At RBG’s Hendrie Valley!

Jump on one of the valley's accessible trails and you have a good chance to observe a large variety of birds, including friendly chickadees eating right from your hand, animated blue jays, composed northern cardinals, and many woodpeckers that will just keep doing what they do best – feeding on insects on tree trunks. You'll also have a good chance to spot Eastern Kingbirds catching flying insects above the shallow waters of the Hendrie Valley wetlands.

Eastern Kingbirds breed across Ontario and can be found easier in open areas with scattered trees such as forest edges, river edges, and wetlands. These two chicks were trying to keep warm by huddling together and catching the early morning sun rays just off the main trail in Hendrie Valley in the greater Hamilton area.

Eastern Kingbird Chicks at Royal Botanical Garden's Hendrie Valley

As I gently tried to reposition my lens, the chick on the left reacted a bit by changing its posture. Fortunately not even the sound of my shutter making this second frame separated these two siblings. The Kingbird chicks continued to sunbathe undisturbed until their parents' return .

Eastern Kingbird Chicks Reacting to My Movement