William H. Wiley
402-875-1809
bill@wmwiley.com
1221 Rockhurst Dr.
Lincoln, NE 68510
Sitting in its nest about 100 feet above a river in Yellowstone National Park, this osprey chick practices wing flapping before taking its first flight. Osprey nests are a bulky mass of sticks often five feet in diameter and two to seven feet thick. They prefer nesting sites with clear visibility and an abundant food supply, eating almost exclusively live fish. Ospreys mate for life and typically live 15-20 years. Amazingly, an osprey migrates up to 160,000 miles during its lifetime.
The Snowy Egret was hunted nearly to extinction in the latter part of the 19th century and into the early twentieth century, simply because its plumes were very popular on hats. This egret keeps a sharp eye open for a meal of crabs, fish, amphibians or insects in the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge in South Carolina.
Along the Platte River this Lesser Yellowlegs struts along the shore looking for a meal. A member of the Sandpiper family, Yellowlegs usually feed by probing their beaks into the mud and sand along the water’s edge.
