Arriving home from the sandhill cranes at Jasper-Pulaski, I went on line and checked out the Ancient murrelet reports. People spent hours watching the bird as it fed on fish at the mouth of the St. Joseph River. A placid lake with flat waters allowed great views of the bird. John Kendall’s almost unbelievable [...]
The premier ornithological spectacle of this region is the sandhill cranes at Jasper Pulaski State Fish and Game Area near North Judson, Indiana. Specifically there is a large field that is overlooked by a capacious wooden viewing area. This field is a staging area where cranes gather late in the day as they return from [...]
Her name is Martha, or at least the most famous one was named Martha. My current obsession is passenger pigeons, the last one of whom, Martha, died in the Cincinnati Zoo on September 1, 1914. I am madly researching all that I can find about this remarkable species for a book I am hoping can [...]
Continue reading about A Weekend With My Mistress and Real Friends Too
Earlier in the fall, I made a quick visit to McGinnis Slough, a large shallow lake surrounded by woods and marsh. It is the closest spot to me that provides first rate habitat for ducks, herons, shorebirds, and other waterbirds. On that particular day, I did not see anything out of the ordinary in the [...]
Continue reading about Godzilla Meets Bambi (Great Egret Meets Mink)
The south end of Illinois Beach State park is like no other place in the entire state. The northern third of it consists of a pine savanna over a rich prairie understory. But not one of the pines is native- they are what remains of what might be considered the first attempt to engage in [...]