Blossom thief

A golden-crowned sparrow feeds on blossoms in a plum orchard on a farm near Elkton in rural western Oregon on  Saturday, April 10, 2021. According to AllAboutBirds.com, the sparrow is one of the least known of our songbirds, particularly on its northern breeding grounds. It has been the subject of only a few laboratory and field studies.

 

Pollen season begins

My work is represented by ZUMApress.com. Today they highlighted one of my pollen photos in The Pictures of the Day gallery.

Pollen grains waft from grass in a field along the Umpqua River near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Friday, April 9, 2021. As spring progresses, grass and tree pollen counts have begun to rise in many part of the United States. 

 

Published work in UV Magazine

Wild art- check out my photos in the just published UV Life magazine. Over the last year the COVID19 lockdown scrubbed most of my assignments. The spare time allowed me to concentrate on my nature and wildlife photography.

 

Spring spider

A small crab spider clings to a plum blossom in an orchard on a farm near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Wednesday, April 7, 2021. Unlike web spinning spiders, crab spiders depend on stealth and camouflage to ambush their prey.

 

Baby's day out

A baby California vole waits on a bed of moss and grass for its mother to return after being separated in a pasture on a farm near Elkton in rural western Oregon on Tuesday, April 6, 2021. The mother will likely return. California voles are able to breed almost year-round. They are born blind and hairless and are weaned at around two weeks of age. The young have a full set of adult teeth by three weeks. Females reach sexual maturity after as little as three weeks.

 

New life from the ashes

A trillium blooms on Sunday, April 4, 2021 on a hillside on Bureau of Land Management property near Glide inside the area burned by the massive 132,000-acre Archie Creek fire in the summer of 2020. 

Morel mushrooms grow nearby. The fire was one of many fires which contributed to the 2020 Oregon wildfire season being called the most destructive on record. 

New life returns as a brave alligator lizard defends territory inside the burned area. The 2020 fires in Oregon killed at least 11 people, burned more than 1,000,000 acres of land, and destroyed thousands of homes. 

 

Pictures of the Month from ZUMApress.com

 Another amazing month of pictures from ZUMApress.com. Look for a few of my creature features in the mix...

POMmarch2021.m4v from ZUMA Press on Vimeo.