Growing Wild Blog — growing wild

Burrowing Owl

AnimalsStephanie PennDecember 29, 2025Comment

Bewick’s Wren Dust Bath

Bewick’s wrens take dust baths, often at dusk to remove oil from their feathers and potentially control parasites.

AnimalsStephanie PennDecember 11, 2025*pinnedpostsComment

Gray Buckeye

Close-up of wing: orange, brown, black, peach, amber, almond, purple, violet, blue, turquoise, cobalt, candy pink and magenta scales. Iridescent colors without names. These colors come from the way light reflects off structures in the wing scales in addition to pigmented color

AnimalsStephanie PennDecember 10, 2025*pinnedpostsComment

Marbled Godwit Feeding on the Mudflats

AnimalsStephanie PennDecember 7, 2025videoComment

Wild Turkey

I was watching a group of about a dozen wild turkeys scraping the ground and finding bites to eat when a group of corvids somewhere nearby started making alarm calls. Every single turkey stopped what they were doing and cocked their head to the side to listen. They stayed that way until the alarm calls stopped.

AnimalsStephanie PennDecember 4, 2025Comment

Black Phoebe

This black-and-white flycatcher was using a low perch on an open grassy hillside to wait for prey. Once the insect was in sight, it would fly out to catch it, either from the air or the ground and then return to its perch.

AnimalsStephanie PennNovember 16, 2025Comment