Spring Fever

Spring is in the air today and I started thinking about some of wildlife that I've encountered in the past.  In recent years, I've started keeping my camera accessible as much as possible when I'm outdoors.  I've got to give my brother Tom credit for snapping this photo of a ruffed grouse a couple of years ago.  We were both snapping photos, but Tom had the best vantage point and captured this photo.

Snapping turtles can provide great photo ops.  This turtle has probably been photographed by hundreds of BWCA visitors during his life, which has likely spanned several decades.  I'm sure that he's eaten his share of walleyes from unattended stringers during those years.

During an early June trip last year, I was on a large island on Crooked Lake when I heard something rustling around in the woods just behind camp.  To my surprise, I saw a hen mallard rambling through the woods, which had just come off of this nest.  The nest was several feet above water level and approximately 50 feet back in the woods.  The eggs looked like they could have come out of an egg carton.