Racine, Wisconsin — An Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly (Papilio glaucus) nectars on the flower of a Pink Delight Butterfly Bush (Buddleja davidii). Butterfly bushes have been very effective in attracting several types of...
wildlife
Tiger Swallowtail butterfly, tomato plant, Racine, Wisconsin
Racine, Wisconsin — An Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly (Papilio glaucus) basks on the leaves of a tomato plant in one of our backyard garden beds.
Sound of a chipmunk: Weird chipmunk noise
The chipmunk noise in this video was recorded on our front doorstep a couple of years ago, but we have the same situation in the backyard today. After weeks of air conditioned cabin fever during the Heat Wave of 2011, the windows are finally open here at the...
White-tailed deer at Mitchell School, Racine Wisconsin
Racine, Wisconsin — A pair of white-tailed deer stands at the corner of Webster Street and Drexel Avenue in front of Mitchell School. They came east from Taylor Avenue, wandered around a few backyards on Webster Street and...
White-tailed deer crossing Racine, Wisconsin street
Racine, Wisconsin — A pair of white-tailed deer cross the 2800 block of Webster Street on a Saturday morning. They came east from Taylor Avenue, wandered around Mitchell School for a while, and eventually headed back west...
Red Admiral butterfly, purple coneflower, Racine
Racine, Wisconsin — Dorsal view of a Red Admiral butterfly (Vanessa atalanta) as it feeds on a purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea). We saw an abundance of Red Admirals here in early July....
Monarch butterfly caterpillar eats Butterfly Weed
Racine, Wisconsin — A Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) caterpillar feeds on a Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa) plant in our backyard flower bed. [includeme...
Red Admiral butterfly on Black Elderberry flowers
Racine, Wisconsin — A Red Admiral butterfly (Vanessa atalanta) rests on Black Elderberry (Sambucus nigra) flowers in our backyard.
Monarch butterfly caterpillar on Butterfly Weed
Racine, Wisconsin — A Monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) caterpillar feeds on buds of Butterfly Weed (Asclepias tuberosa) in our backyard flower bed. [includeme...
Oil spills absorbed by donated hair booms: MatterOfTrust.org
Sitting down to work this morning, Amy read me a Facebook post from her friend Dana Boyle, who is looking for a way to spread the word that hair soaks up oil spills, and that hair can be donated to help cleanup efforts in the massive Gulf oil spill off Louisiana:...
Birdwatching: Cedar Waxwing circus at Kenosha’s Kemper Center
The Cedar Waxwing makes for some striking birdwatching, as the Cornell Lab of Ornithology notes: ... the Cedar Waxwing is a silky, shiny collection of brown, gray, and lemon-yellow, accented with a subdued crest, rakish black mask, and brilliant-red wax droplets on...
Tobacco hornworm caterpillar (Manduca sexta)
Racine, Wisconsin — A tobacco hornworm caterpillar (Manduca sexta, often confused with the tomato hornworm caterpillar) is seen devouring tomato plants in our backyard. As is detailed in our blog, when we first spotted this...
Cooper’s Hawk in crabapple tree, Racine, Wisconsin
Racine, Wisconsin — A Cooper's Hawk (a member of the goshawk genus Accipiter) perches among crab apples and patches of lichen in our backyard crabapple tree as we photograph it through our kitchen window.[includeme...
Humpback whale breaching off Maui
Off Lahaina, Hawaii — A humpback whale breaches during our Pacific Whale Foundation Whalewatch Eco-tour. The brim of Amy's hat is in the bottom-right corner, and the pink hat is worn by our friend Ali Gerakaris. The island...
Cooper’s Hawk at Kenosha harbor
Kenosha, Wisconsin — A Cooper's Hawk perches in a tree along Kenosha's small boat harbor, observing sparrow activity.
Frog in wetlands: Kettle Moraine marsh, Wisconsin
Kettle Moraine State Forest--Southern Unit — A frog looks out from the surface of marsh waters along the Scuppernong Springs Nature Trail.
Frog camouflage at Kettle Moraine South
Kettle Moraine State Forest—Southern Unit — A frog blends in with the mud along the Scuppernong Springs Nature Trail.
Feeding Lake Michigan gulls
Kenosha, Wisconsin — A man feeds bread to Ring-Billed Gulls at Pennoyer Park on Lake Michigan. Please don't do this. Quoting from the article linked above: The rapidly expanding ring-billed gull population has led to...
Black Swallowtail butterfly near Bong Recreation Area
Near Brighton, Wisconsin — A Black Swallowtail butterfly, seen on the side of Highway 142 at the northeast corner of Richard Bong State Recreation Area. [includeme...