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New arrivals

July 31, 2014 - In May we watched a variety of birds arrive and then quickly depart for breeding grounds and nurseries north of us... so...
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At the sign of the "M"

July 30, 2014 - It's been a fine year for Hairstreak butterflies, so I've had plenty of them to work with to improve my identification s...
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Great mimic

July 29, 2014 - Let's start with what this isn't: although it looks rather like a small bee, it is instead a species of fly. Bees have t...
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Beach terror

July 28, 2014 - My granddaughter Stasia is here this week, so the family converged at the lake to celebrate her arrival, swim, and enjoy...
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Horns of Plenty redux

July 27, 2014 - Yesterday, I wrote about the debut of the Black-shouldered Spinyleg, a dragonfly that seems to always appear around this...
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Black-shouldered Spinylegs premiere

July 26, 2014 - Just about a year ago, and, while I don't have great records, probably at about this time in 2012 and before, I spotted...
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Copper at work

July 25, 2014 - "A bright flash of orange announces this whirling dervish," writes Jeffrey Glassberg in his introduction to the American...
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Disaster narrowly averted

July 24, 2014 - The life of the freelance photojournalist is filled with all sorts of exciting assignments and today's was the height of...
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Tranquility base

July 23, 2014 - This was one of those days in which not much happened, save work. Despite the temptation of the fine weather, I managed...
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A sylvan satyr

July 22, 2014 - In classic Greek mythology, a Satyr was a minor deity of the woodlands. Part human, part horse, and often part goat, the...
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The first blooming Cardinals

July 21, 2014 - I spent most of the day writing and trying to arrange interviews, so I had to postpone any walking until after supper wh...
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Emerald in the grass

July 20, 2014 - Several years ago, when I interviewed Blair Nikula, the main writer and photographer of A Field Guide to the Dragonflies...
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Lilies of the field... well, swamp

July 19, 2014 - I was hoping to be reporting from the lake, but the weather remained cloudy and strangely cool—it's been in the 50s in t...
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"Bird" in hand

July 18, 2014 - Usually, I have to walk to the wildlife, but sometimes, it just comes to me. So it was this evening when I heard, as I h...
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Wolf in sheep's clothing

July 17, 2014 - We're blessed with lots of bumble bees, which I'm in the beginning stages of learning to identify. But while this critte...
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Grand Central milkweed

July 16, 2014 - Sometimes this happens: my walks will lead me to the same place. But though the background may be similar—this is a clos...
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Night of the fawn

July 15, 2014 - The kitchen-porch lights have been very productive, and with the All-Star Game in progress—a game that was great but did...
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Rough love

July 14, 2014 - When I spotted two large beetles scurrying close together on the ground, my first thought was "it's a fine morning for m...
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Birth control and butterflies

July 13, 2014 - The Common Milkweeds are pretty much through flowering for the year, but there are other Asclepias species that are just...
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A little rest

July 12, 2014 - Our town's annual agricultural fair is under way—it's the 50th anniversary, so it's a big one—and this four-day event is...
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A very cooperative Stinkpot

July 11, 2014 - I love turtles, but in trying to photograph them, I often wind up more with butt shots—images of turtles turning tail an...
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No one home anymore

July 10, 2014 - In addition to my travels on foot, I also do a fair amount of bicycle riding, and on my 10-mile training ride, I pass by...
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A band-beating butterfly

July 09, 2014 - A couple of weeks ago, I started to notice the daily appearance of at least several small and quite dark butterflies in...
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The black-caps are back

July 08, 2014 - About a month ago, in a post I called "once and future berries," I featured a shot of some very pretty white flowers tha...
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A touch of silver

July 07, 2014 - There are dozens of butterflies around here collectively known as skippers, and you can quickly separate them from the m...
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Hail to the queen

July 06, 2014 - If you ever needed reassurance that we're truly into high summer, look no further than the flowering of the Queen Anne's...
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Happy belated birthday, USA

July 05, 2014 - In most of the polls taken to gauge the mood of the country, there's a common message: the US is going in the wrong dire...
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A little monsoon? No matter

July 04, 2014 - A near weather disaster in New Hampshire yesterday brought us an unexpected blessing. When a line of severe thunderstorm...
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A reminder of past majesty

July 03, 2014 - Back when I was the full-time managing editor of the Yale Alumni Magazine, we used to have a yearly editorial retreat fo...
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The start of pickerel (weed) season

July 02, 2014 - Everything seems to be slow in arriving this year, and the grand opening of the Pickerel Weed flowers is no exception to...
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Fall begins... just kidding

July 01, 2014 - After a naturalist starts being able to answer the "what is it?" questions about the local flora and fauna, there are tw...
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