Inglewood Wetlands

I suspect half of the city of Calgary headed for the hills for the Victoria Day long week-end. I was not on the list as I was helping my daughter Jennifer move to the neighbourhood of Inglewood. While I had some time to spare I decided to check out this wetland located about six blocks away from her house. To get there I had to cross this field with a sea of Dandelions growing profusely in all directions.

I noticed that there were Bumblebees visiting the Dandelion blooms and they became quarry for my camera. I have a extension tube that when placed between the camera body and lens allows for close-ups such as this photo that I shot of this Bumblebee on a Dandelion bloom.

I approached the west side of the wetlands keeping a low profile and it paid off with this photo I shot of this female Mallard Duck caught off guard in what I suspect she thought was the perfect hideout. Actually she had been feeding on plant material under the water upon my approach.

A new growth of cattails is providing a green carpet around the wetlands, however it is the cattails from last year that proved to be the place for me to capture this photo of this Red-wing Blackbird perched watching for photographers being annoying while a pair of them went about their nest building.

Of course it was not only the Red-Winged Blackbirds that were in attendance at this wetlands as this Yellow-Headed Blackbird was doing a good job of defending his territory as it kept watch while his mate built a nest attached to the cattails and reeds over the water in the wetlands.

I have always enjoyed being around wetlands and part of the reason may be the cattails that grow there. They are amongst the most common of all aquatic wetland plants anywhere. Cattails get their name from the round cylindrical flower spikes which I have seen as much as a foot long. Sorry that I cannot show you a cattail from this year as it is a bit early in the year.

I guess by now my coffee break is long over and Jennifer will be ready to go get another load of furniture. Those clouds over her house are starting to look like they could give us the showers that are in the forecast for the week-end. Time to get back although I would rather stick around this wetland for a while longer. Oh well now that Jennifer lives around the corner I will be back.