NATURE CLICKS #602 - WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW

White-crowned Sparrow, Ophir Beach, Oregon, Apr 11, 2025

White-crowned Sparrows are not seen very often here in the Little Maquoketa Valley in eastern Iowa. They spend the winter in the states south of here and have their breeding grounds high up in Canada and Alaska. With other words, we are migration territory. The photo below was shot a couple days ago and the bird spent a few minutes on a small tree in our yard. During our recent trip to Oregon we saw White-crowned Sparrows in abundance. At the coast they are present year-round.

At both occasions I tried to make an environmental portrait. Giving the picture a sense of place or season is my preferred way to photograph wildlife. Including the ocean and the surf in the background let us know that the sparrow was perched right behind the beach. The second photo is totally different. The bird was hiding in a dense tree with lots of little branches and that could be anywhere. No chance to have such a clean background as on Ophir Beach. But the buds had just opened and small leaves showed their fresh green, telling the story about spring migration of the White-crowned Sparrow.

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

White-crowned Sparrow, Little Maquoketa, Valley, eastern Iowa, May 1, 2025

NATURE CLICKS #585 - TURKEY VULTURES

Turkey Vultures, Mississippi River, near lock & dam #11, Dubuque, Iowa

From early spring until it gets cold here they belong into the Mississippi Valley. Some people think of them only as ugly birds but they may have never watched really how elegant these vultures fly and soar in a thermal lift. I consider them as the environmental police along the Mississippi River. They feed on carrion and without their presence, often in large numbers, the Mississippi River would be at times very smelly.

I was eager to try out the new Nikon lens last Sunday along the river on both sides around dam #11 in Dubuque and over in Wisconsin. With the dam visible in the upper part of the photo I thought of an environmental portrait of the Turkey Vultures. Five of them rested on driftwood and the rocks of the flood wall. I could choose which bird I wanted to have in the frame and this one was among my favorites.

Nikon Z6II, Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S

NATURE CLICKS #531 - GREAT BLUE HERON

Great Blue Heron, Green Island Preserve, Mississippi Valley, Eastern Iowa

Can you tell why sometimes I like to go out in the rain and shoot with a heavy overcast? Yes, that doesn’t work well when there is a piece of gray sky or just its reflection on the water in the frame. But if you can eliminate any “sky related” things in the background of your image at this kind of weather, you may get a well balanced shot. The Great Blue Herons are kinda skittish and don’t like the photographer, even in its mobile blind, the car, nearby.

I shot this almost over my shoulder, using the brief moment the heron waited before it flew to a different spot. I knew if I would back up the car to get in a little more comfortable position, the bird would not wait for me. I just “hung” the lens barrel outside the car window and tried my luck. It is the kind of photo I like to pursue in my wildlife photography, the critter in its natural habitat. I love when the result comes out of a challenging situation…

ON THE RIVER (FINALLY!)

Painted Turtle, Mud Lake, Mississippi River, Eastern Iowa

Gorgeous weather today made us loading the kayaks onto the roof of the car and open finally the kayak season for this year. Fifteen minutes later we launched a wonderful paddle trip in the warm light of the evening sun, down in the backwaters at the Mississippi River. Not much waterfowl in sight, because it’s breeding time, but eagles, pelicans, blackbirds, a couple herons, and of course a number of muskrats made still for good wildlife watching.

This Painted Turtle looks like it was running away from us, but it was only stretched out and put its rear end into the warm sun. I had all the shots I wanted on the memory card already when the turtle finally slid into the water because the distance became to close. My tactic is always to give the boat a little direction with some carefully executed paddle strokes, stop paddling, grab the camera, and fire away while still moving towards my subject. Sometimes I wedge the kayak between some logs or reeds and keep a stabile position while making the clicks. I said it more than once here in the blog, it is the low perspective in the boat that I really like. It puts me almost to eye level with the critter or bird and allows to shoot this kind of an environmental portrait.

Nikon Z6II, Nikon FTZ adapter, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S,   @ 600 mm, 1/400 s, f/13, ISO 400

WEEKEND THOUGHTS

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

The story of our Ruby-throated Hummingbirds can be told in different ways and I’m very happy if I’m able to show them in their natural habitat. I have lots of photos of the hummingbird going back and forth drinking from one of our feeders. When I make a sharp picture, and of course do not have the feeder in it, I’m happy too. But is that really where to go with my photography about hummingbirds? Sure, I can fiddle forever about the technical aspects of a photo, but many technically perfect pictures lack the story about the animal. Still alright, if you contribute to the perfect bird guide book or app, but very few of us nature photographers do, and what’s left is just good storytelling about the animal. 

Thanks to Joan’s gardening efforts we have over 50 Bee Balm flowers in the front yard at the moment. Prime food for the Ruby-throated Hummingbird! They still get the most energy out of the hummingbird feeders, hanging from the edge of the porch, but for a good photo the flower environment beats anything else.

NATURE CLICKS #434 - TIGER SWALLOWTAILS

Male Tiger Swallowtail, Little Maquoketa River Valley, Iowa

It has been a good year so far with the butterfly population in our woods here on top of the bluffs above the Little Maquoketa River Valley. We see a nice variety and overall numbers are better than during some other years. The stars of the bunch are always the three different species of swallowtails.

Female Tiger Swallowtail, black form

Friday night I saw a male Tiger Swallowtail interacting with another black looking swallowtail. First I thought he was fighting with a Black Swallowtail, a species we see here as well, but after it landed on one off our house plants it became clear that it was a female Tiger Swallowtail. I guess love was in the air. Males are always yellow while the females can be yellow or black. The yellow form is pretty common while black females are found more southwards according to my books. The last time I had one in front of the lens was 2015.

Both photos were made with the long lens at 600 mm (SIGMA 150-600 Sport), because I was actually on the hunt for hummingbirds. Like with my other wildlife photography I prefer to make an environmental portrait. Though I feel it is not so important to count every little hair, the insect still has to be sharp.