Morning dew

Morning dew in western Oregon. 

Getting out of the house on a damp morning sometimes pays off.

One of the very first spring blossoms in the prune plum orchard near our house.

Roosevelt elk in western Oregon

A herd of wild Roosevelt elk stand on a ridge on our ranch near Elkton, Ore., on Thursday, March 28, 2013. Roosevelt elk are the largest of the four subspecies of elk in North America. Mature bulls can weigh 1300-pounds. 

One of the cows slicks out her tongue as they move off.

The elk jump a fence on the ridge and move off out of sight.

Spring showers

A wild black-tailed doe and a yearling fawn stand in a field during a spring rain shower on a farm near Roseburg, Ore., on Wednesday, March 27, 2013. 

Fish dinner

A wild adult osprey perches on a tree branch while feeding on a freshly caught fish along the South Umpqua River in Roseburg, Ore., on Tuesday, March 26, 2013.

Take out dinner- The fish hawk takes to the air with its half-eaten dinner.

Must-see photos

My grumpy spider photo is in the MSN News Must-See March photo gallery.

Night for a moondance

Moon Halo- We had a bonfire in the orchard last night and the moon put on a light show of its own. The optical phenomenon of a moon  halo is caused when light is refracted by ice crystals high in the atmosphere.

Morel mushrooms

An ant climbs on a morel mushroom growing on an open hillside near Elkton, Ore., on Saturday, March 23, 2013. Morel mushrooms are prized by gourmet cooks, particularly for French cuisine. Morels are known by many local names including dryland fish, hickory chickens, merkels, and molly moochers. 

I plan on eating some of the morels sautéed for dinner. This individual is a little over mature and won't be eaten. 

What nice teeth you have

A large nutria feeds on aquatic vegetation while floating in a pond in Roseburg, Ore., on Wednesday, March 20, 2013. I went to the post looking for an otter, which I spotted yesterday, but found the nutria instead.

Beauty and the beast

A small spider waits to ambush an unsuspecting insect on the petal of a yellow daffodil in a pasture on a farm near Elkton, Ore., on Sunday, March 17, 2013.

Pins and a needle

I've been shooting pins and a needle this morning in my Roseburg, Ore., photo studio for a potential commercial client. Unfortunately, the project was killed and the photos will never be used. I'll keep them in my archive and maybe someday I'll make a sale.

Who you looking at?

A wild western screech owl perches in the opening of a wood duck nest box high in a tree along a country road near Elkton, Ore., on Wednesday, March  13, 2013.  Western screech owls are found from central America north into the United States and Canada.

Starry night

It's a starry night in rural Douglas County, Oregon on Sunday, March 10, 2013. That's our house at left. I used a flashing to illuminate the pear tree during a 30-second exposure.

Photos of the Day

My shaved cat photo made it into the Pictures of the Day gallery on zumapress.com.

The buzz, buzz, buzzing

On a warm spring-like day, a honey bee forages for pollen on a small wildflower in a pasture near my home in western Oregon on Saturday, Feb. 9, 2013.

I keep two hives nearby so these are likely bees from my hives. Honey bees live about 6 weeks. With winter coming to an end these bees are probably just learning how to gather pollen for the first time.

Frog photo on Today.com

It's my croaking frog photo in this week's Animal Tracks gallery on today.com.

Ribbit, ribbit, ribbit

A wild Pacific tree frog inflates his vocal sack as he croaks his mating call while floating in a seasonal pond on a private farm near Roseburg, Ore., on Saturday, March 2, 2013. Pacific tree frogs are also know as Pacific chorus frogs. Their "ribbit, ribbit, ribbit" song is a familiar evening sound along Pacific coast from northern California to British Columbia.