Juvenile Virginia Rails at Lake Josephine, Easton

Paul Cyr called yesterday to let me know I'd missed a great show at Lake Josephine in Easton on Thursday morning. Paul started his July at the crack of dawn and was photographing wildlife in one of the marshes near the lake when one of the breeding Virginia Rails emerged from the cattails with her brood of 6 fresh and fuzzy young!

Paul said the adult (presumed female) came out to edge of the thick vegetation and began to feed and call to the chicks. One by one they popped out and began to follow their mom around and nibble at her offerings. Paul got some great pictures of these rarely-seen juveniles of a rarely-seen species.

The leggy black young paraded along behind their mother but Paul said they appeared so young and inexperienced that they barely figured out to navigate around the debris or how to forage for bugs.

Paul was able to get a shot of five of the six young in one frame. Click on the image to enlarge it and count them for yourself.

Thanks to Paul for more great bird photos for us to enjoy.