Flora & Fauna

Thought I’d share a few of my better photos of this past Tuesday’s spring shotgun wild turkey season hunt with you. One of the many reasons I love spring wild turkey hunting in Nebraska is calling in and watching a big, old tom like this one. The words of Ben Franklin ring true when I am observing wild turkeys. For my own part I wish the Bald Eagle had not been chosen the Representative of our Country. He is a Bird of bad …

Once in a great while we are blessed with a bird that challenges us to the core!  Trashtalker was that bird.  We met four years ago during a hunt with my daughter.  We had set up in a large hollow or draw that had not shown much activity in the past.  But then…it happened!  A bird sounded off not 100 yards away in the hollow.  It gobbled….roughly 70 times in 45 minutes!  Never met such a vocal bird.  We called …

Bird migrations, bird watching, bird feeding and even more birding topics will be addressed on this Saturday’s Great Outdoor Radio Show. Special guest will be Crinda Williams of Springfield, NE who owns and manages the two For The Wild Birds Stores in the metro. Crinda is heavily into Nebraska birds and the birding world! She’ll be sharing what she knows about our feathered friends and answering any bird-related questions you may have. We’ll also be highlighting the month of May which is …

Weather permitting I will be celebrating Arbor Day my traditional way by dressing up like a tree, making sexy, fowl noises and hoping to seduce the bird that takes center stage in the Nebraska woodlands each spring – the wild gobbler. To appropriately do so I will rise well before daylight, dream about a hearty breakfast while munching on stale granola bars and drinking bad coffee on the morning commute to the river bottom.  Once parked at the field entrance …

Every photo that makes it to print in NEBRASKAland Magazine means a lot to me. Few things make a person look fondly upon a time and a place as does a good photo and it’s especially rewarding to see one in print. One particular photo — that of a Boreal chorus frog on pages 46-47 of the April issue — has special meaning to me. Frogs are great and I love the way this species fills the air with song …

It is spring and love is in the air for many of Nebraska’s creatures.  I have been in the field helping collect walleye eggs for our walleye stockings the past couple of weeks (Easter Egg Hunt), so I know it is time for the walleyes to be doing their “thing”.  I am also a bona fide spring turkey hunting addict and I am very aware that our turkeys are well into their mating season too–the toms are strutting!  In the …

When I started chasing gobblers in the spring very few people used them. Now many feel naked if they walk into the field without a turkey decoy or three. I hunted several years before getting my first fake which was made of foam and looked more looney tunes than lonely hen.  But I put her to use with some great results. In the (over) two decades that have passed since then turkey decoys have changed – a lot.  As manufacturing …

Nebraska Game and Parks Commission officials are reporting that a moose has been spotted numerous times by residents in the North Platte River Valley in the Panhandle. The confirmed sightings suggest that the moose has been in the region for several weeks and was last reported in Morrill County. Moose are not common in Nebraska, but are occasionally spotted in the western part of the state. Wildlife biologists expect that the moose wandered into the state from Wyoming. Officials are …

I’ve been in the field a lot archery/crossbow spring wild turkey hunting from a portable, camouflaged, pop-up blind in rural eastern Nebraska. As I always say “hunting is not about the harvest, but the experience.” It has been an exciting experience seeing nature in early spring! Here are just some of the various wildlife species we’ve seen. Take a look with us through the lens. Before I began this blog, I was going to list all the reasons why I deeply love spring turkey hunting. After much reflection, I …

It is hard to type on the ipad as I sit here strapped to my bow release.  But we are finally back in the spring turkey woods.  Aaaaah does it feel good to be  home.   I almost forgot how fickle these early season birds can be. Throughout the winter, turkeys have been grouped up into winter flocks.  Partly because resources are limited and partly because they had nothing better to do.  Now that we are entering the early phases …