There were several muskrats feasting on duck weed. This time of year the ponds are just covered with duck weed.

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It appears to be a forlorn frog prince at first glance. After watching for a while I am now sure of it. Frogs have a long history. They were first presented to the world as something other than ordinary back in 1812 when they were written up in the Grimm's Fairy Tales. Even back in the Roman times it was written "The man who once was a frog is now a king", some believe to be a reference to Nero who was compared to a frog. What I do know is they have a pretty song.

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It is always fun seeing a Snapping turtle out of the water but to see two is exciting. Seeing two Snapping turtles this close together they are either fighting or trying to breed. I am guessing mating season is over.

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Usually you don't get to see a whole snapping turtle but every once in a while they crawl up on a log for sunning. It usually only the noise and a little of the back as they are swimming. So when you see a whole Snapping turtle at rest you get the whole ugly vision.

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On a might hot summer day there are three frogs in the shade cooling off.

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A nice fall day. The sun is out and it is warm with a slight breeze. Reptile and ducks are taking advantage of the day to sun themselves one last time before the cold wet days come as they did the next day. It is hard to get any better than a fall sunning day.

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There is nothing more smoothing than listening to a frog chorus during the evening hours of a frog party. This guy was a pretty good size and I suspect he will sing out loudly.

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So seldom do you ever see these big guys out of the water it is always a joy when you spot one. Look close and you can see two painted turtles in the water getting ready to get on the log for some sunning. This whole log was covered with painted turtles but I wanted a photo of the pretty one.

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It is springtime and the Snapping Turtles are awake and swimming. I can never get over how long their necks are when I see them in the water. It is mating season and it is always a site when you find a pair mating.

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Found a frog on a log at Heron Haven. It is always good when you can hear them singing.

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Autumn is coming and shortly this fellow will return to the mud bottom for hibernation. So this Painting Turtle is sunning himself before his long sleep.

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Just off the trail edge a Painted Turtle was building a nest to lay her eggs in. I hope the best for her and her offspring as there are a lot of enemies for her family. Heron Haven has such a range of nature activities for being in the middle of a city.

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To read up on the Painted Turtle is says it is active only during the day where it spends hours basking in the sun. So here we have the definition of "active" being to lay about in the sun. Not sure where the active parts comes in.

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You know spring has arrived when the turtles come out to sun bathe. And actually there were several more about.

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It is always fun to see a Muskrat swimming as they seem to move fast in the water. On this warm spring day this Muskrat swims up to what appears to be a small nest on the shoreline and begins to sun himself. Watched him for some time as he cleaned himself and then he seemed to "fluff" the nest so he can rest comfortably.

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A warm spring day and the Muskrat buffet is opened. It is just neat to watch these rodents move about the water and watching them as they dine.

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Warming today so went to Heron Haven to see what wildlife was out and about. I have seen a nice making of a nest by the bird blind over my last few visit. When I checked it today there was a muskrat sun bathing on the nest. He just laid there only moving occasionally as he got comfortable. Then I made some noise and he left.

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It must be spring or at least spring time for the painted turtles. After a long cold winter it is nice to wake up and bath in the sun on a warm spring day. Little do they know what will come in a couple of days! It isn't spring.

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It has been a great year for frogs as Heron Haven is covered with them. They always sing such a sweet song in the evenings. It won't be long now before they go under for the winter. The Duckweed can be seen surrounding the frog. Duckweed is a mixed blessing. It can cover the entire water area and it will cause oxygen depletion's to the fish and plants. It also provides a high protein food to the waterfowl and grows rapidly. As long as there is drainage Duckweed is a value.

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More often than not this is all you see of a Snapping Turtle. I was lucky in that he surfaced just below me to catch his breath. When looking at these animals one has to believe they have been transported back to the land of the dinosaurs!

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On my way back from the pond I found this guy in the middle of the boardwalk. He turn out to be a very bold frog as I walked right by him and he never moved. Normally they hide before you can even spot them.

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It always fun to see the Painted Turtles out, but to see a Painted Turtle with a Snapping Turtle nearby is a little unusual as the Snappers seldom come out of the water. Usually all you see of a Snapper is the from the eye to the tip of the nose out of water.

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A warm afternoon in spring and this Muskrat was out for a swim. The fun thing was he just kept swimming under me and the boardwalk. I think he was really enjoying himself.

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It started out as a social gathering and than a congo line broke out on the smaller tree trunk with a group of Painted Turtles. I couldn't hear the music and apparently they couldn't either as nobody was moving but never the less they were ready to go!

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One doesn't think fish have any family instinct but it seems they do. At the end of the boardwalk at Heron Haven is a nesting colony of Blue Gill. It is fun to watch. These fish stay over their nest and will chase any other fish away. Since they nest in colonies, there is a lot of activity around. If you look closely you can see the twigs that are at the bottom of a depression that the Blue Gill has made.

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Some days you just find yourself in a big pond with nobody around. Here a Painted Turtle in just that situation.

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Painted Turtles are often grouped together on the logs but here one is just relaxing in the water.

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Muskrat eating a meal of greens.

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It might be hard to believe but these Painted Turtles had a dance line going. I was hoping to catch some blur in the photo but they just moved to slow for that to happen.

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Get out for a little snack!

I just like watching these guys swim and eat. They seem to be getting use to people being around.

Late in the season and the Duck Weed has taken over so it is hard to find the frogs in the water. This one just happened to be setting on a plank and was a good size. It funny to see them covered with the Duck Weed.

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Not only do frogs make a nice croaking sound, they also make great bubbles while they are doing it.

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The water has been very clear lately and I have been watching the fish below. It appears that these fish have made a hollowed nest down grasses of the pond. A few days ago you could see fish backing down into the silt and there would be two of them in the nest. Today it looks as if there is only guard duty as any fish coming close to the nest is immediately chased off. Looking close and you can see three fish guarding the nest.

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Watched this guy for awhile as he gathered his groceries and after brief swim he would disappear under the water. After awhile back he came. I assume that he may be feeding some little ones.

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Clear water gives you an opportunity to see below the surface. It is not often you can see the full size of a Snapping Turtle. They do have some long claw nails!

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Heron Haven has a lot of Muskrats this year and they seem to be less afraid of people on the boardwalk. This guy swam right by and pretty close. I'm not sure what they do but they spend a lot of time crossing the pond. This guy is really putting out a wake.

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Spring is arriving and the sunshine and warmth is something to enjoy. Even the muskrat is enjoying a spring day as he sets on his lodge and surveys his pond.
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Spring is arriving in the Midwest and with it all the animals are thinking about raising families. These two Muskrats seemed to be getting along just fine. Maybe there is a family in their future.
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It was a warm winter day and standing in the bird blind watching all the Canada Geese and Mallards when I noticed this guy out swimming. Stayed put and watched him swim up right below me and get out of the water. This Muskrat was so close and if I could have just gotten a photo with the grass in the way.
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When Mr. Turtle gets his water cleaned he get an opportunity to run around the building. Here he is peeking out from underneath a display curtain.
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A cool overcast fall day leads to a quiet wetlands. A couple of muskrats out feeding to prepare for the coming winter. A few ducks were out swimming but most are moving to their winter grounds. Just a nice quiet moment.
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This guy was sunning himself when it appeared he was ready for a morning nap as I caught this photo of him yawning.
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Just happen to spot these two frogs resting on the downed tree.
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I could see the adult muskrat from where I was but I didn't make out that there was a young one with the adult until I looked through the lens. There have been a lot of muskrats at Heron Heaven this year.
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I was listening to the songs of the Bull Frogs when this guy popped up in front of me. It did take some time before he starting singing. What I find interesting is how much the waters is vibrating around him and the waves he is generating. Reminds me of a show on alligators and how they vibrate the water during mating season.
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There are only two times when you will see a Snapping Turtle come out of the of the water, to sun his self on a log and chasing a female. This couple made a big splash right in front of me while I was trying to capture something on the other side of the pond. Gave me a start but I did get one good photo.
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I was photographing the Muskrat swimming around and ducking into the cattails. I had lost him in the cattails so I was trying to get a shot of the Blue-winged Teal that seem to be nesting. Al of a sudden I noticed some movement behind the Teal and there was my muskrat! As I watched I noticed there were two Muskrats in the cattails.
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This Muskrat must have been late because he was making a beeline, swam right under my legs and out the other side of the boardwalk I was on.
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It is pretty hard for a beaver to catch a little nap with all the noise the Canada Geese are making. If you look at the tree to the back right of the beaver it looks like it had been his lunch.

These dudes have some teeth on them!

The beaver spent his time sleeping on his tail. You can just see it under his feet.

The muskrats were out in the warmth as the ice is melting and stocking up spring food.
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Seemed to be a busy day at Heron Haven watching the wildlife. First time for getting the Muskrat and Mallards in the same photo.
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It was fun spotting all the Muskrat activity taking place in the three ponds. These two were feeding not far from their hut.
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This muskrat was doing a little repair work on the roof of his hut. He kept going into the water and bringing back a mouthful of mud and plants to patch his roof.
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Must be date afternoon for these two. I think the one spied me taking photos.
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There were three different ponds where the muskrats were out and about. Watched this one eating a snack in the afternoon.
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This must have been what the Captain and Tennille were singing about.
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The tadpoles have all grown up and now you can hear the sweet sounds of evening around the water.
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I found this lady digging her nest and preparing to lay the next generation. It is always so amazing to find nature working.
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I saw a big lump of green that appeared to be moving. Got a little closer and found this guy under all the green.
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Looks like this guy was a little tired and he was just resting on the log.
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Finally a very warm spring day, and like everyone else this guy is out sunning himself.
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These guys usually duck before you can see them.
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I had been asking for an alligator to photograph and somehow the team at Heron Haven managed to come up with one! LOL

Found this guy basking in the sun on a log in his very own pond waiting on a fly to come by.
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Not a lilly pad but it still works.

This guy can move thru the water.

The snapping turles are mating.

The painted turtles are out and about.

A couple of musk rats setting up home, maybe.

Muskrat, long tail.

Time to get out of the water.

No shortage of nature at Heron Haven.

Maybe we should rename this place.

What a face!

Most I've seen out of water for one of these guys.

And the beast.

Looks like someone is doing a little remodeling.

Must be remodeling the whole den.

He is hauling this all the way across the pond.

I gave him a kiss but nothing happened.

Third day I've spotted this guy hualing greenery to his den.

I think he is out grocery shopping.

This guy has been making this trip about the same time for the last several days.

Tagging butterflies.

Catching the last rays of the summer sun.

Found the prince now need to find a princess for the kiss.

Somebody isn't happy about things.
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I'm thinking you don't want to put your fingers in there.
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Three snappers in one place is two to many.
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With the dredging of the ponds animals have dug up Freshwater Mussels. Nebraska has about 30 species of freshwater mussels.

I was standing in a blind and he swam by almost at my feet and since he didn't see me he took his time.
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Nature's chorus.

A Muskrat taken a break from his swim.

Muskrat taking a swim.

These guys really don't move much when they get in the sun.

Carp, they have been very active on the surface, not that this water is very deep.

A warm sunny day for sun bathing.

Have no idea what they were watching.

Tadpole, this year's crop.

Found this Painted Turtle laying her eggs. I'll be back in 72 - 80 days.

Twins?

He passed right under my feet.

This Muskrat swam right to me.

A log in the water.

Got one but my daughter got better pictures.

Muskrat, no trapping allowed.

Just a tighter crop of the previous picture.

This guy looks to be a good sized turtle! Would have liked to have seen him out of the water.

Spring has arrived, the fish are jumping.
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It’s official, spring is here, the turtles are mating.

This one was trying to hide from me.

Last year's crop, maybe.

Nice, warm, sunny and bright, no better place to sun oneself than a log.

This dude is big, but he wouldn't climb up on the log for a good shot.

One of the big snappers.

I spent a lot of time watching this guy. He wasn't in any hurry to go anywhere.