NATURE CLICKS #591 - CEDAR WAXWING

Cedar Waxwing, Little Maquoketa River Valley, Iowa

Warmer weather brought some changes in the numbers of birds that visited our woods here today. The Dark-eyed Juncos that were here by more than a dozen during the polar vortex were not seen today, except for one.

The two American Robins we had all winter long so far were joined by a flock of at least ten more birds. As often observed before, the robins had company by some Cedar Waxwings. They are here for the same food source as the American Robins and Eastern Bluebirds, the juniper berries that hang from the Eastern Cedar trees we have around here.

During the summer the waxwings feed also from insects but the juniper berries must be a good winter diet for them. The Cedar Waxwings are very careful and they often sit for quite some time on a perch before they approach the water bowls of a bird bath. This is when the photographer has a great chance to make a picture of one of the most beautiful birds around here.

Nikon Z6II, Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S, Induro GIT 404XL tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head,   @ 600mm, 1/2000s, f/8, ISO 1000,

VISIT FOR LUNCH

The deeper snow makes our little herd of White-tailed Deer even braver and since a few days two fawns show up already around noon for a lunch. While one ate the seeds that dropped from the bird feeders, its sibling stood guard and observed the surroundings. They must have found out that the photographer prefers this time over the hour after sunset due to better light…😉 Look at the ears! They change direction every few seconds and tell the story about the mission of this little guy.

However, this evening two does and four fawns returned, obviously knowing that I had thrown a couple extra hands of bird seeds onto the snow. At night we hear some coyotes bark, yip, and howl behind the house or down in the valley. Live is not easy for the deer at the moment…

Nikon D750, Nikkor 70-200mm / f4,   @200 mm, 1/800 s, f/8, ISO200

SQUIRREL APPRECIATION DAY

Eastern Gray Squirrel

Early this morning I read a FB post from my German photography friend Maren about ‘Squirrel Appreciation Day’ last Thursday, which also included a nice photo of a squirrel. A moment later I looked out the window and checked our bird feeders and had to start laughing out loud. Seven Eastern Gray Squirrels had hijacked the feeders and bird bath and didn’t leave any space for the birds. This isn’t totally unusual but after a very cold night (-19ºC / -2ºF) the squirrels were really desperate to get some food in their bellies. 

Alright, they can be annoying at times but they are also cute and play a role in the eco system. Let them have some sunflower seed too! Here is one of my favorite photos of an Eastern Gray Squirrel as a belated tribute to National Squirrel Appreciation Day.

NATURE CLICKS #452 - BALTIMORE ORIOLE ♀️

Oh boy, how much I love these sunny early mornings in May! The temperature is pleasant and the quality of light is awesome. We put some orange halves out and this attracts the orioles and other birds. The goal is of course to make the click while the birds carefully approach the food source. This young oak right in front of our porch is a perfect target to focus on. The food is between 6 -10 feet away and many birds use it as an observation point before they approach the feeders or for waiting in line while others, mostly bigger birds, take their turn.

The Baltimore Oriole is a great looking bird with wonderful sounding calls. Sure, they can chatter as well, but waking up in the morning to the sound of their calls is one of the best delights in spring…

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, Induro GIT 404XL tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head,   @ 600 mm (DX mode 900 mm), f/6.3, 1/2000 s, ISO400,

BEE BALM, HUMMERS LOVE THEM!

Male Ruby-throated Hummingbird at a Bee Balm

Maybe I have a few days to make a photo like this, maybe not. With flowers you never can predict one hundred percent how long they last. A heavy thunderstorm can bring a quick end to their beauty. The Bee Balm is blooming right now in our front yard and it seems we have more flowers than ever before. Bee Balm is a favorite of the hummingbirds and making a good click while they hover around the flower or drink nectar from its blossom is always a great challenge but also a lot of fun. It takes some patience to be successful. This evening I had periods of time when no bird showed up for 10-15 minutes, instead they preferred one of the hummingbird feeders hanging from the roof of the porch. This is understandable because the resources of each flower are obviously limited. I tried a little trick I learned from other wildlife photographers and sprayed some hummingbird food into the blossom, but I don’t think that has increased the frequency of their visits to a particular blossom. It is the same mixture (4 parts water + 1 part sugar) that we use for our feeders.

This evening I experimented a lot with different settings for exposure and flash compensation and even with some higher ISO settings than I usually apply. Yes, it is a little easier to freeze the action of a hummingbird with a higher ISO setting (today up to 1250) and therefor much faster shutter speed, but I still like the rendering of details much better if the ISO value stays low (100-400).

Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, Induro GIT 404XL tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head, Nikon SB 800 speed light, MAGMOD MagBeam flash extender,  @ 600 mm, 1/400 s, f/6.3, ISO 1250,

ONLY AS GOOD AS…

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Here is a disclaimer. This is not an actual photo, not even from last year, or the year before. The shot was made in 2015 and kept a quiet existence on my hard drive until now. No, there is no lack of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds this year. We actually have a lot of hummers visiting our feeders all day long. Their metabolism is so high, they have to feed every fifteen minutes and they may do it even more frequently with the relative low temperatures we had during the last few days. The Weigela was blooming like every year, with lots of little blossoms, and was a perfect food source for the hummingbirds beside our feeders. But circumstances have not been in my favor, although I tried hard to get some new images. And here is the point I try to make. As photographers we are only as good as our last picture. It doesn’t make sense to publish a new image if its quality isn’t at least as good as the last one if the story we try to tell with the photo is the same.

A DRINK FROM THE BEE BALM

Male Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Joan has managed to grow over 35 Bee Balms this year in our front yard, more than we ever had so far. It’s not only good looking, it also attracts the Ruby-throated Hummingbirds that spent the time between early May (sometimes late April) and the end of September here in our neck of the woods. We have quite a few hummingbird feeders out there but the nectar of these flowers is probably hard to beat as a source of food. All what it took to make this shot was patience and some consideration for the background.

SERIOUS TALK OR JUST CHITCHAT?

Hands down, this is my favorite shot of a Black-tailed Prairie Dog. The little guy moved around with its mouth full of grass, obviously ready to add it to its winter hoard. I was thinking the whole time while following the critter with my lens, come on, stand up, and the prairie dog finally did me the favor. Even with the food in its mouth, it still participated in the Prairie Dog’s communication system. Who knows what they are talking about, but Prairie dogs have a big arsenal of calls and gestures to warn each other or maybe just to chitchat. We love watching these critters…!

NATURE CLICKS #287 - EASTERN KINGBIRD

The Belted Kingfisher (see yesterday’s post) and the Eastern Kingbird use sometimes the same trees and bushes when they perch and look out for food. Although their diet is totally different. They both prefer branches or trees that hang over the water or are at least near to it. While the kingfisher mainly preys on small fish that swim near the surface of the water, the Eastern Kingbird is a large flycatcher and feeds on insects and fruits. Quite often they return to the same perch after pouncing for food on the ground or on the water surface.

Last night I witnessed the take over of a tree by a kingfisher. It was actually used as a perch by a kingbird but there was no doubt who had the longer bill and ruled the area. The Eastern Kingbird took off immediately…

This shot was taken at 6:22 pm last night and the sun was already getting low. However, because of its intense power at this time of the year I had a hard time to contain the highlights. I had dialed in -1 EV for exposure compensation already but still had to bring down the highlights in post process to make this image work. This is a simple task in Adobe Lightroom or Adobe Camera RAW but I usually don’t fiddle around with tones and colors in my wildlife photography. Well, sometimes there is an exception to this self-imposed rule. I really like the gesture of this Eastern Kingbird in the photo and that’s why I show it to you today… :-)

DRAMA FOR STRUPPI

We continue watching a small group of White-tailed Deer coming to our house every day. During the last couple days it became more and more clear to us that our favorite little fawn “Struppi” (read my post from February, 18) is facing probably the tragic loss of its mother. She comes always alone and we had two dead deer laying beside the highway down in the valley earlier this week. The other members of the group do everything to scare her away whenever “Struppi" tries to join them near our bird feeders. 

Struppi

Last Wednesday I enjoyed a backlight situation, created by the very low sun, when I caught two shots of a doe hitting “Struppi” with its front leg and bringing the little guy down to its knees. When animals move I shoot mostly short bursts in ‘Continues shooting mode’ with 6 frames per second to maximize my chances for a sharp image. This time I got the two images that tell the story. 

Yes, some of you may say this is sad, or the other deer are mean, but this is just natural behavior for those animals. They all try to protect their food sources and want the best for their own offspring. “Struppi” seems to do fine, she is always the first one here in the morning and just because of that she eats probably more corn than any other deer… By the way, she took a little nap again today. This time right beside our old oak tree trunk in the front yard… :-)