Blog Archives
Water Trail
Friends, this pair of ring billed ducks are cropped to emphasize the water trail that they leave behind while swimming, the ice on the ponds is almost gone and yesterday was a great day at Crex Meadows, lots of sun and warmth in my blind (read faithful Chevy), I was watching a pair of loons diving along a sheet of ice, once they came up within ten feet of me and my camera, yes i got the image, will show it in a later post, til Tomorrow MJ
Mister Ring Bill
Friends, the ring neck ducks have arrived and the lake ice is breaking up, hurraaay!!!, I think this duck is mis named, i always call them ring bills because ring neck is what pheasants are called in this part of the country. So to avoid confusion, i call them ring bills and this is a male bird. Photographing them in exactly the right light is the key, also i love his feathers on top of his head, makes him look very alert. He dives for his food and is usually wet. til Tomorrow MJ
Buffleheads
Friends, these beautiful bufflehead ducks were swimming and diving for food on a very small puddle in crex yesterday, they are very tiny ducks and one of the first to arrive in the spring, today we have another 6 inches of snow, wet and cold, but a warm up in the forecast, our pine trees surrounding our yard have a lot of broken branches from the wet snow, til Tomorrow MJ
Tired of Winter
Friends, I am very tired of winter, so decided that my blog will reflect the colors of summer for this day’s blog. The green lifts my spirits and the ring billed ducks are looking for a nesting site on Fish Lake. Crex Meadows is having a Big Year for Birding that had a formal kick off last night. Today we can start tabulating all the birds we see within the Glacial Lakes Grantsburg wildlife areas. The person who records the most species of birds in this 11 month period is the winner. I won’t win but it will be fun to try. til Tomorrow MJ
Motorboat Mallards
Friends, this image did not need much in the way of photoshop and i loved the wake behind and ahead of the birds. They are swimming very fast after a fellow mallard who got some bread from people feeding the ducks. Reminds me of the saying, “be like a duck, calm on the outside and paddling like mad under the water” My father always thought that was a wise saying and as i was a wall flower when i was growing up, I took faith that the paddling would get me where I needed to go. so I am still paddling. til Tomorrow MJ
Rough Waters
Friends, this ring billed duck is on rough water but still diving for his food. Happy Thanksgiving to all and hope you all have a safe and wonderful holiday. 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
Blue Wings
Friends, this handsome fellow is a male blue winged teal, these ducks are dabblers and get their food from the vegetation around the ponds and marshes of Crex. They are particularly fond of wild rice that is a common grain in Crex Meadows. The Blue wings are one of the first birds to leave for South America so I expect that they won’t be around much longer. Fall is on the way! Crane time soon, sorry anna, til Tomorrow MJ
Among the Lily Pads
Friends, this baby mallard is hiding among the lily pads, when i first approached he was sitting in the middle of the lily patch, but when he saw me he headed for water. The bottom image shows his struggle as he fought his way through the pads to reach the water. Safe on the water, til Tomorrow MJ
Baby Ring-bills
Friends, on a hot july day, these baby ring-necked ducks are going for a swim with mom, some call these ring-necked and some call these ring-bills, but this time of the year both the rings are fading away into a summer plummage. The rings are still there but very faint like they have been bleached by the harsh sunshine this time of year. I prefer the name ring-billed cause ring-neck in this part of the country usually refers to a pheasant. Another 95 degree day in the northland. til Tomorrow MJ
MJ Springett 