What the Heck is a Bittern???

If you didn't read my last blogpost

on the Sandhill Crane Migration,

please drop down to the bottom

of this one,

and click on "older posts" on the right hand corner

and read that first.

We went on a trip out to the Sturgeon River Sloughs

and watched over a hundred Sandhill Cranes migrate in...

it was wonderous!

While waiting for the Sandhill Cranes to fly in,

a guide spotted a bird.

He said it was rare in our area

and wanted us to see it.

It was WAY across the field in a pond, so I didn't get

great photos of it.

But I wanted you to see one,

in case you didn't ever see one before.

A Bittern!

A Bittern is a heron-like bird.

Read about it HERE.

(You can even click on the sound this bird makes on the link, which is very unusual.)

So, now that you saw a good photo of one

at the All About Birds site (by clicking on the link),

here is my

not-so-clear-but-I-was-glad-to-try-to-photo-one

attempt:

There brown, tan and white stripes makes them blend in with

their environment so they are not easy to spot...especially across a pond

on a cloudy day!:

The sun came out a few times, and when it did,

it's feathers looked redder and it was easier to spot:

I am so happy to be able to share

it with you....

my blogger friends...

because like the theme

for the Enquirer goes:

I knew:

"inquiring minds want to know!!

Sandhill Crane Migration!!

My sister-in-law called me one day out of the blue,

saying:

"Gotta pencil and paper? I have something you are going to want to attend!"

Being the adventurer I am (NOT so much with surprise ideas)

I quizzed her..

"What is it??"

Upon hearing the news, I did indeed run for a pencil and paper to get the details

to write down.

And then I made a reservation by calling the phone number given to me as fast as I could dial the phone.

What was it?

The local Audubon Society

was hosting

a trip out to the

Sturgeon River Sloughs

near Arnheim, Michigan

to

watch

the autumn

Sandhill Crane Migration!!!!

To say I was excited is an understatement.

I knew I probably wouldn't get any closeups

of these beautiful birds during the fly in,

but I had to go and watch it.

And, I had to TRY
and photograph it.

They said there weren't thousands of birds gathering at this site,

(like in someplaces in the U.S. during a migration), but that we'd see over a hundred fly in that night, around dusk.

I was so excited to go.

They only charged $5.00 to go, and a local shop agreed to "match" any money gathered

and donate it to the Audubon Society for this event.

That just sweetened the trip that much more.

So, my husband and I gathered both cameras that I own,

and off we went on the scheduled date (August 31, 2010).

 

Here is the group hiking out the the sloughs.  It was just about 1/2 mile from the parking lot:

About 30 people went with us.

We waited...

and

waited....

We spied some Bitterns, which are rare birds here (I will post their photos in another blogpost),

and we saw one blue heron fly in..

but

no

Sandhill Cranes.

We waited some more....

and

more....

and

more....

And then?

We heard them!!

They make noises like what you hear in Jurassic Park...almost sound like prehistoric dinosaurs!!
Click on THIS LINK to hear them!

And a group flew in!!!!:

Aren't they GORGEOUS??

One landing in a field:

(sorry about the unclear photo on this one..he was wayyyy far away and I had my lens at the strongest I could, with my image stabilization feature on..but still hard to capture!)

Another flying in over the treetops!:

Oh MY!:

Help me Rhonda! Help, help me Rhonda!!!!

Help me get them out of my heart...............

They kept coming in,

in groups of two,

then groups of 5,

then groups of eight or eleven:

We kept counting....and it was getting darker.

They were landing in tall grass for the night:

All in all, the group counted 156 (give or take four or five)...

We loved it!!!

I was so happy to be able to witness

this awesome ritual

of the U.P. Sandhill Crane Migration.

According to the group, they will continue to fly in to the same spot for a few weeks,

and then they will all fly south together

to join up with another group,

and another group

and so forth,

and continue on their trek down south.

So, for all my southern Blogger friends,

just a word to the wise....

get your cameras ready!!!

They are coming your way!!!

Say hi to them from Joan

when they fly in your area, ok????

Tell them I was the excited one

with the camera, clicking

it about a thousand times

trying to catch

them in midflight.....

****************************************************************************

Don't forget the FREE Monthly PHOTO CONTEST!!!

Submit ONE photo to me by Sept. 30, 2010

of the theme this month of:

WATERFALLS or FOUNTAINS!!

Follow these rules!

(Now, you MAY use a photo that you already published on your blog, I removed that silly rule!)

Bugs, Buds, and other Beauty!

Today,

a popourri

of

nature shots!

Apples in our own apple trees:

My yellow hollyhocks with a bee in it:

A Circadia!:

I love the seeds that come on a Queen Ann's Lace

at the end of it's life:

Look closer!

Aren't they marvelous?:

Wonderful sunflowers!:

Side profile of the sunny Sunflower:

Green tomatos in my garden:

I hope you

find some interesting things

in your day today!!

August 2010 FREE Photo Contest Winner for Sunrises/Sunsets!

Hoo, Boy!

I TOLD YOU

this month's

winner

would be impossible

to pick.

It WAS.

The three judges

could not agree

on a winner

per majority.

So, per the contest's process,

I had to go to a fourth

judge,

who then had to pick the

winner from the top three picked by

the previously randomly-picked three judges.

So, all of you that entered photos

can feel

very, very, proud.

As far as I am concerned, I wish I could hand out

winning widgets to each of you

for your entries.

But, in life, that is not the way it works.

I can only hand out

ONE winner widget....

So, without further ado....

(drum roll, please)............

August's Theme

was

SUNRISES or SUNSETS.

To refresh your memory, go to THIS LINK to see all of the entries.

The winner picked,

after much deliberation

and pain....

but certainly

WELL DESERVED

is

THIS beautiful photo:

Congratulations, to SCOTT Pierce!!!!....

He does not have a blog...

Perhaps he should???  A photo-centered blog perhaps? (Hint, hint, Scott!)

A wonderful shot! The judges thought it looked "heaven-like".

The judges had wonderful other "special mentions" also, to the following people:

--Larry J ("the texture on your sunset left me breathless!")

--Connie ("the color was so unique and it looked almost spooky looking")

--Carmen (" a wonderful photo!")

--Linda R. (the sun and the rocks, wow!")

-VaBookworm ("loved the incorporation of the trees in the sunset")

and

J.J. ("loved the color of the blues in J.J.'s sunset")

But, please NOTE...

the judges liked them ALL....they said it was a very tough decision....

So, all of you that entered should be very, very proud...

and

each and every one of you should keep on clicking those shutters...

because you are truly gifted.

Thanks so much for entering August's contest!

*********************************************************************

And remember,

enter your best

WATERFALLS or FOUNTAIN

photo

for September's Free Photo Contest

no later than

midnight, Sept. 30, 2010

following

THESE RULES.

(except you CAN enter a photo that you already had on your blog, if you have a blog).

Butterfly, Bridge, and Nature's Beauty

I have been trying to get out in the woods

now that summer's heat has passed

(and

before the autumn shows us

it's full beauty)

to still

capture all that I can with my lens.

Sometimes you just turn around in your yard and find nature's glory too:

We went for a ride and found this little waterfalls

about a stone's throw from a bridge over an old road:

One day, we followed a ride on a road off the highway to get to a rummage sale

at a tiny, township hall.

Right next to it was a gorgeous little pond

with this fantastic curved bridge built over it!:

I loved the view of the bridge up close...

but

even better,

was the "orb" in the photo

when I downloaded it!

Doesn't it make you wonder?:

We went out on our lake

and captured this

fabulous sunset....

I may enlarge this one and frame it!

What do you think? Should I?:

Another shot of that lovely pond with the curved bridge:

A red dragonfly!:

I guess you could say

I was a little obsessed with

the curved bridge:

I hope you find

"end of summer"

beauty

in your life, too!

More this and that August Photos!

A pond of water lily pads:

Wild roses:

A turtle caught on lens...they spook very easily, so I was glad to capture the shot!:

Waves and water lilies on a windy day:

White Musk Mallows:

Corn stalks with the promise of

melting butter on lucious cobs:

Driving through the woods, we spied a young doe peeking at us behind the trees.

We stopped the car

and she appeared even more curious.

After catching her on camera, she still watched us,

so we slowly pulled away.

I hope she becomes more afraid of humans as she ages, for her safety:

An immature sunflower pod:

While going for a walk the other day, we spied a Monarch flitting amongst the neighbor's flowers.

I must have stalked him for about 10 minutes to finally be able to catch a still photo of him.

But it was worth it!:

Stay tuned,

my next post will have more shots

of him....

I couldn't take my finger off the camera, he was SO breathtakingly beautiful!

Summer Birds!

We were on our boat on the lake

and I spied

far, far away....

what I thought was a family of some kind of ducks...

I didn't want to scare them,

so we didn't bring the boat any closer.

I used my zoom, but unfortunately the shot did not come out clear, due to the distance involved.

But, I want to share it with you anyway, because I was so thrilled

when I saw what they were!

Loons!!!:

(Eight babies!!!!!!!!)

Remember last year

when I had a Chipping Sparrow with a Mohawk???

Well, guess who

visited us

again this year??!:

(I love that he always looks like he has an attitude, don't you???)

A wonderful attitude!:

I think this is a female, but I am not sure what kind of bird she is.

Does anyone out there know? A female purple finch or grosbeak?:

Did someone say Purple Finch?

or

Yellow Finch?:

A Purple Finch in all his glory. I know, I know....they are more red than purple, but that is

his name!:

Aren't they gorgeous?:

Help me Rhonda:

(I wanted to pet him sooooo bad).

This one was particularly red in color:

I am SURE at this point, he was saying:

"Are you DONE with the pictures, already??" "You haven't even given me time

to clean off my face, for Cripe's sake!:":

So, I moved on....

to

the Yellow Finch:

and

A female yellow finch:

All of these birds

have disappeared now..............

The fall migration has already started here

with some of the birds

disappearing...

We  hope we see some again on their way through

from Canada.

If we do, I'll be snapping away at them with my camera!!