Cleveland Circle and Beyond

A Brown creeper explores a tree at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

There are two Ruby-crowned Kinglets at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

A White-breasted Nuthatch searches for a good nook in the bark in which to store a seed.

A Great Blue Heron stalks fish at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

There goes one now!

Got it.

Delicious.

An American Coot feasts on the underwater vegetation at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

Even though a dozen or more Yellow-rumped Warblers spent weeks flitting around the Chestnut Hill Reservoir, I found it maddeningly difficult to photograph them.

Dozens of Ruddy Ducks have returned to spend the fall at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

A Cedar Waxwing at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

An Eastern Kingbird at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

A Red-eyed Vireo sings loudly to announce his big catch.

A Common Yellowthroat spends just a few seconds within camera range at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

A Double-crested Cormorant perches on top of Gatehouse #1 at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

Which one of these is not like the others?

Yes, it’s the Black-crowned Night Heron, mingling with a group of ducks at the edge of the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

The Heron was easy to miss (and hard to photograph) because the vegetation was thick along the banks of the Reservoir. No doubt that vegetation also made our friend feel at home. After DCR came through with the Habitat Destroyer (a.k.a., the slope mower), no more Night Heron.

A Blue Jay collects material for a nest at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

A Red-eyed Vireo tends to her nest above the path at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

A Raccoon begins the search for food around dusk at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir. I was awed by her ability to climb to the tops of the very tallest pines and then move between them like a squirrel.

The Baltimore orioles have returned to their favorite spot along the Chestnut Hill Reservoir. There were two who were calling loudly and chasing off the goldfinches.

The Pine warblers have taken to the pines at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

As of Sunday morning, he is still here.

A rare find at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir, on the hill between the ice rink and the water: A Townsend’s warbler! I only saw him for a few seconds before dozens of juncos swooped in and scared him off, but I did manage to fire off some shots.

A male Yellow-bellied sapsucker shows off a little yellow at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

At the Chestnut Hill Reservoir, a skittish Hermit thrush runs across the path.

The Palm warblers have taken up residence at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

Got a bug.

A male Northern yellow-shafted flicker explores a fallen tree at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

The Eastern phoebes arrived at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir over two weeks ago, but I only had a chance to photograph them recently.

This Mourning cloak, found at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir on Saturday, takes a breather from dancing with a partner. Many thanks to Tina and Eva for help with the identification!

The Ruddy ducks have returned to the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

Two male American wigeons enjoy the newly thawed Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

The pair of Mute swans has returned to the Chestnut Hill Reservoir, but there is not yet much open water, so searching for food means looking under the ice.

The Golden-crowned kinglet is nothing if not an energetic bird. (If you are using Internet Explorer, all you will see is a bird appearing and disappearing — try Firefox or some other non-Microsoft browser.)

Is that the kinglet’s breath over her right wing?

A Northern mockingbird searches for berries at the Chestnut Hill Reservoir.

Got one.