Early Goose Hunting

September 1st is opening day of the early Indiana Goose season. I am seriously psyched and will do my best to giddy-up go. The weather forecast says a high temperature of 85 degrees, that's hot, but I think I can handle it. Good Luck and Happy Hunting!

The Karner Blue Butterfly

( Hey viewers, I'm pretty sure I'm wrong about this being the Karner Blue. After a bit more research, I'm concluding  it's an Eastern Tailed-Blue, a rather common butterfly in the eastern US. I've sent this photo to the Miller Woods Educational Center of the Dunes National Park Service and asked for help with the ID. When I hear from them I'll edit the entire post. Thanks for the views.)
  
Pulling grass from my wild flower patch, when I saw a tiny blue butterfly flirting with the flowers. I ran to the house to fetch my camera, knowing the chances were slim to none the butterfly would be there when I returned. With camera in hand, I intensely searched the flower bed. Luck day, I was able to get this shot of not only one of the smallest butterflies in the USA but also, more importantly, an ENDANGERED SPECIES.. The Karner Blue Butterfly.

A native butterfly to the dry dune environments of the Great Lakes region, the Karner Blue became a threatened species because of habitat loss, due to urban and industrial development in the region which resulted in the range reduction of the only plant the Karner Blue uses for food as a caterpillar, the Wild Blue Lupine. In 1992 the Karner Blue was added to the Endangered Species list.

Here's a link to a US Fish and Wildlife fact sheet if you would like to know more about the Karner Blue ~ http://www.fws.gov/midwest/endangered/insects/kbb/kbb_fact.html

Ranger's Marsh 4-6-2013

Took a short hike at Ranger's Marsh on the Little Calumet River. Warm, windy day. The marsh is dry as a bone. Water only in the Dead Cottonwood grove. The flooded wood is holding a few ducks and boy are they spooky. The first group of ducks began to get in the wind when I was 100 yards away. Group after group followed. I saw about 300 ducks catch the strong south wind for the next step north.

Drake Mallard Duck

Hen Mallard Ducks

Mallards

Mallards

Gadwall Ducks

Blue-Wing Teal 

Blue-Wing Teal in dead Cottonwood Grove

Blue-Wing Teal Drake

Mink carcass 

How dry is the marsh? Well, here's a photo of Mink ( Neovison vison ) jerky. A sun dried carcass of the nocturnal American Mink. Years ago, this little guy would have been worth his weight in gold.

Dry Marsh

This photo shows the condition of the marsh this spring, bone dry. Typically, there would be two foot of water covering the cattail humps.  

Author

Me after a the hike. I'd like to thank you for viewing my blog. Thanks!

First Week of Spring

The Cooper's Hawk are still hunting the block. I think I know where their nest is. I'll stop taking photos of them until the chicks grow large enough fly, should be a couple months.

The hawks are a good watch but I've got enough photos of them as it is.  No, I will not tie little animals to a stake in the ground, for hawk attack photos and you shouldn't either, keep it wild.

Lone Canada Goose flying over Caddie marsh, lots of northern birds in the marsh, resting before the flight to Canada.

The only area of the marsh holding water, migrating ducks are using the flooded dead cottonwood grove as a resting area.

Here a hen Mallard Duck is locked in to her landing spot in the wood.

Cooper's Hawk

Another encounter with the local Cooper's Hawks. On a bright sunny day, I heard the Cooper's Hawks calling. Two hawks were active in the trees around me.

Cooper's Hawk ( Accipter cooperii )

On an oak branch, I saw one perched, took a quick shot. The image was way over-exposed.

Hawk on perch

I adjusted the aperture, returned to where the hawk was and got this shot as it launched from it's perched.

The deep breath

Following the bird, it was obvious that it was in an attack dive.

The plunge

About six feet above the ground it hovered briefly then dropped behind my fence. I lost sight of it.

The death blow

The hawk flew up into a high oak and perched next to his mate. He had caught a Garter Snake and offered it to her. She did not appear interested. The female hawk is on the left, next to her tale is the snake.

Female and Male Cooper's Hawk 

The female Cooper Hawks are larger than the males. Here she sits on her perch while the male flies to a near by tree to eat the snake.

Larger female Cooper's Hawk

Upon his return, she vocalizes the mating call and the start of a new clutch of Cooper Hawks begins.

Cooper's Hawks bonded pair

New to bird watching and need a little help identifying the birds you encountered in your journeys? Well, here is a good book to carry with you where ever you may find yourself, Peterson Books Eastern Birds.
                                                                                                                                                                         

American Robin

The American Robin ( Turdus migratorius ) is a sign of the coming spring to many in the northern United States. Late February and early March sees large flocks of Robins searching for berries, worms and insects during the late winter thaw. One of the earliest birds to nest and lay eggs, with many having more than one clutch of eggs in a season.

First Full Moon Of Spring

The first full moon after the first day of spring. You must admit its a big day for life on Earth. 12 hours of daylight / 12 hours of dark. The Sun rises due east and sets due west. In the southern hemisphere it is the first of fall, in the northern hemisphere it is the first of spring.  "Smell the Zephyrs(west wind)" in ancient Egypt, the time to get out and get some air.

First Full Moon of Spring

Turkey Vulture

On the road, going to a home supply store for plumbing stuff, replacing water pipes in my shack. I passed a little squirrel laid out on the pavement and thought, poor little guy survived winter to end up being road-kill. I took care of my needs at the store, as I approached the scene of the hit-and-run, I could see a rather large animal in the road where the squirrel lay. What have I run into this time? Up and into a near by tree, this large bird flew. As I passed I could ID the bird as a Turkey Vulture. Each year they show up at this time of year. I've seen them soaring on the thermal up-drafts but to see one on the ground is a rare sight.

A large bird with a wing-span of six feet, the Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) range from southern Canada to the southern tip of South American. They feed almost exclusively on carrion, dead animals, which they find with their extremely sensitive sense of smell. The turkey is one of only a few birds that can smell. The Genus name Cathartes is the Latinized form from Greek meaning "Purifier". After all, the Vulture's place in nature is to consume the dead before putrefaction sets in, many deadly bacteria are killed by the Turkey Vultures digestive system.

Look at that face, don't you love it, well I do. My favorite bird of all. The Turkey Vulture is the only bird that does no harm to any other animal. They don't harm bugs, worms or fish, the Turkey Vulture should be the symbol of world peace and environment purification. Can I get an Amen!  

Duckie Danger C++ Computer Game

I put together a little game, while it's been to cold to go outside.  A fun little game built in C++, and called "Duckie Danger", it's also a simple game, just smack ducks until five get away, game over, you quack!

Spring Migration

Spring has sprung, like or not. Watched a few hundred Sand Hill Cranes fly over Ranger's Marsh yesterday. Heading north by northwest. Lots of migratory Canada geese and ducks using the marsh, also.

Sand Hill Cranes

The Sand Hill Cranes are migrating north to their breeding grounds in Canada and the northern US.

Sand Hill Cranes over Gary, Indiana, flying north by northwest.

After watching the spring migration, I went home. While walking from the car to the house, I saw a brown comet streak through the air just outside of my fence and I hear the leaves rustling in the lot north of me.  It was a Cooper's Hawk on a dinner dive. I had heard one calling a couple days, this is the first one I've seen.

Cooper's Hawk, first this year

I put down my coffee cup and unlock and load my camera. The hawk flies up and into a tree with its lunch in its talons. Whatever it's caught has a wide tail, what could it be? No squeals, so not a rodent. I've seen them catch lots of snakes but the temperature is just above freezing, too cold for snakes.  

Cooper's Hawk and unknown prey

After another short flight deeper into the canopy of the oaks. The hawk kills its prey. I'm still waiting to see what the hawk has taken.

Would not believe it if I did not see it myself 

 The Cooper Hawk had caught a Garter Snake. In the middle of the pic above, below the large tree limb that the hawk is perched on, you can see the blueish-gray belly of the snake hanging down and curling to the left.  I am wrong again, it's not too cold for the Garter Snakes to be out and about.  Spring Has Sprung!  

The Douglas Center Revisited

Paid another visit to the Paul H. Douglas Center for Environmental Education. This time I hiked the Miller Woods Trail and the woods to the east of the main parking lot on Lake Street. Maybe a mile and a half in total.

          ( Click on any image to see an Enlarged Slide Show )

Covered Foot Bridge over Lake Street, from parking to the Douglas Center.

After parking in the main lot on Lake St. you walk over to the Douglas Center via the Covered Foot Bridge.

The Douglas Center for Environmental Education entrance.

The National Park Service sign greets you and the entry doors are straight ahead of you.

Interesting facts about Northwest Indiana.

A display in the foyer of the Douglas Center lists some amazing facts about Northwest Indiana that I did not know.

Douglas Center view from Lake Street West parking.

This is where the Miller Woods Trail starts, above on the dune is the Douglas Center. I'm standing in a three car parking lot on the west side of Lake Street

Distant view of Douglas Center from the Marsh Overlook Boardwalk.

About a third of the way along the Miller Woods Trail is the Marsh Overlook Boardwalk that crosses the marsh north to south. This is the view looking east, over the marsh. The Douglas Center can be seen in the distance.

Canine tracks and blood trail in snow.

The trail was covered with snow that was a few days old. The snow was more ice than snow, loud and crunchy. Tracks of some type of canine could be seen and blood drops about every ten feet. Probably a dog walkers pooch nipped his ear on a brier thorn.

Opening in snow that lead to a small mammal  snow tunnel.

 Field mice and voles tunnel under the snow and every here and there they poke through to the surface of the snow to check out their surroundings.

Western edge of  Miller Woods Marsh.

At the far west end of the trail is the edge of the marsh. Cattails are the dominate vegetation in the marsh.

Marsh Cattails

The seed head of the cattails, thousands of seeds attached to fur-like fibers that are dispersed by the wind if disturbed.

View of Miller Woods Marsh from a high dune.

A high dune rises above the marsh. Notice how the growth of the cattails encircle the water in the middle of the marsh. If the water level continues to drop over the years, eventually the cattails will die off and the marsh will become a wet meadow.

Deer tracks in snow, big Buck.

Wasn't ready to quit, so I walked the woods on the east side of Lake Street. There I ran across these deer tracks. This deer was big, my guess would be a large buck.

Mammal tracks in snow.

More tracks in the snow. I'll have to brush up on my tracking because I have no Idea as to what these my be from. A mystery, more than likely squirrel or rabbit.

Scene in woods east of Lake Street. 

I walked an old railroad track bed from Lake St. to Grand St. A nice little dune woods and swales to the south. heading back to the Douglas Center parking lot now.

Remote Control Airplanes

I had a gas burning model airplane when I was about 12 years old,  was never able to get the thing to off the ground, but this young man had his flight plan together. He was using a grocery store parking lot as an air field for his remote control model aircraft.

Here he is preparing his aircraft for flight. The model pilot is standing next to the SUV, the other young man happens to be an actual aviator.

Prepared for flight

Bi-plane ready for ignition

In flight

After a few acrobatic tricks, time to return for refueling

A perfect three point landing

P-38 Mustang ready to go

The landing

On the ground for refueling

A model helicopter

In flight

Even flies upside down

Just a side note, the pilot gave me this bit of information. Every 2nd Saturday of the month, the Tuskegee Airmen Young Eagles of Gary, IN, host a free flight day at the Gary Airport, the event starts at about 9:00 AM. This event is open to the public and the Young Eagles are looking for new recruits to join and train to be aviators.