshole turtle!
Now that trails were quieter again, Painted Turtles were up basking the main ponds.
This little swamp thing had just come up from the muck.
We'd heard a bunch of Greens, then I finally got a picture of one.
Another sign of a weird 2020... tiny toads in mid-June. This seems a few weeks early. But there they are... freshly terrestrial American Toads.
We saw these two Goose families resting under a tree, then we sat on a bench, taking a rest of our own.
While sitting there, both families, one with three goslings, the other with one, walked and nibbled right next to us, giving us a huge treat. Watching animals being themselves up close is a rare treasure.
We got back to the car and it was only a little after noon so we made plans to go down the road to another Middlesex nature area. On the way out, we saw a Red-tail eating a frog next to the road. Not the typical prey, but when you're hungry, you eat.
We took a beautiful scenic route to the next spot, thanks to Andrea's GPS. The parking lot was crowded and we feared the worst but we got a space without too much work and headed in. This Muskrat wasn't too bothered by our presence.
There were plenty of humans yell-talking and to be honest, it was nice hearing Andrea complain about their chattering. It's usually me hating them alone. Still, even with the noise, this Painter was nearby, as were a few others.
Thank you, zoom-lens. This Snapper noggin was way out there.
We'd been hoping for a Snapper all day. This guy wasn't exactly up close and in our face, but he was good to see anyway.
Another species we'd be denied all day was Water Snakes. Our goal at this second place was to get to an area with some good rocks under which we'd found Water Snakes before. Since it was getting later in the day, there was a good chance one might be hiding out there. One rock had no Nerodia, but two large Garters were there.
I love how it looks like they're emerging from Andrea's snake T-shirt.
Another Garter, this one in a snooze.
We decided that we'd had enough, so we turned back to head to the car. We still had a mile or so to go. Andrea noticed these two Bumblebees doin' it... or something. Maybe they were just being kinky.
A bit further along, we had some more exciting Apidae sights... Honey Bees were all over a patch of False Indigo Bush (Amorph fruiticosa), packing their saddlebags with the bright orange pollen.
It was fascinating to watch.
Lo and behold... the elusive (for the day) Northern Water Snake!
This Green presented a real photographic challenge and while the shot isn't great, it took a lot of effort to even get this, so LOOK AT IT, FOOL!
Just before getting back to the parking lot, we finally saw a Northern Leopard Frog, always a target at this spot.
This gorgeous fella was a great way to end the day.
So, that's a nine species day, ten if we were to count the possible Blanding's, and a lot of interesting encounters.
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