I have the opportunity to chat with a friend about her nature adventures at Walden and in Newfoundland, as I contribute my local encounters.
Walden
En route, we admire
a doe nursing her delicate fawns,
where woods and pasture meet.
Four fawns frolic, leap over a fence
to the field, to graze.
Massive dairy cows share
the area, companionably,
as they nuzzle one another.
Finally at Walden
we are swimming
in clear, deep water,
when an osprey flies low, close,
to attack a bald eagle with its beak!
The eagle flies off to
safely on a tree limb.
A group of swimmers
far from shore, witness
an eagle suddenly dive down
among them, to grab a fish
and speed off!
An enormous snapper
comes ashore to a tiny
area of sand, to lay eggs,
two days in a row.
Staff wave a colorful ribbon
to guide it back to the
safety of the pond,
far from curious crowds.
Warm water, cool air, nobody
around except a Great Blue heron
flying across from one side to the other.
In the woods, there is
a startling pileated woodpecker,
the largest of its kind,
white and black, its crest a stunning red.
On a foggy day, a loon pair
call out their eerie sounds,
reverberating in the mist.
My Locale
Ripples of sparrows
seem to play, as they
swoop from branches
to the ground,
and up to wires.
A streak of jet trail
is circled by a lone hawk.
Two hawks appear to dance on air,
then chase a fearsome bald eagle
away from their territory.
Groups of flickers feed on the ground,
as clutches of kildeers fatten up
for their migration south.
An elegant osprey stands on a low branch
overlooking a cove, laser focused on prey,
turning its head from side to side,
as a swan family lazily meanders
at the edge. The four swanlings
are gray, turning white, with
swaths of pale feathers coming in.
A kingfisher is poised at the tip of a log,
ready to dive down to catch a fish,
its punk hairdo and orange chest splotches
catching the light.
A Vee of geese appears in silhouette
against a cloudy sky; we thrill to
their haunting, raucous vocals.
A large, fuzzy, dark, caterpillar,
one of many seen in September,
climbs up my steps, perhaps
to be admired in spring
as a colorful tiger moth!
Newfoundland
In Port aux Choix, a herd of caribou
meander over flat, smooth gray rocks
at the ocean’s edge.
These magnificent creatures
are evading seasonal flies,
as moose head for forested hills.
Nearby are breathtaking
natural sculptures,
created by tides, wind, and sand.
At one point, traffic is at a halt,
as the entire group grazes
around cars, nonplussed by humans,
just a foot away.
I enjoyed your descriptions of so many different creatures! We are always surrounded by beauty if we step outside.
Thank you, Elsa!
First off, I LOVE THE CLOSE UP OF THE TURTLE, what is he or she thinking!? Elsa is a proficient writer, and i thoroughly enjoy her pieces. Her writing is, as always, an education of sorts, for me, and exquisitely descriptive and shows her passion for nature, even through another’s eyes, as in this piece at different locales, she is truly AMAZING! Thank you, Elsa
Another beautifully written piece giving us a view of the incredible variety of nature around us from Ms Lichman. Thank you!
Elsa, Thanks for the head shot…I needed that for a painting. And, thanks for all the glimpses of creatures in their habitat. I feel the connections across time and place.
Thank you Elsa for another dramatic and colorful escape into the animal kingdom!