The Days of Summer - Day Fifty-nine through Day Sixty-five

Here is installment nine of my Days of Summer photo project - I am trying to catch up, but I have been very busy with scheduling school program  I started this project on the Summer Solstice (21 June 2018) with a photo from a sunrise hike at the Chippewa Watershed Conservancy's Bundy Hill Preserve.  My plan is to photograph something every day until the Fall Equinox (22 September 2018) and share one image from each day.  I am currently in week ten of the project.  To see the previous installments click here.
 
Day 59 (18 August 2018) - American Robin feathers

This image was photographed at my parent's home in Clinton County.  While searching for something to photograph, I found a dead American Robin lying on the ground on a mowed path through the woods.  This picture shows some of the feathers on its back and wings, with just a tiny bit of orange from its neck at the bottom left of the image.


Day 60 (19 August 2018) - Woodpecker holes in a birch trunk

This picture was taken at the Chippewa Watershed Conservancy's Hall's Lake Natural Area during a stewardship outing.  I noticed this log while searching the woods for Autumn Olive (an invasive species) and went back to photograph it later.  These holes were probably originally created by a Yellow-bellied Sapsucker.  Now a Hairy Woodpecker was taking advantage of the easy access to search for insects in the rotting trunk.


Day 61 (20 August 2018) - Goldenrod Soldier Beetles on Rosinweed

This image was taken in our home native pollinator garden.  At any given time (especially during late summer) I can find dozens pollinators in our garden.  This year, for the first time, I noticed an influx of Goldenrod Soldier Beetles.  This mating pair was crawling around on one of the Rosinweed plants.  This image has been cropped from a horizontal to a vertical format.


Day 62 (21 August 2018) - Bombus impatiens on Purple Coneflower

I love bees, especially bumble bees!  This image of a Common Eastern Bumble Bee (Bombus impatiens) was taken at the Forest Hill Nature Area.  I cropped the image to a square just because I thought it looked best in this format.


Day 63 (22 August 2018) - Storm clouds

This picture was taken at Chipp-A-Waters Park in Mt. Pleasant late in the day.  This image reminds me of the froth created by waves crashing on a beach.


Day 64 (23 August 2018) - Monarch caterpillar

This Monarch (Danaus plexippus) on a Common Milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) was photographed in the field next to the Isabella Conservation District office.  On days that I spend a lot of time in the office, sometimes I just need to go outside for a few minutes.

Day 65 (24 August 2018) - Native Pollinator Garden at Winn Elementary

The Isabella Conservation District planted and currently helps maintain native pollinator gardens at two local schools and the Mt. Pleasant Discovery Museum.  With school starting, I spent a couple hours pulling weeds and moving "volunteer" plants from pathways at the Winn Elementary School Garden.  The Leopold bench in the picture was one of six constructed with students back in 2013.  They were all recently repainted in the school colors.

Five field guides for holiday gift giving (2017 edition)

Hi, I'm Mike and I have a problem with field guides.  I simply cannot resist the pull of  a new guide.  Birds?  I have guides.  Trees?  I have guides for those too.  Flowers?  Lord, do I have guides for flowers!  Insects?  Not just general guides to insects - I have guide dedicated to bees, aquatic insects, and beetles.  (I love beetles!)  Lichens?  Who has a field guide for lichens?  Um, I do...  Actually, I know I have at least two lichen field guides.

Like I said, I have a problem.

In 2016 I wrote a series of posts (Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4) about some of my favorite field guides that I thought would make good Christmas gifts .  Here is an update for 2017.

1.  Amphibians and Reptiles of the Great lakes Region, Revised Edition by James H Harding and David A. Mifsud (ISBN 9780472073382)

This is not a new field guide.  The original edition came out in 1997.  Even if you own the older edition, go out and buy this field guide.  It has more photographs and updated (color) maps.  This book was published by the University of Michigan Press and costs $24.95 (paperback).  When I found out that this edition was in the works, it immediately went on my to-buy list.

2.  Mammals of the Great lakes Region, Third Edition by Allen Kurta (ISBN 9780472053452)

This is another update of a previous addition.  Like Amphibians of the Great Lakes, this book was published by the University of Michigan Press.  It retails for $24.95 (paperback).  The key updates to this edition include color photographs and updated maps.  Another nice feature that I like in this book is that origin of each species' scientific name is described in detail.  Did I need to purchase the updated version of this guide?  No, but I think it was worth the cost.  If you live in the Great Lakes region I definitely recommend this book.

3.  Mushrooms of the Upper Midwest:  A Simple Guide to Common Mushrooms by Teresa Marrone and Kathy Yerich (ISBN 9781591934172)

Mushrooms of the Upper Midwest is not a new book.  It was published in 2014 by Adventure Publications.  This book is one of an entire series of small pocket sized guides.  Some of the books that I have in this series include wildflowers, trees, reptiles and amphibians, and mammals,  Limited in scope, these are great books for beginners.

I like that this book lists many of the common edible and toxic mushrooms that can be found locally.  As always, I caution anyone against relying on a single source for information on edible mushrooms - Mistakes can be deadly!

4.  Bark:  A Field Guide to Trees of the Northeast by Michael Wojtech (ISBN 9781584658528)

This another book that is not new.  Bark was published in 2011 by the University Press of New England.  I have been aware of this book for several years, but have never come across it in a store until this year.  I most tree field guides, bark is an afterthought.  There might be a short description for each species, or even a single picture of the bark of a mature tree.  In this book, bark is the star.  There are photographs of bark at various stages of a tree's life - young, mature, and old trees.  Although this book is not specific to the Midwest/Great Lakes there are enough common species to make it worth purchasing.

5.  Michigan Atlas & Gazetteer by DeLorme (ISBN 9780899334424)

Okay, this one is not a field guide.  Instead it is guide that gets you into the field.  I currently own three different editions of this guide.  Whenever we go on vacation to another state, I am likely to buy the DeLorme Atlas for that state.  I know off the top of my head that we own copies for Maine, New York, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin (at a minimum).  These guides are so much more than road maps.  They show waterfalls, geologic sites, museums, scenic drives, lighthouses, hiking trails, and much more.  There are many places that I would never have visited if I hadn't found them in a DeLorme Atlas.

More Photos from the RAM Center at North Higgins Lake State Park

Yesterday was the first full day of 2016, Michigan DNR Academy of Natural Resources.  I had a little bit of time before and after class sessions to explore and photograph the area around the RAM Center.  A few of the photographs have been labeled, but not all of them.

Deer remains among conifer trees

Backlit spider web

Snail eggs on a decaying log

Daddy-long-legs (not a spider) camouflaged against pine bark

Birch Bark curls

Shelf fungus on a birch log

Daddy-long-legs on birch

Ripples in Higgins Lake

"Bark"ing Up the Wrong Tree...

Sometime I try to search out brand new subjects to photograph, but often I find myself going back to familiar places and familiar themes.  One of the subjects that I photograph again and again is tree bark.  Why?  The variety of colors and textures.  Here are a few examples.

Textures

I take many close-up photos of things that I find in nature without being entirely sure of what I am going to use the pictures for.  One thing the images have in common is that they often show something that has an interesting texture or combination of textures.

Along the banks of Mission Creek

 

Paper Birch

Feathers and beach rocks

 

Ripple Marks

 

Lichen

Beach rocks

Bark and lichen

Melting snow

Frosty spruce needles

Snow-covered rocks

Entangling vines and ash bark

Ice crystals

Shells along Lake Michigan