Backyard Visitors

A Hummingbird Clearwing Moth in my Butterfly bush.

Same Clearwing Moth, just a bit closer.  You can see he is an older moth as he is missing many scales and some fur from his body.  

I believe this is a young female hummingbird on my Salvia.  she does not have all of her green back and head feathers in yet.  The white tips on the tail mark it as a female.

This handsome Bullfrog was sitting in the sun so nicely, I just had to share his photo.

This is an adult female hummingbird getting nectar from my verbenas.  You can see how much more colorful she is compared to the earlier young bird.

Dragonflies

Did you know there are more than 5200 different species of dragonflies?  I was surprised to learn this.  Another fact that I thought was interesting was that 50 of the species actually migrate during the winter to warmer climates!  Although, it is not the older dragonflies, but the new offspring that migrate.

They seems to follow the same flyways that the birds use.  Scientists have attached small transmitters to the dragonflies to track their migration.  It is a very tough job as the transmitters are so tiny and do not transmit too great of distances.  Scientists have followed the transmitter signals using small planes but lose the signal when they are forced to land to refuel.  Also, once the small planes get to the tip of Florida, they cannot continue on .  Because of this, scientists are not sure if the dragonflies stay in Florida, or continue on to other places like Venezuela like the birds do.

Below are some recent photos I took of some very handsome species of dragonflies.  I even challenged myself to try to catch a dragonfly in flight.  That's a tough one!

Notice the bright red edges of this dragonflies wings.  I am thinking perhaps this is to attract a mate?

This was a very large dragonfly sunning just before the sun set.  It does not show well here, but it had a beautiful dusty blue body.

The same species of dragonfly as the previous photo.  this guy was enamored with the color of my son's T-shirt in the sun.  The blue body shows better here.

This guy's colors were stunning.  The sun shining on him really helped to show them off.  His wings were tougher to capture even though the shutter speed was the same as the next one.  I am wondering if perhaps he just moved his wings faster than the next guy?

This dragonfly was very dark in color.  I liked how this shot showed how they tuck their legs up when in flight.  The yellow spot you see on his eye is actually a reflection of the sun.

Porkies Adventure

A waterfall along Greenstone Falls Trail.  Very serene and a nice trail to hike.

The fungi was found along the trail.  It is the most brilliant one I have ever seen.  It was the size of a dinner plate!  The sun highlighted it perfectly.

Waterfall erosion on shale along the Presque Falls.

A lower waterfall at Presque Falls.  Taken from a footbridge high above the canyon.  You can see some of the circular ebbs that the water and sand carve away in the rock.

Early morning sun at Lake in the Clouds.

A view looking out at Lake Superior.

Cloud formation over Lake Superior.

An evening along Lake Superior

Pilated Woodpecker

While out for an early morning walk, I noticed large pieces of wood falling from a tree.  After closer inspection, I found this Pilated Woodpecker hammering away on a tree.  

You can see she has made quite a large hole in the tree.  She pulled out many grubs in the ten minutes I stood and watched her.  

How to tell this is a female, the male Pilated has a red "moustache" just under their eye and along the top of the beak.

The next morning while walking again, I found what I assume is the same female in about the same area getting breakfast.  I sat at a nearby picnic table and waited over 20 minutes for her to come on the side of the dead tree by me.  Unfortunately this was as close as she got.  As this dead tree had become hollow, it made quite a racket when she was hammering on it.

A Blue Jay in a Sycamore tree.

I was thrilled this spring when this very special visitor showed up many times at my birdfeeder.   It is a beautiful male Indigo Bunting.  I was so happy to capture a photo of him.

Cedar Waxwings

While out for a walk on a crisp spring morning, I happened to stumble upon a small tree, no more than 18 feet tall loaded with Cedar Waxwings.  As the temperature was not much over 40 degrees, they were all basking in the warm early morning light.  I am not sure what type of tree they were in as it had no leaves, only these blooms on it.  The waxwings were really enjoying eating all the buds.  Waxwings usually feed on berries, especially from the Cedar tree, hence their name, they will also eat insects caught as they fly.

Many people feel this is one of the most beautiful of all birds.  They can be found in northern North America for breeding and then go to Panama for the winters.  The last few years, I have seen them year round in the midwest.  They will be seen in flocks.  Their population is on the rise in Illinois.

One of the birds eating on the tree buds.  You can see a bit of the red
"wax" markings on his wing.  This mark is actually a cuticle type casing similar to what a new feather grows in around.   Only the adult waxwings will have these.

A small portion of the tree the Waxwings were in.  I believe there are thirteen birds in this shot.  Can you find them all?

Summer Tanager

This is the male Summer Tanager. His brilliant red really stands out in the green leaves. He is the only completely red bird in North America. The tanager is a songbird who is a member of the cardinal genus of birds. The female tanager is yellow with olive-brown markings on her wings.

They live in wooded areas, especially ones containing oak trees. They are not often seen and tend to stay in the upper branches of trees.

Summer Tanagers love to eat bees and wasps. They will eat the larvae or the adults. They will rub the adult bee or wasp on a branch before eating to remove the stinger. Smart birds!