I love photography! It is an absolute passion for me. I love going out, exploring and photographing landscapes and nature. You never know what you’re going to see or experience.
Yesterday was an absolutely beautiful day, so I decided that a walk in one of our beautiful parks was in order. And of course, the camera came with me. I couldn’t have timed it better! The park was open, although due to Coronavirus, the benches, picnic tables and play equipment were still closed. No problem. There’s still lots to see and do at Waterworks Park. Lots of room to stretch your legs and still take social distancing measures.
The ponds at Waterworks are a huge attraction. Frogs, American toads (Anaxyrus americanus), turtles, geese and many songbirds abound, and the gardens around are lovely. On this day, the pond was buzzing. Literally. Hundreds of toads were plopping around in the shallows and singing their hearts out. It’s mating season. I’ve never seen so many toads in my entire life! And they were certainly putting on a show.
I made my way to a shoreline after a man and his young boy had moved off, to see what I could photograph. At this side of the pond, the edge is not raised, so flooding and erosion happens. As I was looking for a good spot to shoot from, I noticed a good sized hole filled with water, and made a mental note to avoid it. You know where this is going, right?
So, I spent many minutes photographing my little warty friends as they plopped around and sang their mating calls. As I stood up from my crouching position, I was watching the children on the other side of the pond catching toads and showing them to their parents and siblings. Amused and smiling, I forgot where I was, and turning to leave, stepped right into the muddy puddle I had reminded myself earlier to avoid. The hazards of being a nature photographer!
Here are a couple of my toady friends.
To learn more about the American toad, go here: Ontario Nature
Check out the call of the American toad here: American toad call
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