Despite the warm, moist conditions, my woodlot is devoid of wildflowers. It’s too early, and the cold, snowy weather moving in this direction will hold things up a bit longer. Under the circumstances, I was ecstatic over this brightly colored macro opportunity, discovered while working in the woods:
Cup fungus on a fallen branch
Photo by NB Hunter. © All Rights Reserved.
From a photographer’s point of view, Stubby can be a challenge. He’s difficult to “pattern”: sometimes he’s out of sight for a day or two; sometimes he’s crepuscular, feeding in the dim light of early morning and late evening; sometimes, like today, he’s out in the middle of the yard in the mid-day sun running in circles, from seed to seed. He’s also becoming more adventurous, investigating stone walls, brush piles and other habitats beyond his original cruising radius. In any event, he lives, and life is good.
Photos by NB Hunter. 30March2016. © All Rights Reserved.
A wet, cold night gave me an opportunity to illustrate the origin of the common name for Chinodoxa: Glory of the Snow!
Photos by NB Hunter. © All Rights Reserved.
The brown winter blanket covering the marsh is deceptive. Things are coming to life under there, and the heron’s presence says it’s so!
Photo by NB Hunter 26Mar2016. © All Rights Reserved.
Glory-of-the-Snow
Photo by NB Hunter 27March2016
Chipmunks travel, loaf and hide in and around loose stone walls. These members of the squirrel family are widely known, easily approached and plentiful, sometimes too plentiful. So, why bother to photograph them, repeatedly, through the seasons? Well, they work the camera with a repertoire of poses and looks that is seductive and limitless! I simply can’t ignore them and succumb to the cute factor.
Photos by NB Hunter. © All Rights Reserved.
“It was one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade.” – Charles Dickens
“Splash ice” on mossy rocks along a bubbling brook. First day of spring!
Photos by NB Hunter. © All Rights Reserved.
The erratic weather of March helps explain why the definition of “snow” isn’t as simple as one might think. Yesterday morning I discovered a light coating of “graupel”, one of the many types of snow.
The morning temperature at ground level was in the low teens. Cold!!! That night, super-cooled water droplets in the cloud layer had coated snowflakes, which then fell as tiny white balls called graupel (also soft hail, snow pellets).
Graupel and frost on Turkey Tail mushroom
Graupel and frost on moss and leaves
Graupel and frost on a moss-covered log
Photos by NB Hunter 19March2016. © All Rights Reserved.
Stubby, the subject of several posts over the last 5 months, continues to beat all odds and is alive and well!
Stubby, the tailless, three-legged Red Squirrel; still running wild and free
Photo by NB Hunter
New arrivals – one of the many joys of having small family farms in the landscape!
Photos by NB Hunter. © All Rights Reserved.
Nick's Nature Pics 