I received an email a little while after my Monday program aired on KUMD. The writer said he’d looked at all the photos I’d posted on Flickr of the Pink-footed Goose I saw in New York City, and not one of them showed the pink feet. He wondered how I could be sure of the […]
We were up at 06:30 for a complete change in the routine from the last few days spent on St Paul, the day was to be spent driving south to Seward from Anchorage a journey of 126 miles with a few stops en-route and some birding in Seward on arrival. First stop was a supermarket […]
The first time I ever noticed my aspen tree in full bud, back in early May in 1982, at least one Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, and Yellow-rumped Warbler could be seen in its branches just about every time I looked. That has been one absolute constant I can count on no matter how spring unfolds […]
One of my friends recently moved to Duluth from Bemidji. He seemed utterly distraught on April 14, when the high here was 43 degrees but 78 in Bemidji. I don’t know if T.S. Eliot was thinking specifically about Duluth when he wrote that April is the cruelest month. Other places may have it as bad, […]
One of my friends on facebook, who lives outside Chicago, was thrilled a few days ago when a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker spent a day in a conifer right outside her window. Jodie Cregier Nettelhorst reacted pretty much the way I do when I get a sapsucker in my yard. She said, “I feel so lucky. It […]
There have been some extraordinary sightings of unexpected bird species these past few months with one in particular that was being reported at the end of February resulting in this report. The Northern Parula above (image 1) was photographed at Long Key State Park in March 2016. Tom Obrock and […]
The animated and flashy warbler American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla) is the final warbler featured in my Bestiary. Migrating songbirds are returning to our Western Massachusetts hillside now as I finish the warbler section of A Bestiary — Tales From a Wildlife Garden. I have enjoyed recalling and writing about the numerous encounters I have had […]
It’s about that time. Last week I saw this red-shouldered hawk pair getting to know each other. Right time, right place. I was taking photos of yellow-rumped warblers and the female flew in pretty close and on an exposed snag’s branch. Lucky me! I have a few more photos of the whole thing that I’ll […]