tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-51693741480802337382012-02-19T05:46:50.370-05:00Welcome to Wetlands Cronicle, a collection of posts about about the flora and fauna on our 13 acres in northwest Ohio.Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.comBlogger821100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-56546068640641146242012-02-15T09:11:00.000-05:002012-02-15T09:11:20.574-05:00

I noticed bloody muskrat footprints in the snow while walking the dogs this morning. We have several muskrat lodges in our marsh but we also have mink, which love to kill muskrat. These footprints were leaving the marsh so I wonder if there was a major battle last night over one of the lodges.

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-56489906958110204222011-10-20T09:54:00.001-05:002011-10-20T09:56:09.424-05:00

This is a photo of a female common yellowthroat that was was flitting in and out of the dogwoods looking for something good to eat. They will soon be gone from Ohio, heading south for the winter. I've spent a fair amount of time trying to photograph these little cuties in the spring but have never gotten the photo I was hoping for. They love to nest in the dogwoods and according to Kenn

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-50773330196874613412011-03-31T08:56:00.004-05:002011-03-31T17:08:16.998-05:00

 Since our marsh isn't quite "duck ready" yet we are pinning our hopes on the shorebirds....lots of mud for them to dig around in! I've seen a few Killdeers taking flight from the middle of the marsh but this morning I saw two Greater Yellowlegs working the shallow areas for food.  This is an old photo I took a few years ago in the ditch that surrounds most of our property. I hope, if the

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-83936054810051225262011-03-14T08:24:00.000-05:002011-03-14T08:24:24.218-05:00

Yesterday afternoon I was trying to find Cornell's Birds of North America site when I ran into one of my photos on the lab of ornithology's home page. Follow the link below to check it out. It's the Baltimore Oriole and the first of five photos in a slide show. I was pretty surprised and think I may have screamed! I place my bird photos in Cornell's Flickr group and they have used 3 of of them so

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-54567050277122638802011-03-08T08:32:00.014-05:002011-03-08T10:06:59.567-05:00

This is what a portion of our new marsh looked like a few days ago. Most of the ice has since melted but we are still waiting for the geese and ducks. It will be interesting to see what happens this spring. Managing a wetland is complicated and from what I've read, not an exact science. There isn't a lot of cover yet and I doubt there is much to eat but you never know...hard to tell what is going

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-69892537893398836092011-03-03T08:05:00.011-05:002011-03-03T10:12:25.860-05:00

Whew!! I just got back inside after feeding my chickens and taking my two dogs for a walk around the dike. There is a cold northeast wind and the temperature is around 23 degrees so the wind chill must be in the low teens. I could be bummed out but the sun is out and I know spring is coming! In the last week I've heard several Cardinals and Red-winged Blackbirds singing and last night I heard my

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-34254457907766919972011-01-29T09:38:00.006-05:002011-01-29T12:32:43.703-05:00

While I was walking my dogs about a month ago I noticed a steel fence post had magically appeared out in the middle of our marsh. I sent a couple of emails and found out Bob Wilbur, who basically created our wetland, was going to install a wood duck nest box. The next afternoon the box was attached and ready to go!This one is located in the marsh and will be surrounded by water so hopefully it

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-18442344521244214412011-01-24T09:10:00.004-05:002011-01-26T13:21:53.309-05:00

I've decided it's time to get back into blogging once again. It's hard to believe it's been over a year since I've written an entry in here. A lot has happened since then, the most significant event being the excavation of our new wetland. This is a photo of Keetie, our guinea fowl, standing in front of the bulldozer. This was officially the first scoop of earth that started the project.This all

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-8289938898840002452009-06-16T13:32:00.003-05:002009-06-16T13:50:39.787-05:00

We have something new on our pond this year. Two baby wood ducks! My grandfather built and erected a wood duck house on the edge of the pond 30+ years ago and apparently this duck was in the market for "a fix me up" home. The mother duck left and they seem to be totally on their own. I did a little research and this is common with the wood duck. The mother shows up in the early morning or late

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-10493449079132735112009-04-11T09:36:00.014-05:002009-04-14T08:07:25.993-05:00

Below is a series of photos I captured Thurs. morning, April 9th, of a mating pair of Canada Geese. I knew what was coming because of the neck-dipping display shown in the photo above. This usually happens between a male and female before they mate....call it goose foreplay. They dip their necks into the water and bob their heads up and down. I caught them here after they had just lifted their

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-61799702232210805482009-03-18T07:19:00.004-05:002009-03-18T08:11:36.243-05:00

Early spring is a great time of the year to search for treasures left over from the previous year. Without the heavy foliage, and hopefully, without heavy snowfall, you have a much better chance of finding birds nests, egg casings, etc. We have plenty of Baltimore Orioles nests on our property but they are almost impossible to find in the late spring and summer. I took a walk on the back dike

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-28225096834936394612009-03-12T09:37:00.003-05:002009-03-18T08:12:22.901-05:00

I've been trying to exercise almost everyday but during this past week it was hard to get out due to heavy rains. Last night I was tired and chilled(from running my courier route) but my old corduroys felt uncomfortably tight, so after supper I forced myself out the back door for several laps around the pond. It was great being out! Robins were everywhere...in the trees, on the ground, and

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-57953687156534546372009-02-25T09:17:00.004-05:002009-02-25T09:34:21.451-05:00

I've added a brand new feature to my website and eventually it will replace my Gallery. My web design skills are clearly lacking and I was never happy with the appearance of my photo gallery. I decided to sign up with a photo hosting service, created a sub-domain(wasted an entire morning figuring that out) and now have a much improved gallery in the works. You can check it out by clicking on the

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-16532468437276652282008-12-31T08:54:00.006-05:002008-12-31T09:43:16.452-05:00

It's been a while since I posted in my blog so I thought I'd better write something so people don't wonder if I passed on into the great unknown.It has been an unusually hard winter here so I haven't been doing much shooting. With my Renaud's Syndrome winter shooting is a challenge but I do occasionally sit in my blind or take a walk with my camera. On one of my walks I noticed one of my wren

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-35747250974104554602008-11-26T08:59:00.005-05:002008-11-26T09:14:01.038-05:00

This November has been, on average, colder than normal. When the temperatures started to drop we saw a huge increase in the number of american goldfinches at the thistle and black oil sunflower seed feeders. I have easily counted 20 goldfinches vying for a spot at the feeders. We've also spotted 1 or 2 pine siskins in with the goldfinches. Last weekend it was a little warmer so I got a chance to

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-82993589490068193682008-11-13T08:44:00.005-05:002008-11-13T09:04:44.719-05:00

For about the last three weeks I have been noticing small birds flitting around in the arborvitae trees. At first I thought they were American goldfinches but when I finally got a good look at one of them I knew I was wrong. After checking my bird guide I realized my goldfinches were actually pine siskins. I've seen flocks from 7-50 birds weaving in and out of the arborvitaes looking for dried

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-53453227664548241052008-11-04T08:18:00.002-05:002008-11-04T08:31:40.687-05:00

I took this photo of a Red-breasted Nuthatch yesterday morning. The weather has been un-november like so I've been taking advantage of it. I didn't expect to see any of these little birds this year. Last year, because of a shortage of food in Canada, they came down into our area. I haven't seen one since spring so was surprised when this one flew in on a branch near where I was standing. I've had

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-89053266414040463402008-10-02T07:29:00.003-05:002008-10-02T07:39:20.648-05:00

Gena and I saw this gull at East Harbor State Park on Tuesday the 30th of Sept. It was very large and it's back was black so we think it is a Great Black-backed Gull. If anyone knows otherwise please let me know. According to the area bird list it can occur in this area in the summer and winter but it is considered a rare sighting...some years it isn't seen here at all. It was hanging out with

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-54479976191925813072008-09-23T12:10:00.007-05:002008-09-23T12:40:07.451-05:00

Monarch Butterfly Viceroy ButterflyWith the recent sickness and death of my father I haven't been much in the mood for photography but I did get this photo of a viceroy butterfly recently when I took a short walk. You can see the difference between the viceroy and the monarch in these two photos...the viceroy has a black band across the hindwing. We have lots of willows and poplars here, two

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-1340192062632563712008-09-07T09:02:00.007-05:002008-09-07T09:57:07.789-05:00

I check in on Kenn Kaufmann's Best Bets for Birding--http://cranecreekbirding.blogspot.com/-- blog often to see what is going on in the area. In his last entry he mentioned the beaches at Maumee Bay State Park as a good area for migrating shorebirds, so Gena and I decided to check it out yesterday. We got to the park in the early afternoon...probably not the best time of the day but we did manage

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-73747309965457551322008-09-03T19:18:00.002-05:002008-09-03T20:05:55.985-05:00

I decided to get up early this morning, set my blind up by the pond, and see if I could get some photos of the herons and egrets that have been gorging themselves on the frog feast. I took a branch carving out with me that was suppose to someday look like a rooster. I spent about a half hour whittling away on the thing and depended on Keetie, my guinea fowl, to alert me with his alarm call if

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-35812003803036212752008-08-25T07:01:00.002-05:002008-08-25T07:14:26.419-05:00

Yesterday I packed up some prints and note cards and participated in the Artists and Authors event held at the Black Swamp Bird Observatory. I didn't sell a lot but I met some neat people and had a great time. I finally got to meet Kenn Kaufman and he signed my set of Kaufman field guides and Kingbird Highway. I joined BSBO and also bought the new Dragonflies and Damselflies of Northeast Ohio.

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-75685168533859785982008-08-19T17:47:00.002-05:002008-08-19T18:01:31.727-05:00

Two nights ago I was on my way to the back of the property when I spotted this juvenile Black-crowned Night-Heron on the edge of the pond. I slowly scooted along in the grass on my knees--ruining my jeans in the process--until I got close enough to get some good shots. This year we have "herds" of young bullfrogs in the pond and this might be what attracted the heron. It caught this frog shown

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-81538650338396794762008-08-16T07:25:00.002-05:002008-08-16T07:45:01.685-05:00

I've never been a big fan of hummingbird feeders. Most of them are hard to clean and I was always afraid I would accidently kill one of these beauties with some awful bacteria. I planted trumpet vines along the chain-link fence and for a couple of years they did pretty well and the hummers visited the flowers, but this year I didn't have very good luck with the vines...maybe it's the heavy clay

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-41927512666341106362008-08-13T09:36:00.003-05:002008-10-27T08:30:40.850-05:00

I've been working on an online store for the last couple of months with the hopes of selling some of my prints and note cards. Originally, I thought I would set something up in my website but I decided to go with Etsy. Etsy is like an Ebay for artists and craftspeople. I will be adding a lot more in the coming weeks but if you want to see what I have so far check it out at http://

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-25358035534651725412008-08-04T06:55:00.004-05:002008-08-04T07:19:51.071-05:00

Wow! I can't believe it's been two weeks since I posted in here. This past week was pretty hectic and my photography time has been limited. Our cistern was going bad so we decided to have a well dug. Where I live, in Bay Township, very few people have wells but with the rising cost of gas we decided to go for it. It currently costs us $75 a month to have water hauled in and it will only get worse

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-24896448411130082012008-07-17T08:11:00.003-05:002008-07-17T08:37:16.625-05:00

The bird photography has slowed down a bit here so I went out on the morning of July 11th figuring I would be doing some insect photography. At the last minute I decided to take my long lens I use for birds just in case I saw something... boy, am I glad I did. This is a Virginia Rail with two of her chicks. Usually our property is dry by this time of the year but we've had a lot of rain and the

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-47929190421496826632008-07-07T08:20:00.003-05:002008-07-07T08:51:43.339-05:00

The mulberry tree has been a bird magnet since about the second to third week of June. I have been trying for the last few years to get a photo like this and finally, last night, I nailed it. Even with a big telephoto lens and the new digital technology bird photography is a super challenge...maybe that's why I like it so much. I can't tell you how many of my photos end up in the recycle bin but

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-77478924907593427092008-07-06T08:49:00.003-05:002008-07-06T09:11:11.324-05:00

The two Canada Geese families are doing well. The families--one with two goslings and the other with five-- arrived on our pond in early spring. The parents walked them up from the marsh where their nests were and decided this looked like a good place to raise their families. The goslings are beginning to look like miniature versions of the adults and sometimes it's hard to tell them apart but

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-62729945293200231792008-06-27T06:39:00.002-05:002008-06-27T07:06:26.811-05:00

Looks like one of the baby song sparrows survived the cowbird parasitism. I got this photo yesterday morning near some of my feeders. You can clearly see the difference in size between the two babies and why the cowbird usually wins. I just subscribed to Cornell's Lab of Ornithology and there is a nice article on cowbirds in the newsletter written by Laura Erickson. I knew some host birds remove

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-60839532610663897662008-06-24T19:21:00.003-05:002008-06-24T19:56:05.597-05:00

I heard this baby cowbird(on the left) before I ever saw it...what a set of lungs. It's being raised by this poor song sparrow who is almost half the cowbirds size. Cowbirds parasitize other birds --usually smaller birds--by laying their eggs in their nests. They are actually a threat to some bird species. Many of the smaller birds don't survive when they have this big, squawking mouth competing

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-86552103340659286102008-06-20T07:52:00.005-05:002008-06-20T08:26:15.357-05:00

I saw this young deer when I was walking the dogs in the morning. It must have been lying down off to the side of our path. It shot up out of the weeds and was gone in a flash. I went back near the same spot with my camera in the early evening. I really didn't expect to see anything but while I was standing there the same deer showed up and he seemed perturbed that I was blocking his way. I was

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-30198663442542808952008-06-14T15:41:00.002-05:002008-06-14T15:49:20.695-05:00

This is a Swift Long-winged Skimmer...say that fast ten times! I was working at my computer and noticed him sitting on our new rose bush. It was kind of breezy out so I wasn't sure I would be able to get a photo. I waited for a lull in the breeze while I was unknowingly--at least at the time-- kneeling in dog poop. I like this photo because you usually see photos of dragonflies on dead twigs. I

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-6159830824869037572008-06-09T05:18:00.002-05:002008-06-09T05:37:02.899-05:00

This was a shot I had been trying to get for a few days...a chipping sparrow with a beak full of bugs. It's hard to see in this small photo but he has quite a haul to take back to the nestlings, including a juicy green worm. I originally thought this was the Song Sparrow's nest...obiviously I was wrong. The Song Sparrows ended up building a nest in a shrub right next to the bathroom window. They

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-29317558780332685892008-06-05T12:16:00.002-05:002008-06-05T12:28:17.287-05:00

There is so much going on around me on our property righ now that I can't decide where to set my camera up. Should I sit by the garden, where there is some unidentified bird flying in for nesting material, or should I sit in the backyard, where a catbird is regularly visiting for jelly and suet? To top it all off I looked out on the pond this morning and there sat a merganser with 7 ducklings.

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-19154273763295380492008-05-29T06:38:00.004-05:002008-05-29T07:01:26.593-05:00

Baby StarlingWell, the onslaught of babies at the feeders has started. First to appear are the starlings. I saw 3 of them sitting on the fence waiting for the adult to feed them this morning. One of them accidentally flew into the screen, bounced off, then clumsily flew over to the fence and started squawking for food...never missed a beat. It's flying skills leave a lot to be desired at this

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-13977979407221166942008-05-26T11:12:00.003-05:002008-05-26T11:38:25.620-05:00

I stood in the weeds for an hour and a half yesterday trying to get a decent photo of this female building her nest. I wasn't too happy with the results so I'm going to try again later this afternoon, weather permitting. From what I have read it takes her around two days to build the nest, so my window of opportunity is waning. Her nest is in a very small dogwood and very close to the ground.

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-47540718557795985422008-05-25T08:46:00.005-05:002008-05-26T11:12:01.440-05:00

I have long ago lost count of the Robins sitting on nests, building their second nest or feeding fledglings on our 12 acres. In short, there are Robin's everywhere. While we were grilling last evening I noticed something in the field next to our house. I thought it might be a baby bird but after it didn't move for about 5 minutes I decided it must be a small pile of wet leaves. Well, the leaves

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-40287144219477145322008-05-23T11:50:00.003-05:002008-05-23T12:08:34.774-05:00

This Palm Warbler hung around near our back path for a couple of days and I took this on the last day I saw him...probably a couple of weeks ago. Since then the weather hasn't been great but I guess typical spring weather. It's been below normal temperature-wise but at least that usually means no bad storms. I haven't heard tornado sirens yet this spring and as far as I'm concerned that's good

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-15902507325503791662008-05-16T07:31:00.003-05:002008-05-16T08:03:17.364-05:00

On May 14, I spotted this warbler singing his heart out not too far behind the house. Yesterday I decided to go out and pick a spot in the weeds and wait for him to get close enough for a shot. It wasn't a very good day...windy and most of the time the sun was under heavy cloud cover. When he landed on this elm sapling the lighting was so bad that I needed my flash. A split second after he landed

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-51242958067586802992008-05-14T09:27:00.004-05:002008-05-14T10:02:52.592-05:00

Male Chipping Sparrow I photographed this Chipping Sparrow on the same morning I took the Yellow-rumped photo. He's sitting in a clump of blossoms in a flowering crab apple tree. It's rare to have perfect conditions but this particular morning was about as close to perfection as you can get...beautiful blue sky, light breeze, great lighting, and I was able to get fairly close to this bird. I

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-87839537558645722102008-05-07T06:20:00.004-05:002008-05-08T19:20:04.522-05:00

Yellow-rumped WarblerThis past Sunday was a good day for birds. When I looked out the window in the early morning I could see several Yellow-rumped Warblers flitting around in the pine tree. I wolfed down some cereal and coffee and went out with my camera. I was out for about 3 hours and most of the time was spent in the front yard. Besides the yellow-rumped, I also managed to get a photo of a

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-34270797327891364962008-05-03T09:37:00.004-05:002008-05-03T10:18:18.373-05:00

This female Rose-breasted Grosbeak showed up in our backyard about 15 minutes before I had to leave for my part-time courier job. She waited patiently for a spot at the sunflower feeder, but when she couldn't squeeze between the redwing blackbirds she decided to check out the suet feeder. She still had suet smeared all over her beak when she perched in this bittersweet vine. When I went out onto

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-29017376839473383632008-05-02T06:39:00.002-05:002008-05-02T07:02:07.194-05:00

Yesterday two male Baltimore Orioles showed up at the feeder and Gena quickly put out some jelly for them. About a week from now the females should show up. I hate to think what the jelly will cost this year but unless I become totally destitute I will contintue to feed the birds. When I see cars going up the highway trailering these massive boats I think feeding the birds is still a relatively

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-46677715224672987602008-04-29T07:47:00.002-05:002008-04-29T07:59:57.897-05:00

Beginning with the May issue, Gena and I are doing a monthly nature column for Lifestyles 2000. Lifestyles is a local magazine covering Sandusky, Ottawa and Erie counties. If you want to check out the article without photos click here:http://www.lifestyles2000.net/ and scroll down until you see 12 Acres in Ohio. If you can't pick up a free issue locally it can also be downloaded from the

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-75490466963647990822008-04-24T06:24:00.003-05:002008-04-24T06:39:50.546-05:00

Female Tree SwallowThe tree swallows are busy checking out the nest boxes...this bird was sitting about 3 feet away from one. I usually make my own birdhouses but last year I found some at Lowe's for about $10 a piece. Not bad, but they have one major flaw. I found out the hard way that a raccoon--probably the one that has taken up residence in our barn loft--can turn the latch on the boxes and

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-69954410683632963112008-04-20T10:04:00.002-05:002008-04-20T10:19:54.992-05:00

Ruby-crowned Kinglet On April 17th I followed this kinglet down the dike on the back of our property. What a tough bird to get a photo of! They never stay in one spot for more than a couple seconds and when they do decide to take a short rest it's always behind a tangled mess of branches. You usually can't see the ruby crown unless the bird is agitated by another male or trying to impress a

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-18896968928941153892008-04-14T07:34:00.002-05:002008-04-14T07:42:15.126-05:00

On the morning of April 11th I was looking out of the bay window at the back of the house and saw 6 White Pelicans fly over the property. They were heading towards the Muddy Creek Bay area. I've seen these once before, maybe 3-4 years ago(I should keep better notes). Normally, they don't come this far east. This morning, a Great White Egret and a Snowy Egret were working their way around the

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-34111285231797183602008-04-08T07:38:00.003-05:002008-04-08T07:55:47.650-05:00

I took this photo Saturday evening. Two Song Sparrows were hanging around a brush pile we have near the back of the pond and I spent about an hour watching them. We've finally had some weather that resembles spring...what a long winter this has been.The male American Goldfinches are starting to change from olive green to bright yellow, male Redwing Blackbirds are displaying, and April 6 we saw

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-30104068491087179212008-03-27T07:45:00.003-05:002008-03-27T08:26:43.955-05:00

When my grandfather was dying the one thing he worried about more than anything else, was what would happen to the 12 acres he so loved. I wish he could come back for a brief visit and see how it has changed. I think he would have been impressed to see 4 immature Bald Eagles perched in a dead cottonwood tree at the back of the property. I know I was when I spotted them flying around yesterday

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-86008293515172479342008-03-25T19:30:00.005-05:002008-03-25T19:53:57.235-05:00

Trumpeter Swan-Immature(?) Adult Trumpeter SwanBoth of these photos were shot at Magee Marsh, about 15 miles from our house. If you're a serious birder there's a good chance you have heard of this marsh located on the edge of Lake Erie. Over the last several years it has become a nationally recognized birding hot spot. We started out at Magee, then went to Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge and we

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-69022442310909544092008-03-24T07:40:00.003-05:002008-03-24T08:13:09.385-05:00

March 21 I saw my first muskrat of the year sitting on the edge of our pond. The water level is high again this year so we will probably see lots of weeds swimming across the water. Last year this particular muskrat tried to build a den under our chicken coop. The coop sits up about a foot off of the ground and this busy rodent packed mud all along the north end in one night. The reason coops are

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-59949096825359164632008-03-21T07:36:00.007-05:002008-03-21T08:11:51.539-05:00

Hooded MergansersI noticed more birdsong when I went over to let the chickens out this morning than I've heard in what seems like a very long time. It made me feel good until I remembered we are looking at another snow storm this afternoon. This is a winter that just doesn't want to end....yuck! Out in the pond, swimming around in the early morning light, I saw a pair of Canada Geese, a pair of

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-44523442169832879002008-03-20T18:48:00.003-05:002008-03-21T07:36:38.381-05:00

The ice on our pond finally melted this past Monday and we've had Canada Geese, Mallards and two Lesser Scaups stop by. This particular one stayed on our pond overnight and was still around when I got home from my part-time job around 6:30pm. I looked out the kitchen window and noticed him diving for food on the side of the pond closest to the house. Supper would have to wait....the lighting was

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-8485376877831449012008-03-12T08:28:00.005-05:002008-03-13T08:05:12.815-05:00

What a winter this has been. This past weekend we got dumped on in Ohio. It snowed all night Friday and most of the day Saturday. We probably got about 8-10 inches here. I guess we were lucky because Columbus set a record with 20 inches. I opened the kitchen window and took this photo of a Tree Sparrow sitting on the deck railing. Late winter storms like this can really be rough on wildlife when

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-56678801729841394202008-03-07T14:31:00.004-05:002008-03-07T14:52:06.001-05:00

Bald Eagles have made a great comeback in northwestern Ohio....maybe too great. This eagle was perched in a willow tree overhanging the chicken coop! Thankfully, a cold northeast wind had kept the chickens in the coop. The ducks were out but managed to get back into the coop in record speed. I worry more about hawks getting my poultry but I don't think an eagle would pass up a chicken dinner if

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-60693747152774412992008-01-24T09:00:00.000-05:002008-01-24T09:30:47.066-05:00

Kestrels are common in our area and I often see them perched on wires while I drive into town. They can also be seen hovering in fields before they pounce on their next victim, usually a mouse. Yesterday was the first time I had ever spotted one on our property. It was sitting under a pine tree near one of our feeders where it had captured a small bird. I tried to get a closer look through the

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-74872184049380361822008-01-23T09:57:00.000-05:002008-01-23T10:04:10.696-05:00

Last Friday as I was laying on the couch coming down with the flu, Gena returned from the chicken coop with a battered hen cradled in her arms. Gena found her partially frozen in some ice with her head pecked into a bloody pulp by the other hens. We kept her in a box in the computer room for several days but finally took her to the vet yesterday and had her put to sleep. We had a tough time

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-18067609050557449922008-01-16T12:40:00.000-05:002008-01-16T12:49:06.565-05:00

Got word today that our article will be in the April/May 2008 issue of Birds and Blooms. Gena wrote the article and I, of course, took the photos. I think this calls for a bottle of wine!

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-67793752379246832672008-01-09T19:49:00.000-05:002008-01-09T20:15:13.306-05:00

The sun is actually peeking out today for the first time in a long while and I feel like a mole emerging from my underground burrow. The bright sunshine hurts my eyes and I've been walking around in "squint mode". The last couple of days have been rainy and unusually warm for January in Ohio. Anytime we get rain instead of snow is a good thing but even with the warm temperatures it’s been very

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-38440423202671429182008-01-03T08:52:00.000-05:002008-01-03T13:20:36.688-05:00

Ethel, the wild turkey, is still with us and at this very moment is coping with the single digit cold weather inside the chicken coop. Her presumed daughter, Daisey, never returned after mating season but Ethel showed up looking looking like she had been through a war. Her feathers overall looked dull and her tail feathers had a big chunk taken out of them....looked like she narrowly missed being

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-67952371480562014892007-12-24T08:55:00.000-05:002007-12-24T09:15:32.871-05:00

Happy Holidays from 12 Acres in Ohio. This is Keetie my guinea fowl all dressed up for Christmas. I put the hat and snow on him in Photoshop. Most of the time I didn't have a clue what I was doing but it was fun messing around. I tried to put some icicles on his beak but that didn't work out. I've already received my presents and one of them was Expressions Web software, along with a book the

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-67482235811787978112007-12-03T08:44:00.000-05:002007-12-03T09:03:53.263-05:00

Yesterday afternoon Gena and I decided to get some much needed exercise and did some fast walking around the pond. After several laps around I heard an unusual bird call and seconds later I looked up and saw 8 Cedar Waxwings in the hawthorne tree my grandfather had planted. I had always heard hawthorne was good for wildlife but I never noticed birds eating the berries before. This year, it seems

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-88881992265724163142007-11-27T12:59:00.000-05:002008-01-15T20:10:08.454-05:00

This is a photo of a White-breasted Nuthatch with a peanut. I put a feeder near this perch assuming the Nuthatch would land there....what I didn't count on was it would stay for only a split second. I think the family of Nuthatch's should be changed to Nutbutts because that's usually what I end up with in my photos....a blurry photo of a bird butt as the Nuthatch flies away.Adding to the

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-63995441583038982582007-11-01T08:10:00.000-05:002007-11-01T10:49:16.244-05:00

I started noticing a Red-breasted Nuthatch at the sunflower feeder about 2 weeks ago. At first I assumed it was a White-breasted Nuthatch but when I took the time to really look I realized it was a red-breasted. Since I've started seriously watching birds on the property I have never seen a Red-breasted Nuthatch. After a recent trip to a Wild Birds Unlimited store I was told there is an invasion

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-21867814533649833822007-10-12T08:54:00.001-05:002007-10-12T09:25:10.908-05:00

I'm still not a very good birder. Sure, I know more than the average person but put me next to a "real" birder and I'd come across as quite the dunce. I noticed this bird a couple of weeks ago sitting on our chain link fence and hanging around the pond but couldn't identify it. This past week I've been going out in the morning with my big lens and I saw it several times, enough to finally i.d.

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-37974957654007174782007-09-21T09:32:00.000-05:002007-09-21T09:46:10.298-05:00

I finally managed to get a decent shot of a Cormorant yesterday morning. We don't see a lot of them on our pond but once in while and usually in the fall one stops by. I've never seen more than one on the pond at a time and I assume the ones that do stop are migrating south. At one time they were rather scarce in the area but their numbers have increased and now there are some large colonies

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-91657638865087956332007-09-03T08:46:00.001-05:002007-09-03T09:09:16.186-05:00

I decided to publish my own calendar this year through lulu.com. Lulu is a POD or Print on Demand website. You can publish a book, calendar, artwork, etc. at no cost to you. It wasn't the easiest interface I've ever worked with and sometimes it acted plain screwy but I finally got it published...or so I thought. I ordered one to check it out and found out I had uploaded one photo in the wrong

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-89418538758178803492007-09-02T09:18:00.000-05:002007-09-03T08:45:00.069-05:00

This is the time of year when the bird activity slows way down and the insect activity speeds way up. We do have a pair of Baltimore Orioles though who are still eating some jelly. I stopped putting it out over a month ago but noticed an Oriole stop by the feeder last week. I still had a little left so I put it out and a male and female have been eating it. Normally by the middle of July I don't

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-11946893180620785652007-08-27T09:14:00.000-05:002007-08-27T10:01:46.652-05:00

This past Saturday I woke up not feeling good about anything. I started to put together a photo package for Bird Watcher's Digest and thought "what's the use", my partner Gena and I were snipping at each other and the weather was still so hot and muggy one didn't feel like doing anything. Sometimes I think you have an inkling of things to come...your just surrounded by bad vibes. Late in the

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-33821095576217232892007-08-19T07:16:00.000-05:002007-08-27T09:14:47.947-05:00

Yesterday morning I was sitting in my blind on the edge of the pond half asleep when this heron flew in. It started working it's way around the pond and caught a few very small fish. When it was directly across the pond from where I was it caught this bullfrog. I thought it was too big for it to swallow but after about 10 minutes of "toying" around with the frog it managed to swallow it whole...

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-24869155764851729662007-07-21T10:19:00.000-05:002007-07-21T10:26:40.072-05:00

Gena and I are really excited to be working on an article for Birds and Blooms magazine. The article will be about the wildlife we've had in and around our pond over the 20 plus years we've lived here. Could be out this year but probably won't be published until 2008. We'll keep you posted.

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-40566376740491363402007-07-01T06:03:00.000-05:002007-07-01T06:23:53.057-05:00

This year we had muskrats all over the place and in April I almost lost the riding mower in one of their burrows. ..not good for the pond bank but they are fun to watch. This past week the babies appeared and this is a photo of one of them. I throw some corn out for the Canada geese family and the muskrats and wild Mallards get what's left. When the corn is gone the muskrats start eating grass.

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-68053054653026117162007-06-26T08:40:00.000-05:002007-06-26T08:59:45.543-05:00

June 15th I saw my first ever Long-tailed Weasel. At first I was excited, then it disappeared under the chicken coop...think I slept two hours that night. The next morning at 5am, as I was laying on the couch trying to sleep, I heard Mumps our rooster crow and felt a little better. I felt a lot better when I opened the coop at 6:45am and everyone was fine. My Ohio Mammals book says that weasels

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-49971710353979542792007-05-02T06:10:00.000-05:002007-05-03T06:13:22.276-05:00

The pace has really picked up here. My toe isn't back to normal yet, but much better. There is lots of grass to mow and lots of birds to photograph. I've been keeping track of several Robins nests on the property and keeping an eye out for migrants. So far we have seen Yellow-rumped Warlbers and on April 30 I saw a Yellow-headed Blackbird eating corn between the pond and chicken coop....boy,

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-74326365595460549052007-03-17T07:10:00.000-05:002007-03-17T07:26:59.117-05:00

Yesterday, the first migrating ducks of the year stopped by the pond. Shortly after lunch, I looked out the back window and saw three Northern Shovelers...two males and one female. I scared them off when I walked over to the chicken coop but later in the afternoon another pair flew in. We also have a pair of Canada Geese hanging around off and on throughout the day. I'm sure they are one of the

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-74482659561248283772007-03-09T08:47:00.000-05:002007-03-09T09:21:19.348-05:00

At this time, a week ago today, I was being wheeled into surgery. I decided to get my big toe fixed after 11 years of on again, off again pain. Friday night the pain was so intense I was wondering what had possessed me to go through with it....after all if I had put up with it for 11 years why not live with it a couple more. By Saturday the pain was at least bearable and so far my recovery has

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-67069023653377036632007-02-28T08:28:00.000-05:002007-02-28T13:54:59.741-05:00

At 7:45am four geese flew in to our ice-covered pond. The wild turkeys, who at the time were harrassing my ducks, immediately took off for the pond. Canada geese aren't anything to mess with so I figured the turkeys would stop on the edge of the pond and be content to make a lot of noise. Not so..... one of the turkeys took off running across the pond straight for the geese and then began dive

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-39944575339076342952007-02-22T10:03:00.000-05:002007-02-22T10:26:27.594-05:00

This photo of Ethel was taken on 2-21-07. She was taking a nap on the arms of our Adirondack chairs. Pretty wild looking turkey, huh? The two turkeys, Ethel and Daisey---just for the record, I didn't name them---are free to come and go but seem to be content to hang around the coop and the area around the pond. At night, they roost in the tree branches above the chicken coop. For the most part

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-54412913292908765562007-02-22T09:34:00.000-05:002007-03-01T20:23:17.475-05:00

I spotted the pheasant yesterday morning searching for food around the chicken coop. After mounting my newly aquired 500mm lens(bought late last August) on my camera I headed out the door. He was so busy digging in the snow for buried grain I managed to get within 20 feet of him. It was very foggy but the photos didn't turn out too bad. In this photo I caught him while he was digging and you can

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-70067170906635935642007-02-21T08:19:00.000-05:002007-02-22T09:32:53.711-05:00

In addition to the so-called wild turkeys we now have a resident pheasant. Half of the property, which we have let go wild, would now be considered great habitat for this beautiful bird. I think this is the same pheasant I flushed out last fall as I was walking my dog. I hadn't seen him since, but after the snowfall we got in February I saw several tracks in the snow in the back field. I knew

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5169374148080233738.post-887581018412444012007-02-19T06:50:00.000-05:002007-02-21T09:06:53.801-05:00

It's another cold, single digit morning in northwest Ohio but hopefully this will be the last one of the winter.It will finally be warming up today and my chickens and ducks will be able to leave the coop and soak up some much needed sunshine. I will have the delightful task of cleaning out the coop, a frozen mass of poop, water and pine shavings as soon as it thaws out, which could be several

Robin Arnoldhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01887821790915367396noreply@blogger.com0