High Wind Sunset in Badlands National Park

Some Love For Western South Dakota

October 01, 2015 in October 2015

About once a year I manage to convince my wife and dogs that it's time to hit the road and immerse ourselves in everything that nature has to offer. Ranging from three to twenty-one days, these trips are mostly about wildlife, landscapes and long hikes rather than sleep and good eating. Having recently purchased a new micro travel-trailer, I was Jonesing for endless roads, primitive camping and wide-open spaces. With only five days of summer vacation to burn, we decided to visit our neighbor to the west and explore South Dakota's Badlands National Park and Custer State Park. Typically a biannual retreat for us, It's been nearly five years since my last visit. After driving for nearly twelve hours we arrived at our campground near Interior, SD and I immediately recalled why I love this place so much. Rather than bore you with trivial words of praise, I'll let the photos do talking.

Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) warning the colony of my presence - Badlands NP, SDNikon D7200 + Nikon 200-400mm f4.0 VR — Prairie Dog (*Cynomys ludovicianus)* warning the colony of my presence - Badlands NP, SD
Nikon D7200 + Nikon 200-400mm f4.0 VR

Did You Know (44)?

September 13, 2015 in September 2015

The black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) is a rodent classified within the squirrel family Sciuridae. Considered a pest to ranchers throughout the Great Plains, they are also an iconic favorite to visitors of western national parks.

Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) surveying the landscape - Wind Cave NP, SDNikon D7200 + Nikon 200-400mm f4.0 VR — Prairie Dog (*Cynomys ludovicianus*) surveying the landscape - Wind Cave NP, SD
Nikon D7200 + Nikon 200-400mm f4.0 VR

This ground squirrel species lives in connecting subterranean burrows called towns. The burrows consist of multi-generational groups and are used for breeding and predator avoidance. Interestingly, female prairie dogs enter reproductive Estrus between February and April for only one day each year. Despite this apparent barrier to reproduction, the species was once the most abundant mammal in the United States.

Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) prepping to retreat into a burrow - Badlands NP, SDNikon D7200 + Nikon 200-400mm f4.0 VR — Prairie Dog (*Cynomys ludovicianus*) prepping to retreat into a burrow - Badlands NP, SD
Nikon D7200 + Nikon 200-400mm f4.0 VR

The habit of grooming the entrance to burrows and dispersing both horizontally and vertically throughout the landscape plays an important role in engineering the physical and biological characteristics of the prairie habitat they occupy. Hundreds of vertebrate and invertebrate species are linked to the actions of prairie dogs and their towns. Prairie dog specialists like black-footed ferrets declined to near extinction wherever the rodents were extirpated by ranchers, while species like mountain plover and burrowing owl are dependent on the town's tunnels for nesting habitat. Even bison and pronghorns depend on prairie dogs since these mega-fauna species feed on the young nutrient rich vegetation that is meticulously maintained in a growing state by the rodent's selective foraging habits.

In the Wild: Think about Safety

January 25, 2014 in January 2014

It’s a new semester at the high school, and as one grading period ends and another begins, so enters a fresh crop of students. The afternoon class is an introductory college-prep biology course for juniors. Like the typical inquiry teacher, we do a lot of labs in my class and student safety is one of the many details I need to monitor. Having recently made bacteriological media over hot plates in an under equipped classroom, I began to ponder the what if’s that often creep into my subconscious whenever I work with neophyte scientists. The mix of scolding hot water and bacteriological growth media can be a recipe for disaster. Yet, my years of experience teaching young adults provides me with confidence that I can manage the situation.

Life in my classroom is not all that different than the photographic work I do in the field. Wildlife photography can be as unpredictable as a small mob of adolescents crammed into the confines of a classroom. Much like teaching, experience and research provide me with the confidence that I need to manage the chaotic rhythms of nature. Having had a few too many close calls in the past, I do not take my safety or the safety of others for granted when shooting in wild spaces. Regardless of the destination, I encourage you to consider the following:

Dress appropriately for the occasion. Cold weather photography requires us to consider the way we layer our clothes and how we protect exposed skin. In contrast, while shooting in the tropics and humid locations, we need to balance the need for evaporative cooling with parasite avoidance. Appropriate clothing is a difference maker, and can enhance the quality of your picture-taking or detract from the overall experience.
Do your research. Many of the locations we like to photograph are located in remote places that require trail and off-trail hikes. Study your maps for landmarks, use GPS to track your movements and always have an exit strategy.
Know your subject. Wannabe wildlife photographers often have a false perception about the animals they hope to photograph. Driving through national parks and visiting zoos or wildlife centers, people perceive large grazers to be less dangerous than they are. Purposefully posted in this blog are images of the American bison (Bison bison). I consider this species to be one of the most dangerous I have photographed. Having taken pictures of lions, cheetahs, wolves, bears and vipers, I feel fairly confident in my assessment of potentially dangerous species. In my experience, large grazing or browsing animals like bison, elephants, rhinoceros and moose are more unpredictable than their predators. Living on the edge between survival and prey, these species react fast to the movements of those looking their way. On many occasions I have backed down in the face of an agitated grazer in fear of being charged. I reiterate... Know your subject!
Know your gear and recognize that it can be replaced. There are times when it is best to run and hide. You need to be prepared to make a split second decision between saving yourself or saving your camera. When being charged by a bear or caught between a frigid wave and a seawall, leave the gear and save yourself.

Wildlife photography has become a leisure hobby for many with disposable income. As boomers reflect on the National Geographic’s™ and Ranger Rick’s™ of their youth, they’ve taken to the field in masses to relive the experiences on those pages. While I encourage us all to embrace the adventure, be sure to consider your physical needs before venturing off into unprotected spaces.

September 22, 2013

September 27, 2013 in September 2013

Saturday, September 22nd, was the autumnal equinox. The week preceding this first day of fall was unlike the pre-autumnal weeks to which I’ve grown accustom. Minnesota is known for its temperate weather where summer transitions to winter, and fall is a wish that rarely comes true. Bracing for the worst, this harvest season seems to be more summer than winter. Warm winds and dry air continue to bathe the parched landscape, and fall is hiding somewhere in the shadows. I don’t object to this extension of summer, but I can’t help wonder if our departure from the norm is a harbinger of the future.

Autumnal Grasses - Tamarack Nature Center, MinnesotaSeptember 22, 2013 — Autumnal Grasses - Tamarack Nature Center, Minnesota
September 22, 2013

Today is September 27th and it is 82 ℉. Dry winds continue to blow stealing the remnants of moisture from our depleted wetlands. The build up to this fall is unlike any that I can recall, but it seems as if it is a pattern that is destined to become familiar.

The Reflection - Tamarack Nature Center, MinnesotaSeptember 22, 2013 — The Reflection - Tamarack Nature Center, Minnesota
September 22, 2013

Self Portrait - Tamarack Nature Center, MinnesotaSeptember 22, 2013 — Self Portrait - Tamarack Nature Center, Minnesota
September 22, 2013

After the Storm - Lac Qui Parle State ParkCanon 5D Mark iii + Canon 17-40mm f4.0L — *After the Storm - Lac Qui Parle State Park*
*Canon 5D Mark iii + Canon 17-40mm f4.0L*

On The Prairie

June 17, 2013 in June 2013

It's 12:25 and I've found a respite from the high-noon prairie sun. The Java River Cafe in Montevideo, MN is a quaint artisan coffee shop and grill in the center of town. There's nothing like a strong cup of espresso after a long hike throughout the grasslands of Western Minnesota.

White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) - Minnesota RiverCanon 7D = Canon 300mm f2.8L IS + Canon 1.4x converter — *White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos) - Minnesota River*
*Canon 7D = Canon 300mm f2.8L IS + Canon 1.4x converter*

I'm here on the western prairie hoping to document research in an experimental conservation plot and follow the work of ecologists as they collect data on bees, birds, reptiles and plants. With little time to reflect on the experience, I'll let the photos speak for me now.

Chippewa Prairie Preserve - Milan, MNCanon 5D Mark iii + Canon 17-40mm f4.0L — *Chippewa Prairie Preserve - Milan, MN*
*Canon 5D Mark iii + Canon 17-40mm f4.0L*

In The Right Light

June 10, 2013 in June 2013

A dark roast is the only thing that looks good at 3:30 a.m.; so when I left my home for Schaefer Prairie twenty-minutes later, a strong cup of joe was my most valued traveling companion. On this Saturday morning, I was breaking with tradition. It was “the day after,” but I wasn’t sleeping in. The academic year ended on Friday, and the day after is reserved for mindlessness. Foolishly, I accepted an assignment to photograph the “Birds and Blooms” event at Schaefer Prairie Preserve, and I wasn’t about to let mental fatigue stand in the way. I pointed the Cooper due west and drove one hundred and twenty miles in a sleepless stupor.

I committed to the project because I love a prairie sunrise. The sea of grass reminds me of safaris in Africa and feeds my imagined conception of pre-settlement North America. The American prairie is one of many threatened ecosystems. Fragmented by farms and urban development, less than three percent of indigenous grasslands remain. On this morning I chose to document a restored habitat instead of sleep. So, it is with great irony that I post this image of Taraxacum, the dandelion.

Pest to lawn-lovers across United States, the dandelion is a perfect model of evolutionary success. Adapted to disturbed habitats, the forb blooms fast, and can produce from 54 to 172 seeds per flower head. One estimate suggests that as many as 240,000,000 seeds are produced per acre of dandelion ( http://fyi.uwex.edu/weedsci/2002/11/12/dandelion/ ). It was during the final stretch of my drive to Schaefer Prairie that I began to feel the photographer’s panic. The light was brilliant and I wasn’t on site. I was listening to the pings of gravel striking the undercarriage of the Mini, when I decided to slam on the breaks. This wasn’t the prairie, but the light was too good to pass up... I ran with the lens mounted to the tripod, lied prone on the edge of a farm field and shot into the dawn’s haze. In the end I seemed to have confirmed an oft uttered statement in photography, “almost anything looks good in the right light.”