Look at the color of that mouth! Double-crested cormorants usually don't make the list of my gotta-have bird captures, but sure glad I paid attention to this one. It had been sitting in the west end of the lake, and like the excellent diver and fisher that it is, it made a catch and promptly took off flying. It had a precarious grip on the fish, and a few seconds after this capture the fish lived to see another day as it plopped back into the lake.

Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) in the northwestern skies of Kane County, Illinois on July 17, 2020. Captured late twilight while the comet was positioned below the bucket of the big dipper.

A redhead duck flaps its wing while taking a break from socializing with some of the other ducks on the lake (scaup, coots, and buffleheads). According to the Cornell Lab website, redheads are so exceptionally gregarious they're referred to as "rafting ducks", and sometimes they alight at hunting decoys before the hunters have finished setting them up. Love the redheads!

Look at those feet! This great blue heron had been wading along the shoreline not too far away when it decided to fly to the other side of the lake. I captured a few frames as it flew away, and while reviewing the images later, I was struck by the size of its feet and toes! Further research led me to the fact that Great Blue Herons have pectinate toes. Huh? . . .

Two great horned owlets snuggle in their nest a couple of weeks before they fledged.

This trumpeter swan was coming in for a landing on the east side of the lake during the golden hour but changed its mind at the last minute and banked up and right, then decided to land a little further south on the lake. Captured earlier this year in McHenry County, Illinois.

American White Pelicans may look a little wonky, may not be the most beautiful bird, but they are one of the most graceful fliers in the sky. When they pass through this area during their migration in April . . .

Buck Moon rising through fireworks on July 4th, 2020. According to The Old Farmer's Almanac, the July full moon gets its name as early summer is when male deer grow new antlers; it also goes by thunder moon, guru moon and hay moon . . .

You can almost imagine this ruby-throated hummingbird asking, "Do you think my beak is too big?" Of course not, it's just perfect!

Red-tailed hawk displays its gorgeous feathering while staring down earlier this Spring in McHenry County, Illinois.