Back in 2005, I wrote a column for the Friends of the Fox River’s newsletter entitled “How Green Is My River?” due to the incredible algae blooms that were going on that year. For much of that year, the river was a vivid pea-soup green: not healthy for river life and not very aesthetically pleasing … Read more
For this month’s column, I’ve decided to recount an incredibly unique experience I had along the banks of the Fox River last October (2022) on one of my frequent visits to the river observation platform at the Hoover Forest Preserve in Yorkville. As you might suspect, this experience revolved around the interaction of three different … Read more
I frequently like to take drives along the Fox River where roads closely parallel the riverbank. One such road that I particularly like to take during this time of year (spring) is IL Route 25 from Aurora south to Oswego. This route passes by some great fishing areas, the sites of several water willow stands. … Read more
It’s the first day of meteorological spring (March 1) as I write my column for this month’s Reflections on the Fox blog. Spring is an exciting season of “comebacks” in our Fox River Valley. As of this writing, great flocks of Sandhill Cranes have been seen flying overhead as they come back from their winter … Read more
It’s a bright, sunny Groundhog Day as I write this article. Punxsutawney Phil and our local groundhog, Woodstock Willie, both saw their shadows today signaling six more weeks of winter. Whether you subscribe to these rodents’ forecasts or not, we’re in store for a fairly long period of winter weather before spring’s arrival! I choose … Read more
One of my favorite winter birding pastimes is searching for one of the most spectacular birds that visits northern Illinois from the Arctic north during the winter: the Snowy Owl. While I’m searching for Snowy Owls, I occasionally come across other large raptors like Bald Eagles, Red-tailed Hawks, Northern Harriers, and Rough-legged Hawks. I also … Read more
By now, regular readers of my blog here know that I spend a lot of time hiking in the Hoover Forest Preserve along the south bank of the Fox River in Yorkville, Illinois. The preserve offers a wide variety of beautiful trees, colorful wildflowers, interesting animals, and a plethora of amazing birds. This summer, one … Read more
A few months ago, I wrote about tyrant flycatchers, including the Eastern Kingbird and called them the “kings” of the Fox River Valley for their ferocious feeding habits and their generally fierce (for a cute little bird anyhow) behavior. This month, I’m writing about another bird with a “royal” title for many of the same … Read more
Being a person who spends a lot of time outdoors in the woods and fields of the Fox River valley and on the waters of the Fox River itself, I have been privileged to see a lot of amazing wildlife throughout the course of my life. Some of the most thrilling wildlife experiences I have … Read more
Maybe you have heard of the practice that coal miners used in the pre-modern technology “old days” of mining; they took a canary in a cage with them into the underground mine to detect the presence of deadly gases that would pose a mortal threat to the miners. The theory was that the canary, more … Read more
