When I took the pictures of the Sora I posted yesterday a big smile was already in my face. A little earlier I watched this female Hooded Merganser, surrounded by six tiny feather balls. They were swimming in one of the canals parallel to the gravel road that goes across the Green Island Wetlands. The mother was pushing them and made sure all six little mergansers kept up with her. They goofed around a lot and sometimes mom had to stop and wait. Finally, pretty close to the end of the canal, the whole train stopped. They had reached obviously their nest site. As little as they are, it must have been one of their first excursions with the mother. So, where was the male with its beautiful crest and white patches? Well, as soon the female begins to incubate, the male abandons her...
NATURE CLICKS #332 - SORA (FIRST SIGHTING)
It was another gray day without the sun coming out. I didn’t have high expectations when I went south to the Green Island Wetlands today. It was somehow on my mind that shooting birds against a gray sky or with water surrounded that reflects this sky will just not lead to any results, but I did it anyway. Oh boy, was I wrong!
Thanks to another birder and photographer, Tony Moline, I was able to have a first sighting of a Sora, a small rail. It isn’t really uncommon in North America but I have never seen one until today here in Eastern Iowa. The hint about their presence at Green Island came from two other birders from Illinois, but Tony made me aware where to look for this tiny shore bird. Thank you Tony!
The second picture was the last photo on my memory card today. I didn’t stop to work with this bird until the rain came down hard. I guess I got carried away… There were other observation in the wetlands earlier today and I may post about it in the next few days. So please stay tuned…
NOT WHAT I WAS LOOKING FOR, BUT…
Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head, Nikon SB 800 speed light, Better Beamer flash extender
I haven’t made a single click since two days <sigh>, because an indoor project kept me grounded. However, I have very little regrets, the weather has been really miserable the last couple days.
More birds have arrived here. Our House Wrens sing already since 4/16, the Whip-poor-will was heard the first time during the night of 4/20, and a female Scarlet Tanager landed briefly at a bird feeder on 4/25. That is the earliest we have ever seen a tanager in our woods. Finally the first male Rose-breasted Grosbeak showed up last Thursday, together with two Ruby-crowned Kinglets.
While trying to catch the kinglet this male Northern Cardinal posed for me briefly in a tree nearby. It was already 6:30pm but I still wanted a little bit of daylight in the background. To make this happen I shot this in DX cropping mode at 600 mm (900 mm FX) with 1/80s. The flash is still used as a fill flash, but only to reveal the colors of the cardinal. Sure, I could “nuke” this with 1/250s, and it would be tack-sharp, but the background would have been totally black and the photo would scream nothing but “FLASH!!”
The cardinal is an all-year-around bird here on our bluffs but it was its pose and gesture that make this image work for me.
GREAT HORNED OWLS, EMPTY NEST
Owlet #1
I received an email this morning from another photographer (Thank you Ken!), telling me that yesterday he found the nest of the Great Horned Owls down at the Mississippi River empty. I replied that they might just be hunkered down in the nest because of the cold and wet weather we have at the moment. I just learned that owl feathers are not waterproof and rain can impact their ability to fly noiselessly, which can be trouble for an adult during the breeding season because they cannot hunt. Wet feathers lead also to a higher loss of body heat, which could be a thread for the owlets. However, I had to check it out during my lunch break today.
Owlet #1
As Ken already reported, I found the nest empty. It took me about half an hour until I discovered one of the owlets sitting on a big branch in a tree about 50 yards to the east from the nest. I took several pictures from both sides of the tree. Because of their ability to turn the head by 270 degree, owlet #1 had an eye on me most of the time without moving the rest of the body. The wind was blowing hard and getting an unobstructed view was a challenge because branches and leaves were swaying around the whole time.
Owlet #2, All images: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head, Nikon SB 800 speed light, Better Beamer flash extender
I scanned every tree and branch around with my eyes in search for #1’s sibling. I just couldn’t find it. Ready to give up and go back to work I suddenly saw owlet #2 sitting upright in the tree next to me and only a few yards away. It was probably watching me the whole time while I tried to find it and laughed its head off…
It’s great to see that the young Great Horned Owls started branch hopping. Pretty soon they will learn to fly and they may stay with the adults until fall. The leaves in the tress grow rapidly and it will become very difficult to find the owlets again. I’m very happy that we can see two owlets, instead of just one, for the first time during the last four years.
NATURE CLICKS #331 - BLUE JAY
Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head, DX crop mode
Getting close to a Blue Jay has always been a challenge and I have mastered it only a few times so far. They are one of the most skittish birds we have in our woods. Earlier this week I set up my tripod and watched a bunch of Goldfinches through the lens. I didn’t really hide but tried to stand motionless behind the camera. The bird landed in the same tree where the finches had perched. They of course flew away, but I didn’t really mind. The late afternoon sun hit the jay just right. The noise of the camera’s shutter release made it suddenly aware about my presence. The Blue Jay took off but the goldfinches returned shortly after.
WARM LIGHT AND THE LATEST ABOUT THE OWLS
Mississippi River, Mud Lake, Image made at 500 mm with Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens
It’s a nice situation, I have made so many images recently , I just need to make up my mind what stories I like to tell first or maybe never. Sometimes the latest observations seem to be more important than the older pics…
The backwaters of Mud Lake are the closest access to the Mississippi River for us, just ten minutes away from home. As you know, I watch the Great Horned Owl and their offspring during this time of the year at Mud Lake State Park and the photo below tells hopefully more I can even write about here…
Using the long lens for landscape photography may not be on every photographers mind. The compression of a scene, combined with gorgeous light, made me push the shutter release button this evening. The kiss of warm light during sunset is the right time to be there. The mighty Mississippi is behind this dike and the canal in the foreground is part of the Mud Lake backwaters.
NATURE CLICKS #330 - WHITE-THROATED SPARROW
Like anybody else I like this time of the year. There is so much going on in nature that it is really not difficult to find a photo that tells a story about the season. We had a rain shower this afternoon, much needed after the top soil in the yard got a little dry during the warm days we had recently. The time after the rain is also a good time to go out shooting and looking for birds, and that’s what I did this evening just here in the woods around our house.
All images: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head, Nikon SB 800 speed light, Better Beamer flash extender
In February I posted already a picture of a White-throated Sparrow. We are at the north end of their winter range but it was the first time that we saw this species so early in a year. It is not so unusual to see them in April during their migration and today we had three White-throated Sparrows foraging here on the bluffs above the Little Maquoketa River Valley.
STOPPING FOR THE PEREGRINS
Peregrine Falcon Bellevue, Iowa
I had to stop for the nest of the Peregrine Falcon again last weekend below the bluffs of Bellevue State Park, Iowa. One adult was perched again on a branch near the nest box that hangs high up in the rocks, overlooking the Mississippi River. I assume the other adult sat on the nest but I can only guess, because this is not visible from the ground at the highway. I admit this is not a fair image, because I have cropped it heavily, a lot more than just a cosmetic crop. I should have put the 1.4 teleconverter on the lens to frame the shot closer but I was kinda in a hurry. Parking is not allowed at this location, although there is a big pull-out beside the highway. I just didn’t want to deal with the local cop, who seems to be always on duty when I drive through Bellevue…😉
NATURE CLICKS #328 - TREE SWALLOW
Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens
Spring is not complete without the arrival of swallows. I saw the first Tree Swallows already a couple weeks ago but now we can find them in large numbers. I spent most of the day in the Green Island Wetlands. This dead tree is standing in the water and was used by the swallows as a place to rest. There were moments when all of them took off, catching insects in flight, but after a while they always came back to this tree. The Green Island Wetlands are an ideal habitat for these swallows. There is food in abundance and many dead trees, with cavities or woodpecker holes, provide the nesting places for them.
AIMING FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL PORTRAIT
Buffleheads, Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head
The next weekend has almost arrived and I still have another story to share with you from the last one. Not a bad problem to have…😉 Last week, during our bird watching weekend along or near the Mississippi River we saw ten different duck species, hundreds of American Coots, and a few Hooded Mergansers between Harpers Ferry and Lansing, Iowa. None do match the beauty of a Bufflehead in my humble opinion. Their breeding grounds are up in Canada and we only have a small time window during migration to enjoy their beauty. The “eyeball shot” just for beauty has never been the goal in my wildlife photography and although I try to get as close as possible to a critter, it is the environmental portrait I’m aiming for most of the time. Photos like this, with reflections on the water, subtle light, and still an intimate focus on the bird satisfy my artistic approach.
CHANGING FEATHERS
American Goldfinch, Nikon D750, Sigma 150mm / f2.8 APO EX DG HSM
Several bird species change their feathers twice a year during the molt. The most apparent one here in spring is the American Goldfinch. The males give up their olive-gray to olive-brown winter feathers and change to a bright yellow body. The shot was made right through my office window and as you can see the goldfinches are not completely done yet with their spring molt.
WILD TURKEY IN FULL DISPLAY
We saw quite a few Wild Turkeys last weekend in the area between Harpers Ferry and Lansing, Iowa, near the Mississippi Valley. This obviously dominant gobbler followed his harem in the grass along a creek. We used the car as a blind on a small gravel road, with the creek between us and the turkeys. It was the first time that I was able to make an image of a male in full display. According to the DNR website, restorations have returned wild turkeys to about 95% of suitable habitat in Iowa. All the major river corridors support turkey populations again after this bird was virtually extirpated from Iowa by 1900. It is nice to read a success story ones in a while, in a world where the exploitation of natural resources is still the norm.
All images: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens
NATURE CLICKS #327 - PILEATED WOODPECKER
Female Pileated Woodpecker, Mississippi River, dam #9
I start with the biggest highlight of our bird watching weekend. It happened on the dike of dam #9 in the Mississippi River, just north of Harpers Ferry, Iowa. I was hoping to see another kinglet again but instead a full grown Pileated Woodpecker just landed on a dead tree trunk right in front of me. I made quickly a few clicks but my view was obstructed by branches. Luckily the woodpecker took off again and flew to another tree, a little further away. Only a couple thin twigs were between me and the bird this time but I can live with them.
The Pileated is the largest woodpecker in North America. They are about half a meter tall and their call is usual a very loud “kee-kee-kee-kee-kee”. We actually have them here in our woods above the Little Maquoketa River Valley, and if you use the search field in the side bar of my blog, you may find my older reports about this bird. The Pileated Woodpecker is very shy and skittish and that makes it always a special event if we see one or get it in front of the lens.
All images: Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM Sports Lens, tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head
The woodpecker didn’t hesitate a second and started to wedge its large bill between the tree trunk and the bark. Big pieces of bark were flying around and this female knew obviously very well where to find a good snack. The second picture has a little motion blur but it shows pretty good how she attacked the tree. I would have been still very happy if this Pileated was the only bird we would have seen during the whole weekend. But there was more…, so please stay tuned…
UPDATE ON THE OWLETS
600 mm, 1/100s, f/6.3, ISO 320, flash fill
I know I have some friends out there, and as far away as South Africa, who like to hear about how our little owlets are doing. The weather has been kinda “crappy” during the last few days but I try to drive down to the Mississippi River after work several times a week in order to see how the young Great Horned Owls develop. For those who do not always read my blog, this is the first time during the last four years that the Great Horned Owl is raising two young owls. Any other year before was only one owlet in the nest.
Today it seemed again that the juveniles are in good condition and there was a brief moment when I saw both of them at the same time. The mother perched in trees nearby most of the time. She was at the nest only once while I was there. Mother owl went always back to the same trees and branches during the last week because she probably can observe the nest very good from all of her preferred spots. She must trust me, because she turns quite often her back to me and rather looks over to the Mississippi and perhaps watches for some prey.
600 mm, 1/100s, f/6.3, ISO 320, flash fill
Rain and dark clouds during the last evenings made the photography very challenging. There wasn’t an ounce, and not even a gram of nice light! In these conditions I like to master flash fill for my images, with all its quirks, like overexposed branches, red eyes, or just dealing with the settings in camera and in the flash. The missing contrast on an owlet’s head or body in low light makes it difficult to obtain always focus for a sharp image and not every picture is a keeper. I know, this doesn’t sound like fun but I really enjoy the process of trial, error, and improvement, and it makes me happy if at the end of the day there is an image on the memory card that tells the story…
WOOD DUCK WITH COMPANY
Male Wood Duck, Green Island Wetlands
The butt sticking out of the water in the background didn’t belong to a female Wood Duck but rather to a Blue-winged Teal. The beautiful male Wood Duck was all by himself but enjoyed the company of a few teals. Ducks of one species are quite often seen together with other duck species or even geese or coots. They seem to benefit from each other especially by watching out for predators. The Green Island Wetlands beside the Mississippi have plenty of food for all of them. While many ducks, mergansers, and geese have moved on further north, more birds have arrived in large numbers, like thousands of American Coots. Some of them will use the lakes and marshes around Green Island to raise a new generation. It’s an exciting time to be out there at this time of the year… 😊