The rain forecast for this morning never came, at least until this afternoon, and neither did any wildlife walkers, so I had quite a nice morning in Estabrook Park all to my lonesome. My first treat came on the river between the islands, where I was checking for shorebirds, when I spotted this giant snappingContinue reading “All kinds of pleasant surprises…”
Author Archives: Andrew Dressel
Herons in a flurry…
Sorry about missing yesterday. Between wrapping things up at Retzer, packing up, getting home, and catching up, my post fell through the cracks. The good news is that I somehow did complete the Master Naturalist training and now I have a slightly better understanding of how much I still don’t know. Best of all, EstabrookContinue reading “Herons in a flurry…”
Wrapping up a week in Waukesha…
It was another great day at the Retzer Nature Center and one more great day of class in their Master Naturalist Program. We got an excellent guided tour of the Waukesha Clean Water Plant in the morning and visited Carroll University’s Howard T. Greene Scientific Study and Conservation Area to investigate life in the GeneseeContinue reading “Wrapping up a week in Waukesha…”
More faces familiar and new…
We had another cool start to the day at the Retzer Nature Center, out here in Waukesha County, but the winds were light, the sky was clear, and the smoke was still gone, so it was a very nice morning. This hairy woodpecker is a familiar face, of course, but he posed so nicely inContinue reading “More faces familiar and new…”
Retzer delivers again…
It was a big day at Retzer today. The first surprise came early this morning when temps were in the low 50s as I hopped on my bike soon after sunrise, and I was thankful that it was a bit warmer when I headed home just before sunset this evening. In the time I hadContinue reading “Retzer delivers again…”
UWM Waukesha Field Station!
The smoke was gone again, and it was a great day in Waukesha County. As was the case yesterday, I got to spend a couple hours at the Retzer Nature Center before class started, and this little cutie, a female common yellowthroat, came out to say “hi” as I paid a visit to Brown’s Fen.Continue reading “UWM Waukesha Field Station!”
Back at Retzer again…
As I mentioned yesterday, I was at the Retzer Nature Center all day for the first installment of their master naturalist training, but class didn’t start until 9am, so I had plenty of time before then to look around. One sight I did glimpse on my previous visit, and failed to capture on film, was a thirteen-lined groundContinue reading “Back at Retzer again…”
A whole lot of feathers a-flappin’…
The wildfire smoke was back in Estabrook Park, but it wasn’t as thick as it was a few days ago, and the temps were nice and cool, so I guess we could call it a fair-to-midlin’ morning. I can’t say for sure what might have caused it, and it could be just a big coincidence,Continue reading “A whole lot of feathers a-flappin’…”
A pause after the smoke…
The wildfire smoke has pretty much cleared out, at least for now, and it was a nice morning for a walk in Estabrook Park. The critters that live there, however, seemed to be not really in the mood for pictures, but I tried my best, and I did get a couple. I watched this greatContinue reading “A pause after the smoke…”
Some pretty sights despite the smoke…
The wildfire smoke didn’t clear out overnight as much as I had hoped, but the air quality index was back down into the 300s by sunrise this morning, and it was light enough to venture out about 15 minutes earlier than yesterday, so that’s some progress anyway. My reward for those extra 15 minutes wasContinue reading “Some pretty sights despite the smoke…”
