July 7, 2013 - Babies and Other Lake Photos

It’s that time of year when we start seeing baby birds. Here is a female Hooded Merganser with her seven ducklings. They seem to like the small pond beside our driveway and that’s where this photo was taken.

MerganserHoodedfemalebabiesDunningLakeBovey20130622

These Canada Geese were also in that small pond but I’ve only seen them there one time. I think they actually nested on another nearby lake. These babies are a little older so they’re past the cute, fuzzy stage.

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Last year, the loons on our lake were not successful in their nesting efforts, so we were very pleased to see that they have one chick this year. It hatched while we were away but it’s probably about a week old in this photo.

LoonCommonadultbabyDunningLakeBovey20130701

Here’s the baby loon four days later with both adults. When they first hatch, the chicks are so buoyant that they can’t stay under water. By the time this picture was taken, we noticed the chick was starting to dive and could stay under water for about 30 seconds.

LoonCommonadultsbabyDunningLakeBovey20130705

We have Yellow Lady’s Slippers growing in our yard. They’ve finished blooming now but here’s one of them when it was in full bloom.

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During the summer, I like to leave an outside light on in the evening to see the interesting variety of moths that are attracted to the light. I was really excited when I saw this Luna Moth clinging to the side of our house. This is one of the most spectacular moths in our area and it’s the first time I’ve seen one at our home. It’s a large moth with a wingspan of nearly 4 inches.

MothLunaDunningLakeBovey20130701