Cedar Waxwing Courtship Ritual

 

When the cherry trees are blooming and the air is heady with the fragrances of spring, the Cedar Waxwings dance their elegant courtship ritual among the blossoms. The male plucks a petal, then gently hands the precious object to his mate, who hops away, then back and returns it to him. The male then in turn hops away, then back to return the petal, and so this goes as the two form a deep connection.

Wood Duck Family

 

As spring brushes its joyful green fingers across the verdant hills, a mother wood duck brings her brood out to play upon the quiet waters of an emerald pool, tucked away in the folds of the forest. Here in this idyllic green oasis of nature the ducklings may grow in peace, exploring their world and finding wonder in everything. 

Redwing blackbirds leaping on lilypads

I observed this unusual behavior being exhibited by the Redwing Blackbirds in a local pond. The wide floating leaves of the lily pads are just strong enough to support the weight of a blackbird, and so they hop from pad to pad in search of the larvae that dwell on the undersides of the leaves. This is the first time I've seen these birds exhibiting this behavior, and its quite amazing to watch!

Sunrise Burns away the Spring Frost

 

The warm sun of a spring morning rises over the frigid fields, burning away the frost left by the icy grip of winter. Crystals fall to shining pearlescent dew that gilds the fronds of new green grass like a billion jewels, stars shining in a green void as if embedded in an emerald cosmos. Soon the frost will no more silence the chorus of fogs, and birds will fill the sky with song. Spring has finally arrived.

Mavic 3 Cold Weather Test

 

The DJI Mavic 3 captures amazing photo and video quality, and is also capable of flying in temps as low as 14 degrees Fahrenheit. For this video I flew in weather approaching that level of extreme cold, and the Mavic 3 performed perfectly. 

Summit Lake Legacy Forest - Stop the Delica timber sale!

 

Summit Lake is the brilliant, crystalline gem of the Capitol Hills. Folded into the northern flank of that small, forested mountain range, Summit Lake is home to salmon and people alike, and both depend on its clear, clean water. That water quality is dependent on the wild forests that blanket its watershed, and unfortunately that water source from which people drink and in which salmon spawn is threatened by the "Delica" timber sale.

Beatty Creek Legacy Forests - Big Trees in Peril

 

The deep, quiet valley of Beatty Creek is one of the few wild valleys home to big trees and diverse, natural legacy forest left in the Capitol Hills. Here can be found a vibrant, native ecosystem largely untouched in over a century, with large remnant old growth trees that stood watch over the landscape long before Europeans set foot in the Pacific Northwest. Sadly, this beautiful forest is in imminent danger, as the Washington Department of Natural Resources (WA DNR) has put most of the irreplaceable forest here on the chopping block. The Smuggler and Oracle timber sales should be canceled, and the forest granted the permanent protection it deserves.