MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2024 #5 - TUNDRA SWAN MIGRATION, AND OTHERS

Tundra Swans, Mississippi River, Brownsville, Minnesota

One highlight for bird watchers in November is always the annual tundra swan migration on the Upper Mississippi Valley. Thousands of Tundra Swans make a stop near Brownsville, Minnesota just about 10 miles north of the Iowa border, on their way from the arctic to Chesapeake Bay at the Atlantic Ocean. They rest here before they finish the last 3000 miles to their destination.

I didn’t hold a camera in my hand for a week and was eager to take the two-hour trip up north today. I was a little stunned when only a few hundred swans were present, but the friendly Naturalist who was on site told me that we haven’t seen the peak yet. With other words, most Tundra Swans are still somewhere further north. She had a display table with lots of information about the swan migration, about the food they are looking for, like the starchy bulbs of arrowhead plants, and she answered the questions of many visitors.

Beside the Tundra Swans many other birds rest and feed in pool #8 of the Mississippi River and today’s little gallery can only show a few of them.

Gadwalls

Gadwalls were present in large numbers, probably several thousand, but I saw many other ducks, like American Wigeons, Northern Pintails, Mallards, Northern Shovelers, Ring-necked Ducks, Scaups, and Wood Ducks.

American White Pelicans

A large squadron of American White Pelicans socialized together on one of the islands nearby. They were joined by this group that landed in the water shortly after they made a flyby at the Brownsville overlook.

Trumpeter Swans

Trumpeter Swans can be found among the Tundra Swans. They are slightly larger and adults do not have the yellow spot at the base of their black bill. This family of Trumpeter Swans passed by at the Hwy26 overlook, a mile further south. Their calls are different and make it easy to distinguish between both species.

Northern Shovelers, New Albin, Iowa

This photo was made near New Albin, just at the Iowa-Minnesota border. Northern Shovelers are dabbling ducks and feed predominantly at the surface of the water. These five females had a feast and hardly stopped eating despite my presence. This was shot out of the car window, almost on eye level with the birds. The photos from the overlooks are made from a much higher vantage point and even cropping can’t prevent the not always desirable look of a ”bird from above”.

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

MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2024 #3 - REST ON A SANDBANK

American White Pelicans and Ring-billed Gulls, Mississippi River, Le Claire, Iowa

After a week of business travel it felt great to go out and enjoy nature and wildlife watching again. Yesterday’s trip along the Mississippi River led me all the way down to Le Claire, Iowa and up back north on the Illinois side to Savannah, followed by a short visit of the Green Island Wetlands on the Iowa side again.

Below lock & dam #14 in Le Claire these two American White Pelicans rested on a sandbank in company with a number of Ring-billed Gulls. They preened their feathers in the sun. It was quite a bit away from the shore and the 1.4x teleconverter was used to expand the focal length to 840 mm. People always debate the use of a teleconverter and claim it would degrade image quality. Except for the loss of light that hits the sensor (it becomes a f/9), I can’t confirm the loss of sharpness. The Nikon Z 600 f/6.3 works great with the TC-1.4x.

Nikon Z6II, Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S, Nikon Z Teleconverter TC-1.4x

@ 840mm, 1/1000s, f/9, ISO 200, image slightly cropped

NATURE CLICKS #588 - GREAT BLUE HERON

Great Blue Heron, Spring Lake, Petoskey, Michigan

Here is another photo of the same Great Blue Heron as in the last blog post. It was made a little later and from a different position. The bird had just caught a bullhead and tried to swallow it. This needs to be done in a smart way because the bullhead has sharp spines at the leading edges of the dorsal and pectoral fins. It took the heron quite some time to ”prepare” the fish but at the end the little catfish ended up in the herons stomach.

In this photo the background had some light and made actually for a good environmental portrait of the bird, including some water plants and reeds. There was a nice spot light on the bird’s head, not as harsh as before, and an underexposure by one f-stop was enough to keep the highlights intact.

NATURE CLICKS #587 - GREAT BLUE HERON

Great Blue Heron, Spring Lake, Petoskey, Michigan

A board walk gave us access to a small pond and wetland area near the town of Petoskey, Michigan. We approached the bird very slowly, assuming it would fly away any moment, but the heron had only the hunt for fish on its mind. It was all what I was hoping for with the new Nikon Z600 f/6.3, handholding the lens without struggle and coming back with a high keeper rate of sharp images. The background was very busy, with lots of dead wood and reeds. The bright parts of the bird’s plumage required underexposure by 2 f-stops and this solved the problem with the background.

4x WILDLIFE IN AUTUMN

Eastern Chipmunk

With the loss of leaves in the trees we may have quite a bit of dappled light, and that is not always desirable for making a good photo. But if we keep our eyes open, we might be able to use it to our advantage. The light in the fall can be just gorgeous and if a spotlight hits our subject in the picture just right, it adds some drama even to a simple gesture of a bird or critter. Exposing for the highlights is mostly the key for success if we don’t want to blow any colors out. If the part of the animal that is in the shade is a little too dark, we can bring back the shadows in post process easily to overcome the high contrast situation.

During the last couple days I spent some time in our front yard, using the morning light or the still intense power of the sun during the early evening. Four examples are shown today that hopefully underline my approach.

One of our Eastern Chipmunks stopped briefly to check the surroundings for any danger while digging between the leaves for food. I had followed the critter with the lens for a while already and was hoping for a moment like this.

Yellow-rumped Warbler

We still have a few Yellow-rumped Warblers around here, who may have migrated from up north. One of the birds rested briefly on a twig in a Forsythia bush and the light falling through the trees hit the front side of the warbler just right. A little underexposure helped to keep the bright parts of the bird intact, while the shadows on the backside where lifted in post process slightly.

American Goldfinch

The American Goldfinches are pretty much done with their second molt of the year and it is almost complete. Only parts of the males remain still in a bright yellow. You can see that both finches are covered in dappled light. Well, the eyes are clear, have even a catch light from the sun, and the yellow feathers are in great light and this all makes for good storytelling about the season, at least in my books.

American Robin

Very seldom do I post a picture of a bird at a feeder or on the bird bath but I couldn’t resist to make the click of this male American Robin in wonderful Sunday Morning light. Yes, the sun puts some light onto the bird, but it is the reflection from the water and the bowl that holds it that make the colors of this robin just look like at ”mating time in spring”. The exposure was set for the throat of the American Robin but it also rendered the bowl a little too bright, which was an easy fix in post process.

I hope today’s blog post gives the photographers among you some hints for your own fall bird photography and anybody else gets a kick out of the photos as well.

All photos: Nikon Z6II, Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S

AT THE END OF THE DAY

Sandhill Cranes, Green Island Preserve, Mississippi Valley, Iowa

Going out on a photo walk or drive doesn’t always lead to an image that is worth to show or sometimes no wildlife at all shows up in front of the lens. This was pretty much how it was this afternoon on either side of the Mississippi River. Coming back from the Illinois side I decided to give it another try and went back to Green Island this evening.

Earlier in the afternoon I counted 17 Sandhill Cranes but all too far away and the high temperatures created quite some heat shimmer above the ground. The air had cleared this evening and the numbers of cranes went up to at least 80 birds again, about the same as last weekend. They were spread out in five different groups in the part of the Green Island Wetlands that is a bird sanctuary. No access is allowed for this area and you have to deal with the distance the birds give you. It is so much fun to watch the migrating Sandhill Cranes and especially when they display their courtship and bonding dances in the warm light of the setting sun.

GREAT BIRD WATCHING WEEKEND (PART 2)

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

Spending time in the wetlands along the Mississippi River is one of the things I really enjoy and last weekend wasn’t any different. I got quite a few hours of practice with the new Nikkor Z 600 f/6.3 lens and like to share a few images with you.

Some easy shots of this Great Blue Heron were made a minute earlier, as the heron still stood motionless on the dyke. When the bird finally took off I was able to pan with the lens and follow the bird for a few pics. Good panning is still a matter of practice but it is a lot easier with the much lighter Z 600 than with my good old Sigma 150-600 S.

Sandhill Cranes

I counted 87 Sandhill Cranes foraging in the field of the Green Island Bird Sanctuary. This was the highest number I have ever seen in the fall at this location. Some of the cranes performed their elaborate courtship displays, mostly served between mates to maintain their pair bond. The cranes were more than half a mile away, almost one kilometer, and some heat shimmer above the ground effected sharpness a bit. However, I was amazed how clear the lens still rendered despite the distance.

Garter Snake

This Garter Snake was stretched out on the gravel road and seemed to wait for the return of the sun from behind a cloud. Before I guided the snake back into the grass, so nobody could accidentally or intentionally drive over it, a few clicks were made. Should have gotten still a little lower but at least nothing in the background distracts from this nice Garter Snake. I have seen a few snakes lately and this gives me some hope that population may bounce back.

Sandhill Cranes, Heritage Pond, Cooler Valley, Eastern Iowa

This photo was made a day later at the Heritage Pond and marsh, not far from home. A pair of Sandhill Cranes, maybe the same as last year, had flown in from the Mississippi and started searching for food in the mud. Very little rain during the last couple months dried the pond out again but the cranes seemed to like it. They are extremely careful and most of the time one crane keeps its head up while the other one is looking for food.

All photos: Nikon Z6II, Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S

GREAT BIRD WATCHING WEEKEND

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Despite quite a bit of wind it was a great weekend for bird watching and bird photography and some of the best happened right here at home. First I saw a female Yellow-rumped Warbler in the elm tree next to the balcony. As I stepped out in the open it became clear there was more than just one and later I saw at least five birds. They picked spiders and insects from leaves and from the cedar siding of our house. I wonder how long we may see Yellow-rumped Warblers this season. Normally they migrate further south but during the winter 2021/22 we had a few birds here at least until mid January.

I just stood on the deck with the Nikkor Z 600 f/6.3 on camera and tried to catch them as the warblers moved around very quickly. With this kind of photography the advantages of the new lens over my trusted SIGMA 150-600 made a big difference and one disadvantage of this lens played a role as well.

The very light weight, about half of the Sigma, makes for very good and easy handholding and moving around quickly. The focus speed and precision is just phenomenal and my keeper rate is way up above what I ever was able to obtain with the old lens for shooting little birds in a tree. The only disadvantage I’m aware of is the longer MFD (Minimum Focus Distance). The Z 600 starts at 4 meter, 1.2 m more than the Sigma. I had a couple moments when a bird landed really close and no way to step back. With other words, those shots were missed.

As mentioned, there was more going on this weekend and I really tried to learn how to handle the Nikkor Z 600 f/6.3, but this is for another blog post during this week.

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

NATURE CLICKS #586 - TUFTED TITMOUSE

Tufted Titmouse, Little Maquoketa Valley, Eastern Iowa

A simple click in the front yard last week. The new Nikkor Z 600 f/6.3 VR S lens is so much easier to handhold and allows to move around quickly if a bird, like this Tufted Titmouse, changes location and peels off the shell of a sunflower seed.

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

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

NEW NIKON Z LENS - FIRST SHOTS

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

A new tool made it into the gear locker. The Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S lens was delivered last week during my absence from home. Today I’m not writing about it, or why I wanted it in my camera bag, or even how it is performing. I just like to share some photos I made over the weekend with the new lens.

I still think the best place for trying out a piece of new camera gear for the first time is at home or in a well known local area. Reading the manual (I know, not everybody likes that part) and trying and testing in a controlled environment is the key for me to find out if a new acquisition is matching my expectations or if it has the potential to exceed them. In the front yard or any other place you have shot hundreds of times before, where you know how the light will hit your subject, it is easy to compare your results with everything you have done before at the same location.

Well, there is not much activity at this time of the year in our woods. Even very few local bird species come to a feeder or bird bath at the moment. Most of the migrating birds have left and headed south already, except for the smallest one. We still have quite a few Ruby-throated Hummingbirds coming through, stop at our feeders, stay for a while, and fight with other hummers about the ownership of a feeder. Usually this will end at the end of September or in early October.

Blue Jay

In my blog I always have tried to be a helpful source for other photography friends and shared my impressions about locations, things that I learned from other photographers, and of course, the experience with any part of photo gear I use. Can you tell how much I’m excited about the chance to improve my visual story telling with this new lens? I will share what I hope to learn in the next few weeks about this new wildlife lens with you, so please stay tuned…

All images: Nikon Z6II, Nikon NIKKOR Z 600 f/6.3 VR S

THE BONUS - A RED-TAILED HAWK

Red-tailed Hawk at Julien Dubuque Monument, Mines of Spain, Dubuque, Iowa

Nikon Z6II, Nikon FTZ adapter, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, Induro GIT 404XL tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head.   @ 600mm, 1/640s, f6.3, ISO800, image slightly cropped

This morning the Dubuque Audubon Society had invited for another birding event into the Mines of Spain State Recreation Area. Our guide Tony Moline, a very experienced birder, helped the group to find warblers, vireos, and other migrating birds and study them in the early morning sun. Most activities required binoculars for watching and identification but the distance for a decent photo was often too big. Nevertheless, it was very interesting to see at least a few of the migrators. I just read that tonight 426.7 Million birds are predicted to move south in the United States. A very impressive number!

Just before everybody was ready to say goodbye shortly after 10am we were treated with a bonus. This Red-tailed Hawk suddenly landed in a tree just in front of the group and on eye level with us. The camera was on tripod and pointed already in that direction and all what I had to do was to adjust quickly the exposure compensation for the existing light and lay down the hammer on the shutter release button. The bird gave us about one minute for that very enjoyable moment.

Thank you Tony for being such a good guide again and for sharing your knowledge with us!

CHIMNEY SWIFTS COMING IN FOR THE NIGHT

Chimney Swifts, Wartburg Theological Seminary, Dubuque, Iowa

Tonight was a pop-up birding event, made public by Marty Corfman, a very active member of the Audubon Society, at the Wartburg Theological Seminary in Dubuque, Iowa. We were able to see hundreds of Chimney Swifts circle around the tower of the seminar and finally pour into an old chimney after sunset. I’m sure everybody who joined this event enjoyed it and was touched by watching the swifts showing up one after another and entering their roost for the night. Thank you Marty for the invitation!

The Chimney Swifts will depart soon for the tropical areas in South America, where they will spend the winter. I shot a number of still images, like the one above, but also recorded a short video sequence. Feel free to click the video link below.

Nikon Z6II, Nikon FTZ adapter, Nikon Nikkor AF-S 70-200mm, f/4

NO SUMMER WITHOUT HUMMERS

Juvenile Ruby-throated Hummingbird

I can’t let the summer go by without making a few pictures of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds. I guess the birds who have been in our woods during the breeding season have moved on already and it seems we see different hummers every day now on their way south to Central America. However, this juvenile defended one of the hummingbird feeders fiercely and didn’t let any other bird even come close all afternoon.

I experimented quite a bit today with different exposure times or exposure compensation for the background and used also the Westscott FJ80 II speed light. In the picture above the bird was backlit and I froze the hummer at 1/4000s and let the translucency of the wings tell the story. The sun didn’t hit the front element of the lens directly because I shot from underneath the roof of our porch. A hint of flash made sure the body of the bird got some light as well.

The photo below was shot three hours later, about mid afternoon, when the sunlight wasn’t as harsh anymore. With almost the same settings (f/8, ISO8000, -1EV) but a shutter speed of only 1/400s the result was totally different. Of course, with such a slow shutter the wings are not frozen, which I actually prefer in most of my photos of Ruby-throated Hummingbirds.

Nikon Z6II, Nikon FTZ adapter, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, Induro GIT 404XL tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head, Westscott FJ80 II speed light, Westscott Magnetic diffusion dome

THE JINX IS BROKEN!! (FINALLY)

Male Belted Kingfisher, Mississippi Valley, Green Island Wildlife Preserve, Iowa

Long time readers know that I always called this beautiful bird ”the bastard”, due to the fact that I have been on the chase for a decent picture of a Belted Kingfisher since a long time. They are very skittish and often fly away before you even have a chance to aim the lens at them. During a short trip to the Green Island wetlands yesterday afternoon I finally had this male kingfisher even twice in front of my lens. First it was placed on one of the bowls that are provided as nesting places for Canada Geese. They are placed in the water, getting closer was not an option, but at least I made some sharp images.

A little bit later I saw the same bird sitting on a branch just beside the gravel road and this time the kingfisher didn’t fly away, even when I moved slowly right next to the tree with the car. There is still room for improvement since the light was a little too harsh for my taste but I think I should stop calling him ”the bastard” after the jinx is broken now…

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