Máistir Nádúraí: Close Encounter with a Sparrow

3.15.2007

Close Encounter with a Sparrow

(click on image for larger version)

Anyone who knows me knows I adore the sparrows. A foraging American Tree Sparrow at close range and good light in my backyard means an opportunity to zoom in on its face for close-up portraiture. An ordinary sparrow shows extraordinary beauty when appreciated at this level of magnification. All those intricate feather structures, patterns and rich colors will soon be on their way to the northern regions of Canada.

I will miss the tree sparrows, but very soon their similar looking cousins, the Chipping Sparrows, will take up the spring/summer shift in our backyard.

American Tree Sparrow image © 2007 Mike McDowell

Bio:

Mike McDowell has been documenting southern Wisconsin’s flora and fauna since 1987 and began leading field trips in 2002. Prolific at Pheasant Branch Conservancy, other highlighted natural areas include Pope Farm Conservancy, Spring Green Preserve, and the Baraboo Hills. His nature photography has appeared in various publications, newspapers, magazines and was even featured on a Wisconsin Endangered Resources license plate, a Capital Brewery beer label, and a National Geographic publication. He began journaling nature observations on this blog in 2005. He's the recipient of the 2012 Bronze Passenger Pigeon Award from the Wisconsin Society for Ornithology, presented to individuals who have made outstanding contributions in their local communities or state to promote the field of ornithology. He was a finalist in Swarovski’s Digiscoper of the Year photography contest several times. His other interests include insect macro-photography (especially tiger beetles, treehoppers, and robber flies), fossil collecting, amateur astronomy, botany, natural history, and marksmanship with long-range rifles. Once a gigging musician, collecting Fender Stratocasters is a recently revived interest—most prized being a 1957 Vintage Custom Shop 'Mary Kaye' White Blonde. A former IT Professional, he's spent the last 24 years employed in the sport optics industry.