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An update to this website...
I'm working on a project to
categorize my wildlife images. The project has
begun with bird and snake images. My intent is
to categorize all of my wildlife photos. Please
be patient; I have many images to work through.
Thank you!
Click here to view the
first few classifications: Iowa
Wildlife Images.
2009
Mendocino Service Trip Journal Entry
Boundary
Waters Paddling Trip Report
Isle
Royale Backpacking Trip Report (8/09)
Isle
Royale Backpacking - Entire Island Hiked! (9/09)
Farewell
to Abby
Red
Fox Images from 8-weeks at Their Den (Scroll through
entries)
May
2009
June 2009
A
Picture a Day
A photo
and a caption and nothing more...
2010 Tick Count: 0
Is
This a Sign of Spring?? (3-20-10)
Kristy found the first
dandelion, in bloom, of 2010 today in our yard.
I wasn't able to photograph it until after dark, but
here it is:
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Winter
isn't Finished Yet (3-19-10)
What a change in the
weather in just a few hours...we've dropped 10-degrees
and it's been snowing all afternoon. Such
conditions make photography tough, even when there are
plenty of photo subjects out moving around. I
considered not posting any of the following images due
to image quality, but decided to share them for those
not able to be out and about so they might see what is
happening in Iowa's wild areas.
I found one tree with
seven bald eagles roosting in it. I have
suspicions about this area and will follow them to see
if they are correct.
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After approaching the
tree, only because the path leads directly under it,
all seven birds took flight. This juvenile
circled directly overhead several times. Blowing
snow resulted in lower levels of
sharpness.
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Also flying overhead
were many greater white-fronted geese (also known as
speckle bellies). The snow and dark skies made
capturing a good image impossible. There may be
as many speckle-bellies around as there are Canada
Geese.
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This fisherman was the
first I've seen fishing the open water near the boat
ramp in 2010. It won't be long before the shores
are lined with anglers pulling in crappies and
bluegills, unless the deep snow and low oxygen levels
caused a fish kill we haven't yet seen.
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To prove the day was
wet, I photographed this cattail blossom covered in
snowdrops.
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101
+ 1 Day (3-18-10)
Today I had a very
special opportunity to share a nature photography show
with possibly the best grandma walking the face of the
earth. My grandmother - actually my
step-grandmother, but who cares - lives in an
apartment complex where the residents meet monthly
for a meal. I was invited to attend and present
a nature photography program as the entertainment for
today's gathering. I had been trying for some
time to do a presentation for Ollie and her friends,
but things just hadn't worked out. Today
all the necessary details fell into place and I was
able to share some samples of my work with Ollie and
her neighbors. We had a great time and many,
many laughs. What made the event extra special
was that Ollie turned 101-years old yesterday.
Ollie still lives by herself, is active and out and
about quite often. Ollie remains sharp and
is a super character for many reasons. Following
is a picture of Ollie at 101 years and 1 day old in
her favorite chair by the window:
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Hello to all of Ollie's
friends too! I had a great time. Thanks
for sharing your afternoon!
Birds
in Flight (3-17-10)
I succumbed to the
great weather this afternoon and took a very brief
walk on the dikes at Sweet Marsh. During my
short time there I enjoyed the company of many
ring-billed gulls and a pair of bald eagles.
Ring-billed Gulls:
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Bald Eagle:
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Ghost
Deer on Thin Ice (3-16-10)
This evening I spent
time at Sweet Marsh listening and watching for the
courtship ritual of woodcocks. I had a pretty
good idea where to be at sundown based on
conversations from last year. As expected, after
the light levels dropped below workable, several
woodcocks began their peent-type calls. Around
the same time I also heard from a pair of sandhill
cranes. This pair are the first of the year for
me in Bremer County.
Before the woodcocks
began calling I heard a crash on the ice. I
looked out to see a whitetail deer that had jumped off
the stable shoreline, on to the ice, and then fallen
through. The deer was still standing on the ice,
trying to determine its next action. Suddenly
the animal attempted and successfully completed a
standing broad jump from the ice back to the solid
ground. Because low light required a slow
shutter speed, the deer recorded as a ghost
image. You can see the hole in the ice on the
left side of the deer.
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The
Migration is On!! (3-12-10)
This afternoon I
noticed several first of the year birds in the
backyard - American Robins (many), red-winged
blackbirds, and grackles. Flying overhead was a
lone great blue heron. Does their presence mean
winter is done, even though we haven't had three
snowfalls where the snow stuck to the north side of
the trees?
The Wapsie appears to
have reached its crest, but not before rising to a
level that threatens some of the lower elevation
cabins.
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FINALLY!!
(3-5-10)
Of the many birds
calling Iowa home, I've been fortunate to photograph
many. One particular bird - the rooster pheasant
- has eluded me for years. Not so today...there
were probably a half-dozen roosters in an area.
I was able to shoot a couple of photos before this one
realized I was there and ran off.
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Drama
in the Backyard - CAUTION VERY, VERY GRAPHIC (2-21-10)
Sometimes our
perceptions of life in the wild and what really occurs
- the realities of wildlife - are completely
different. Often we ignore or avoid the
difficult and painful, yet necessary components of the
wildlife life cycle because of human emotions...if we
avoid it, then it must not be happening. We all
know that approach is incorrect, but more often than
not avoidance is the option we take and sometimes we
begin to believe what we are or are not seeing,
regardless of whether or not we are actively avoiding
certain critical details.
Today we had one of
those moments in our backyard - the always occurring
predator/prey relationship was carried out to its
fullest extent. The participants were an adult,
male house sparrow and the neighborhood sharp-shinned
hawk. I didn't observe the actual capture of the
house sparrow, but I did see the struggle between life
and death and the subsequent assurance that the
sharp-shinned hawk will live another day because it
was able to eat.
Following are a series
of images recorded of the sharp-shinned killing and
eating the sparrow. Warning:
The images
are very, very graphic!!
A successful capture
and kill:
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The sharp-shinned hawk
lives another day because of a meal.
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Two details of this
event amaze me. First - That the entire process
was completed in less than 15-minutes. One
minute the sparrow was feeding at my feeder and now
the bird and its role in our backyard ecosystem are
history. Second - I am amazed and thrilled the
sharp-shinned hawk allowed me to approach within a few
feet as it dined in the thick, protective branches of
our pine tree. Over the years I've photographed
hawks in the backyard, but never at such a close range
involved in such an activity.
Hiding
Birds and a Not Friendly Kitty (sort of) (2-20-10)
This afternoon I took a
drive around the area looking for birds and other
interesting subjects. Although the temperatures
were pleasantly warm for a February day, I certainly
didn't see much wildlife out and about. Nearly
every critter I did see ran or took flight very
quickly. I did come across a couple of hen
pheasants feeding in a field. Instead of flying
for safety, they attempted to flatten out against the
exposed soil. One bird did a much better job of
becoming elusive than the other.
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Later, as I was driving
down a different road, I came upon a kitty (sort of)
that wasn't very friendly. Many of you are
familiar with my very strong dislike for cats running
loose. Today I thought I'd try to be a better
person. I stopped to pet the pretty thing and
instead of it welcoming me, it turned and showed me
something I didn't need to see. I interpreted
its rude behavior as a strong hint that it wanted to
be left alone, so I did - after taking a few pictures.
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Making
the Best of an Expensive Day (2-15-10)
Today was a day off for
me (President's Day) and I had hoped to make the best
of it. My plans were to catch enough crappies
and bluegills to have a meal or two of fresh
fish. Isn't it funny how plans can change?
First, we were blessed with still more snow and
blowing snow. The combination meant I wasn't
able to see the path to drive out to my fishing
hotspot - meaning I buried my truck in snow at least
four times on the way out, before I ever fished.
Then I had everything set up, was fishing over
structure, and snagged my jig and lost it. As I
was adjusting my position, my PDA (handheld computer)
fell out of my pocket and directly into the hole in
the ice. I caught it, but not before it was
exposed to a dunking. At this time it is not
working. After that I decided maybe I better
quit before my truck drops through the ice too.
I only got stuck two more times driving off the ice,
but one of those times was in the area of where the
ice is not quite so thick. Guess who shoveled
fast and rocked carefully! On my drive home I
came across a car stalled in the highway and helped
her out. Then I found a bald eagle feeding on a
deer carcass. The bird wouldn't stay low and
close, but did roost in a tree nearby.
I don't
even know how much today cost me yet, but I'm sure I
could have bought a lot of fish at the grocery
store. As pleased as I am with the eagle images,
I'm not sure I needed to endure everything
beforehand. Couldn't have the bird been posing
when I first drove out so I could have avoided the
getting stuck and unexpected financial loss??
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Valentine's
Day Hoarfrost (2-14-10)
If you were fortunate
enough to be in the Northeast Iowa area this morning,
I hope you enjoyed the beautiful hoarfrost sparkling
against the clear blue sky. As soon as my Sunday
morning meeting was over, I wandered around our
backyard to do my best to capture the intricate detail
of the various patterns. My completed work
didn't do it justice based on how pretty it was, but
it was the best I could do.
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A
Biology Lesson For Some and Sad News For All (2-12-10)
Some days things just
seem to work and today was one of those days. As
I was out driving I noticed what I assumed was a flock
of horned larks. For those who might not know
what I am referring to...I am describing the birds
that fly up from the edge of the roads during the
winter months, usually when your vehicle is within a
couple hundred feet. From a distance they appear
to be ordinary sparrows. Those birds are
generally horned larks. The flock I was watching
today was very tolerant of my truck and allowed for
many images to be recorded. Following are a few
horned lark photos:
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My experience with the
roadside birds was double surprising - first that the
horned larks didn't fly off and allowed for picture
making, but also that flying with the horned larks
were a few Lapland longspurs. For the record,
the images recorded today of the longspurs were the
first acceptable images I've made of them.
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A short while later as
I was headed out ice-fishing, I noticed a couple of
bald eagles in a tree over the Wapsie. Although
the birds were buried in branches, I still was able to
capture a couple of interesting images.
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Finally, for some sad
news...
Santa will not be
making an appearance next year. I found his
remains stuck in a chimney this morning. You can
tell by the snow on his carcass that he has been there
a while.
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Update
on the Unknown Bird (2/10/10)
A very experienced and
well educated bird watcher has suggested that the bird
in the foreground in the entry below may be a winter
plumage Lapland longspur.
Is
That a Female Horned Lark? (2/9/10)
Like most winter days,
I scared up bunches of horned larks feeding along the
edges of roads. Today I attempted to photograph
them with minimal success. As I looked through
the images, I noticed this unusual bird in the front
of the certain horned lark. I believe it is a
female or juvenile horned lark, but won't say that
with 100% certainty.
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I didn't find the
pintail today, but did have three common goldeneyes
jump up when I approached.
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I've passed by this old
farm machinery hundreds of times. Today I
decided to photograph one of them and try it with a
sepia tone. I'm not sure I like the look.
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Now
I Know How That Happens! (2/6/10)
On more than one
occasion I've noticed odd items hanging in trees deep
in the timber. I've often wondered how the stuff
arrived at such an unlikely destination. After
an incident this morning, I now know. As I was
headed out to go ice fishing, I noticed a bald eagle
feeding in a snow-covered field. I stopped to
shoot a few pictures and watch the bird.
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The juvenile bird
struggled to down a stiff, frozen raccoon tail (fur
missing).
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After a minute or two
the tail structure was inside the bird. Then it
decided to finish dining on the remainder of the 'coon
in a nearby tree. The carcass appeared to have
been the remains of a successful 'coon hunt or
trapping outing since there was no fur on the animal,
except for well fined fur edges on its feet.
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Two
Pintails - Sort of...and Other Stuff (2/5/10)
My photographic
aspirations for the day were to capture frame-filling
images of the northern pintail I've been
watching. It didn't take long to learn that the
pintail wasn't going to cooperate any more today than
it has in days past. I still couldn't get close
enough for real nice photos.
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After giving up on the
pintail, I found another bird with a pin-shaped tail
feeding in a field.
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Nearby were a couple of
whitetail deer that survived the hunting
seasons. Either the deer were very elusive this
past deer season, or there weren't many hunters, or
there weren't many hunters who were good shots.
I've seen many deer already.
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I was checking stream
levels and found this pretty setting in a rural part
of the county:
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Finally, the following
picture reminds me of lifetimes nearly
forgotten. At some time this old pump provided
water for a thirsty family. Now it is nothing
more than an obstacle for a modern farmer to plow
around. I wonder how much longer it will remain
exposed in the field before all remnants of the
"home place" will be gone.
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Feeding
- Which is More Attractive (2/3/10)
If you could choose how
your back end appeared when it was sticking in the
air, would you prefer a spiked tail or a curly tail?
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A
Harbinger of Spring? (2/2/10)
I don't know if we're
being told something about the weather or not, but a
northern pintail has been spotted in the county.
Was it here all winter or is it a very early migrant
that knows something we don't know?
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For more information, feel free
to email us at this link:
Ladage
Photography.
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