This Great Horned Owl is a curious one for sure. It would move behind the nook in the tree, and every so often it would slowly sneak back out and give a look to see what was going on. This is another of the birds of prey at the Stillman Nature Center in northern Illinois . . .

Lesser Scaups in flight and cleared for landing . . .

The late evening sun throws highlights on a short-eared owl during an evening hunt.

Just look at that face! Barn Owls used to be plentiful throughout all of Illinois, including here in northern Illinois. But as much of the Illinois prairie has been developed with small farms dwindling and conglomerate-based farms of soy and corn replaced hay, wheat and cattle enterprises, their numbers were decimated . . .

Not very well-known in the tragic story of Greek mythology was that in addition to his son Icarus, Daedalus also had a flock of geese.

Pollen Sacs. What in the heck? Last summer as various types of bees began visiting the flowers, some of the captures showed a few of the bees with these yellow things on their legs - both honey bees and bumblebees had them. Not being a guru on bees, the research began . . .

After turning on a dime and diving, a short-eared owl flies low through the prairie in search of an evening snack.

A Cooper's Hawk in flight towards the evening sun . . .

Male Snowy Owl in flight over the snow covered fields . . . visiting angels from the north.

When you're capturing the setting sun through a dusty, smoky sky and a skein of ducks flies through the frame . . .