World Bird Wednesday XXIV

                                                         Saginaw Bay Revealed

The view back inland from Tawas Point lighthouse on the North shore of Saginaw Bay.

From space the mitten shaped Lower Peninsula of Michigan, kerplunk in the middle of the Great Lakes, is perhaps the most easily recognisable geological feature of  continental North America. Saginaw Bay is the portion of Lake Huron that lies between the thumb and the rest of the mitten. Here are wetlands, forests, and shoreline dunes all in close proximity, giving shelter to the wide variety of wild life that depends on these terrains. The sky watch is equally impressive. Sunrise, sunset, and cracking thunder storms over the vast lake can easily bury the needle on one's Awemeter.  

Recently I found a terrific web site known as Saginaw Bay Birding. It is dedicated to optimising the enjoyment of birders exploring the major avian migration route that flows up and down Lake Huron's western shore. Using it's informative pages I have begun to seek out some of the hot birding spots that strand Saginaw Bay's 1,143 square miles.  I drove out to the big water early this week with a mind toward observing a much discussed hawk migration. For the best part of two days I meandered  Saginaw Bay's wetlands and shore lines, but at journeys end I wound up seeing more McDonalds restaurants than migrating hawks. Hawks schmawks! Thankfully there was no shortage of photogenic subject mater and my feelings were in no large way bruised by being stood up by Buteo. 

 

This busy Northern Flicker was caught resting in the trees below the lighthouse at Tawas Point. Usually they're spotted foraging on the ground unlike their more traditional woodpecker brethren.

What did you notice first, the Pie-billed grebe( whoops! make that an American coot) or the Painted turtle? Your answer to this question can go a long way in determining whether your inclinations run toward Ornithology or Herpetology. I am pretty solidly in the Ornithology camp but I can still like you if your a Herp!

   On the other hand, if you just cringed in sympathy with the minnows plight, ichthyology is probably your thing!

         

             Now it's time for World Bird Wednesday!

This is the home of World Bird Wednesday. A place for bird photographers from around the world to gather and share their photographs and experiences as they pursue Natures most diverse and beautiful treasurers, the birds.
World Bird Wednesday will be open for posting at 12 noon Tuesday EST North America through midnight on Wednesday.
You are invited to link your blog with other bird photographers in a weekly celebration of these most diverse and intriguing of Earth's residents, the BIRDS.

                                                  

 #1. Simply copy the above picture onto your W.B.W. blog entry. It contains a link for your readers to share in WBW. Or you can copy this link on to your blog page to share W.B.W. http://pineriverreview.blogspot.com/

#2. Come to The Pine River Review on Tuesday Noon EST North America through Wednesday midnight and submit your blog entry with Linky.

#3. Check back in during the course of the next day and explore these excellent photoblogs!


You don't have to be a Bird Watcher or expert photographer to join in--just enjoy sharing what you bring back from your explorations and adventures into nature.The idea of a meme is that you will visit each others blogs and perhaps leave a comment to encourage your compadres!

  The thumbnails below are links to our contributors blogs. Click on them and view their beautiful posts.

                      Come on it's your turn!