Yesterday afternoon, my wife, Carol decided that I needed a new turkey decoy.  In reality, I probably did not.  I already have a lot of turkey decoys.  I have turkey silhouettes, folding turkeys, inflatable turkeys, hard rubber turkeys, plastic turkeys, hens, jakes, gobblers, and so on.  In my search for the perfect decoy, I feel
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The annual mass migration of snow geese is one of  creation’s most amazing spectacles.  More than six million of the snow white birds are currently moving toward ancestral breeding grounds on the sodden tundras of the Canadian arctic.  The northbound geese are unaware, of course, that nesting areas will remain locked under snow and ice
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  It's mid-March, and the days are getting long.  In spite of the fact that our North Iowa woodlands remain snow covered and spring turkey seasons are still nearly a month in the offing; I couldn't resist getting out into the timber this weekend.  Glad I did. Saturday morning was certainly no disappointment.  Right on cue, and
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  What a difference a week [or maybe a couple of days] can make!  As recently as March 10, I still needed snowshoes to navigate across much of the North Iowa landscape and wind chills were still routinely dropping into negative numbers.  And then came the Big Thaw.  Snow depths that looked [and felt] as if
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  Happened upon this scene around sunset tonight.  Hard to tell if this rooster is wondering where in the world to tuck in for the night; or if he's contemplating just ending it all by standing on the blacktop until the next high speed grain hauler comes roaring over the hill.

We’ve all heard that old adage “In Like A Lion; Out Like A Lamb”.  It refers to the month of March.  This year, March made its dramatic entrance from the Lion side of the stage -- complete with roaring winds, drifting snow, and subzero temperatures.  Not exactly what any of us, including Iowa wildlife, needed
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  It was my turn to cook -- So for last night's dinner, I decided to fix a 'standard batch' of Kung Pao Pheasant.  Just about the time everything was ready, I discovered a lone thigh hiding behind a group of oranges.  Don't know how it ended up there, but I decided to teach that fugitive
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It’s no secret that most Iowans have had enough of winter snow -- have had enough of winter cold.  But spring is on its way.  For one resident bird species, the season has already arrived.  From the remote reaches of Iowa forestlands to tiny farm grove woodlots, female great horned owls are already sitting on
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k   It’s mid-February and the North Iowa landscape remains in lockdown.  Although today’s skies are clear and sunny, morning temperatures have failed to rise above a finger numbing ten degrees below zero.  But the wind is down and, once we’ve dressed in proper attire, it seems a perfect day to explore local wetlands. Once we arrive, the
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  After you've heard or read the same old stuff for about the millionth time,  there are topics that seem to lose a bit of their original luster.  You know, like the standard Wildlife Management 101 speech stating how you can't stockpile small game or those lessons regarding the ultra dynamic nature of local wildlife populations. 
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  The woman at the opposite end of the phone line was -- well, she was hysterical.  Absolutely in a rage, and that’s putting it mildly.  Whenever she’d stop to take a breath, I’d seize the opportunity to try working in a few words of my own.  Didn’t work.  Before I’d get half way through the
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  The Iowa deer season ended Friday, January 10.  It was a tough hunt.  During this year's archery season, I hunted harder but encountered fewer deer in Northern Iowa than I've seen in several decades.  During the peak of the November rut I had 'close encounters' with two mature bucks.  The first was a wide beamed,
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