FALL WARBLERPALOOZA, AND MORE

Philadelphia Vireo, Mines of Spain Recreation Area, Dubuque, Iowa

I haven’t been able to get out much with the camera lately but today I made up for that. The Dubuque Audubon Society had invited its members and the public for a field trip to the Mines of Spain Recreation Area in Dubuque. The ”Fall Warblerpalooza” was led by Tony Moline, who is a very active birder with very good knowledge about our feathered friends. Hence the name of the event, we were hoping to find migrating warblers in the tree tops early in the morning. We saw a few but none came in the range for the camera. But a number of other birds made it worthwhile to get out with binoculars, tripod, and camera. It was a nice field trip and while listening to Tony and other birders I learned some new things and was able to make a few clicks as well. Here is a first set of photos, maybe I post a few more during this week.

All images: Nikon Z6II, Nikon FTZ adapter, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, Induro GIT 404XL tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head

For the first time I saw two female Scarlet Tanagers during fall migration. We can watch them almost every year in early May in our front yard after their return from South America but have never see them in the fall. They had a feast on the fruits of a wild grapevine.

A Common Nighthawk is not easy to spot when they rest during the day. They are long-distance migrants and fly in large flocks to reach their wintering grounds in South America.

NATURE CLICKS #336 - WARBLING VIREO

Warbling Vireo, Mines of Spain, Dubuque, Iowa

Today I watched a pair of Warbling Vireos in the Mines of Spain, the big recreation area south of Dubuque, Iowa that includes woods, prairie, and wetlands. I worked with the birds for almost two hours and it was just a good feeling to go out shooting again after mostly traveling during the last five weeks. The vireos were busy catching spiders and insects for their offspring always in the same tree. Finally I saw one juvenile just before I left the area. It flew from the tree down into the grass and waited to be fed. It obviously had just left the nest. The parents were in constant call contact with the young bird the whole time. They were catching a lot of insects and I was wondering if there was even more than just one juvenile.

It is always a great feeling if a picture of a particular species in my BIRD GALLERY can be replaced with a new and better one. In most instances it means there was improvement in my photography. Previous photos I made over the years of the Warbling Vireo had way too much distance between the camera and the subject, so they had to be cropped. Not good! This time I started with still a safe distance but didn’t really move the tripod much the whole time. As a result the birds got very quickly used to my presence and came closer and closer.