The MarshMaster

Wow, been a long time since I've done this.

My first post in a couple years.

Hope you all are doing good.

The 2021 duck season opens Saturday the 23 of Oct, so I did a little scouting.

Made a new friend, meet the Phragmites Duster (hehe).

He operates the MarshMaster, a track vehicle used to treat areas infected with invasionary plants, 

in this case phragmites grass.

Can't wait to witness the marsh to return to it's natural state.

 

  

 

October Slough Gills

While hunting the Slough during the early waterfowl season. I told myself  that I better return between the end of early waterfowl and the duck season closing. The 2nd of October, I returned to catch a few of those "Slough Gills". After a couple hours, on my knees, preying, I had a nice mess of tasty "Slough Gills"  ( Willow Slough Bluegills ).

Well, storm clouds appeared in the west, a cold hard wind began to howl and I've got no rain gear. So I assume the "lazy boyee" position ( my canoe has oar locks and the paddles are oars ) for the 2 mile row off the lake. The threat of rain passes making for a  very comfortable canoe ride.

Willow Slough is a major, natural migratory bird resting area.  I was ducking birds left and right. In the end I happen by a Bald Eagle on a cattail raft having dinner.

I hope you enjoy my little trip "October Slough Gills" as much as I did bringing it to you.  Please like and subscribe. Thanks, Garnie.

Visit my YouTube Channel and watch more of my videos:

http://www.youtube.com/gmvideos06

Duck Hunt In Hell

Thanks !!!

First, I'd like to thank all my viewers,  I believe the site has a view from every country on Earth. I'm surprised, never thought it would happen, so thanks again and please visit again .

Duck Hunt In Hell 

Been a long winter here, record cold and snow, got 4 inches / 10 cm of snow on the "Blood Moon", this years first full moon of Spring, but let's go back to September of 2013.

Here's a duck hunt video filmed on the hottest September 10th in recorded history.  96 degrees is now the current record for this day. The temperature in the Bayous of Lasalle Fish and Wildlife Area had to be +100 with 100% humidity and no wind.

The ditch I had to canoe was a mile and a half mud hole, beaver dams and food stores blocked the ditch every 30 yards, forcing me to get out and drag the canoe across knee deep muck. When this ditch is at normal fall water levels I can canoe the mile+ to the Waterfowl Resting Area in 15 min, on this day it took every bit of 2 hours. One thing for sure, I love me some duck hunting.

This video is a little long, about 25 minutes, so grab a snack, your favorite beverage and a smoke( if its ok with mama), and get a laugh with this duck hunting fool on his "Duck Hunt In Hell".

All likes and comments will be truly appreciated. Don't forget to Subscribe to my channel, Thanks Garnie.

Visit my YouTube Channel and watch more of my videos:

http://www.youtube.com/gmvideos06

The Karner Blue Butterfly

( Hey viewers, I'm pretty sure I'm wrong about this being the Karner Blue. After a bit more research, I'm concluding  it's an Eastern Tailed-Blue, a rather common butterfly in the eastern US. I've sent this photo to the Miller Woods Educational Center of the Dunes National Park Service and asked for help with the ID. When I hear from them I'll edit the entire post. Thanks for the views.)
  
Pulling grass from my wild flower patch, when I saw a tiny blue butterfly flirting with the flowers. I ran to the house to fetch my camera, knowing the chances were slim to none the butterfly would be there when I returned. With camera in hand, I intensely searched the flower bed. Luck day, I was able to get this shot of not only one of the smallest butterflies in the USA but also, more importantly, an ENDANGERED SPECIES.. The Karner Blue Butterfly.

A native butterfly to the dry dune environments of the Great Lakes region, the Karner Blue became a threatened species because of habitat loss, due to urban and industrial development in the region which resulted in the range reduction of the only plant the Karner Blue uses for food as a caterpillar, the Wild Blue Lupine. In 1992 the Karner Blue was added to the Endangered Species list.

Here's a link to a US Fish and Wildlife fact sheet if you would like to know more about the Karner Blue ~ http://www.fws.gov/midwest/endangered/insects/kbb/kbb_fact.html

Ranger's Marsh 4-6-2013

Took a short hike at Ranger's Marsh on the Little Calumet River. Warm, windy day. The marsh is dry as a bone. Water only in the Dead Cottonwood grove. The flooded wood is holding a few ducks and boy are they spooky. The first group of ducks began to get in the wind when I was 100 yards away. Group after group followed. I saw about 300 ducks catch the strong south wind for the next step north.

Drake Mallard Duck

Hen Mallard Ducks

Mallards

Mallards

Gadwall Ducks

Blue-Wing Teal 

Blue-Wing Teal in dead Cottonwood Grove

Blue-Wing Teal Drake

Mink carcass 

How dry is the marsh? Well, here's a photo of Mink ( Neovison vison ) jerky. A sun dried carcass of the nocturnal American Mink. Years ago, this little guy would have been worth his weight in gold.

Dry Marsh

This photo shows the condition of the marsh this spring, bone dry. Typically, there would be two foot of water covering the cattail humps.  

Author

Me after a the hike. I'd like to thank you for viewing my blog. Thanks!

Turkey Vulture

On the road, going to a home supply store for plumbing stuff, replacing water pipes in my shack. I passed a little squirrel laid out on the pavement and thought, poor little guy survived winter to end up being road-kill. I took care of my needs at the store, as I approached the scene of the hit-and-run, I could see a rather large animal in the road where the squirrel lay. What have I run into this time? Up and into a near by tree, this large bird flew. As I passed I could ID the bird as a Turkey Vulture. Each year they show up at this time of year. I've seen them soaring on the thermal up-drafts but to see one on the ground is a rare sight.

A large bird with a wing-span of six feet, the Turkey Vulture (Cathartes aura) range from southern Canada to the southern tip of South American. They feed almost exclusively on carrion, dead animals, which they find with their extremely sensitive sense of smell. The turkey is one of only a few birds that can smell. The Genus name Cathartes is the Latinized form from Greek meaning "Purifier". After all, the Vulture's place in nature is to consume the dead before putrefaction sets in, many deadly bacteria are killed by the Turkey Vultures digestive system.

Look at that face, don't you love it, well I do. My favorite bird of all. The Turkey Vulture is the only bird that does no harm to any other animal. They don't harm bugs, worms or fish, the Turkey Vulture should be the symbol of world peace and environment purification. Can I get an Amen!  

Spring Migration

Spring has sprung, like or not. Watched a few hundred Sand Hill Cranes fly over Ranger's Marsh yesterday. Heading north by northwest. Lots of migratory Canada geese and ducks using the marsh, also.

Sand Hill Cranes

The Sand Hill Cranes are migrating north to their breeding grounds in Canada and the northern US.

Sand Hill Cranes over Gary, Indiana, flying north by northwest.

After watching the spring migration, I went home. While walking from the car to the house, I saw a brown comet streak through the air just outside of my fence and I hear the leaves rustling in the lot north of me.  It was a Cooper's Hawk on a dinner dive. I had heard one calling a couple days, this is the first one I've seen.

Cooper's Hawk, first this year

I put down my coffee cup and unlock and load my camera. The hawk flies up and into a tree with its lunch in its talons. Whatever it's caught has a wide tail, what could it be? No squeals, so not a rodent. I've seen them catch lots of snakes but the temperature is just above freezing, too cold for snakes.  

Cooper's Hawk and unknown prey

After another short flight deeper into the canopy of the oaks. The hawk kills its prey. I'm still waiting to see what the hawk has taken.

Would not believe it if I did not see it myself 

 The Cooper Hawk had caught a Garter Snake. In the middle of the pic above, below the large tree limb that the hawk is perched on, you can see the blueish-gray belly of the snake hanging down and curling to the left.  I am wrong again, it's not too cold for the Garter Snakes to be out and about.  Spring Has Sprung!  

The Douglas Center Revisited

Paid another visit to the Paul H. Douglas Center for Environmental Education. This time I hiked the Miller Woods Trail and the woods to the east of the main parking lot on Lake Street. Maybe a mile and a half in total.

          ( Click on any image to see an Enlarged Slide Show )

Covered Foot Bridge over Lake Street, from parking to the Douglas Center.

After parking in the main lot on Lake St. you walk over to the Douglas Center via the Covered Foot Bridge.

The Douglas Center for Environmental Education entrance.

The National Park Service sign greets you and the entry doors are straight ahead of you.

Interesting facts about Northwest Indiana.

A display in the foyer of the Douglas Center lists some amazing facts about Northwest Indiana that I did not know.

Douglas Center view from Lake Street West parking.

This is where the Miller Woods Trail starts, above on the dune is the Douglas Center. I'm standing in a three car parking lot on the west side of Lake Street

Distant view of Douglas Center from the Marsh Overlook Boardwalk.

About a third of the way along the Miller Woods Trail is the Marsh Overlook Boardwalk that crosses the marsh north to south. This is the view looking east, over the marsh. The Douglas Center can be seen in the distance.

Canine tracks and blood trail in snow.

The trail was covered with snow that was a few days old. The snow was more ice than snow, loud and crunchy. Tracks of some type of canine could be seen and blood drops about every ten feet. Probably a dog walkers pooch nipped his ear on a brier thorn.

Opening in snow that lead to a small mammal  snow tunnel.

 Field mice and voles tunnel under the snow and every here and there they poke through to the surface of the snow to check out their surroundings.

Western edge of  Miller Woods Marsh.

At the far west end of the trail is the edge of the marsh. Cattails are the dominate vegetation in the marsh.

Marsh Cattails

The seed head of the cattails, thousands of seeds attached to fur-like fibers that are dispersed by the wind if disturbed.

View of Miller Woods Marsh from a high dune.

A high dune rises above the marsh. Notice how the growth of the cattails encircle the water in the middle of the marsh. If the water level continues to drop over the years, eventually the cattails will die off and the marsh will become a wet meadow.

Deer tracks in snow, big Buck.

Wasn't ready to quit, so I walked the woods on the east side of Lake Street. There I ran across these deer tracks. This deer was big, my guess would be a large buck.

Mammal tracks in snow.

More tracks in the snow. I'll have to brush up on my tracking because I have no Idea as to what these my be from. A mystery, more than likely squirrel or rabbit.

Scene in woods east of Lake Street. 

I walked an old railroad track bed from Lake St. to Grand St. A nice little dune woods and swales to the south. heading back to the Douglas Center parking lot now.

Paul H. Douglas Center for Environmental Education

Found myself in the Miller section of Gary, with a couple hours to kill. So I drove to the Lake St. Beach on Lake Michigan. West of the parking is another section of the Indiana Dunes National Shoreline. The weather was much nicer than last month's conditions during my scouting trip for fishing holes. Temperature was close to thirty degrees and a mild wind.    

(Click on any photo to see an Enlarged Slide Show)

American marram or beachgrass

Walking the beach, in a westerly direction, between the lake and the foredune( the first dune on the beach). I encountered American beachgrass grow up the entire north slope of the dune. Beachgrass only grows on the foredune(first dune), where the sand is constantly shifting, its roots stabilizes the sand, aiding with the growth of the dune. On the south face of the dune, where the sand is stable the beachgrass has a hard time growing. You can see a line on the backside of the dune where the beachgrass will not grow and it is replaced by other dune plants.

Chicago on Ice

Looking in a northwesterly direction, you can see how the dunes are formed or the process of dune formation as it is happening. Okay, what do you see, besides "Chicago on Ice". The Winds makes waves that carry sand ashore and pile the sand in the form of dunes. In time some of the sand will be blown inshore to replenish the dune and some will wash back into the lake forming underwater sand bars that create the dangerous rip currents that claim too many lives each summer.  

A view to the south, the high grounds are the dunes, the land between the dunes are called swales. The plant life changes as the distances from the lake increases. Grasses to shrubs and Pin Oaks to the large Pines,  Oaks and Maples in the distances.

Ring-billed Gull. This is a pic for the sea gull lovers in you

Finished the dune walk. Pleasant weather but I forgot how hard a walk in the sifting sand dune can be for an old man. This walk will count for my early spring stress test.

Center display table with a view of the dunes

Had to stop at the Paul H. Douglas Center for Environmental Education. Maybe I can get a map of the National Lakeshore and directions to where I can find access to the Little Calumet River. I was in luck. The Center was open and I met two nice National Park Rangers. They gave me maps galore and let me take a couple pic.

Display of  some of the animals that live in the dune habitat

A display bench, holds some of the animal traces that can be found in the forest litter if you are observant while hiking the dunes. Here are animal skulls, deer antlers and animal skins.

This is an activity room where environment education is taught. Remember keep the lids on your garbage cans, so we don't feed the animals.

A Junior Ranger Activities Board and Display

Bio-Rama display of the dune ecology

A neat Bio-Rama. The mural depicts an overview of the wooded dune with a bog in the swale. The animals that inhabit the dune environment can be seen in the foreground of the painting.  In front of the mural is a 3 dimensional replica of a cross-section of the forest floor and the soil below. Actual plants and leaf litter are collected from the woods to build the litter surface. Replicas of the animals that live on the forest floor are in place to show the zones in which they live. Under the litter layer is the dark rich top soil where the plants set their roots and most small animals live. All of the above rests on top of the sand that formed the dunes.  Look closely and you can see the mole and  gopher tunnels and tree roots that mix and aerate  the soils.

Covered foot bridge over Lake Street, Gary, In

Well, time to go.  Just a pic of the covered foot bridge over Lake St., that leads to the Environmental Education Center from the parking area. If you have a group of potential Junior Rangers or are an Educator who would like to brush up on your Environmental Education. I would suggest you visit the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore Environmental Education website and sign up.   www.duneslearningcenter.org