Tag Archives: nature

Great Horned Owl Brancher

Great Horned Owl Brancher

This not-so-little guy was watching my brother as he walked along the wooded path in his backyard.  This is a Great Horned Owl brancher, who appears with a small bit of down and probably fledged the next just a day or two ago.  No Doubt, the parent birds will be looking for him for his feeding time.  Nature sure is wonderful sometimes!

Spring Birds

Spring Birds

The Spring is my favorite season for bird-watching. While I was out and about this weekend, I was able to catch a few birds in the field.

Some of these guys are not-so-common inhabitants of the Michigan Forest, but yet they are still present in enough numbers for observant folks to catch them.  Happy Birding!

 

Black Billed Cuckoo

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The Forest in the Spring

The Forest in the Spring

It’s not too often that walking in the forest I find something that truly amazes me.  While on my usual walk through the woods today I snapped this pic of a Great Blue Heron perching on a 16 ft. post in the middle of the woods.  The last several weekends on these walks have been quite uneventful and very quiet.  This weeks walk was quite noisy and full of all kinds of critters running around or making the most wonderful noises to fill the forest with music.  Upon closer inspection of this heron, he revealed his nest, located in a Heron Rookery not too far through the back of the forest.  I enjoy my walks because I never know what I’m going to see.  It’s moments like these that I’m grateful for my Canon XTI camera that allows me to capture the moments that I am witness to and to be able to share with others.

Wildlife Nesting Boxes

Wildlife Nesting Boxes

Watching the wildlife around your own house is very satisfying.  It’s even more satisfying knowing that you provided them a place to live.  Now, I’m not talking about sharing your own home, although there are some types of wildlife that *love* to invade your attic, or make their own home in your garage.  If you are able to cut some wood and nail a few boards together, there are some wonderful nest boxes that are easy to put together with a few materials easily available at the hardware store.  You can find the plans to several different styles of home, suitable for different types of wildlife on the nestboxes page.

There are several organizations and nature centers that enjoy putting up nest boxes for their nature programs.  The Audobon Society accepts donations of nest boxes for many different forms of wildlife, including the Kestrel Boxes around many state parks.