"There is a love of wild nature in everybody, an ancient mother-love showing itself whether recognized or no, and however covered by cares and duties."
― John Muir
It was a rather warm weekend, so I tried to get all my outdoor adventures in before the noon hour both Saturday and Sunday ― missed breaking a record by just two degrees. Multitudes of Dickcissels have returned to grasslands and prairies throughout southern Wisconsin over the past week. So far I've found them at Spring Green, Sauk, Barneveld, and Black Earth Prairies during my weekend birding excursions. My only new bird of the year were a couple of Bell's Vireos at Sauk Prairie Recreational Area ― always a treat to hear. During the visit I checked in on the tiger beetle situation, but found only Festive and Big Sand. Ghost Tiger Beetles will probably emerge in another week or two.
I like to be a bit of bugbear on social media by reminding people daylight hours begin retreating in just a few more weeks after the Summer Solstice. At first it's just a minute or so each day, but later on it's two, then three ― the long march to winter has its starting point. But when you consider early spring arrivals in March and the last fall migrants at the end of October, that's over half the year we can observe birds on the move. Phenologically speaking, even tiger beetles can be found six or seven months out of the year. But once it's cold and there are no more insects or wildflowers, we still have winter birds to decorate the monochromatic snow-covered prairies and forests.
For for now everything is fantastically colorful!
I wish more of our prairies hosted Bobolinks, and I'm still pretty miffed that Middleton's government covered over a third of their territory at the airport fields with a solar array project. My friend Curt and I were pretty dismayed over this development and will no longer lead field trips there. For sure, solar power is a good thing, but why at the cost of fragmenting one of the largest concentrations of Bobolinks in southern Wisconsin? It's baffling that this came to fruition without (apparently) an impact analysis from any professional wildlife ecologists. Personally, I think it would have been a clever idea to put solar panels atop all the hanger buildings at the airport. Incidentally, a little birdie told me that this location was selected to prevent the airport from expanding runways. Anyway, look at the photograph of the array at the link above ... such a shame.
Naturally, it was another fantastic weekend for photographing insects, spiders, and wildflowers.
This Delaware Skipper held this perch and pose just long enough for a quick shot or two.
I was astonished to see a Burrowing Wolf Spider guarding the entrance of its daytime den. The weave of tiny sticks and detritus around the mouth of its burrow is called a 'palisade' fence. Generally nocturnal, this is only the second of this species I've encountered at Spring Green Preserve.
And, once again, the obligatory tiger beetle content. I gotta say I wasn't planning on photographing them during this particular visit, but just they're so enticing when posing in good light. Without a trip up the bluff to the rocky outcroppings, the three species observed were Big Sand, Oblique-lined, and Festive. There are Six-spotted on the woodland path, but I stuck to the prairie trails.
I'm sure the dusty look is of no inconvenience or consequence to its tenaciousness.
The coveted side view!
Alright, so this might be one of my best-ever photographs of Oblique-lined Tiger Beetle.
Note the damaged front-right limb of this Festive Tiger Beetle. It makes me wonder if it was the work of another tiger beetle or if something larger got ahold of it. The prairie's sparrows will certainly consider a tiger beetle a meal, so perhaps this was a very fortunate escape on behalf of this Festive.
Whoops! This Big Sand Tiger Beetle is attempting to copulate with a Festive. Perhaps an exercise in reproductive futility, as I do not believe these two species can hybridize. Perhaps this behavior explains the injured Festive in the previous photograph. Having said that, I just can't see even the monstrous Big Sand taking out another tiger beetle, but I suppose it may be possible.
How about some June prairie wildflowers?
Yellow Star Grass (Hypoxis hirsuta)
Rock Sandwort (Minuartia dawsonensis)
Purple [Sand] Milkwort (Polygala polygama)
On the way home from Spring Green Preserve, my birding posse decided to make a stop at Black Earth Rettenmund Prairie to see if the Wood Lilies (Lilium philadelphicum) were open. We thought it might be a little early and only expected to see a few in bloom. However, upon arrival we found literally hundreds of them covering the hillside. In fact, they might even be at peak ― it's been a strange spring, to be sure.
All images © 2021 Mike McDowell
All images © 2021 Mike McDowell