2026, GOOD START WITH MERGANSERS

Common Mergansers, Mississippi River, Sabula, Iowa

Before anything new is written here I like to thank all visitors and readers of my blog for their ongoing support in 2025! I know, there is a lot of great photography in the world wide web you can enjoy every day and I’m humbled that you spent some of your valuable time on my website last year. I wish all of you a peaceful and happy year 2026!

After quite a few gray days we had a little bit of sun coming out today. A good reason to check out the situation 40 miles south on Iowa’s Island City Sabula. During my visit last week I saw some good numbers of Common Mergansers on the open water of the Mississippi River, unfortunately too far away. With permission of the gentleman in the Island City Harbor Store I was able to drive my car out on one of their private dikes and use the car as a photo blind and work with the Common Mergansers. Here are some of my first wildlife pictures in 2026 I’m excited to share with you.

This is at the small entrance to the harbor. The edge of the ice was right there. The mergansers approach it in small groups and one after another dives down with a slight leap and swims under the ice into the frozen marina.

Quite often there is nothing in their bill when they appear again at the water surface but his female had caught a nice little fish. Common Mergansers can stay under water for up to 2 minutes but most of the time they dive for less than 30 seconds (source: allabout birds website).

Watching the birds closely is important if you like to catch the good moments, like when they lift out of the water and flap the wings and shake off water from their feathers.

Here is the bonus shot. This juvenile Trumpeter Swan just swam along the shore with some male mergansers in tow. The head is still gray but the rest of the plumage is already getting snowy white and shows that the bird will be considered as an adult soon. Trumpeter Swans need the open water for feeding aquatic plants and the ice on its bill is proof that this bird had foraged earlier this morning.

A LAST VISIT

Bald Eagle, Mississippi River, Sabula, Iowa

Today was probably the last time in 2025 I visited the Green Island Wetlands and ”Iowa’s Island City” Sabula at the Mississippi River. The statistics in my picture library tell me that I was 20 times in this area this year. Every season is different and each visit doesn’t lead necessarily to some good photos. Sometimes it’s overwhelming and quick decisions have to be made about where to point the lens next. Other times, like today, it takes a long time to have something in the frame that is worth to push the shutter release button on the camera.

Today it was mostly raptors that showed up since all the water bodies were frozen. I saw three Northern Harriers, a couple Red-tailed Hawks, and along the road to Sabula three American Kestrels.

The click for this Bald Eagle was made right after the bird took off from the ice and flew over to a dead tree where its mate was already waiting.

Nikon Z6 III, Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S, Nikon Z TC-1.4x,    @ 840mm, 1/800s, f/9, ISO 3200, image cropped

MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2025 #6 - ISLAND CITY ATTRACTIONS

Sabula, Island city in the Mississippi River

Sabula, Iowa’s only city located on an island in the Mississippi River, has two technical attractions I always like to look at. The first is their old-style water tower, which seems to be well maintained. If the sun is on the structure this tower stands out and can make for a nice reflection on the water. I have photographed it many times before but with the beautiful clouds we had during my last visit I could not resist to get the camera out again.

Sabula Railroad Bridge

The other interesting structure that connects Illinois and Iowa across the Mississippi River is the Sabula Rail Bridge, a large through truss swing bridge. This time I was there at the right time. After a few small boats had just passed, the bridge started moving and was swiveled back and ready for the next train to get over it. It only took a few minutes and my photo shows it about half way closed. The clouds again made this shot stand out for me.

NATURE CLICKS #594 - DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS

Double-crested Cormorants, Mississippi River, Lower Sabula Lake, Iowa

While shooting birds on or in the water it is always recommended to have at least one eye in the air from time to time. Overhead flying birds are often a good opportunity I don’t want to miss, even if they approach suddenly.

Double-crested Cormorants are very fast flyers and I wanted to make a picture like this one since quite some time. With my heavy Sigma 150-600 S it seemed to be always a matter of luck to get a sharp shot. Panning with that heavy lens is not always easy.

While working with the pelicans you may have seen in my last blog post, four cormorants crossed the river and flew rapidly towards me. The exposure compensation was quickly changed by one stop (-0.67 to +0.33EV) to retain some detail in the birds plumage. The Nikon Nikkor Z 600 f/6.3, even in combination with the Z TC-1.4x teleconverter, is so much easier to handle while following birds in flight. I know for sure now why this lens made it in my gear locker.

Nikon Z6II, Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S, Nikon Z Teleconverter TC-1.4x.  @840 mm, image slightly cropped

COLLECTIVE EFFORTS

American White Pelicans, Mississippi River, Lower Sabula Lake, Iowa

It was so nice to see some colors again after a gray and nasty cold day yesterday. It was a good Sunday for checking out spring migration of the birds along the Mississippi again.

I have never seen so many pelicans fishing together before. This squadron contained more than a hundred birds, with many more on the water around, but choices had to be made what to leave in the frame and what not. First it looked and sounded like they all were fighting for the fish but pretty soon it was clear that it was a well organized collective effort by these American White Pelicans, as you can see in the second picture. I don’t know who was in charge to give the command, but suddenly they all took off and flew across the water to a different spot and started all over hunting for fish again.

All photos: Nikon Z6II, Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S, Nikon Z Teleconverter TC-1.4x.  @840 mm

MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2025 #1 - BALD EAGLES

Adult Bald Eagle, Mississippi River, between Sabula, Iowa and Savannah, Illinois

A quick trip along the Mississippi River down to Green Island and Sabula this evening led to today’s photo. A couple Bald Eagles had perched in the dead trees along the road between the Sabula island and the bridge that crosses the main channel of the river over to Illinois. It was obvious that 600 mm focal length would not be enough to fill the frame with an eagle, but adding the Nikon Z1.4 teleconverter to the lens gave me 240 mm focal length more. I drove back to the birds with the side window down and the camera already in my lap. Made sure there was no car behind me, stopped briefly, and fired a number of shots until another car approached from behind. The light about an hour before sunset was just gorgeous for this kind of a shot. Back home at the computer I still thought I had a little bit too much ’wood’ in the frame and finally cropped the photo slightly.

Most of the Bald Eagle nests I saw today had already a pair of birds in or near the nest. It’s a big joy to see how this majestic bird bounced back from being almost extinct not that long ago.

BALD EAGLES IN ABUNDANCE AND AN EARLY RETURN

Bald Eagle, Mississippi Valley, Green Island Wetlands, Iowa

Yesterday I received a message from a friend that the water was open down at the Sabula - Savannah bridge that crosses the Mississippi River and both sides of the road that leads to the bridge were filled with eagles. As wildlife photographers we have to take the opportunities when they occur and as the ice on the river disappears, many eagles quickly move upstream. I went down south this morning and the first chance came already while driving slowly through the Green Island Wetlands. There is a big solitary cottonwood tree next to one of the dikes and this adult Bald Eagle just posed nicely against a blue sky and the unavoidable clutter of small branches. This tree has served many times as a perch for eagles and other raptors over the years but it is in bad shape and might be gone sometime soon. I moved with the camera so the white head of the bird was in front of one of the bigger branches.

Bald Eagle, Mississippi River, Sabula-Savannah Bridge, Iowa side

Down near the Sabula - Savannah Bridge were still dozens of Bald Eagles. The downside is you can’t stop and park your car along the road that connects the Sabula island with the actual bridge, except for a small pull-out right at the bridge. I was lucky, one eagle had perched within the reach of my lens and this time against a clean background. Later I had some other opportunities but this was my favorite shot.

Sandhill Crane among Trumpeter Swans, Green Island Wetlands, Iowa, February 11, 2024

Hours later, on my way back home, I made another round through the Green Island Wetlands and had an interesting discovery. The ice where nine Trumpeter Swans rested earlier had melted and they were foraging in the shallow water of a flooded field. Among them was a solitary Sandhill Crane, searching for food as well. It moved with the swans and seemed to take advantage of whatever was stirred up while they swam slowly across the water.

At home I checked my digital photo library, going back to 2007, and can confirm, February 11th is the earliest I ever saw a Sandhill Crane here in eastern Iowa. Seeing them in March is not uncommon but this early was my first time. Other birders may have made a different experience and I like to hear from you about your observations in this area.

RETROSPECTS 2023 - #4

Juvenile Bald Eagle, Mississippi River, at Savannah-Sabula bridge, February 2023

It looks like only for the second time in twenty years we will not have any snow on the ground for Christmas. Snow is a great reflector of the light and can be very beneficial for our story telling about wildlife. In January / February the Mississippi had some ice cover but not as much as other years. Open water often attracts large numbers of Bald Eagles. I found a good spot near the Savannah-Sabula bridge down south for watching the eagles catching fish.

I made the click at the third attempt of this young eagle to pick up a small fish it had dropped on the older and snow covered ice earlier. The light was nicely reflected at the bird and I also liked the reflection of trees on the thin new ice in the background.

SOARING IN CIRCLES

American White Pelicans, Mississippi River, Sabula, Iowa

I was down south in the Green Island Wetlands again yesterday. They received a little more snow as we had the night before and the roads and trails were a slushy mess again. As a result very few people were out for bird watching or photography. I made my good share of clicks but at the end wasn’t really satisfied with my results. But I still have this photo of American White Pelicans soaring overhead in circles from a week earlier. I love the elegance of the pelicans and I thought I still can share this shot with you.

Nikon Z6II, Nikon FTZ adapter, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S,   @ 600 mm, 1/2000 s, f/8, ISO 500

L,G,&C WERE MY FRIENDS TODAY

Ring-billed Gulls, Mississippi River, SAbula, Iowa

I still intend to show a few more photos from the recent trip to southern California but I can’t totally neglect what’s going on here in the Upper Mississippi Valley. Cold temperatures during the last days and strong winds reminded us that winter 2022/23 has not yet entered the history books. Much of the standing water in the backwaters of the Mississippi River had iced over again, including much of the Green Island Wetlands, I visited today. Birds were everywhere, but ”heat shimmer” above the ice or the very cold ground of the marsh made getting a sharp shot a bit of a gamble. I counted about sixty Sandhill Cranes in the wetlands today but they hunkered down in a corner between reeds that gave them obviously some protection from the wind.

Ten miles further south, at the ’Island City of Sabula, Iowa’, hundreds of Ring-billed Gulls tried to make a living by catching fish, just occasionally interrupted by Bald Eagles that tried to do the same. Here in the Midwest Bald Eagles are the ”Holy Grail” for a lot of people, but I think the Ring-billed Gulls are a lot more entertaining at times…

In the photo above it’s not clear which one had the fish, but the other one at least tried to steal it . It was my favorite photo from today’s trip along the mighty Mississippi River. With other words, light, gesture, and color were my friends today…😉

Nikon Z6II, Nikon FTZ adapter, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S,   @ 600 mm, 1/4000 s, f/8, ISO 500

WON’T YOU DANCE WITH ME

Ring-billed Gulls, Mississippi River, Sabula, Iowa

The song ”Won’t You Dance With Me” with the great performance by the Detroit Cobras comes to mind when I look at the gesture of these two Ring-billed Gulls. A good reason to pull their 2001 record ”Live, Love, and Leaving”out of the sleeve and put it on the turntable (The song was actually first released in 1964 by Billy Lee and The Rivieras, aka Mitch Ryder And The Detroit Wheels). Back to photography, I love when good light meets with a great gesture in a photo. For those who may complain about the wing hiding the face of the second gull I just like to ask, have you ever danced to Rock Music…?? 😊

CATCHING AND DROPPING

Bald Eagle, Mississippi River, at the bridge between Sabula, IA and Savannah, IL

Nice weather again today made many people go out this weekend and look for Bald Eagles along the big river. The break-up of the ice on the Mississippi opens new opportunities for the eagles. They like to catch fish and more open water means more opportunities. There are some places along the river that the birds obviously prefer and visitors can watch a great show of performance sometimes. This adult eagle had picked up a fish from the ice that was dropped by another bird before.

This 2-3 years old juvenile had dropped a fish several times before finally claiming it. Dropping the catch often leads to a total loss because countless Ring-billed Gulls wait for their opportunity to steal a fish from the eagles.

Nikon Z6II, Nikon FTZ adapter, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S

MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2022 #2 - ACROSS THE ICE

Another trip today, heading south along the Mississippi River. No new snow recently, some warmer weather last week, and now real cold temperatures again made the ice everywhere looking different than a couple weeks ago. I watched a number of hawks again and had some of them even in the viewfinder. Distance was too big for my taste and instead coming up with a picture that is cropped to death, here are a couple landscape photos I shot this afternoon.

The direction of the sun reveals that I crossed the Mississippi down between Sabula, IA and Savannah, IL and pointed the lens towards the Iowa shore on the west side. With all the ice in the frame no negative exposure compensation was required to obtain this look with the silhouettes of reeds and the remains of water lilies.

Nikon Z6II, Nikkor Z 24-70, f/4 S,   @ 66 mm, 1/800 s, f/16, ISO 100

On the way back across the river to Iowa you drive through Sabula, Iowa’s only town on an island. I’m always intrigued by their old style water tower and today light, clouds, and reflection of the tower on the ice were perfect for making a photograph.

Nikon Z6II, Nikkor Z 24-70, f/4 S,   @ 70 mm, 1/100 s, f/16, ISO 100

COMPARING LENS PERFOMANCE

Swing railroad bridge across the Mississippi between Sabula, Iowa and Savannah, Illinois

One of my last pictures of the railroad bridge across the Mississippi River down in Sabula, Iowa, was a black & white photo, shot with the incredible Zeiss Distagon T* 2/35 ZF lens in March last year (feel free to have a look at that image right here: Sabula Bridge ). This prime lens with manual focus is the best standard I can apply to compare rendition and sharpness between other pieces of glass.

The question I tried to answer was, can the new Nikkor Z 24-70, f/4 S, that came with the Nikon Z6II mirrorless camera, outperformed the old Nikkor 24-120, f/4 AFS, which I traded in for the new lens. Shooting a well known subject, like the Sabula bridge, is my way to find out what can be done in regards of sharpness with a new lens. I looked at the original RAW files and compared them with some shots with the Zeiss 2/35 and also the 24-120 AFS from last year under similar light and weather conditions. And here is the verdict, the Z 24-70 is at least equal to the prime lens and quite a bit better than my old “walk around lens”, the Nikkor 24-120 AFS. This doesn’t make me a better photographer, but it is good to know that the new tool in the camera bag, the stunning Nikon Nikkor Z 24-70 f/4 S, is capable to deliver results that at the end help to become one.

Nikon Z6II, Nikkor Z 24-70, f/4 S,   @ 57 mm, 1/125 s, f/16, ISO 100