Photos and videos

One of the warbler species that can nest at the Park is the Yellow Warbler.  This is a male.  The female doesn't have the orange belly stripes. (Wolf. Oesterreich, 5/7/24)

A pair of Wood Ducks at Pond J. (Greg Courtney, 5/5/2024)

The clouds were vanishing quickly, but enough stay in the west to make a good sunset. (Tom Meyer, 5/9/24)

A Spotted Sandpiper in breeding plumage.  Come Fall, the spots will have  disappeared. (Wolf. Oesterreich, 5/9/24)

Warbling Vireo have been quite common at Ada Hayden in recent weeks. These small, somewhat inconspicuous birds are usually hidden in treetops, yet their loud, raspy warbling song is heard frequently throughout the park. This individual was one of several in the trees near Pond N. (Greg Courtney, 5/5//2024)

One of the beautiful warblers passing through our area is the Magnolia Warbler. (Wolf. Oesterreich, 5/7/24)

The summer diet of Red-winged Blackbird includes mostly a variety of terrestrial and aquatic invertebrates. This male spent several minutes foraging around the margin of Pond J, eventually finding a tasty grasshopper floating on the surface. (Greg Courtney, 5/5/2024)

Though not very visible to the naked eye, the northern lights showed up nicely on my phone camera. This was taken about 10:30PM (Tom Meyer, 5/11/24)

American Toads are currently "singing" at just about every wetland at the Park. (Wolf. Oesterreich, 5/9/24)

Black and White Warbler near Pond F. These birds feed primarily on caterpillars and moth larvae. The image on the left shows an individual that had to settle for something substantially smaller for its mid-morning snack (a tiny fly… actually a “fungus gnat”… look carefully at the tip of its beak). The image on the right shows another exceptional circumstance… a Black and White Warbler that’s sitting still on top of a branch (vs. constantly scurrying up and down the trunk)! (Greg Courtney, 5/5/2024)

Aurora Borealis over the south end of the Lake (Andrew Kovar, 5/11/24)

A Great Egret in breeding plumage. (Wolf. Oesterreich, 5/9/24)

Common Yellowthroat are back at Ada Hayden in reasonable numbers. One of the few warblers that remains in the park through the summer, they are heard more often than seen. This colorful male was unexpectedly out in the open at the southeast corner of South Lake (Greg Courtney, 5/5/2024)

A Red-eared Slider basking in the mid-morning sun at Pond P. (Greg Courtney, 5/5/2024)

Looking northward across the south lake and towards the mist-enshrouded bridge. (Wolf. Oesterreich, 5/13/24)

A White Breasted Nuthatch has a morning snack. (Tana Tesdall, 5/12/24)

A pair of preening Canada Geese sandwiched between basking Western Painted Turtles at Pond P. (Greg Courtney, 5/5//2024)

This pair of Canada Geese (note: NOT "Canadian") managed to find the only floating log on the south lake.  How they managed to get on without knocking the other one off took some skill. (Wolf. Oesterreich, 4/29/24)

Great Egret and a Canada Goose on Pond N in the early morning mist. (Tana Tesdall, 5/10/24)