A Veggie Banquet Sitting in a sea of grasses and wildflowers, this young brown-phase Black Bear was totally immersed in dining on the vegetable matter at hand. It was a veggie banquet. ~ Anecdote and Black Bear capture, A Veggie Banquet © Jerry L. Ferrara
Old Friend Hello Old Friend. So good to see you today. It’s been awhile. Wasn’t sure you had not moved on. I last heard you speaking from somewhere deep in the frigid January woods. Your conversations with others seemed somber and deep-seated. I’m sure any and all transgressions and indiscretions were handled diplomatically. I recognized your presence back in March when a murder of crows rampaged and ransacked the forest in a ruthless, raucous attempt to drive you out. I feared they attained their goal for your absence has been strongly felt. But gladly I was incorrect, for here you are! So good to see you today, my Old Friend. ~ Anecdote and Great Horned Owl capture, Old Friend © Jerry L. Ferrara
Its Fluting Voice A Red-crowned Crane raises its handsome head and hurls its fluting voice skyward. ~ Anecdote and Red-crowned Crane capture, Its Fluting Voice © Jerry L. Ferrara, Hokkaido, Japan.
Tiptoe Through The Seaweed After skillfully snaring a small fish in Monterey Bay, California, a Great Egret shows off another bit of dexterity. Its jaunt involved a tiptoe through the seaweed. ~ Anecdote and Great Egret capture, Tiptoe Through The Seaweed © Jerry L. Ferrara
A State of Well-being Recently hauled out from briny Scottish Loch na Keal in the inner Hebrides, this Eurasian Otter rests atop a pile of shore-bound seaweed. The high-spirited mammal, and member of the weasel family, suddenly performed a trademark comfort move by stretching forth its right arm and paw. The engaging creature certainly seemed to be in “a state of well-being.” ~ Anecdote and Eurasian Otter capture, A State of Well-being © Jerry L. Ferrara
A Visual Echo The morning air was brisk and a chilling frost painted the lake’s margin. The light was murky for the sun had not yet peeked over the horizon. In the midst of the somber setting a resplendent Bald Eagle sat contemplatively on a log at water’s edge. As if a curtain had been raised at the opening act of a play, up came the sun and its illumination washed away the dimness. A muted radiance poured into the landscape and the shady “shallows” grabbed the light. Mirrored on the water’s face was a visual echo. ~ Anecdote and Bald Eagle capture, A Visual Echo © Jerry L. Ferrara
A Standout Many years ago when we first settled in Idaho it was fairly common to see Ruffed Grouse discreetly stalking the nearby forests, or hear a male drumming its wings from a secluded woodlot. Those incidences seem less frequent today. This winter, however, we’ve had a few visitations from a grouse going about exploring our yard. The Ruffed Grouse is a native game bird species and a master of deception. Its dappled feathering and extremely slow, furtive gait makes this avian character difficult to detect as it easily melts into the woodland understory. In today’s image “our visitor” pensively poses on a mound of snow. As you can see, its concealment techniques have failed as the camera captured the wily creature on the white surface against the dark shadows of our woods. This Ruffed Grouse was a standout. ~ Anecdote and Ruffed Grouse capture, A Standout © Jerry L. Ferrara
Calling Card The Bengal Tiger pregnantly paused at the forest’s enigmatic edge, but the stop was only brief. Turning toward the nearest tree, the cat sniffed at the trunk’s bark. The creature’s eyes then rolled back in its head, its nose went up in the air and a silly grin adorned its face. Turning with its hindquarters pointed at the tree, the predator raised its sinewy tail and liberally sprayed. It was merely leaving its “calling card”. ~ Anecdote and Bengal Tiger capture, Calling Card © Jerry L. Ferrara
A Garish Mask The Chestnut-eared Aracari is a denizen of the wilds of South America. A member of the toucan clan, it presents a most outrageous profile … an appearance that’s actually quite “loud”. At first glance, the creature’s gaudy presentation doesn’t seem real. It’s as if the aracari is wearing a garish mask. ~ Anecdote and Chestnut-eared Aracari capture, A Garish Mask © Jerry L. Ferrara
A High-wire Act One bright overcast day I decided to visit a local housing tract to see if there was any “urban wildlife” activity. Sure enough, I caught this Fox Squirrel [an introduced species to our area] leaving a backyard squirrel-feeding station. This “savvy saver”, with pilfered peanut in maw, made its guileful getaway via the overhead power lines. It was quite a high-wire act. ~ Anecdote and Fox Squirrel capture, A High-wire Act © Jerry L. Ferrara