Blog Archives
Summer revisited
Friends, this adult common loon is feeding her eight week old chick, up close and personal. This image was taken in late summer and reminds me of the warm days of summer that are now gone for this year. These birds are sitting very low in the water showing how they can raise and lower their bodies by inflating and deflating an airsac inside their body. The wings squeeze the air from the air sacs allowing the bird to dive or sink into the water. They hunt their food under water and their body is streamlined for underwater life. Feeding the young is a high priority for both adults and they often can raise two chicks each year on main dike in Crex Meadows. til Tomorrow MJ
Weekly Photo Challenge:Renewal
Friends, The bald eagle and other birds get a renewal of feathers every year and some molt twice a year. When I see a wild bird up close and personal, I am renewed by an interaction with the wildness within me. Driving on a two track road back to middle north fork, I was following a mystery bird. When I reached a clearing near the lake, i saw this immature bald eagle perched in a tree. He is almost mature, probably about 3 or 4 years old, as his head and tail are almost white, but still containing some brown. I took this image as he flew from the perch, he circled the lake and landed again in the same tree snag. Must be a good fishing spot, below is the second photo as he departed. I was renewed and continued on my human way. til Tomorrow MJ
Dropping in to say Hello
Friends, today this image means that it is the time of year for friends (and relatives) dropping in to visit. This family is dropping from the sky to join a large group of cranes on the ground. In the background you can see that some of the oaks still have some brown, red brush and lots of white birch trees. So I am dropping in for a visit, short and sweet, I am going to the city today to help my mom, til Tomorrow MJ 
Crane Dancing
Friends, these dancing cranes are busy teaching the baby cranes how to dance. The youngster on the left is imitating his parent who is flying up in the air, with more of a jump than a flight. Imitation teaches the youngster how to dance. Did your parents teach you to dance. til Tomorrow MJ
Blue-wing Teal
Friends, this beautiful duck is a blue-winged teal in Crex Meadows. His blue wing is hidden deep in the feathers, but his head shows a little blue cast. This was a cloudy day but his white was a beacon on the dull colored water. This time of year, lots of cloudy weather gets people down and we have to look far and wide for some color to photograph. Some say to photograph in black and white, but I see in color so I long for any shade of color to brighten my day. Today I am going to Crex, maybe I will find color as the Meadows are full of Greater Sandhill Cranes gathering for the migration south. Or maybe I will find the mature Northern Harrier that i saw last week, that would make a great photo for my hawk book. One can dream and previsualize, but divine intervention is necessary for this to occur. til Tomorrow MJ
Pink Bottle Brushes
Friends, these late summer water plants are found in Crex alongside the water lilies. I cannot identify them but they look like pink bottle brushes that we used to use to clean flasks and test tubes. At one time in my life I was a chemist for a company that specialized in shampoos, cream rinses, hair dyes and hair spray. All the chemical glassware was washed by hand at the end of the shift. Everyone was a dishwasher as well as analyst so I knew how to use a bottle brush. I was twenty-one and straight out of school, those were the days (my friend), we thought they’d never end. Seems like a century ago now. The internet community calls this flower smartweed or redshank, til Tomorrow MJ
A Painting
Friends, this image of a Sandhill Crane spoke to me, the detailed feathering and the green background were very artful, so i played with my photoshop and converted this to an oil painting effect. I am studying feathers and the Sandhills have left their feathers all over the Crex Meadows due to seasonal molting. We have picked up several feathers and they are natural treasures that will help us to remember the autumn days on Crex and look forward to the return of the Cranes in the spring. If you are interested in feathers, I can recommend a good book, Bird Feathers, available at Amazon.com. Lots of info and well illustrated, but scientifically dry, but if you are into research (me), it is an excellent reference book. til Tomorrow MJ
The Smallest Falcon
Friends, this tiny hawk is an American Kestrel found in Crex Meadows. The educators on Hawk Ridge have taught me that this is a male due to the blue outer wing. Females have a red-brown feathering extending from the back out across the wing backs. They are a small member of the falcon family, related to the Merlin and the Peregrine Falcon. When hunting, they will often hover (wings flapping while staying in one place) or kite (wings steady while staying in one place) over a hayfield or other open area. I think this boy was hunting me. til Tomorrow MJ
Weekly Photo Challenge:Geometry
Friends, Geometry is all around us in nature. When I first took this photograph, i loved the way the Common Loon was suspended in a sea of sine waves. Upon further study (sine waves on water), I learned that these waves are more correctly called trochoidal shapes and are narrower at the peak than a true sine wave. A geometry lesson for me. Never heard of a trochoid shape before. til Tomorrow MJ
Patience is its own reward
Friends, this immature redtailed Hawk is eyeing me, he wants to be sure that i stay in my vehicle blind and don’t come any closer to his tree. I am often asked how i get so close to the birds and i answer that staying in your vehicle is the key. Sitting quietly in your vehicle in a place where the birds are usually present will increase your chances of getting close. Of course this takes loads of patience so be prepared to spend a few minutes watching the landscape and quieting your soul; you may get more rewards than patience itself. My husband liked this image this morning, so I dedicate this blog to him. This hawk is probably headed south at this time, but I have the photo to remember him til he returns in the spring. til Tomorrow MJ
MJ Springett 