Found on the Trail

Does this mallard look a little different to you?  His mottled breast leads me to believe that it is - a cross between two similar kinds of ...

The wings on this bug look just like a green leaf, with veins and all: It's a katydid! It's hard for me to believe that I cou...

I sometimes despair of ever being able to identify all the different kinds of sparrows, but at least I have figured one out - the chipping s...

Have you ever heard of thinleaf sunflowers?  I had never heard of them, until today.  However, I've SEEN them dozens of times.   Here...

These are spotted jewelweed blossoms. They have a trumpet shape and rich coloring, making them most intriguing! These blossoms a...

This is the Virgin Tiger Moth.  I was struck by its beautiful pattern, which reminded me of stained glass windows. I wish I had known e...

Someday I will get a better shot of a wood duck, but for now I'll take what I can get. Hyperion and I were hiking in a rarely visited ...

For my 250th post, I held a contest here on the blog.  That was back in February.  There were 10 multiple choice questions, and one bonus qu...

In all my walks and all my wanderings, since I took up photographing animals and plants, I have never seen a snake on my own.  And then yest...

Finally got my first good clear pictures of a chipmunk at Crow Creek park last month.  They are speedy little critters and always dart out o...

A walk along a quiet lake shore turned up turtles galore: There are over 30 turtles in this photo, big and small, basking in the sprin...

We met at the park recently, with our scout troop, and the spring sunset was absolutely gorgeous! The colors changed so rapidly.  Here are...

These geometric designs on the marsh fascinated me.

I was taking my usual walk and saw two pelicans across the LeClaire channel from Smith's Island.  They were pretty far away, and I knew ...

Lily of the Valley is a charming little plant with tiny white flowers that look as if they were little bells that could be rung.  It has a m...

Pelicans in the air are a totally different bird than pelicans floating placidly on the water.  In flight, you see the black underside of th...

I interrupted this squirrel in the middle of his fine repast of organic walnuts.   He stopped and gave me such a look as if to say, "...

They're back!   All of the spring wildflowers are returning.  Actually, they never really went anywhere.  Since their last blooming, t...

There is something new to see in the woods every day, and this time around it was an animal skull. I found it on an island in the Mississi...

Look at this gorgeous "camo" pattern on this sycamore tree!

I saw another muskrat in the same place as last year!  The Mississippi is flooding and the waters have reached a walkway in one of my favo...

Every morning I find myself passing through a wooded area.  I've gotten used to the little landmarks there, including a downed tree with...

I had fun photographing pelicans the other day.  This one was trying to swallow a fish: You can see the fish clearly in the first pictu...