February 27, 2012
I saw the small bird out of the corner of my eye as it hovered only inches from my head, plucking insects from a budding branch. […]
October 27, 2011
"Look. There goes another!"
"No way. How did you see that?"
"Look for the movement."
"I certainly can't see them when they land."
These were snatches of a conversation I was part of as we traveled through the farmlands of Wisconsin in early Spring, running between ponds looking for waterfowl. The subject? That field will-o'-the-wisp, the Horned Lark. We'd see their ghostly forms flitting out into the fields everywhere, but it was a challenge to keep track of them, especially once they landed. This is one of the quintessential open country birds of the Midwest, a bird that livens up even the dullest open farm fields.
January 27, 2011
The Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor ) is one of our earliest, hardiest insect-eating migrants. Their scientific name means ‘swift-moving two-colored’ in reference to their quick acrobatic […]