Tricolored Heron: Joe Overstreet Landing

The early morning sunlight was perfect for photographing a Tricolored Heron hunting the lake shore at Joe Overstreet Landing.

Striking at prey, I could not tell for a moment if it had been successful,

Until it lifted its head and deftly flipped the small minnow in its long bill.

Photos like this are a combination of luck and perseverance; luck that the shutter happened to click at that exact moment, and perseverance in that I wasn't satisfied with a few well exposed shots of the little heron and was continuing to shoot frame after frame hoping for something exceptional to happen. 

Bald Eagles at Joe Overstreet Landing

Joe Overstreet landing is a spot noted on the Great Florida Birding Trail.  At one time the endangered Whooping Cranes could be seen here regularly but I have not observed them during my 2010 visits nor this year although I was told that one had been spotted on a nearby island lately.  However Joe Overstreet even without the Whooping Cranes remains a worthwhile spot.  Arriving as day began to break I immediately noticed a pair of eagles perched on the post supporting the boat docks. 

Not knowing how acclimated they were I cautiously moved in to a suitable position and awaited better light.  As the light improved I shot a few images of the stationary birds and soon a vehicle arrived to launch a boat.  The fishermen readied the boat and one walked over to chat and mentioned they they would be ending my fun.  I replied that that was no problem as I was waiting to the eagles to take flight.  Imagine my surprise when they launched the boat and the eagles showed no visible concern!  Moving in even closer I continued to wait for the birds to do something more photogenic than just posing.

As the sun began cresting the horizon my wait was rewarded as one eagle decided to go after a shore bird feeding nearby.  No being ready at the moment I missed the take-off and the bird easily evaded the eagle's attack.  The eagle circled about coming back in for a landing on it favored post.  This time I was ready panning the 600mm and shooting as it swooped in.

The best shot materialized as the eagle landed and with wings still outstretched lifted it's head and called.  Moments later it had settled down and was once again just a stationary eagle sitting on a post.

I have photographed bald eagles at numerous locations over the past few years and this bird is the most tolerant eagle I have yet encountered.  The eagles I encounter near home typically become uncomfortable at 150 to 200 yards however this bird seemed undisturbed with humans coming within 15-20 yards.

Crested Caracara

One day as I was leaving Viera Wetlands I noticed a few vehicles parked near the wetlands entrance and a number of photographers gathered nearby crouched behind some big glass.  Sidelining the car I joined the small crowd photographing a crested caracara as it fed on a bird.  But before I could get into position another cara cara flew by.  Taking advantage of the situation I panned with the bird capturing the above image.

                                      As shutters clicked the caracara tore at the carcass

 Tearing off pieces by holding one part with its feet while pulling with its massive beak

This image was captured as the caracara finished swallowing a rather large piece

Beautiful White Death Stalks the Marshes

Silent as a ghost, a Great Egret stalks the marsh

And captures its prey with a quick strike

To us the great egret is a creature of beauty and grace; for its prey it is their worst nightmare came true.

The above images were captured at the Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands at Viera

Shooting South: A visit to the Sunshine State

Sunrise at the Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands at Viera

 For tens of thousands of visitors each year Disney and other amusement/theme parks are Florida's main attraction but for me these attractions pale in comparison to the abundant wildlife populations that call the Sunshine State home.

Reviewing & processing the 30 odd gigs of images from the five morning and two evening shoots will have to wait until I have a chance to recoup from 17 hours of virtually non-stop driving.  So for now I will share one of my very first Florida images from this my latest photographic adventure.

Buffleheads Up Close

After an incredible morning with the gobblers I wasn't expecting a close-up encounter with Bufflehead ducks Friday afternoon.  Not that I was surprised with finding the buffleheads on the lake; but rather thatI was surprised with them allowing me to approach closely.

In this first photo the buffleheads are attempting to evade my boat by doing their "sleeping duck" routine.  Notice the wake these "sleeping ducks" are pushing up; look closely to see the bright, wide-awake eyes watching me while they swim furiously.

 Giving up on the "sleeping duck" the buffleheads swim to stay ahead of the boat as I very slowly overtake them.

The males appear as simple black and white ducks until the sunlight hits there heads at the correct angle.  Following along with the camera trained on them, the trick was to anticipate the flash of iridescence. 

A close up shot of a male shows off his splendid iridescent colors

After a considerable time the buffleheads tired of the boat following them giving me the opportunity for a close up flight shot.

Not really scared they flew only a short distance before again landing on the lake surface.  Most ducks I encounter at this lake will not allow close-up photography.  Most days I am lucky if I can get within seventy-five yards however this small flock of buffleheads did not show fear of me or the boat and allowed me to work them for an extended period of time.  My guess is that they winter in a spot where there is no hunting.  Whatever the reason it is a special time encountering a flock that will allow close-up photography.

Lookin Good for the Ladies

Strutting is all about the hens.  Gobblers don't gobble and strut to impress or intimidate other gobblers, they strut to attract the hens.  Here a pair of jakes put their colors on display trying to gain the attention of the hen feeding in the foreground.

And this mature gobbler looks to be trying out his latest break dancing move; getting down for the girls.

A close-up reveals the brilliant red, white, and blue color scheme of the gobbler's head.  

Gobblers Gone Wild!

The last couple of weeks has been frustrating for me.  The waterfowl migration has been moving through and the wild turkey gobblers have been strutting but regardless of my effort nothing was coming together.  The ducks have been exceedingly wild and every time I zigged to gobblers zagged.  Of course I well know that success doesn't always come easy so it was with anticipation that once again I setup the little outhouse blind while darkness still enveloped the countryside hoping the gobblers show. 

The first turkeys to hit the meadow were Jakes and soon one was ballooned out in full strut.  As impressive as he appeared he could not begin to measure up to what was to come next!

And it wasn't long before three long-beards showed up to show everyone who was boss.

By the time the activity wrapped up I had shot about 450 frames and had captured my very best ever strutting gobbler images.  This was a morning that will not be forgotten anytime soon.

Little did I know as I headed to the lake to check out the migratory waterfowl activity this afternoon that I would soon be shooting my best ever shots of another species.  The afternoon's shoot will be the subject for another day.

Odds & Ends

Not having neither the time or the energy to put much thought into a post, I decided instead to share some unrelated photos.

I was a little surprised to see Great Blue Herons building nest during my early March visit to Middle Creek.  The rookery was too far away from the road to allow great shots and getting any closer was unlawful so I had to be satisfied with what was available.  Shooting with the 600mm lens I could see from viewing the camera LCD that the shots were soft.  Resorting to manual focus and using live view at 10x zoom the resulting images were sharper.

These mallards may look no different than your friendly everyday park ducks but they fully understand the dangers that humans present.  The nearest hen has already spotted me and at the first click of the shutter they exploded into the air. 

This crow seems to understand that I mean it no harm but gaging from the intent stare it isn't entirely trusting either.

Spring has Sprung

Just a week ago brown and gray were the predominate colors across the southern Pennsylvania landscape.  But the sustained unseasonably warm temperatures has hurried the season along.  Now the countryside looks like it normally does in mid to late April!

I focused my attention on wild turkeys the past two mornings.  This hen was my only reward with the gobblers staying hidden behind a screen of brush.

Spending mid-day Friday on a local lake I found that the species of waterfowl that I expected at this time of year were present.  My waterfowl sightings included lesser scaup, ring-necked duck, pied-billed grebe, mallard, wood duck, and horned grebe.  However the 80 degree temp's are far from the norm.  Here a horned grebe takes off when my boat drew too near for its comfort.

I was experimenting with handling the 600mm lens on board the boat during this outing.  Its sheer size and weight precludes hand-holding it for any period of time.  For these shots I was using a folded tripod as a monopod.  The pod made it easy to support the lens but the boat movement made focusing and shooting extremely difficult.  Even though the water was fairly calm the rocking of the waves played havoc with getting good shots.  I did find that keeping the boat under power smoothed out the motion somewhat.  Here two male and a female lesser scaup takes flight. 

A flock of forty or so ring-necked ducks were also present.  These migrants as well as other divers always stop in for the spring perch spawn.  I have seen no indication that the perch spawn has started but with the warm temps I expect it to begin any day.

Trees of all types are bursting into bloom.  These dogwood flowers are two to three weeks early.  Friday evening found me mowing the lawn; the first I have ever needed to mow in March!