Gramma Camp Long Weekend

 Sunday, May 21

Papa was hosting a party of coworkers Saturday afternoon, but Izzy texted him to get the recipe for the yummy breakfast buns. First, we put them in the oven overnight to rise. Then 375' for 10 minutes or so. She baked them Sunday morning, and they were yummy. 

Caitlin is visiting Jess out west, and we did a Facetime with them. The three-hour time difference is tricky. Momma was awake, on Ottawa time, and had a visitor in her guest room! Later on, she babysat for her brother and SIL, while they went out on an anniversary date. 

Both girls worked on homework on Sunday. Josephine helped me work on the deer fences. Then, she went back to homework! It's not too bad, the fence. Grampa and Izzy had bought the stakes for me. I'd sent them for 8' bamboo stakes, but these will work! 

The netting is from Lee Valley, and is really invisible. 

While I was out back, I'd noticed a tree frog on the swing bench. Josephine brought it to the front yard, and put him on the lip of the bird bath.

After we were done, Isabelle came outside to see the frog.

She used her phone to take a video!

tree frog from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

I think I fixed Fred, by putting Emily up on a stand. Yesterday I posted a video showing Fred eating the pansy blossoms. Take that!

I took advantage of the sunny day, and fixed the pond pump for the umpteenth time! It's good to keep the old girl busy and off the streets! Percy is still hanging in, all alone.

Maggie Magnolia has not yet blossomed. It's fun see people in warmer climes with magnolia that have bloomed and are done. It is highly anticipatory! I just have to remember to fend off the bugs and go see it.

I even checked my old garden, which I have neglected.

I did a walkabout on the frontyard. The lilacs are lovely. Those are small catalpa trees I transplanted are leafing up in the foreground.

Checked on the 🐣ROBINS. I don't see any eggs, but I didn't disturb them too much. We'll see how many they have hatched.

I checked the shed 🐣PHOEBE eggs, and one of the remaining two had hatched. Only the cowbird hatched in the nest under the deck. There are four phoebe eggs there, still.

Under the eaves off the middle deck, I found a wasp nest. I decided to get it down. I showed the girls.

We were watching TV and spotted a woodpecker on the hummingbird feeder! It was the rose-breasted grosbeak last week! 

Oh, I wish I could have my feeders up. This is why I cannot. Bear visited the trailcam, again. BIG itchies! 5 p.m., Sunday, May 21.

Bear from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

It was a great weekend. I am so proud of our grandies near and far. Four granddaughters! 

Caitlin arrived home safely on Monday afternoon. The week begins again. 

Robins, eggs, crows, Butch

I am so grateful for our critters. There is so much to see and to watch for and I keep track here: 🐣NESTS 2021.  The phoebe should hatch this weekend. The crows on May 24.

Here is our robin's nest, now with TWO eggs, as of Friday. It sits directly below the deck. I put the table and a bathmat overtop, just to protect them. This is where I sit and watch the birds go by.

Near the house, the tree sparrows were getting frisky. This happened 4 or 5 times, and I snagged the last visit on the video. Tree sparrow  

 

I threw some old carrots out down at the trailcam beside the frogpond. The crow had a bit of a play! crow and carrot  

 

The crow won this round! crow and duck  

  

I use the Ken Burns feature of iMovie to zoom in, especially on the trailcam videos. You can see that in a couple of my videos. With my shaky hands (the anxiety has been bad this week: blame COVID–19, health issues, and the bug infestations) iMovie has a feature that allows me to stabilise it. It's really handy!

I zoomed in, to watch the raccoon swimming. It reminds me of caring for my dad, his last night. The place was shut down for the night, I was staying with him, I went into the hall and watched a gentleman in his wheelchair going in and out of other people's rooms, like a Monty Python sketch. Back and forth, silently, in the night time lights of the long-term care home. Butch swims  

We seem to have a resident water snake! water snake 

 

The crows are nesting in the backyard. Not that I've seen the nest. I think incubation began May 7th. Incubation is from 16 - 18 days. Then then stay in the nest another 20 - 40 days.

It was fun to spot two crows  on the dock. One of them in the pack had a stick stuck in its cheek (May 5th  – sticky face). I haven't seen it lately.

 

Apparently, Butch comes as triplets! Butch trio  

 

Thanks to Eileen for hosting Saturday's Critters # 388!

Saturday's Critters # 388

The ducklings are hatched!

male and female wood ducks

Faithful reader will know I've been following the wood ducks like mad. I've been experimenting with the camera settings, the location of them, whether to use video of photos (the latter being faster). Concentrating on box #3, with 22 eggs, I've been working hard. What a mistake!
You see, I perfected it, only to have to move the cameras.

Boxes #3 and #2.

I've been checking the boxes, not every day, just when I know they are due to hatch or when the female flushes from the nest.

Sunday, May 26th, I opened up box #1 and SURPRISE, there were ducklings. I couldn't see, but the duckling was hatching as I watched. I wasn't even focusing on this box, as I thought it was going to be later. WRONG! I could hear momma yelling at me from the pond. I skedaddled.

May 26th they were hatching. Boxes 2 and 3 still full.

This is from June 3, 2017.


This was five years ago! I've never captured their jump for freedom. June 20, 2014.
Wood ducks from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Stay tuned. We'll see what I capture today. They jump from the nest 24 hours after hatching. I am not confident, but I am hopeful. It's likely this afternoon.

Life and death is reality in the country

First something got into the wood duck nest box and ate 6 of 8 eggs down by the frogpond. I think they were already dead and abandoned. There were ants in the wood chips, as well. I brought the last two eggs up to the house, and the raccoons ate them, as well as the dead cowbird egg. This was before they ended up in my bedroom, though the cat doors.



Then there is the frogpond. It is a vernal pond, from meltwater, mostly, however, it lasts into early summer. In a normal summer. You can see the trenches from the muskrat family, momma and 6 babes, where they came and went. Also, where they dug into the bank for a home. They have gone to find more water. I imagine they will be back in spring!
There is lots of death here, but the raccoons have been cleaning up the fish, as well.



We were so busy tootling around with Yam, I hadn't checked the frog pond. It is, sadly, done for the season. Just a few Ale Wives flopping in the muck. The frogs have gone. The tadpoles, the bullfrogs overwinter for a season, will likely hunker down in the muck and estivate.



I've had to fill the goldfish pond. The evaporation is awful. Froggie sits in the splash. We've had some rain, not a lot. Just a few mm here and there. It is better than nothing.


They are laying new eggs in the mason bee house. They will hatch next spring.


Bambi is on hosta #6! I don't mind, as she is a skinny little runt.