After you have exhausted what there is in business, politics, conviviality, love, and so on — have found that none of these finally satisfy, or permanently wear — what remains? Nature remains; to bring out from their torpid recesses, the affinities of a man or woman with the open air, the trees, fields, the changes … Read more
Not long ago I was sitting in my truck at a nearby marsh…waiting for some swans to do something interesting. An old man drove up and stopped to say hello. He noticed the camera and asked, “what do you do with your pictures?” I initially replied, “not much really”. And he looked surprised. But I … Read more
As the years go by, it seems I find myself on the river banks, more and more often. The reasons vary…from catching riverboats passing by, or eagles flying overhead, to sunsets that always seem to end far too quickly. The cast of characters that you meet is always interesting too. This young heron was hanging … Read more
With a little bit of snow mixed in, I guess you could say we have an All-American backyard. Cardinals and Blue Jays are common, and especially the redbirds start to come into the feeders in much higher numbers when it snows. They help to keep one’s spirits up during those drab, gray days of winter.
Studies have shown that a hawk can spot a medium-sized bird or animal from up to a mile away. Most birds can see ultraviolet light, which adds another dimension to their visual ability. This can allow them to see things we can’t see, like the urine trails of rodents. And their ability to see detail … Read more
It’s been said that no other state in the country has had the landscape altered as much as Iowa has. Go back 150 to 200 years and you would have found an amazing diversity of habitats. It was a beautiful mixture of vast stretches of prairie, large tracts of woodlands, and an array of wetlands … Read more