Bald Eagles are an every day occurrence at Whitefish Point. But seeing over twenty in a day, mostly migrating is a special day. This is a bird molting from third year to fourth year plumage. The Bald Eagles came in a great variety of plumages that relate to age. This is a second year bird.Continue reading “A day filled with eagles”
Tag Archives: nature
Lichens instead of birds
Today started still and foggy, but at least it’s not raining. The past week has been less than optimal for migrants. Odds and ends have been showing up, but not much. This morning I turned my attention to the great array of lichens here at Whitefish Point. The trees are literally dripping with moisture ladenContinue reading “Lichens instead of birds”
Seney at Whitefish Point Bioblitz
Since it is Earth Day, Seney National Wildlife Refuge once again scheduled a bioblitz. And in honor of the day Mother Nture decided it was a good time to snow. So instead of heading out at 8 am, we decided to start at 9:30 am. The tasj assigned to me by Susan was to photographContinue reading “Seney at Whitefish Point Bioblitz”
Accidental nature walk in Ann Arbor
This morning as we were walking to meet a friend for breakfast. we managed to find a lot of flowering plants and other stuff. Evergreen bagworm cocoons in some evergreen shrubs. A flowering Norway maple. A flowering Bartlett’s pear. Flowering serviceberry. Flowering purple dead nettle, the final flower of the morning. More tomorrow…
Migration at Whitefish Point
This adult Golden Eagle made two passes towards the point this morning. It never got very high. There was also at least one young Bald Eagle. The number of Sharp-shinned Hawks increased today. Up until now they’ve been passing in small numbers. I imagine that next week numbers will increase. Rough-legged Hawks were a bitContinue reading “Migration at Whitefish Point”
Another day with hawks
The day started with so much promise. But clouds came in and there was intermittent rain. But that didn’t stop us from finding birds. Brown Creepers moved into the area with numbers last night. We had out first American Woodcocks and Winter Wrens this morning. I guess that it’s spring. Between periods of cloudiness, rainContinue reading “Another day with hawks”
Rain disrupts migration
The view of Sault Ste. Marie from Whitefish Point. There are rain storms and the wind is bringing it towards us. An early Golden Eagle. Just as migration started the rain arrived. For the next five hours it would rain for 15-20 minutes then clear. During each period without rain a few migrants appeared. ThenContinue reading “Rain disrupts migration”
Migration and an eclipse
This morning was our first day with clouds since arriving at Whitefish Point. While it made for a beautiful sunrise, the prospects of being able to detect the solar eclipse seemed dimmed. The day started unusually. The first two migrants were adult Golden Eagles. Was that a good omen? Perhaps. Migrants started sailing by. TheContinue reading “Migration and an eclipse”
A fine day at Whitefish Point
Another stunning sunrise at Whitefish Point. This is the view to the east from the Raptor Roost, where I watch migration at our cabin. It was completely still and 26F. While that sounds cold, it wasn’t. I sat outside listening to the point wake up. As the sun rose it started lighting trees to theContinue reading “A fine day at Whitefish Point”
Back to Paradise
Heading back to Whitefish Point today we crossed the Mackinac Bridge as we have done close to a thousand times. But this time was quite different. Both lanes on the north-bound side were closed and being resurfaced. Therefore we crossed north on the south-bound side. It’s rather strange crossing the bridge next to a truckContinue reading “Back to Paradise”
Michael's Place 