Author Archives: Andrew Dressel

The trip to Bavaria I mentioned last weekend didn’t pan out, so I’m still here in South Holland, and what a beautiful day it was, especially after the rain and snow we had for most of the week. It was cold, and most open water had a skin of ice, but the sun was out,Continue reading “A brand-new bird, some returnees, and a vagrant, oh my!”

Besides all the new birds I saw yesterday or was finally able to photograph for the first time, there were plenty of old favorites around, too. While I was checking out the falcons up on the School of Architecture tower, I noticed a pair of European jays in the tree right over my head. TheyContinue reading “Weekend Wrapup”

Wow! What a “morning”, and I’m using scare quotes because I didn’t get home till 1pm, even though I headed out right after sunrise, at around 7:30. I must admit that some of that time was spent waiting out rain showers, under a roof if I could find one, or just under my umbrella ifContinue reading “A morning of many firsts…”

I haven’t been able to take pictures for a couple of weeks, sorry, but I have been able to pay attention to the birds around on my walk to and from work, and I’ve been hearing this guy, a European green woodpecker like the one we saw in Ljubljana, in nearly the same tree forContinue reading “A couple of surprises on a soggy Saturday”

Here are a few pictures from the last three days that haven’t yet “fit the story”, for “reasons”. First up is an ever-adorable European robin at the edge of the playing fields at the south end of campus Saturday morning. I rarely catch them on the ground like this. Next is a shot of theContinue reading “Midweek Dutch Grab Bag”

Besides all the newly-arrived migrating birds, freshly-hatched goslings, and nesting grebes, here are some additional signs that spring is on its way in South Holland. There was at least a half dozen jackdaws on this gnarled tree trunk Saturday morning noisily trying to stake out one of a few cavities that might be suitable forContinue reading “More Signs of Dutch Spring…”

I did make it out into the countryside this morning, and I was richly rewarded for my efforts, despite the grey skies. I was stunned to spot a pair of bar-headed geese (Anser indicus), who are not from around here, at all. Instead, I read that they breed “in Central Asia in colonies of thousands near mountainContinue reading “New Arrivals in the Dutch Countryside”

It is not even the middle of February yet, but there are already big changes afoot in South Holland. Flowers are beginning to blossom all over campus, including snowdrops, crocuses, and daffodils; and birds that we haven’t seen for months are starting to appear. Sure, the skies are dark and grey today, but some picturesContinue reading “New Arrivals at TU Delft”

Anne and I had a wonderful time in Slovenia, and yesterday she flew back to Shorewood while I flew back to Delft. I had hardly any jetlag to speak of, largely due to staying in the same time zone for the entire trip, so I got out the door bright and early at sunrise thisContinue reading “Breaking news…”

Anne and I took the bus from Ljubljana down to Piran, which is a beautiful old town on the east coast of the Adriatic Sea (Slovenia’s west coast), and this morning we visited the Sečovlje Saltpans Natural Park. The city bus doesn’t go all the way to the saltpans, so we had a nice littleContinue reading “Birds of the Sečovlje Saltpans”