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Dee Hudson Photography

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  • Controlling the jumping fire embers with spray.
    Controlling the Jumping Fire Embers
  • Kathy J Parenteau wrote, "Stand tall oh mighty oak, for all the world to see, your strength and undying beauty forever amazes me."  The winged ridges along the bur oak branches and the little "Friar Tuck" acorns (acorns with a hairy fringe on the cap) are a couple unique characteristics I enjoy about this tree. At sunset this oak certainly created an impressive figure. Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpa)
    The Mighty Bur Oak
  • The White–lined Sphinx moth sips from a thistle.<br />
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White–lined Sphinx moth (Hyles lineata)
    White–lined Sphinx Moth
  • The Ornate Box turtle has been on Illinois’s threatened species list since 2009. This box turtle is very fancy, or ‘ornate,’ with bright yellow stripes radiating across its shell. The turtle favors a prairie habitat that has open grasslands for hunting insects, spiders, worms and vegetation and also likes sandier soils suitable for digging burrows. This turtle species is unique, for it has a hinged plastron (the shell on the turtle’s underside), which allows the turtle to completely pull its head, tail and legs inside the shell for protection.
    Ornate Box Turtle
  • I had the opportunity to follow U.S. Fish & Wildlife into a wetland habitat at Nachusa Grasslands to monitor the Blandings turtle. This is an endangered turtle in Illinois. They face many obstacles to reproduction — habitat loss, predation by man and other animals, and a slow maturation rate. Females mature around 18 years of age and males around 12 years. To help this turtle, support organizations that conserve their habitats! Blandings Turtle (Emydoidea blandingii)
    Blandings Turtle
  • Nature's fall prairie quilt blankets Fameflower Knob, beginning with the patch of green coreopsis stems in the foreground, followed by a stand of yellow Canada goldenrod, and then all surrounded by orange–red little bluestem grass.
    A Mozaic of Coreopsis, Goldenrod & L..stem
  • A natural “tree hugger.” As a land steward, I was removing small cherry trees from the prairie when I discovered this tree frog grasping a branch targeted for destruction. He saved the cherry tree from total annihilation, since I could not possibly remove the perch (yet!).
    Cope's Gray Tree Frog
  • Gently blowing in the autumn breeze, a soft light gently illuminates the showy bronze–colored seeds. Not only beautiful, Indian grass is a great food source for native wildlife, with plenty of seeds for both birds and small mammals.
    Indian Grass
  • "What a thousand acres of Silphiums looked like when they tickled the bellies of the buffalo is a question never again to be answered, and perhaps not even asked." — Aldo Leopold. As I crouched low to frame my shot the light edged just above the horizon and created a beautiful and unexpected sunburst. Standing tall (these were around 9-10 feet) this native prairie plant has become one of my favorites. I photographed these at Nachusa Grasslands, where the Silphium laciniatum (Compass Plant) is once again beginning to tickle the bison bellies!<br />
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Compass plant (Silphium laciniatum)
    Compass Plant
  • The four different Silphiums found growing in the prairie are all bright and sunny, and they all are very tall. The Rosinweed is no exception in the height department, standing up to six feet tall. Not only does this flower stretch high to the sky, but the Rosinweed also sinks deep below the ground, an impressive fourteen feet! This beautiful and cheerful flower attracts many pollinators, especially bees. Rosinweed (Silphium integrifolium)
    Rosinweed
  • The Fox Snake prefers to live in open grasslands, so prairies are a perfect habitat for them. For food, the snake will feast on many small rodents, like mice & voles. Being a constrictor, the snake will coil its body around the prey to subdue it. Often Fox Snakes are mistaken for rattlesnakes, for when they are bothered, they vibrate their tails against dry grass or leaves, and it sounds like the rattle of a rattlesnake.
    Fox Snake
  • Prairie Switch Grass is a native grass that thrives in the hot, dry prairies of Illinois. With the dew drops glistening, the Switch Grass greets the dawn of a new day.
    Switch Grass
  • This large bull moved toward the field where the stewards were weed managing, so a very quick retreat to the truck occurred. When a six foot tall, 1,000-2,000 pound animal chooses a site to graze, rest, or wallow, he always gets his choice! This particular bull appears to prefer this hill, perhaps because the soil is sandy. Notice the swarm of insects around this bull . . . no wonder he wallows so often! As one of the mature bulls in the herd, he will probably dominate and breed with a majority of the cows in the herd during the mating season, from July through September.
    Bison
  • Watch out prairie grasses! The Downy Yellow Painted Cup is coming for you! This native plant is unique because it is hemiparasitic.  The Downy Yellow Painted Cup will attach itself to other plants, mainly grasses, and shares some of their nutrients and water. This plant flourishes in the dry soil along the side of this hill, among its hosts of low–growing grasses and sedges. Downy Yellow Painted Cup (Castilleja sessiliflora)
    Downy Yellow Painted Cup
  • The lavender spikes of the Gayfeather ascend from the prairie and sway in the gentle wind at sunset. Growing in mass like this, they are absolutely stunning! Gayfeather or Prairie Blazing Star (Liatris pycnostachya)
    Gayfeathers at Sunset
  • The Porcupine Grass seed is very unique, with a furry tip that comes to a very sharp point, like a porcupine quill. Read more about this grass in my blog entry called "Porcupines in the Prairie." https://deehudsonphotography.wordpress.com/2015/01/03/porcupines-in-the-prairie/
    Porcupine Grass
  • Both male and female bison have horns. In general, the base of the horn will be larger on a male than on a female. The horn tips on the male bison will tend to point upwards, while the horn tips on the females will curve slightly inward, towards the head. The inside of the horn is made of bone, while the outside is covered in keratin (similar to our fingernails and hair). Horns are not shed like antlers, but will remain attached to the bison’s skulls for their entire life. If the horn is damaged during a fight or while digging, the outside keratin cap may fall off. It will not grow back, though the bony inside will harden and remain.
    Hello Ladies!
  • The splendor of the rough blazing star on a quiet evening in the prairie.
    Quiet Splendor
  • The Wood Betony creates a lovely yellow carpet across Nachusa Grasslands prairie in the springtime. This lovely plant is actually parasitic on tall grasses, allowing the shorter grasses and flowers to populate areas of the prairie. The flowers are also a favorite bumblebee stop.
    Wood Betony
  • Bison are grazers, with grasses being their favorite food. In fact, their diet consists of ninety–nine percent grass! As residents in a prairie, the bison are quite an attraction, but they actually have an important job to do. As they continually graze on the grasses, they open up space for the forbs (the beautiful flowers) to compete and flourish, creating a lot of plant diversity in the prairie. During a typical day, an adult bison may consume about thirty pounds of grass.
    Bison Eating
  • This Canada goldenrod (Solidago canadesis) was a glorious greeting in the early misty morning. Though it provides lovely color in early autumn, this particular species can become invasive in the prairie. The Canada goldenrod can multiply quickly and form dense large patches that prevent other species from establishing. Canada Goldenrod (Solidago canadensis)
    Canada Goldenrod
  • Sitting so still on a cool September morning, I could not resist the stunning beauty of this dragonfly covered in hundreds of tiny dew drops. Usually dragonflies are on the move, but at sunrise on a cool fall day, they are pretty immobile. Black Saddlebags Dragonfly (Tramea lacerata)
    Black Saddlebags Dragonfly
  • The Sedge Wren nests in sedges and grasses, so prairies are great habitats for this small bird. Before this image was captured, I was making a “pishing” sound with my lips. The wren became very interested and moved in closer. He flew to a nearby clump of Big Bluestem grass and sang his song. Then, he dropped to the ground and walked towards me, hidden among the prairie plants. All of a sudden, he popped up from the ground onto the seed heads of this Cinquefoil, only to sing me a parting tune.
    8x10Sedgewren_MG_9630.psd
  • This beautiful prairie forb (flower) can be found throughout the prairie, blooming July through September. The purple and feathery flower heads are interesting because they begin blooming first at the top and then continue onward to the bottom. They are quite striking in bloom, especially in mass plantings. The Gayfeather is a great source of food for wildlife, providing nectar for butterflies, bees, and birds. Gayfeather or Prairie Blazing Star (Liatris pycnostachya)
    Gayfeather
  • After about 9 1/2 months gestation, the bison calf is born in April and May, weighing between 40 and 60 pounds. The calf is born with orange–red fur, which will change to dark brown in a few months. The mother is very protective of the calf and they stay together for about a year, or until the next calf is born.
    Bison Cow & Calf
  • It is still and quiet on this foggy morning. As the sun begins its hazy climb, I scan the pond for any beavers, but I do not see them. What a lovely wetland the beavers have created along the small creek! It has become a home for frogs & toads, turtles, wetland birds and muskrat.
    Secret Waters
  • Elegant on its slender & leafless stems, the Western Sunflower danced in the early morning breeze. The blooms brighten the prairie landscape in late summer and create a breathtaking scene when they grow amongst the purple Rough Blazingstar. This native prairie bloom is actually rather short for a sunflower, growing only 2-3 feet tall. Western Sunflower (Helianthus occidentalis)
    Western Sunflower
  • This ornate box turtle's shell is damaged above his head. Perhaps another animal tried to see what he tasted like. <br />
<br />
Prairie restoration demands hard, tedious and sweaty physical labor. The work is rewarding when the results create a habitat that allows this threatened Illinois turtle to flourish.<br />
<br />
Ornate Box Turtle (Terrapene ornata)
    Ornate Box Turtle
  • The pale purple coneflower is a very showy flower, especially when planted in mass or with other flowers of contrasting color. This sunrise view looks eastward over the Gobbler Ridge unit at Clear Creek Knolls. Volunteer stewards, Bernie & Cindy Buchholz, planted this stretch of prairie in 2011. Pale Purple Coneflower (Echinacea pallida)
    Coneflower Sunrise
  • As the morning fog lifts, the little bluestem grass emerges in all its autumn orangey–red glory.
    Unveiled
  • The purple wild lupines and heart-leaved zizia
    Lupine Landscape
  • I love watching this bird's aerobatic flight as it catches its insect prey right out of the air.<br />
<br />
Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor)
    Tree Swallow
  • Adult bulls can weigh as much as a small car (like the Scion Smart car), approximately 1,800-2,000 pounds. At this weight, it is surprising how fast they can run (35-40 mph). Take a closer look though, and you will see that they are very lean and “all muscle.”
    Lone Bull
  • Bison fur is very thick, with two layers. The inner layer is soft and wooly, and helps regulate their body temperature, providing great winter insulation so that snow can sit on their backs without melting. The outer layer of fur is the dark–chocolate brown color we see. This fur is coarser and provides the bison protection from the elements. They all have scraggly beards on their chins, some longer than others.
    Bison Close–up
  • This plant is a legume species — a type of plant with seeds that develop inside pods, like peas or beans. See how stunning the seed pods look when they are backlit by the sun! <br />
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I am always amazed by the way this plant disperses its seeds. The pods are covered with little tiny hooked hairs that will grab hold of anything or anyone that brushes up against them. Thank goodness the seeds release easily, for many times my photography clothes and equipment are covered in these rascally clinging pods. Illinois Tick Trefoil (Desmodium Illinoense)
    Tick Trefoil
  • With its sharp coppery–orange cone spikes and its purple–pink drooping petals, this native flower really “rocks” on the prairie. The coneflower is a very showy flower, especially when planted in mass or with other flowers of contrasting color. With the unique petal–twisting that can form, the flower gives an appearance of dancing in the wind. The nectar in the blooms attract butterflies, while the birds (Goldfinches) enjoy the seeds in the cone. Pale Purple Coneflower (Echinacea pallida)
    Pale Purple Coneflower
  • Dropseed Grass swirls around the Leadplant seeds in Autumn.
    Leadplant Glory
  • Most of the seeds at Nachusa Grasslands are hand–harvested so the seed proportions for a new planting mix can be determined and the prairie land remains undisturbed.
    Old Field
  • These floral spikes are so captivating, with the lavender flowers blooming from the bottom up. If the Vervain is planted near the Yellow Coneflower, a beautiful landscape scene begins to emerge. Many insects are attracted to the flowers, including bees, flies, grasshoppers and butterflies. Birds such as the Cardinal, the Junco (in winter) and the Field Sparrow, enjoy the seeds. Hoary Vervain (Ratibida pinnata)
    Vervain & Coneflowers
  • The Yellow Coneflowers and the lavender Wild Bergamot blooming together in the prairie create a spectacular show! The Yellow Coneflowers have such a cheerful appearance and bloom for a long time, from July through September. Many insects, including bees and butterflies, enjoy the nectar from these flowers, while birds like Goldfinches, enjoy the flower seeds. Yellow Coneflowers (Ratibida pinnata)
    Yellow Coneflowers
  • This Spiderwort was photographed on a foggy morning in mid–June, when the dew was still clinging to the plant. The best time to see the spiderwort flowers is during the early morning hours, for each bloom is short–lived and closes up as the prairie heats up in the afternoon. Once a bloom closes, it will not reopen again, so the insects have to work very quickly to pollinate. Although each bloom has only a partial day to stay open, each stem may have twenty or more blooms, so this flower may be enjoyed for many days.<br />
Ohio Spiderwort (Tradescantia ohiensis)
    Ohio Spiderwort
  • The graceful spires of the White Wild Indigo appear to dance in the evening light. I photographed these beauties in the Holland West unit at Nachusa Grasslands.
    White Wild Indigo
  • It is amazing how well the White–tailed deer can camouflage in the prairie for such a large mammal.<br />
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White–tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus)
    Deer
  • The white–footed mouse can be distinguished by its very large ears and a long tail. In the prairie they spread a lot of plant seeds and are the food for many predators. White–footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus)
    White–footed Mouse
  • Graduate student, Angela Burke, takes measurements from the deer mouse live–captured in her "critter condo." The data collected is all part of her research on the "Effect of Fire and Bison on Small Mammal Populations in Remnants and Restored Prairie."
    Angela Burke Measures Deer Mouse
  • A hazy shroud of smoke envelopes the savanna during a controlled burn.
    Smoldering Canopies
  • A vole in the hand is worth . . . some great scientific research! Prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster)
    Prairie Vole
  • Bison Hair in the Nest
  • Queen's Fanny
  • Dew drops create an intricate piece of art on this foggy autumn morning, with each tiny hair decorated with fleeting beads of condensation.
    Indian Grass
  • Bottle Gentian
  • Lichen
  • Amber and Blue
  • Chainbreaker
  • Conflowers & Black-eyed Susans
  • Gray Tree Frog
  • Vibrant Blush
  • Butterfly Weed
  • Black Saddlebags Dragonfly
  • Cream Wild Indigo
  • Gayfeather
  • Mint Delight 20
  • _MG_9747
  • Pale Purple Coneflower
  • Lupine
  • Swamp Milkweed
  • Perseverance_MG_5777.jpg
  • Awaiting a strong gust of wind . . .
    Milkweed Seed
  • Perseverance 15
  • Silky Parachutes
  • Lupine
  • dhudson-2047.jpg
  • Earthy Essence
  • Robel Pole
  • Birdsfoot Violet
  • Deer Mouse Receives Chip
  • A male Dickcissel patrols his territory. This grassland bird will actively defend good nesting and feeding sites from other males. <br />
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Dickcissel (Spiza americana)
    Dickcissel
  • dhudson--6.jpg
  • Bison Calf
  • _MG_0553.jpg
  • Big Blue Kaleidescope
  • Little Blue 04
  • Juvenile Pheasant
  • Small Mammal Research
  • Hoverflies can be seen 'hovering' around these Spiderwort flowers. They resemble bees, but I know this is a fly because it only has two wings (one pair).<br />
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Hoverfly (Toxomerus marginatus)
    A Hoverfly on Spiderwort
  • dhudson--4.jpg
  • Red-winged Blackbird Babies
  • dhudson-1989.jpg
  • Dave gives last–minute field exercise training instructions.
    Training Instructions
  • Little Bluestem Overlook
  • Sphinx Moth Caterpillar
  • Kittentails
  • Meadow Jumping Mouse
  • Fame Flower Knob
  • dhudson--2.jpg
  • False Sunflowers
  • Nick gets ready to take measurements.
    Deer Mouse & Nick
  • Deer Mouse
  • Smoldering Bluestem
  • A volunteer land steward waves from his unit.
    Potholes
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