MORE FROM HUNTLEY MEADOWS

 A few more photos from Huntley Meadows...

 starting off with the Green Heron that we saw fishing and shared in this post.

Our next photo is on the right just after we have reached the boardwalk that takes us over the wetlands.  You can see an egret off center left, and behind it - and I am sorry I couldn't get a closer shot - is the biggest snapping turtle I have ever seen.  There are two duck nesting boxes all quiet at this time of the year, and on the arc of branches right at the top is a Great Blue Heron.  I would have concentrated on that more if I had noticed it, but it only became clear that evening on my laptop screen.  Below is a closer shot of the Great Egret.  The water level was down in this area, and I didn't see any signs of beaver activity.We chatted with a man taking photos.  He was a very friendly fellow.  We walked on and further along there was a lady with her daughter.  The mother had mentioned, as she looked at my sunhat, that she should have worn hers today.  It was very hot!  We chatted for a little while and they eventually moved on.  Gregg and I sat on our bench looking out at the marsh, checking for other birds.  This was after we had taken photos of our Green Heron, and it continued fishing and we continued looking.  The following photo of the tree trunk is where we had seen a pair Pileated Woodpeckers.  They were going back and forth to feed their babies the last time we were here.  It was all quiet now, just an empty spot ready and waiting for next spring.   That nesting hole is a hundred feet off the ground.

Here's another tree that we have to step around on our walk through the wood, before we get to the wetland.  It's practically in the middle of the path. The tree was hollow and you could see through to the other side in each hole.

Gregg took a photo of this Dragonfly.  I was having a hard time focusing but his hand and eyes are better than mine.  Not sure what kind.  I am late getting this post put together and will soon be calling it a night.   I will try and find its ID tomorrow.  Here are some Katydids, one in focus, one not.  There were hundreds of them hopping all over the plants on one side of the boardwalk. 

The Swamp Mallows were still blooming, with lots of buds ready to open everywhere.

Not quite as many in abundance but there were a few Cardinal flowers.

By the time we got to the other end of the boardwalk, there was a bench with my name on it. It is at the start of another path that goes through more woods, which eventually leads to a large pond on the other side of the marsh. The bench is always welcome as it is in the shade.  In the distance I saw someone sitting there and as we got closer I said to Gregg perhaps they wouldn't mind moving up so that I could sit down.  Apparently my voice carries even though I thought it was nothing more than a whisper.  When we got to the bench these nice people had already scooted to the other side and as I asked if they would mind me joining them, the lady said, "Certainly, we had already moved as we heard you."   I laughed and said they were very kind.  I recognized the lady and her daughter from chatting with them about my sunhat earlier on our walk.  Not only that but after ten minutes, the lady's husband joined us and he was the photographer we talked to at the beginning of our walk.  

We had a lovely conversation with the three of them, at least half an hour.  The husband showed us this little device he has attached to his iPhone with a rubber band and was what he used for taking macro photography.  The photos he took were sharp and clear, great macros of insects.  He had attached to a jeweler's magnifying glass which in his opinion worked better than the more expensive attachments you can buy.  He was the one who was taking the photos, and the mother and daughter were going along for the exercise. They teased him about taking a couple of dozen photos of one subject.  Sounds familiar I said, knowing that I quite often do that myself.  They also told us about a nature reserve an hour away.  We had never heard of it, so now we have another to add to our list of places to go. The daughter was very proud to show me her photo of some young snakes she had spotted curled up on top of an old tree stump, and I told her it was excellent.  She certainly had her father's eye for photography.

We thanked the dad for all the great tips he had given us.  We have been lucky on our outings and have always met people who are very giving of their photographic knowledge. We left them heading to the second pond in the other direction.  We have been on other occasions, but the heat was getting to us and we had a long way to walk back to the car.  The water flask we had brought with us was now empty.  

That's about it for our trip to Huntley Meadows.  I certainly hope it won't be as long getting back.  We intend to return when the weather isn't quite as hot.

Thanks for visiting and I hope your day is a great one!