For Everything there is a Season: Out and about in late spring

Warm, humid weather rolled into the city this week. We enjoyed some gloriously sunny days, and then some mixed days of patchy sun and rain showers. All of the maple flowers have now fallen, replaced by quickly thickening maple keys. The cherry tree at the east end of the footbridge reached a peak of colour mid-week. Every day, as I passed, at least one person crouched with a camera along the bike path, photographing the solid mass of pink blossoms.

I made it outside several times over the week to enjoy the late spring flora and fauna: a work-related expedition to the South March Highlands, a slow evening ride along the Rideau River, and day of hiking in the Carp Hills with the boys. None of the trips provided much opportunity for proper observations and note-taking: certainly the boys weren't prepared to stand still, enduring the mosquitoes (which have exploded in number due to the damp spring) while I bent over a herb or waited for a warbler to reappear. Nevertheless, the trips proved very productive, with some very pleasing surprises. I've omitted the more common, urban birds, and I've certainly left out a lot of plants.

Birds