A female Ruby-throated Hummingbird flares her tail feathers. These birds have one of the lowest feather counts of any bird species, measuring in at 940 feathers in a 1936 study by Alexander Wetmore.

I was taking this photo for the Orange Sulphur butterfly, but editing the photos later I noticed a caterpillar on top of the butterfly weed. The caterpillar has a fun name - Unexpected Cycnia Moth - and is rare in Michigan.

This juvenile Green Heron landed about 20 feet away, giving some nice looks at the feather details. Juvenile Green Herons have white/light brown stripes along the neck and small stripes of brown on their wing feathers.

An American Goldfinch inspects Missouri Ironweed for tasty seeds.

A Painted Turtle enjoying the summer day. 🐢

An exciting day for me as I saw a new bird! A Swallow-tailed Kite. Lighting was tough but it was delightful to watch this bird catching and eating cicadas on the wing.

A juvenile Cedar Waxwing about to have a little snack. Cedar Waxwings have a diet of mostly berries and fruit but will hunt down insects in the summer.

A Black Swallowtail sips nectar from a thistle bloom.

A male Northern Flicker (yellow-shafted) takes off after spending some time poking about in the grass for ants.

This photo is heavily cropped, but I wanted to share because the little heart next to this Belted Kingfisher's beak is just so cute. 🤍

A Ruby-throated Hummingbird sips nectar from Salvia at a local botanical garden.

A Viceroy butterfly sips nectar from thistle. Viceroys look similar to Monarchs but are smaller, and have a vertical black line through the hind wings.

I felt judged by this Eastern Bluebird 😆

A Great Blue Heron stands on the boardwalk railing to take a look around before heading back to the lake to fish.

A fledgling Cedar Waxwing. If you look closely, you can see this young one already has one waxy tip on a wing feather.

A Green Heron high-stepping along the lily pad roots, looking for small fish and invertebrates to eat.

A Great Blue Heron arrives at the boardwalk railing.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtails visiting Mexican Sunflowers at a local botanical garden. These flowers have been very popular with the pollinators.

A male Common Yellowthroat patrolling his marsh.

This juvenile Green Heron seemed surprised when Red-winged Blackbirds landed nearby, but quickly settled back in while the Red-winged Blackbirds ran around on the railing.

A juvenile Red-tailed Hawk flares the wings as a Barn Swallow comes in for an attack. This hawk is on the roof of the nature center, which has a nest of Barn Swallows with nestlings next to the front door. The Barn Swallow parents did not like the hawk being so close to the nest.

A Cedar Waxwing deciding on what berry to pick from a Dogwood tree.

A Green Heron was standing on the boardwalk railing when a Great Blue Heron landed nearby. The Great Blue Heron started walking towards the much smaller Green Heron, who seemed somewhat concerned and took off down the railing.

Hummingbird Clearwings, a species of Hummingbird Moth, are fondly called "flying lobsters" due to their flared tail. The species Snowberry Clearwing, which looks very similar, also has this nickname.

"Can I eat that?" A juvenile Red-tailed Hawk checks out a fungus. The fungus is reddish brownish; maybe it's close enough to the color of a chipmunk and that's where the intrigue came in? The hawk did eventually go for a bite, but it was only one bite and then the hawk lost all interest.

A Tree Swallow hunts for insects over a small pond.

A rare sight, a Virginia Rail gathering nesting material. She would run off into the cattails, grab a leaf or two, and come back to the nesting spot to place them properly.

You'll have to look closely, but you can see this Ruby-throated Hummingbird's head through her wings as she sips nectar.

Incoming Green Heron, on a mission for tiny fish and tadpoles.

An Eastern Meadow Vole munches on a water lily pad.