Weekly Photo Challenge:Surprise
Friends, though not uncommon, a heavy frost is a nice surprise on a winter morning, when every little branch and twig is covered with heavy frost, the winter wonderland is transformed into a silent wilderness with only the roar of a blue sky to interrupt the silence. The oak leaves never are down until the new spring leaves push them out so they remain on rust covered bushes to announce their resistance to the cold winds. This morning we have a little frost but one of these mornings… til Tomorrow MJ
Friends, this view is typical in our country this time of year. A mixture of ice and open water, and some bare sticks for trees with the ever present pines. The sky seems to stay the same but fewer days with a blue sky showing, and way too many clouds. But Christmas is coming and all the little children are counting the hours, til Tomorrow MJ
A Christmas birdie
Friends, this Christmas birdie is not your traditional cardinal, but a pine grosbeak (male) who is attracted to sunflower seeds in bird feeders and the pine cones of the northwoods. He is a delicious color and resembles a small parakeet or parrot in his actions. til Tomorrow Happy Holidays MJ
Summer Cheer
Friends, this bright yellow is to cheer up those who need cheering, including me, til Tomorrow MJ
HDR Tree
Friends, this is a bit of color left over from last spring, this is an HDR image which is a composite of three images, one overexposed, one underexposed and one right on. HDR stands for high dynamic range, meaning that the three images can encompass the all the dark details as well as all the light details. In the winter i have more time to process photoshop images and i needed something to fill up my color meter this morning, til Tomorrow MJ
Old and New
Friends, these are flight feathers from a redtail hawk at the border between old feathers and new feathers, the old has signs of wear on the edges and the new have a smooth edge. This is a sight that few of us get to see, unless we frequent Hawk Ridge and then study higher magnifications of the wings. The older feathers are browner and might even be juvenal feathers left over when the bird had its first molt. The very top feather shows a notch that is present on the outer primary flight feathers of the wing, so this is the left wing and we are looking at the underside of the wing. I am busy studying the molts and feathers to see what i can learn, lots to learn. til Tomorrow MJ
Weekly Photo Challenge:Delicate
Friends, these feathers look very delicate but for a hawk they are necessary attire. This is the top of the wing of a redtailed hawk as seen at Hawk Ridge this fall, I am studying feathers and the molts. There is a lot to learn but a research project keeps me entertained on a cold windy and rainy day. The rain is melting all our snow and we are likely to have ice for Christmas instead of snow. til Tomorrow MJ
Another short commercial
Friends, I finally figured out how to offer you a pdf version of my recent book, you can purchase a pdf version to be read with Adobe Reader for $7.00 and download to almost any pc or mac that has Adobe Reader. follow the loons, eagles and other birds and flowers in Crex Meadows in the summer months. The order is Instant pdf and is at the top of the order column. the link is , so til Tomorrow MJ
Grocery Shopping
Friends, this trumpeter swan is eating from the bottom of the lake. Now this water is frozen and the swans have moved to southern Minnesota where some of them winter on some open river water. We will go find them after the Christmas rush is over, but this is a Christmas Swan to wish you a Happy Holiday preparation season. Have to go shopping today. til Tomorrow MJ
Sunrise
Friends, this sunrise on Crex Meadows is a rare event for me, cause i am not a good morning person. I need four cups of coffee before my brain kicks in and this morning it is slowly waking from a great nights sleep. We bought a new bed yesterday for a little more room. We had a queen but the 100 lb dog takes up too much room, so we got a king-size bed to be able to stretch out a little. Maybe if i get a better sleep, i will be better able to rise with the sun. til Tomorrow MJ
MJ Springett 