As with the kiwi, New Zealand’s penguins need people to help them survive. And as with the kiwi, New Zealanders are doing just that. The folks at the Penguin Place have been helping protect yellow-eyed penguins on the Otago Peninsula, outside of Dunedin, since 1985. New Zealanders say yellow-eyed penguins are the rarest penguins in the world, numbering […]
What’s Black and White and Cute All Over? Read More »
In 2006, 2008 and 2010, I was fortunate enough to be part of Alma College’s New Zealand Experience, an 18-day class in New Zealand to take in the sights, sounds, culture and critters. Mark and his coworker, Mel, set up the trip and included opportunities to see royal albatross, yellow-eyed penguins and other critters I’ll probably have
New Zealand Kiwi Encounter Read More »
I have just a few minutes before our bus comes to take us to one of my all-time favorite spots in New Zealand, Stewart Island. Mark and I are with 22 Alma College students and another professor, and spent the first few days in the town of Dunedin doing day trips to the Royal Albatross colony and a site
New Zealand – the first week Read More »
Over the course of the last week, three new critters came into our yard. Early in the week Mark photographed this male wood duck. He arrived with a female wood duck. The two have been in and out of our yard a dozen times the last two weeks to eat corn. They land on a tree, make
This Week: Wood Ducks, Grackles and Golden Dung Flies Read More »
Last weekend, a small flock of cedar waxwings appeared in our backyard and stayed for about twenty minutes before moving on. I watched them through our bay window for a few minutes and noticed that the more energetic cedar waxwings sprung off a tree branch, flew in a fluttery, looping pattern after an insect, and returned to
The 20 Minute Waxwing Read More »
Last Friday after work, I sat down under a pine tree at the water’s edge to unwind from another week in my cubicle. About 100 yards away was a floating, feathery flotilla that my 400mm zoom lens showed were four ruddy ducks. Their heads were tucked under their wings, which meant they were napping, and a light wind seemed to be
Here Today, Gone Today Read More »
Every spring, Mark and I try to get out to a couple of local ponds to photograph frogs. This year, we aimed for a pond favored by wood frogs. I went out by myself after work on Wednesday, March 31, to take a few photos. From several hundred yards away I heard a bunch of frogs calling, but
The Magic of Wood Frogs Read More »
For 15 years, Mark and I have been filling a half dozen feeders with sunflower seeds to attract squirrels and birds to our deck. The list of critters we feed doesn’t change very often, so when a new critter showed up on our deck last week, we took notice. And photos. This is our latest addition. Gray squirrel. In a previous
New Spring Arrival – a Gray Squirrel Read More »
In addition to the geese and red-wing blackbirds, spring also means the return of the robin. Soon after robins return, it’s nest making time. Last spring I watched a pair of mute swans make a nest, and they seemed to have it pretty easy, just mounding up a bunch of cattails and muck. But a few days
Robin Attempts to Make a Nest Read More »
Spring mornings got even more amazing as of Wednesday last week when the red-wing blackbirds returned to our yard and nearby wetlands. After checking me out, this blackbird broke out in song. When he was done signing, he gazed upward. After another moment passed, he broke out in song again. It’s wonderful having the red-wing blackbirds
They’re Back! The Red-wing Blackbirds! Read More »