Spring Green Weekend - Part II

Spring Green Preserve (west)

Mark Johnson and I returned to Spring Green Preserve on Sunday and met Glenn Chambliss there. Glenn wanted to see the Blue Grosbeak as it was a life bird for him, as it was for Dottie and Sylvia the previous day. Mark and I had another goal in mind and that was to photograph as many different kinds of insects and spiders as we could find. Glenn came along only for the morning effort and I think he was impressed by the diversity of insects we were able to show him. Mark and I ended up spending the the entire day at the preserve, visiting both the east and west units.

I was also hoping to put my Prairie Fame-flower quest to rest, as it's a wildflower I've been trying to catch open since last year—success this time! During our bug hunt, Mark made an awesome discovery when closely inspecting oak saplings; they're a veritable goldmine for treehoppers! We found three hairstreak species, three tiger beetles, four robber flies and at least four treehopper species. There were also several kinds of dragonflies, but not very many spiders. I took over 600 photographs; it was a difficult process deciding which to publish.

I use bugguide.net to help with identification. When I'm stumped, I'll ask a friend or two for help. From my time in the field to publishing here, keeping this blog supplied with fresh material can be a considerable effort. Once at my computer, there's image selection, post-processing, critter identification, and then coming up with a narrative to put it all together. It's a lot of work, but an absolute labor of love.


Spring Green Preserve (west)


Flower Crab Spider with prey


Treehopper Archasia auriculata


Treehopper Glossonotus univittatus 


Treehopper Archasia belfragei 


Treehopper Smilia camelus


Treehopper Glossonotus univittatus 


Silvery Checkerspot


Coral Hairstreak


Robber fly Efferia aestuans (mating)


Robber fly Proctacanthus hinei 


Robber fly Proctacanthella cacopiliga


Robber fly Efferia albibarbis 


Robber fly Proctacanthus hinei


Mydas Fly Mydas clavatus


Prairie Fame-flower

Finally!


Prairie Fame-flower


Prairie Fame-flower


Lark Sparrow's nest!

I typically don't photograph bird nests, but this one was too unique not to document and share. My birding cohorts inadvertently flushed a Lark Sparrow from its nest which was only a couple feet away from the trail. We took a quick peak at the eggs, I took a photo, and then waited with my digiscoping rig for the sparrow to return to its eggs. Pretty cool, but do be careful where you walk at Spring Green Preserve. However, I do like how the sparrow built its nest right next to a Prickly Pear.


Lark Sparrow returns!

Other birds included Field Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Vesper Sparrow, Henslow's Sparrow, Brown Thrasher, Indigo Bunting, Orchard Oriole, Baltimore Oriole, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Eastern Towhee, Scarlet Tanager, American Kestrel, Eastern Meadowlark, Eastern Kingbird, Turkey Vulture, and more!

All images © 2014 Mike McDowell

Spring Green Weekend - Part I

Spring Green Preserve

"What!? There's a west unit of Spring Green Preserve?" I don't exactly remember when I first learned of its existence, but I'm pretty sure my reaction probably went something like that. Today was my first time exploring this particular section of the preserve, though it was specifically just to find one bird in particular—a Blue Grosbeak. The grosbeak would be a life bird for Dottie Johnson and Sylvia Marek, and a Wisconsin state bird for Mark Johnson. I last saw one in 2005 at the Avon Cemetery a little ways north of Avon Wildlife Area, so I thought it would be nice to see one again.


Prickly Pear Cactus

But that wouldn't be all. The plan was for the four of us to search for the grosbeak at the west unit and then visit the east unit or "preserve proper" for wildflower and insect photography. Afterwards, we wanted to eat lunch at the Spring Green General Store, but the annual Arts and Crafts fair is this weekend. To avoid the lunch rush, we wanted to wrap things up at the preserve by 10:45AM. It's astonishing how quickly those three hours went!


Prickly Pear Cactus


Blue Grosbeak

I heard the Blue Grosbeak as soon as I stepped out of my car. It took us only a few minutes to locate the singing bird perched at the top of a small tree. This species isn't typically found in Wisconsin, but they've been recorded at the preserve since 2007. While Dottie, Sylvia, and Mark watched the grosbeak, I briefly explored the crude trail system. Eventually, I made my way back and found that the bird was preening much closer to the trail. I quickly snapped a series of images with my digiscoping rig before the bird flew off to its next perch.


Blue Grosbeak

With our primary mission completed, we headed over to the east unit for insects. Wildflowers seemed subdued compared to previous years, but I'm not entirely sure why. Sylvia thinks it has something to do with recent droughts in combination with the hard winter. Still, where else can you see Prickly Pear Cactus so plentiful in Wisconsin? We found three different kinds of Tiger Beetles: Punctured, Big Sand, and Splendid. Robber flies were patrolling the sandy trails as well, but I didn't bother with them. It was mostly cloudy, so I used my flash and diffuser which was very effective.


Punctured Tiger Beetle


Big Sand Tiger Beetle


Yellow Scarab Hunter Wasp


Sumac Flea Beetle


Viceroy


Common Wood Nymph


Lark Sparrow

All images © 2014 Mike McDowell

Just Pix!

Red-winged Blackbird

I checked in on the prairie parcel of Pheasant Branch Conservancy for a couple of hours before work this morning. Nothing new to report, but many great opportunities to watch and photograph birds and wildflowers. The chats are still present and can be heard singing near the springs, but they're too far away to get a decent photograph. It's going to be an early morning tomorrow and I don't have much to say at the moment. I'll save it for my next post!


Baltimore Oriole


Orchard Oriole


Eastern Kingbird


Common Yellowthroat


Common Yellowthroat (female)


Tall Penstemon


Hoary Vervain


St. John's Wort

Pheasant Branch, Dane, US-WI
Jun 27, 2014 6:15 AM - 8:15 AM
51 species

Mallard
Ring-necked Pheasant
Wild Turkey
Great Blue Heron
Turkey Vulture
Red-tailed Hawk
Sandhill Crane
Killdeer
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Downy Woodpecker
Hairy Woodpecker
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Willow Flycatcher
Eastern Kingbird
Warbling Vireo
American Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
White-breasted Nuthatch
House Wren
Sedge Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Brown Thrasher
European Starling
Cedar Waxwing
Common Yellowthroat
Yellow Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Vesper Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Indigo Bunting
Dickcissel
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole
Baltimore Oriole
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow

All images © 2014 Mike McDowell

Summer Begins

The wild does not have words.
The unwritten pages spread out on all sides!
I come upon the tracks of roe deer in the snow.
Language but no words.

~ Tomas Tranströmer



I discovered a couple Yellow-breasted Chats at the prairie parcel of Pheasant Branch Conservancy about a week ago. One male has been singing on the north side of the drumlin. The other has been favoring the scrubby dogwood line southeast of the big springs. Chats have been present three years in a row at the conservancy, with a probable nesting in 2007 and single sightings in 2008 and 2009. Though I've seen adult birds carrying food in past summers, I have yet to actually observe a fledged chat. Hopefully their efforts are not rewarding cowbirds!



The prairie was delightfully adorned with hundreds of dew-covered spider webs glistening in the early morning sunlight. Appreciating nature is a matter of time and scale. An hour later the webs wouldn't be noticeable. The tiny spiders that built them early last night went unseen. So many nets set out to ensnare insects!






Orchard Oriole (female)

What else was looking for something to eat? Several Orchard Orioles were foraging in the prairie plants for moths, caterpillars, spiders, and whatever else they could find. This particular pair are nesting in the oaks near the springs. By the plumage coloration of the male (below), this is his first go at raising a family. I'm pretty sure there are at least three other active Orchard Oriole nests at the prairie. There are two in the oaks on top of the drumlin and another near the southeast corner. Actually, I wouldn't be surprised to discover if there are more. These orioles used to be somewhat scarce at this location, but now they're easily heard and seen each spring and most of summer.


Orchard Oriole (male)


Indigo Bunting

Besides the Eastern Meadowlarks, American Goldfinches, and Common Yellowthroats, other prominent voices of the prairie and savanna include Indigo Buntings and Brown Thrashers. Listening (birding by ear) is how I detect the presence of birds as I do my counts and also consider which subjects I might attempt to photograph. My intended path might be interrupted or diverted depending on what I hear and how near or far I judge its distance to be.


Brown Thrasher

The prairie has a permeable boundary where an incredible diversity of life moves in and comes together. There's a holistic view of a prairie, marsh, or forest that can be appreciated in how all the things that live there share connectedness be they insect, spider, plant, bird, reptile, or mammal. There's competition for resources at every level in the struggle for existence, but it's also beautiful to behold and enjoyable to document. Journaling and photography helps bridge some of Nature's mysteries to render such a view and recollect on the physical sense of being there. Though publishing my work to share with others is the primary purpose of this blog, on a rainy day I'll go back to a particular highlight to relive the experience.


Dimorphic Jumping Spider 


Banded Hairstreak


Baltimore Checkerspot

Pheasant Branch, Dane, US-WI
Jun 22, 2014 6:30 AM - 9:30 AM
48 species

Wood Duck
Mallard
Ring-necked Pheasant
Great Blue Heron
Green Heron
Sandhill Crane
Killdeer
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Ruby-throated Hummingbird
Eastern Wood-Pewee
Willow Flycatcher
Eastern Phoebe
Eastern Kingbird
Warbling Vireo
Blue Jay
American Crow
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Tree Swallow
Barn Swallow
Black-capped Chickadee
White-breasted Nuthatch
House Wren
Sedge Wren
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Gray Catbird
Brown Thrasher
Cedar Waxwing
Common Yellowthroat
Yellow Warbler
Yellow-breasted Chat
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Song Sparrow
Swamp Sparrow
Northern Cardinal
Indigo Bunting
Red-winged Blackbird
Eastern Meadowlark
Common Grackle
Brown-headed Cowbird
Orchard Oriole
Baltimore Oriole
House Finch
American Goldfinch
House Sparrow

All images © 2014 Mike McDowell