Mandarin Orange Monday

 

These are pictures I took while at the Whooping Crane Festival in Wisconsin.  They didn't really need any touch up except a little hue/saturation tweak.  Enjoy ...

Don't you just love this country :)

Please note that I haven't become too lazy to produce artwork, I am very busy trying to get ready for Christmas ... a late start and panic is setting in.  I will continue to do what I can with all of the meme's  I follow, but  please be patient with me ... hopefully I will be back in form my next year :)

Your Sunday Best

 

 By last week the fall colors were starting in Wisconsin.  Down here, it seems like they have started and some are already losing their leaves.  I am assuming that the drabness down here is due to the drought.  These are pictures from Wisconsin that I took as we traveled the back roads getting to the whooping crane fly overs. 

Sumac is always early and one of the brightest colored bushes in the fall ...  

Here a pair of Sand Hill Cranes fly by a beautiful red tree ... I liked the contrast.  Notice that the Sand Hill's are grey.  Grey is their natural color and the brown color that we are used to seeing is caused by them painting themselves with iron rich mud during their mating season.  It leaves enough of a stain on the feathers to change their color.  I assume that the natural color returns as they molt.  So, that was news to me ... thought I would pass it on :)

Time for harvest.  The fields were golden where the corn still stood, but here you see bins of corn being carried to a destination unknown :)