This gallery contains 7 photos.
i Love these photo challenges: this one is about animals, enjoy, til Tomorrow MJ Click on any image and follow the arrows for a full-sized slide show, thanks
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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
Missy Muskrat
Friends, the morning this was taken, the ice had covered the flowage and this little muskrat was perched on top, munching away on some vegetation that was protruding from the ice. I like the light of the evening sun. These rodents make houses of the reeds and sedges that also stick up out of the ice. They say that the height of these houses predicts the snow fall depths this winter. til Tomorrow MJ
Young Whitetail Buck
Friends, this young whitetail deer is a male and was following some girls that were roaming through our woods in the backyard. We live in the Wisconsin wilds and it is not uncommon to see the female whitetails in our woods. But we rarely get a chance to photograph a buck. I was sitting in my elevated deer stand that is suspended from a tree about twelve feet off the ground, when this boy came into view and peeked around a tree at me. The top image shows his response when the camera started to click and he saw me. Which pose do you like, the relaxed (bottom image) or the all-alert image (top). til Tomorrow MJ
Whitetail buck
Friends, this was taken in our back woods, behind the house by a trail camera. This monster buck is not very big bodied but certainly sports a rack. He was checking out our girls and got caught by the trail camera. This camera is mounted on a tree where the females and fawns come to eat some corn, and the shutter is triggered by movement. I cannot claim that i took this photo but i change the batteries and the memory cards. How do you like, Jack?, til Tomorrow MJ
Whitetail Buck -Summer
Friends, this is a male Whitetail deer in July, his antlers are growing and covered with a vascular tissue that promotes the bone growth. They hide in the very dense brush and only the black flies drive them from their cover to the water. They can be seen this time of year taking a swim to wash off the pesky flies. I wish the flies would go away now so I can again travel in Crex with my windows down. Thank goodness for air conditioning for our temps have exceeded 100 degrees F for the last week. Well back to work, til Tomorrow MJ
Hiding in the Grass-Late Nester
Friends, this Common Loon in Crex Meadows is just now sitting on her nest. Two other Loon couples have chicks that are six weeks and 3 weeks old already, will be interesting to mark her progress. Another opportunity to map the chick progress if they hatch and make it through the summer. This day in June was pretty hot, 88 degrees F, so she was panting a little. til Tomorrow MJ
Bobolink
Friends, this beautiful bird is a bobolink, a male in breeding plummage, the yellow on the back of his head is a defining mark. After the summer solstice, he will become just another drab brown bird, but now in his heyday, he is busy showing off for the ladies. They nest on the ground, mostly in grassy fields, but the cutting of hay crops have dented their population. Here in Crex, the grass is allowed to grow forever and i find bobolinks occasionally. Emily Dickinson writes of their boisterous nature:
The Bobolink is gone -The Rowdy of the Meadow -And no one swaggers now but me -The Presbyterian Birds-Can now resume the Meeting-He boldly interrupted that overflowing Day-When supplicating mercy-In a portentous way-He swung upon the Decalogue-And shouted let us pray -Emily Dicinson
I love the last line. til Tomorrow MJ
Loon Babies
Friends, this loon parent is feeding his/her chicks, the fish is as big as the chick, no wonder those chicks grow so fast. I watched while mama loon carried the chicks on her back and at 3:30pm she called to the male, soon the male appeared and both parents dove below the surface finding food to feed the chicks. They put on quite a show but i was stretching the limits of my telephoto lens to record these proceedings. I have gone back on two other occasions but they have moved out to the center of the lake. This image is a little lacking in quality but does show the “decisive moment”. til Tomorrow MJ
Clouds of Summer
Friends, I think images of the sky are somewhat universal, this sky could probably be seen anywhere in the world. We saw numerous thunderhead-filled skies when we traveled in New Mexico last fall. Unstable air like unstable people can be found where ever the hot air meets the cold. We see our share of these clouds in summer and i like to collect them, the more textures, the better for me, til Tomorrow MJ
MJ Springett 