Author Archives: Andrew Dressel

Well, my sources are silent on the subject of their exact pairing habits, so let’s suppose that this is the case. Anyway, I brought my camera with me today and so was able to spot both the male and the female common merganser on the river, and you can better see their long slender billsContinue reading “The Mr. and Mrs.”

Nope, it’s not a painted bunting, and I’m not Switzerland’s ambassador to the United States. As if. It was, however, nice and cold last night, right here in Shorewood, so the snow and ice on the trail along the Milwaukee River was nice and firm this morning, and just as I approached the river atContinue reading “First new sightings of the year!”

Let’s hope it’s a good one, eh? We sure could use one of those right about now. Anyway, the park has a fresh blanket of snow and is looking gorgeous. If you are nearby, I hope you get a chance to visit while it lasts. The lower river trail is especially nice. About 50% ofContinue reading “Happy New Year!”

It was nice quiet in Estabrook this morning, and I almost had the place to myself. With all the leaves off the trees and even the bushes, it feels like walking through the skeleton of the biome we enjoyed throughout the summer. Everyplace seems much more accessible now, so I wandered into an area thatContinue reading “The Mammals Take Over”

Ha! I was just as stunned to find this as you probably are to read about it. My best guess is that this is a hairy goldenaster (Heterotheca villosa) in bloom on DECEMBER 5TH at the top of the slope from the falls up to the beer garden. Surprise, surprise, eh?

U up? I haven’t been to the park much lately. Instead I’ve been riding my bike on the Oak Leaf Trail, and it is peak aster season right now. I hope you get a chance to get out and see them in all their glory. As luck would have it, there are even still aContinue reading “And yet, they persist…”

turn out the light, turn out the light, turn out the light. We all knew this day would come, we just didn’t know when. Today I walked up one side of the park and down the other and didn’t see a thing worth taking a picture of. Oh, I might see something fun or prettyContinue reading “When the music’s over…”

It is forecast to be nice and sunny this afternoon, but in the meantime it is still pretty grey, and there were only a few critters willing to sit, stand, or float for a picture this morning. On the river, a couple of mallards and a blue heron were going about their business, as usual.Continue reading “The sun tries to make a come back…”

It rained all morning so I stayed in. There was a break after lunch so I ventured out to see if anyone was about. I was happy to see two wood duck hens, two painted turtles, and even a huge bullfrog on the pond. In the meadow by the boat launch, I found a bumblebeeContinue reading “The rain’s not done with us yet…”