• Home
  • Birds
    • Owls
    • Snowy Owls
    • Eagles2
    • Eagles
    • Hawks/Raptors
    • Raptor Conservancy
    • Greater Prairie Chickens
    • Backyard Birds
    • Spring Birds
    • Spring Birds 2
    • Loons
    • Waterfowl >
      • Snow Geese
      • Swans
      • Geese
      • Ducks
    • Pelicans
    • Herons
    • Whooping Cranes
    • Sandhill Cranes
    • Sandhill Cranes 2
    • Bosque Snow Geese & Cranes
    • More Birds
    • SOAR
    • Florida
  • Animals
  • National/State Parks
    • Yellowstone In Winter
    • Animals/Birds of the Badlands, Yellowstone and Grand Tetons National Parks
    • National Parks Landscapes
    • Animals of Yellowstone/Tetons/Badlands
    • Yellowstone/Tetons/Badlands Landscapes
    • Animals of Yellowstone/Tetons/Badlands
    • Yellowstone/Tetons/Badlands Landscapes
    • Animals of Yellowstone
    • Yellowstone/Tetons Landscapes
    • Yellowstone Textures
    • Custer State Park, SD
    • Great Smoky Mountains NP
    • Rocky Mountain National Park
    • Utah National Parks
  • Landscapes
    • Lake Superior
    • The Great Smoky Mountains NP
    • National Parks
    • Niagara Falls
    • Fireworks - 3
    • Fireworks - 2
    • Fireworks - 1
  • Flowers
    • Prairie Flowers
  • Insects
  • MyBlog
  • About Me
    • Recognitions
    • Presentations

Sax-Zim Bog

12/5/2020

1 Comment

 
Photo of an American Pine Marten
American Pine Marten
I have been to the Sax-Zim Bog area northwest of Duluth,  Minnesota several times. (You can use the search box on this site to search for Sax-Zim Bog to see previous posts.) On this trip I was fortunate enough to spend some time photographing an American Pine Marten, a ferocious predator, a member of the weasel family about 24-30" long. I also saw a white Ermine (Black-tailed Weasel). They run really fast and are hard to photograph. People flock to the bog area in the winter time to see Great Grey Owls, Northern Hawk Owls and Snowy Owls. I did get photos of one Great Grey late in the day a little after the sun went down, but I missed the other owls (they don't seem to let us know where and when they will be available for photos). I saw a nice Rough-legged Hawk sitting on the top of a tree and snapped a few photos just as it launched off the top. Some of the other birds I saw are below and identified in the captions. I didn't go to all of the feeder areas so I did miss some of the smaller winter birds, but over-all this was a good trip.
Click images to see larger.
Photo of an American Pine Marten
Photo of an Ermine (Black-tailed Weasel)
Photo of a Red Squirrel sitting on a small tree branch.
Photo of a Red Squirrel
Photo of a White-tailed Deer doe
Photo of a Rough-legged Hawk flying
Photo of a Bald Eagle perched in a tree.
Photo of a Great Grey Owl perched in a tree at dusk.
Photo of a male Pine Grosbeak perched on a branch.
Photo of a female Pine Grosbeak perched on a branch.
Photo of a Hairy Woodpecker
Photo of a Blue Jay perched on a branch.
Photo of a Gray Jay perched on a branch.
Photo of a Gray Jay perched on a branch.
Photo of a Red-breasted Nuthatch perched on a branch.
1 Comment

A few from the Sax-Zim Bog

2/24/2018

1 Comment

 
There are a lot of different birds and wildlife to be found in the Sax-Zim Bog area in Northern Minnesota, you just need to spend some time driving around to find them.  All photos were taken with the long telephoto lens from the car, except for the Northern Hawk Owl. I had to hike back in the the woods to get that one this time to get better lighting. But it was very high at the top of a very tall spruce tree looking and listening for voles under the snow. The Great Gray Owl and Pileated Woodpecker were both quick grab shots out the window and then they flew away. There are so many more birds and wildlife that I didn't get, but because of heavy snow I decided to head home early.
Click the pictures below to see larger in a slide show.

See previous Sax-Zim bog posts - January 2018,  June 2016,   January 2015, 
1 Comment

Great Gray Owls at Sax-Zim Bog 2

1/3/2015

1 Comment

 
PictureGreat Grey Owl at Sax-Zim Bog
I started out the new year taking pictures of Pine Siskins and House Finches in the back yard, very distant photos of  Snowy Owl near Ventura, IA, then headed up to Sax-Zim Bog  northwest of Duluth, MN to try to get pictures of a Great Gray Owl. This was my second trip (see previous post from February of 2014).  I was lucky this time and got pictures of two different Great Gray Owls on Admiral Road and McDavitt Road that were fairly cooperative in allowing several photographers and birders to get some pictures from a distance with telephoto lenses while the owls were searching for an easy meal. It was fun watching one owl swoop down and land on a mouse in the snow (wild mouse - not baited). It was a dark, cloudy, dreary day, with snow and sleet in the morning. Not my favorite kind of day for bird pictures - a little too dark, but I got a few photos. Others included Purple Finches, Common Redpolls, White-breasted and Red-breasted Nuthatches, Gray Jays, Chickadees, a Barred Owl and many more. There were also several Red Squirrels. I did not get to see a Snowy Owl , nor a Northern Hawk-Owl which often frequent the area in the Winter, and apparently I just missed and Ermine.  Maybe next time.  There is no guarantee that you will see a Great Gray Owl if you go to the bog. It is a very larger area covering many square miles. Some people go to visit and never see an owl of any kind.  Watch the Sax-Zim Bog Facebook page for recent reports. and drive around the likely areas many times. Early in the morning at sunrise and late in the afternoon at sunset are usually the better times, but it can vary day-to-day. Good luck if you decide to go. Be sure to stop at the visitor's center on Owl Avenue, where there are lots of opportunities to see and photograph smaller birds at the many feeders.
You can learn more about the bog and find maps here -
http://sax-zimbog.com/
[Click the pictures below to see larger.]      More Owl photos here...


Short Video of the Great Gray Owl (click below):
Friday, January 2, 2015, Admiral Road

1 Comment

Great Gray Owl - Sax-Zim Bog

2/26/2014

1 Comment

 
PictureGreat Gray Owl, Sax-Zim Bog, Minnesota
Sunday I went to the Sax-Zim Bog area Northwest of Duluth, Minnesota to look for Great Gray Owls, Snowy Owls, Northern Hawk Owls and anything else that we might find with a foot of new snow on the ground. We found the Great Gray Owl perched high in a tree before sunrise in the twilight. It was on Admiral Road just north of the bird feeders. We got a few shots from the car until it flew a short distance away, and then we were able to get a few shots outside of the car just after sunrise until it disappeared in to the woods. We also found a Snowy Owl on Zim Road and Greenfield, but it was high in a tree and we did not get any good photos. We never found the Northern Hawk Owl. Very disappointing.
If you want to learn more about the Sax-Zim Bog area search on Google or Facebook. There are at least two Facebook sites dedicated to the bog and several web sites with maps and more info. We met people from all over the country who where there to look for birds. If you happen to find a Great Gray Owl locally let me know. I'd love to get some more photos of this majestic bird.
There are more Great Gray Owl photos here - click to view.


1 Comment

    Bruce's Blog

    Just a few notes about my photos and videos. See more on Facebook. and videos on YouTube

    Archives

    July 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    October 2023
    September 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    February 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Awards
    Backyard Birds
    Balloons
    Bears
    Birds
    Bison
    Buffalo
    Butterflies
    Canoeing
    Christmas
    Christmas Lights
    Clouds
    Death Valley
    Ducks
    Eagles
    Fireworks
    Flowers
    Fox
    Frog
    Geese
    Grouse
    Holiday Lights
    Hot Air Balloons
    Iceland
    Insects
    Kayaking
    Kites
    Lake Superior
    Landscapes
    Lightning
    Loon
    Milky Way
    Moon
    National Parks
    Northern Lights
    Owls
    Prairie Chickens
    Raptors
    Reflections
    River
    Rocky Mountain National Park
    Sandhill Cranes
    Sax Zim Bog
    Sax-Zim Bog
    Smoky Mountains
    Stars
    State Parks
    Sunrise
    Sunset
    Swans
    Tetons Yellowstone
    Tetons-Yellowstone
    Trees
    Video
    Waterfall
    Whooping Cranes
    Wildflowers
    Wildlife
    Wildlife Refuge
    Winter

All photographs © Bruce G. McKee - May not be reproduced without written permission - All rights reserved

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.