Butterflies

Red-Winged Blackbird

Spruce Drops

Emerging Leaves

Bridge

Foot Bridge over Vermillion Creek - Rose Lake State Wildlife Area

A Quiet Menace

Mute Swans look pretty and actually make for nice photographic subjects.  However, their impact as an invasive species on the habitat they inhabit, through their voracious appetites and their overly aggressive nature toward other waterfowl and even humans, has had an negative effect on several species of native waterfowl in Michigan, including the threatened Trumpeter Swan and Common Loon.

More Wintery Contrasts

Frozen Fruit

Red-Tailed Hawk

Squirrels

Winter, At Last

After last winter, many people lament the cold snap we have had the past few days.  I have welcomed the snow and was excited when the clouds broke enough to get out for a day of photography in the single digit weather on Saturday.  These photos are a few of the ones I took at Rose Lake State Wildlife Area.  It was very quiet there Saturday other than the occasional chirp from a passing chickadee.

All Wrapped Up

Spruce Cones

Late Fall Forest Fungi

Emergence

Juvenile Green Heron

I had a fun time stalking this juvenile Green Heron (Butorides virescens) in my kayak along the Looking Glass River.  It did not seem too frightened of my presence, which I chalk up to its immaturity.  I had to navigate though some dense aquatic brush to get good photos of it, but once I got to the right point I had ample opportunities to capture images.  Something in the distance piqued its interest and it ruffled up the feathered crest on the crown of its head for a few moments.

Summer Harvest

Acorn