Val Cunningham

Heading recently for open water on a tributary to the Mississippi River, Scott Thiede carried his blind, chair, camera, and some raw poultry to an ice shelf.
This is an area that hosts bald eagles all winter and two immature eagles soon landed to eat the chicken. An adult eagle suddenly made a swift pass and snatched some chicken meat with its sharp talons, much to the dismay of one of the youngsters.

Ron Nicol is used to seeing red squirrels in his backyard, but a recent visit by a blond version made him grab his camera.

Then something serendipitous happened: A female pileated landed on a nearby tree, and suddenly a second female was in the frame. To add to the drama, the two began sparring until one drove the other off. Dinndorf wonders whether they might have been two siblings from this summer’s nest, or mother and daughter, or some other configuration.

It was time to deadhead the dahlias in Wayne Cosner’s garden, but luckily he looked inside before making the cut on a big yellow bloom. A tiny tree frog had taken up residence.

This is the time of year when many flying insects are desperate for sweets, as anyone who has tried to drink a can of soda on their deck can attest, often waving off wasp after wasp.

Whether you call it a tobacco hornworm or the larval form of a Carolina sphinx moth, this large, green caterpillar makes for an arresting sight.

Opossums are unique and wonderful creatures, our country’s only marsupial mammal, meaning that after they’re born they develop inside their mother’s pouch, similar to kangaroos and koalas. Although many people dislike opossums, they’re actually beneficial, consuming snails, slugs, insects, and even small rodents, in addition to fruits and vegetables.

This is the season when black bears gorge themselves on wild foods (and anything else they can find) to put on fat to carry them through their long winter sleep. Three recent photos sent by readers show that they also have an affinity for water. In each case, a trail camera caught the action near a water feature.