Stiffed again, but I’ll survive…

I couldn’t resist the siren call of those least bitterns at Sheridan Park, so I headed back there first thing this morning to try my luck again. At least the grounds crew wasn’t mowing the lawn around the pond this time when I arrived, so I could hear the call of this female belted kingfisherContinue reading “Stiffed again, but I’ll survive…”

Another rarity pays us a visit…

Oh, my goodness, the weather was absolutely fabulous this morning in Estabrook Park. The skies were crystal clear, and the air was cool and nearly still. If you live in the vicinity, I hope you’ve had a chance to get outside. The fun started for me at the pond again, where the hooded merganser letContinue reading “Another rarity pays us a visit…”

Youngsters on the move…

A big front rolled through Wisconsin yesterday, and it created a disaster for our neighbors to the north, but we’re thankful that no fatalities or missing persons have been reported there. Around here, we were a lot luckier, and all we got was about an inch and a half of sorely needed rain and aContinue reading “Youngsters on the move…”

All kinds of pleasant surprises…

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…”

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…”

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…”

Nearly smoked out…

The Canadian wildfire smoke sure did arrive overnight, and it was so thick by sunrise that I wondered if it would ever get light out, but the streetlights did eventually shut off, and the air quality index was still below 300, so I ventured into Estabrook to see who might be out and about. IContinue reading “Nearly smoked out…”

A mothy morning…

Despite the heat, we had a pretty nice turnout for the Friends of Estabrook picnic yesterday, and the surprise guest was a turkey that hung out by the beer garden for quite a while. I can’t tell for sure if this is the same bird, but I found it on the paved path at theContinue reading “A mothy morning…”