Sara Denissen Photography

Sara Denissen Photography I’m an amateur photographer who loves nature especially birds, butterflies and insects.
(1)

Eastern Kingbird perched and catching flying bugs this evening.
06/05/2026

Eastern Kingbird perched and catching flying bugs this evening.

Gold Winged Warbler and a few other captures from May 23, 2026 at Nine Mile Recreation Area, Mosinee, Wisconsin.
05/31/2026

Gold Winged Warbler and a few other captures from May 23, 2026 at Nine Mile Recreation Area, Mosinee, Wisconsin.

I'm looking forward capturing more photographs this summer for the North Central Conservancy Trust! Check their Facebook...
05/28/2026

I'm looking forward capturing more photographs this summer for the North Central Conservancy Trust! Check their Facebook site out. If I had land, I'd be working with them to preserve it for future conservation use.

North Central Conservancy Trust (NCCT) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to “conserve the natural heritage of Central Wisconsin through the protection of land.” NCCT works with landowners to assist development of conservation easements. Once an easement is completed to everyone’s satisfaction and filed with the Register of Deeds, NCCT is legally responsible for ensuring that the conditions of the easement are permanently honored. NCCT has legal authority to enforce the conditions of an easement, even with litigation if necessary, and manages an endowment to cover enforcement costs. Conservation easements are especially important for protecting the agricultural, scenic, and environmental qualities of our landscape. The mission of NCCT includes educating both the public and elected officials about the value of conservation benefits and the way in which easements can protect them. NCCT works closely with town and county officials, and is affiliated with Gathering Waters, a state-wide land trust organization that helps to coordinate land- protection activities among the more than 50 land trusts in Wisconsin. NCCT is also a member of the national Land Trust Alliance, which supports land protection across the country.

A few random shots from exploring this weekend!
05/26/2026

A few random shots from exploring this weekend!

Today Mary Lou Gardner (my second mom) and I attended a Dragonfly workshop put on by the Wisconsin Dragonfly Societyat t...
05/25/2026

Today Mary Lou Gardner (my second mom) and I attended a Dragonfly workshop put on by the Wisconsin Dragonfly Society
at the Sandhill State Wildlife Area in partnership with Friends of Sandhill. We had a classroom portion when we arrived and then spent the afternoon in the field. We learned so much in just that short classroom time, what an amazing experience all around!! It is insane how camouflaged dragonflies are on tree bark. Did you know Wisconsin has 120 species of Dragonflies and 48 species of Damselflies 😮

Dragonflies while beautiful to us, they're an airborne terror for winged insects. They are one of the top predators on Earth with a success rate of around 97%. They will attack and eat other dragonflies and other winged creature like hummingbirds.

Sight is an important sense for dragonflies. They can’t hear and have a limited sense of smell, so their eyes are vital for navigating the world. Dragonfly brains may be tiny, but they can process about 200 images per second. Most of a dragonfly’s head is taken up by its two goggle-like compound eyes. These can be so big that they meet in the middle on the top of the head. This gives dragonflies near-360° vision.

If you look closely at a dragonfly’s eyes, you’ll find they’re a mosaic of units called ommatidia. Each ommatidium points in a slightly different direction and contains a tiny lens. While we have one lens in each eye, dragonflies can have as many as 30,000 lenses per eye.

The insects likely see colour and light very differently to us. While we have three proteins in our eyes that are associated with colour vision, dragonflies have up to 30 proteins.

Some dragonfly species may even be able to detect ultraviolet polarised lightopens in a new window bouncing off the surface of water. They might use this to know if the water is suitable to, for example, lay their eggs. See less

Birds were posing beautifully on the fence lines last week at Wausau East. Hermit Thrushes, Baltimore Orioles, Brown Thr...
05/24/2026

Birds were posing beautifully on the fence lines last week at Wausau East. Hermit Thrushes, Baltimore Orioles, Brown Thrashers, Cardinals, Red Winged Blackbirds, Bluebirds, Tree Swallows, heard lots of warblers but didn’t see them.

Quite the treat seeing both a female and male Eastern Towhee this evening at Nine Mile Recreation Area.
05/24/2026

Quite the treat seeing both a female and male Eastern Towhee this evening at Nine Mile Recreation Area.

Male Scarlet Tanager was visiting the feeders this evening. Neat fact: After breeding, adult males molt their vibrant re...
05/21/2026

Male Scarlet Tanager was visiting the feeders this evening.
Neat fact: After breeding, adult males molt their vibrant red feathers and develop female-like olive green plumage. Males retain their black wings and tail feathers.

Today's adventure took me to Bukolt Island in Stevens Point to learn about native and invasive plant species by the lege...
05/18/2026

Today's adventure took me to Bukolt Island in Stevens Point to learn about native and invasive plant species by the legendary Dr. Robert Freckmann. Then we observed bird banding. Even through the cold brisk wind and rain near the end......I'd do it in a heartbeat again! Huge thanks to the North Central Conservancy Trust for holding this event to help educate us. I'm looking forward to volunteering and attending more of their events in the future!

Chickadees were loving the warmth from the sunshine today. Chickadees "are memory geniuses”. They are masters of episodi...
01/25/2026

Chickadees were loving the warmth from the sunshine today. Chickadees "are memory geniuses”. They are masters of episodic memory (the brain's ability to recall specific moments) such as “caching” (stashing) nuts and seed away under tree bark or in a knothole. Unlike most birds that live in cold places, chickadees don't migrate south during the winter. This means their survival hinges on remembering where they hid food during warmer months.

Address

Mosinee, WI
54455

Telephone

+17154510234

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Sara Denissen Photography posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share

Category