Honeybee Hide-a-way
I have rarely been stung by honeybees over the course of my life so I can remember the circumstances of each incident. The first was when I undertook an ill-fated adventure to collect some bees in my...
View ArticleLeave it to Castor – Part 3:Tails & Tots
The Conners Creek beavers did not leave much to the imagination. Over the course of two days of observation they shared (willingly or not) most of their lifestyle secrets. They seemed so at ease with...
View ArticleSquirrel Season
Fox Squirrels are not terribly social beasts. They will tolerate other squirrels when food is aplenty and have even been known to snuggle in a group nest when winter conditions require it, but they are...
View ArticleOut Mouillee Way, Again
Some could argue that the worst time to be walking the dikes at Pointe Mouillee is mid-winter. The place is totally exposed and without cover for all but the smallest of beasts. Life, as we know it, is...
View ArticleThe Fascinating Mr. Fox
I carefully cradled the shriveled fish in my fingertips and held it so I could read the label secured to the specimen with a small loop of string through the lower lip. The handwriting was executed in...
View ArticleBlack Ducks on Thin Ice
The wintery Detroit River flowing around Grosse Ile on a late February day was a mixed bag of scenery. A rim of shelf ice clung to the shoreline of empty docks and boathouses. Out in the channel the...
View ArticleBlack & White Thoughts
A crow out on the ice stand s out like a sore thumb. You couldn’t ask for more of a contrast than a black bird perching on a field of white river ice such as I saw recently on the River Raisin. Every...
View ArticleDeep in Verbascum’s Fold
When fresh out of college, I was still cast in the mold of a biologist and I spoke like one. I used scientific names as if they were nicknames and could roll them off like nobody’s business. Common...
View ArticleSnow Robin
It snowed last night. Looking out the window I estimated that about two inches of the heavy white stuff blanketed the lawn and driveway. As I sat down to write my weekly blog my wife spotted a robin...
View ArticleThe Righteous Coypu
When viewed by a distant perceiver the Nutria could pass for a Beaver. But up close it is plain you’d be somewhat insane to claim you are still a believer. Thanks to the maxims of one of my children’s...
View ArticleThe Ground is Willing
I was trying to think of some suitable phrases that would sum up the spring of 2013, but was having a difficult time without using some bad words. This is not a terribly cold example of the season, but...
View ArticleA Tennessee Waltz
Although there were other more important, and religiously topical, reasons for heading south over the Easter weekend one minor cause involved Spring chasing. The season advances northward about 15...
View ArticleA Nearly Perfect Bird
I have spent the last few days chasing elusive little suckers around my backyard. The suckers in question were saavy woodpeckers who, as temporary visitors to my little chunk of earth, were wary beyond...
View ArticleA Not-So-Secret Skunk
I broke one of my own golden rules recently (rules fractured and mended many times). I try to take my camera everywhere I go, no matter how trivial the venture. Well, it doesn’t go with me when I cross...
View ArticleThe Bird and the Bud
Nature is full of finely twined inter-relationships and dependencies – wolves and moose, figs and fig wasps, middle-aged men and Tim Horton’s coffee. No one living thing can stand alone. I was reminded...
View ArticleYou Can’t See Me
Depending on the time of day or season, I would be the first to say that Canada Geese are not worthy of any attention or worthy of only negative attention. On some days, in fact, I am tempted to take...
View ArticleMeet Mr. Brown
For those of you who are afraid of snakes I suggest the little Brown Snake as the perfect antidote. Oops, probably shouldn’t use the word antidote here – it could conjure thoughts of getting bit and...
View ArticleAn Oval Canvas
In common things considered we often can find some inspiration. Recently I was reciting the first line of Joyce Kilmer’s poem “Trees” to a 2nd grade class as an example of simple poetry. While they...
View ArticleBubko lum tsee
“A cowbird need keep a sharp eye, for the threat of a falling cow pie” Cowbirds are universally hated by bird enthusiasts and their name is usually enunciated with a sneer – along with a few...
View ArticleDigging in a Sandbox
A class, under the direction of Anthropology Professor Dr. Kenneth Mohney, is participating in what might be considered the best field course ever. They are students from Monroe Co. Community College...
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