Our Natural Places

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Header Image: Red-bellied Woodpecker Ingredients: Baby Lettuces (Green Leaf Lettuce, Green Oak Lettuce, Tango Lettuce, Lollo Rossa Lettuce, Red Oak Lettuce, Red Leaf Lettuce, Butter Lettuce), Baby Greens (Tatsoi, Mizuna, Red Chard, Green Chard, Frisee), Baby Spinach, Radicchio, Ingredients May Vary By Season. The above is from a label on a package from our grocer labeled: Spring Mix. Most of us purchase a similar package in July or December and don’t really… Read More

Header Image: Ruby-crowned Kinglet Apparently, we did not exhaust ourselves enough during the Lakeland Christmas Bird Count so we volunteered to participate in the Green Swamp count. Twenty people. Over 500,000 acres of swamp. Challenging! Gini and I were assigned to the East Tract of the Green Swamp Wildlife Management Area which consisted of a mere 51,000 acres. The vast majority of this area is inaccessible. The Christmas census is designed to… Read More

Header Image: Eastern Phoebe Eyes Bagworm Moth We seem to relish foggy days. For one, as Gini noted on this day, it just seems so quiet. The stillness of an early morning on the bank of a lake blanketed in gray with sight and sound limited heightens the senses. More importantly, we know clear skies lurk just above the mist and the natural world will soon be going about the business of… Read More

Header Image: Sandhill Cranes Hoo-H-Hoo-Hoo-Hoo. Hoo-H-Hoo-Hoo-Hoo. Softer than one would expect for a relatively large bird. Distant. Distinct. “Great Horned Owl!”, Gini exclaimed in the darkness. It was now about an hour-and-a-half before sunrise and this was our fourth stop in an attempt to hear nocturnal birds. A bit later, a Barred Owl couple called to each other. The highlight of our pre-dawn foray occurred at a boat ramp. “Whip-whip-whip.” Whoosh! An… Read More