Rabbits Beware! Snowy and Fluffy are Looking for You!

January 24, 2019Year 6MN North: Amity, MN North: Sax-Zim Bogrichardhoeg@gmail.com

It was a great day in Sax-Zim Bog. While I had not been planning on making the 60 minute drive over to the Bog, when I reviewed the weather forecast and saw the mercury would be dipping down towards the -25F mark for the next week, and yesterday was a balmy 12F with no wind, I was Bog bound. Like all mornings I refilled my own bird feeders first … scaring aware the rabbit featured at the end of the post. Two weeks ago, I was scaring off three rabbits every morning, now only one. I suspect some of my bunnies may have fallen prey to my two yard birds (Mr. and Mrs. Great Horned Owl).

The rabbits in the bog have an equally difficult task, and I found two hunters yesterday afternoon … Fluffy the Bobcat and a Snowy Owl. First I had a private experience watching this Snowy Owl hunt. Most folks when they visit Sax-Zim Bog want to find Great Gray Owls, but for me having a private hunt with a Snowy Owl in a natural location was truly special.

After watching Snowy hunt, I met Fluffy! Do not mess with this Bobcat!

Finally, while both hunters will take other prey, rabbits are a perfectly good meal!
(photograph taken through the window at 6 am … in the dark under flood lights)

Sax-Zim Bog Sunrise Owls (Snowy and Gray)

January 21, 2019Year 6MN North: Sax-Zim Bogrichardhoeg@gmail.com

The temperature was only -15F in Sax-Zim Bog this morning. Thus, I decided to take a walk at sunrise. I think the other birders who drove by me as I strolled down McDavitt Road may have thought I was crazy. Actually, when walking I can spot birds much more easily than from a moving car, but everyone thought it was a touch cool for a morning hike!

While I did not find anything on McDavitt, I did find (along with several other people) a new Snowy Owl which has appeared in the north part of the Bog. It’s a beauty! Here are two images I took not long after sunrise:

After some time with “Sleepy Snowy”, someone said there was a Great Gray Owl near by. I joined the exodous and by 8:30 was looking at my second owl of the morning (sunrise was 7:55 am).

Through the course of the day I kept returning to Snowy. I wondered if he might wake up and hunt. Nope. However, I did decide the owl presented the perfect opportunity to test the digital zoom on my new Canon SX70 camera. Said owl was way out in the field. From a strictly photography vantage point take a close look at the first image. I am using my the SX70 (released in early December) with digital zoom turned on. In the past with my Canon SX60 I never used digital zoom because the image quality really suffered.

With the SX70 on a bright day I have now found the results are pretty darn good … particularly if one considers the mobility I have with this camera. The optical zoom is 65x, and digital zoom doubles that reach to 130x (or 2730 mm which would be a HUGE lens). I did try taking some photos with digital zoom turned on when it was cloudy. Ugh. I did not like the results. I really needed the bright skies so I could shorten up the exposure. The “zoomed” image given above was taken at 1/1250th of a second at ISO 100.

While the SX60 had similar optics, the new camera has a new processor and operating system. Here is an image taken at the same time with digital zoom turned off.

Should you wish to see my other reviews of the Canon SX70, please follow this link.

A Boreal Bird Lesson: Dealing with Extreme Cold

January 20, 2019Year 6MN North: Sax-Zim Bogrichardhoeg@gmail.com

It is -18F right now at my house, and -30F inland away from Lake Superior in Sax-Zim Bog (about 40 miles distant from my house). The big lake is starting to freeze over. Lord knows, its cold enough! When our end of Gitche Gumee gets ice covered we will lose is winter warming effect.

Yesterday was an equally “warm” day, and I worked as a volunteer at the Sax-Zim Bog Welcome Center. When the temperature soared to -5F at 1 pm I took a photograph of this Sharp-Tailed Grouse. Examine the bird closely and particularly note how its legs are completely feathered down to its feet. You will then understand how this bird is well adapted for life in the Northland. Most birds do not have this feathered adaptation to the cold. The second image shows the Sharpie next to a Ring-Necked Pheasant. It does not have this winter adaptation.

I also saw one of my friendly neighborhood Snowy Owls. You can see how it is “puffed up against the cold”. I am including another flight image I took from a month ago. Snowy Owls have the same adaptation. First the sunrise pic, and then the flight show showing its legs with the winter / cold adaptation.

Finally a few more images from yesterday, including first my car’s outside temperature reading. I missed the -30F shot, but I experienced that number on Arkola Road. I will admit I kept my hikes brief yesterday (under fifteen minutes each).