![\"Photo](\"http:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/PiedBilledGrebeCalmTwoHeadedonNaturalCrooksDotCom.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nThe water was so calm that this Pied-billed Grebe appears two-headed. I don\u2019t know which of us was more surprised when it emerged from its dive only a few yards from where I had eased down among the shrubs lining the shore.<\/p>\n
A group, quite possibly a grown family, of Red-necked Grebes floated nearby. I kept seeing others as I worked my way around the park.<\/p>\n Double-crested Cormorants perched on every float and many of the larger rocks sunning or drying their wings.<\/p>\n This sparrow had a very short tail. It might be a juvenile Song Sparrow but then again it might be something quite different. (I always welcome ideas in the comments!)<\/p>\n Flocks of American Goldfinches dominated the landscape. They are switching to their drab off-season colours which lets them try to fool birders into thinking they are warblers. The thick, short bill is a tip-off that they are not warblers or vireos, though.<\/p>\n These Wooly Bears didn\u2019t get the same memo from head office: one is declaring we\u2019ll have a mild winter; the other claims it will be wicked for sure.<\/p>\n I\u2019m going with the mild and short vote!<\/p>\n Many insects were migrating or moving seasonally besides just Monarchs. As usual, Multicoloured Asian Lady Beetles were collecting on the flowers and rocks along the Lake side of the land.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve been at Col Sam at different times of day in the early fall. The Monarchs usually are just warming up by sunning their wings if you get there early in the morning while the chill damp of the lake still hangs in the air. By late afternoon, the butterflies seem to be busy feeding on nectar and starting to group up in perches on some of the trees. On a windy day, I haven\u2019t seen much sign of Monarchs braving the flight but on a calm day between 11 and 3, there is often an irregular but steady flow of bright orange wings moving out and over the lake.<\/p>\n So when I first arrived, I was content to enjoy watching the birds and insects on shore. Later on, I did see over a dozen Monarchs, each picking its own path, launch out over the Lake and keep flying steadily away till they were lost from view.<\/p>\n Related Reading<\/strong><\/p>\n Join In<\/strong> Near the end of summer, I decided to see what was in the air at Colonel Samuel Smith Park in Toronto. The shape of the park includes a handcuff-shaped extrusion into Lake Ontario from which many Monarch butterflies begin theiraaa<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,11],"tags":[401,25,5,301,406,188,28,84,402,120,33,111,403,407,404,405],"class_list":["post-3840","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-insects","category-rambles","tag-asters","tag-birds","tag-butterflies","tag-common-yellowthroat","tag-double-crested-cormorant","tag-dragonflies","tag-goldenrod","tag-monarch","tag-multi-coloured-asian-ladybeetle","tag-pied-billed-grebe","tag-plants","tag-red-necked-grebe","tag-savannah-sparrow","tag-spotted-sandpiper","tag-trumpeter-swan","tag-wood-duck"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3840","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3840"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3840\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8402,"href":"https:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3840\/revisions\/8402"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3840"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3840"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naturalcrooks.com\/rambles\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3840"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>
\nThis Wood Duck kept a wary eye on me from under cover but I never tried to get closer.
\nThis other Wood Duck was swimming in the lagoon and the red colour of the eye and the bright bill suggests that it is a male in its alternate plumage.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\nOther Birds Livened Up the Shoreline Too<\/h2>\n
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\nThe only shorebird I saw was this one in flight. I think it is a Spotted Sandpiper. I did hear a Killdeer twice but didn\u2019t see one.<\/p>\n<\/a>
\nThere were more Mute Swans around in the Lake than I cared to count. There was only one obvious Trumpeter Swan, though, K12.<\/p>\nLate Summer Sparrows Are the True \u201cConfusing Fall\u201d Migrants for Me<\/h2>\n
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\nThis Savannah Sparrow very kindly has a distinctive yellow eyebrow to help me figure out what it is. I followed this little fellow as it ate seeds and insects all the way along the footpath closest to the Lake. It snacked on something the size of a grasshopper but which did not have the right type of legs. There certainly were dozens of crickets, grasshoppers and locusts to choose from for any insect-minded birds in the area.<\/p>\n<\/a>
\nThis sparrow also remains nameless. It\u2019s possible that it is a Lincoln\u2019s Sparrow but it\u2019s also possible it\u2019s a Song Sparrow or something else again!<\/p>\nVarious Small Yellow Birds Flit Through the Bushes<\/h2>\n
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\nThis Common Yellowthroat was a pleasant surprise. It startled up into a bush with three Song Sparrows when a dog crashed by through the goldenrod.<\/p>\nWhat Type of Winter Are the Wooly Bears Predicting for 2015?<\/h2>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\nLots of Insect Life Brightens Up the End-of-Summer Day<\/h2>\n
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\nMigrating dragonflies included Black Saddlebags and Green Darners. This dragonfly was one of the few who would agree to perch, briefly, so that I could snap a photo.<\/p>\n<\/a>
\nThis blue butterfly remains unidentified. It does not appear to have the \u201ctails\u201d to be expected on an Eastern Tailed Blue but I\u2019m not sure if it\u2019s a Summer Azure or not.<\/p>\nWhat Time of Day Is Best to See Monarchs Flying Across the Lake?<\/h2>\n
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\nDo you have a favourite spot to watch the Monarchs? Please share your experiences with a comment.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"