...Breakfast is in the Oven(bird)

Seiurus aurocapilla or more commonly known as the Ovenbird. This is a small forest dwelling bird of the New World warbler family. Cornell has this to say about the Ovenbird:
The Ovenbird gets its name from its covered nest. The dome and side
entrance make it resemble a Dutch oven.

But enough of that! What I have to say about the Ovenbird is WOOHAH! I've never actually seen an ovenbird up close before, much less photographed one. And while this one was posing and flitting about 15 feet from me, dragging his/her grub around, I was also treated to one of the biggest voices of the avian world. Right up there with the wrens for sheer volume of voice versus size of body. I was just finishing a couple of miles on a wooded trail this morning when I came across this bird. I think I was probably very near the nest as the little bird kept darting down to the forest floor and then back up again. At one point it disappeared for a few minutes behind some rocks and was without grub upon its' return. So, probably feeding babies.

On the same walk, I happened across a young white tail deer buck, with just the beginnings of his antlers starting to grow in. He was actually one of a half dozen deer I encountered on the trail - so nice when you are the only human on the trails...

Figuring that it was a good day, I headed over to another part of the park where they have big un-mowed fields, ideal for swallows, kingbirds, and bluebirds. And it was my lucky day, because I had all three! Didn't get any good shots of the kingbird, but I took my personal best of a fluffed up and glorius male bluebird and also a good shot of an equally glorius male Tree Swallow. Two exceptionally beautiful birds.

Feeling that I still had a few more shots in me, I headed to one of the smaller lakes where I bagged my first bullfrog of the season, sitting on a log. When I got a bit too close, he let out a blood curdling scream squeak and jumped into the lake. I also managed to get an interesting shot of a close encounter between two tiny damselflies . Shame it wasn't in better focus, but considering that it all happened in an instant, I'll take it. After that, I sat for a spell and had my lunch while gazing out over the lake.

So lots of little moments today. Now, however, I have to spend some less enjoyable little moments getting some work done!

xxoo
Debbi

and as best I can tell, this one hasn't been photographed yet for BlipBigYear, so I'll tag it.