Western Canada: Day-8

We started our day early, got breakfast then went to the Dawson City airport for a flight to Inuvik in the Northwest Territory. Since the weather for the next day looked iffy we decided to drive to Tuktoyaktuk as soon as we could, which was a great decision. We made it all the way toContinue reading “Western Canada: Day-8”

Whitefish Point – A rare bird shows up

You never quite know what to expect bird wise when you’re at Whitefish Point. I am always interested in what raptors appear, when they appear and in what numbers. Rough-legged Hawks seem to fly in any weather, regardless of the temperature or wind direction. The same applies to Sharp-shinned Hawks and Turkey Vultures. Red-tailed HawksContinue reading “Whitefish Point – A rare bird shows up”

Traveling south

As I am sitting here writing we are on the fourth day of our trip south. The drive through Kentucky, Tennessee and Georgia were easy and occasionally interesting. We always stop at the Tennessee Welcome Center on I-75 because they have nice bathrooms and a nature trail. It’s always where we find the first warblersContinue reading “Traveling south”

Last night’s bird talk

Last night I gave a talk on warbler migration for the Washtenaw Bird & Nature Alliance at the downtown Ann Arbor Library. As always it was amazing fun. I saw a lot of people that I hadn’t seen for years. I censused birds in the Arb between 1979 and 2008. At the end my responsibilitiesContinue reading “Last night’s bird talk”

Whitefish Point – September, 2024

The view south-west from the tip of Whitefish Point where we have been for the past week. Evening at the point looking northwest. It’s always fun finding interesting animal tracks. These are bear tracks. The photo on the right has Susan’s foo for some size comparison. Planting day at the habitat restoration site. People, leadContinue reading “Whitefish Point – September, 2024”

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”

Moth night at Island Park, Ann Arbor

Our day started with the new moth trap set up. We got some moths and lost of aquatic insects. We had a spectacular dinner. Susan made falafel and we got tuum, humus, pita at El Harissa. I made mango-curried chickpeas and rice and this is what dinner looked like. Had to eat well since weContinue reading “Moth night at Island Park, Ann Arbor”

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”

Moths in Ann Arbor

On Friday night we did a moth night for the Natural Areas Preservation people and volunteers at Oakwoods Nature Area. What a great evening at a place we had never been to. The meandering trails in the woods skirt a nice vernal pool and a large pond/lake. Setting up was simple and at about 9:30Continue reading “Moths in Ann Arbor”

A couple of interesting moths

At first look these two moths look alike, but they aren’t. The moth on the left is the spear-marked black. The moth on the right is the white-banded black. These were photographed on the same morning coming to our lights. But not only were they there on the same day, there were a lot ofContinue reading “A couple of interesting moths”