Clik here to view.
Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks nest again in Ohio, producing scads of chicks
This rather innocuous-looking place was our destination last Sunday, October 20, 2024, and it's a spot I had been hoping to visit for a few months. Better late than never, and in this case, late was...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Anna's Hummingbird in Ohio
A subadult male Anna's Hummingbird (Calypte anna) strikes a pose. The bird has been present for about a week in and around the yard of Gerry and John Brevoort, in a north Columbus neighborhood. Two...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Ohio-Erie Canal
As always, click the image to enlargeThe long-abandoned Ohio-Erie Canal, in Cuyahoga Valley National Park, on a misty morning. Shauna and I had a great time visiting various spots in Ohio's only...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Northern "Yellowhammer" Flicker
A male Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus) comes in for a landing, showing off his golden underwings and tail. This is the former "Yellow-shafted" Flicker that ranges over the eastern two-thirds of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Photographic/Watercolor conservation art exhibit
Watercolor artist Juliet Mullett and I have collaborated on an art exhibit focused on flora, fauna, and conservation. It features 51 pieces: Juliet's amazing watercolor pencil portraits, many of which...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Article 0
Over the course of prepping for tonight's talk (details HERE) about Ohio's macro habitats and the conservation thereof, I dipped deep into the archives and ran across lots of imagery I hadn't looked at...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Hawaiian Stilt
As always, click the image to enlargeA Hawaiian Stilt, or Ae'o, strikes a pose. This bird, for now, is considered a subspecies of the Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus subsp. knudseni). It is...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Green Sea Turtles
A highlight of our recent Hawaii trip was seeing good numbers of Green Sea Turtles (Chelonia mydas). This is the commonest and most wide-ranging of the world's seven sea turtle species, and I've seen...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Scarlet Honeycreeper, or ‘I’iwi.
A stunning ‘I’iwi (formerly Scarlet Honeycreeper) feeds on one of its host plants, the Mamane (Sophora chrysophylla). Both the pea and the bird are Hawaiian endemics, and the ‘I’iwi (ee-ee-vee) is now...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A very cool lizard
As always, click the photo to enlargeA Gold Dust Day Gecko (Phelsuma laticauda) peeks coyly at the photographer. Almost immediately upon arrival to our hosts' house on Maui in the little town of Paia,...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Merlin, and the use of teleconverters
As always, click the photo to enlargeA Merlin (Falco columbarius) perches high in the dead boughs of a spruce in Columbus's (Ohio) Union Cemetery. It was a frosty morning, with temps in the low 20's F...
View ArticleClik here to view.
The Long-tailed Ducks of Lake Ontario
As always, click the photo to enlargeThe view of downtown Toronto, from Tommy Thompson Park. Sometimes known as the "Leslie Street Spit", this place extends about three miles out into Lake Ontario....
View ArticleClik here to view.
Northern Pintail, tipped up
As always, click on the photo to enlargeA Northern Pintail (Anas acuta) displays its ornate dorsal feathering while grubbing food from the shallows of a Lake Ontario bay. Its namesake tail protrudes...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Article 0
Lots of cool stuff to post, but precious little time to do it. Hopefully a meatier post will come within a few days, but for now, here's one of the world's cutest birds:As always, click the photo to...
View ArticleClik here to view.
More fun with Southern Flying Squirrels
Yesterday dawned crisp and snowy, but plans were afoot to join Professor Don Althoff of the University of Rio Grande and other squirrel enthusiasts to conduct research on one of our most interesting...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Birds eating native plant fruit
A gorgeous White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) perches on the leafy stalk of a tall Goldenrod (Solidago altissima). This seems to be a great winter for them in Ohio. I've had up to a dozen...
View ArticleClik here to view.
More sparrows, and a sparrow talk!
An American Tree Sparrow (Spizelloides arborea) plunders seeds from a Virginia mountain mint (Pycnanthemum virginianum) plant this morning. The bird may only weigh 20 grams, but it is tough as nails....
View ArticleClik here to view.
Article 0
A female Slightly Musical Conehead (Neoconocephalus exiliscanorus) rests on someone's heavily used field bag. Note her extremely long, sword-like ovipositor. It's not there to stab enemies. She uses...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Bobcat Talk: Next Saturday at Cedar Bog
A Bobcat (Felis rufus) pointedly ignores the photographer. I made this image last October, in the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge in Georgia. After a bit, the cat stalked off in the insouciant...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Coyotes rescued from deplorable captive environment
A coyote glances over her shoulder. This animal was rescued from brutal conditions at a fur farm.This was one of 128 coyotes rescued from an Ashtabula County, Ohio fur farm in late January. Also found...
View ArticleClik here to view.
A snowy day
Today was a superbly showy (or snowy) day. About 3-4 inches of sticky snow fell on central Ohio, blanketing everything with a white coat. Shauna and I visited Highbanks Metro Park, just north of...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Lake Erie waterfowl
The iconic Marblehead Lighthouse, near the eastern end of the Marblehead Peninsula. It is one of the most visited spots on Lake Erie.On February 18, I traveled to Gates Mills, near Cleveland, to speak...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Greater White-fronted Goose
As always, click the image to enlargeEleven Greater White-fronted Geese (Anser albifrons), along with a Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) forage on a grassy bank of a small lake. About 60 other...
View ArticleClik here to view.
Fox Sparrows in the yard, and an upcoming sparrow program
A handsome rusty-red Fox Sparrow (Passerella iliaca) in the author's Worthington (Ohio) yard on April 4 of last year.I am fortunate to get Fox Sparrows in the yard nearly every year, but until this...
View ArticleClik here to view.
An American Robin hunts worms
An American Robin (Turdus migratorius) with a just-captured earthworm. Last week, Shauna and I traveled to the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area on a whirlwind trip. I was to give a talk (moths) to the...
View Article