In this April 16th outing, Sparky only drives for 15 minutes and hikes for 10 minutes to reach a very cool duck and waterfowl photography spot in northern Minnesota’s Jay Cooke State Park. 

But he is shooting straight into the sun! How can he get good photos doing that?? Some cool creative bird photography results.

Highlights include a pair of courting Wood Ducks only 12 feet away(!), backlit Trumpeter Swans, a Pied-billed Grebe shaking water off its back nearby Belted Kingfisher, and a Blue Jay imitating a Broad-winged Hawk. A Muskrat floats by and Sparky spots a male Yellow-belled Sapsucker on the way out.

The best part? He makes it home for his 9am meeting!

I find some cool things in this episode of Virtually Live from Sax-Zim Bog. Snow Buntings and Pine Siskins have arrived from the north. Then I run across a bizarre sight…A Muskrat is chasing a Wood Duck around a Beaver pond!. Later a Great Gray Owl flies over my van and into the bog so I put on my rubber boots and go in after the owl. Amazingly I find it and plop down in the Sphagnum moss to enjoy the show. Eventually the Great Gray comes within 30 feet or so and plunges into the moss for a vole. Wow! 

Birding and bird photography in Sax-Zim Bog in October.

Also remiders of the upcoming Tiny Bird Art fundraiser, BRRRRdathon: World’s Coldest Birdathon, 2024 Bog Wild Calendar, and Wrap up of Bog BioBlitz XI in Sax-Zim.

Virtually Live #39: Season 4 Episode 4

October 16, 2023