Whitefish Point. and memories

I’m sitting and writing on a cool (40F) morning thin king about friends and relatives in Canada who have been celebrating Thanksgiving, which is celebrated there on Columbus Day. In a way I am also celebrating the day. Thoughts and memories are flooding me at the moment. There are so many people that I wantContinue reading “Whitefish Point. and memories”

Whitefish Point – more birds

Everybody gets excited when they see a Spruce Grouse. I understand that, remembering the days before we had our place here. But, in reality they are surprisingly common – if you know where to look. Personally, I get equally excited when I find a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker that I can photograph. Of course this frequently meansContinue reading “Whitefish Point – more birds”

Another day, another new moth

It’s another beautiful morning at Whitefish Point, Michigan. Since the evening with the Black Witch it’s been rather slow with moths. Nothing big and spectacular, but some interesting smaller moths. The seemingly ever present sweetfern geometer. This is one of the first moths that we get in May and typically have it every week ofContinue reading “Another day, another new moth”

Another day, another orchid

There’s never a day at Whitefish Point that isn’t interesting. Many times it’s with birds, sometimes insects or plants. Today it was with an orchid. The day started with clear skies and 59F. I was sitting on the deck sipping coffee when I took out my phone and got this picture. After a walk toContinue reading “Another day, another orchid”

Butterflies and dinner

Currently there is very little diversity in butterflies at Whitefish Point. But there are still some interesting ones. I’m not a big fan of European skippers, they usually show up in the hundreds or even the thousands. However, seeing just one is OK, even though they are a non-native invasive. Over the past few daysContinue reading “Butterflies and dinner”

Finally, some flowers!

Last night we had a beautiful sunset. This is one of the great joys of having an upper deck that faces west. White flowers seem to be dominating currently. The plant on the left is wild strawberry, there must be thousands between our place and the lighthouse at Whitefish Point. The plant on the rightContinue reading “Finally, some flowers!”

A night filled with moths

When the nights are warmer and without a threat of rain we set up the lights for attracting moths. In this part of May it’s still chancy regarding what we might get at Whitefish Point. The other night was better than we had recently experienced. Here are a few of our moths. We had severalContinue reading “A night filled with moths”

Time for some harriers

I love watching harriers migrate. Of all of the raptors they have the most-bouyant flight. Additionally when seen well you can identify males, females and juveniles. This is a juvenile harrier. This is probably a juvenile female that passed close to me. At the same time there are always eagles to watch at Whitefish Point.Continue reading “Time for some harriers”

Spruce Grouse

We had several friends visiting Whitefish Point, here to see birds. After breakfast we all got into one car and headed off to an area where Spruce Grouse are common. None of us were disappointed. We found three male Spruce Grouse. Photos from behind show the stunning tail. The rust-colored tail tips are stunning. Here’sContinue reading “Spruce Grouse”

A day filled with eagles

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”