"I remember it as October days are always remembered, cloudless, maple-flavored, the air gold and so clean it quivers."
― Leif Enger
Alas, 2025's tiger beetle season has come to an end — none remained at the Sauk Canoe Launch last Sunday. Though my primary quarry is gone for the year, I'll continue making return trips through winter to visit favorite natural areas. Even when wildlife is sparse, it's always fascinating to observe how the landscape changes with the season — and to see how the creatures that stay, or migrate in, manage to endure.
The fall colors at Indian Lake Park have already slipped past their peak, a sharp contrast to the dazzling display at Paya Lake just weeks ago — when every hillside burned with gold and crimson, and the season felt at its height rather than its decline.
Here's a striking adult White-crowned Sparrow, its bold black-and-white crown contrasting beautifully with the soft gray of its plumage. White-throated Sparrows outnumbered the White-crowned and Fox Sparrows, though Yellow-rumped Warblers were the most abundant species overall.
Under the dramatic wooded canopy of Indian Lake Park.
This brings October to a close. From here on, life in the prairies and woods begins to quiet — insects vanish, leaves fall, and the pulse of the season slows. There's a touch of melancholy in watching it fade, yet a calm satisfaction in the stillness that follows. Though the days grow short, the walks will continue through winter. Even as the land seems to sleep, there are always birds to watch and quiet signs of life to remind us that Nature never truly rests.
All images © 2025 Mike McDowell