"Out & About" Photo Blog: 2nd Marsh -- July 16th, 2011

Today I saw less change than on any other visit I've made to the marsh. Maybe our mini-drought has slowed things down or maybe it's just a quiet time for our local flora.

I did drop over to McLaughlin Bay before I went to the marsh and saw a beautiful young buck with 2 ft antlers. He was too fast for me to get a shot but he was only about 50 ft from me so it was a great sighting.

I watched him browse in the bush for a few minutes but all I saw was his antlers and had no chance for a real shot, so I had to settle for Mallards in the pond by the GM HQ.

I think Day Lilies are even more beautiful in the 'wild' than in our gardens.

These last few were at the marsh. When there is less to shoot, I tend to shoot old friends. This is the Red Baneberry again.

The Touch-Me-Not (aka Jewelweed) has been out for a few days though not in great numbers yet. When they are ready to disperse their seeds, they have the interesting & fun characteristic of "shooting" their seeds several feet when touched.

A few years back Jane & I found some near Port Hope that were at the popping stage and we both got a kick out of shooting them off.

These Long Horn Beetles (Thanks John) love Queen Anne's Lace...

And lastly, my favourite shot of the day... a Question Mark Butterfly. The odd name comes from a marking it has on its hind wing that resembles a question mark. A very boring name for such a beautiful butterfly. This one had about a 2-inch wingspan.

The Question Mark Butterfly has a cousin called the Comma Butterfly (named for a similar reason)... an equally boring name for another beautiful butterfly.

We need rain.

The Friends of Second Marsh web site...