Author Archives: Andrew Dressel

Here are some pictures that didn’t fit into Saturday’s report. Besides the Canada goose I showed you, the graylag geese are also abundant and a little more wary than the Canada geese. Here’s one keeping an eye on me while its compatriots continue to graze. Here’s a white wagtail who was foraging in the pastureContinue reading “Saturday Surplus”

The weather was still nice but noticeably hazy this morning. Plus, I got up later than usual, so I missed the sunrise, and I was struggling a bit to find anything photo-worthy. I did glimpse the Eurasian jay again, but it had no time for me today. I also spotted another stoat, but it tooContinue reading “Butterflies Abundant!”

After a bit of a cold snap last weekend, the weather is back to near perfect here in South Holland, with temps in the 70s, clear skies, and a light breeze. Plus, the sun already doesn’t rise until almost 7am, so I even got to sleep in a bit this morning. Once again, the birdsContinue reading “A sunny September Saturday in South Holland”

I tried taking the route, which has been my regular route recently, in reverse order this morning, so counter-clockwise on a map. Thus, I hit the spot where we saw the robin late yesterday morning bright and early today, and our reward is a brand-new bird, for a change. This time, it’s a Eurasian jayContinue reading “Birds & bunnies & butterflies, oh my!”

It was nice and cool overnight with clear skies and calm winds, so most of the big fields were covered by thick blankets of fog this morning, and I couldn’t even see the water where I spotted the flock of spoonbills last weekend, so I had to make do, instead, with what I could findContinue reading “Late summer scenes…”

I still have some pictures left over from the weekend, so I thought I’d put them into a post, and I’m happy to report that I think we’ve got another new bird hiding in the mix. As ebird so aptly states, it’s “rather retiring, like most [old world] warblers,” but this sure sounds like theContinue reading “Leftovers from the weekend…”

I saw plenty of big birds this morning; herons, egrets, storks, and even about a dozen spoonbills at the Ackerdijkse Plassen; but they were all either too far away or just didn’t want to pose today. Luckily, these little characters were willing and able to pick up the slack. This first one is another greatContinue reading “Little Critter Day”

It was an interesting morning in South Holland. The weather was as beautiful as last weekend, with clear skies and calm winds, but there was a noticeable difference in the wildlife. I suspect that most of this summer’s chicks have fledged by now and are starting to take care of themselves. Thus, droves of parentsContinue reading “Fun sized…”

As I stepped out the door from my apartment building after lunch yesterday to walk back to work, my heart skipped a beat when I spotted what I thought was a large butterfly fluttering by. I gave chase immediately, at least with my eyes, and I was thrilled to see it land on a brickContinue reading “A rare glimpse…”

Here are a few more sights from this past weekend, and these critters all tend to keep themselves better hidden than others I see. I stumbled upon another ring-necked pheasant hen tucked into the tall grass and holding perfectly still, unlike her boldly-colored counterpart who I often see strutting across open fields. Here’s another noisy-as-heckContinue reading “Shy ones…”