LOW ANGLE

American Coot, Green Island Wetlands, Iowa  -----

Nothing beats the low angle you can get while shooting from a kayak, especially in an area like the Green Island Wetlands. Because the dykes and roads are much higher, the camera is always elevated above the water level while shooting from the shore. The downside is, it is more difficult to navigate to a different position if some vegetation is in the line between you and your subject.

We took the boats out again today but didn’t see nearly as many birds as last Sunday. I’m happy if I come back with at least one shot that I like and this American Coot was the star today. Coots are very good swimmers but their feet are not webbed. Their toes have lobes on the side of each segment. I knew this before but I wasn’t really aware how big their feet actually are. It’s the low angle for this photo that helps to tell the story much better, not just about their feet but also the habitat they live in.

NATURE CLICKS #380 - GREAT CRESTED FLYCATCHER

Great Crested Flycatcher, Mississippi River, Green Island Wetlands, Iowa

Photographically seen it is a pitiful picture with lots of distractions, but my interest in birds makes me showing it anyway. So, lets treat it as a documentary shot…😉.

It was in 2012 when I had seen the last time a Great Crested Flycatcher. Yesterday, on our kayak paddling tour in the Green Island Wetlands, we saw this bird again and there were even a couple of juveniles. Unfortunately I was not able to move in the right position with the boat to get them in the frame. This adult flycatcher was high up in a tree and one of the reasons I used the word “pitiful” for this image is the fact that I had to crop it to death to make it halfway work, at least here in the blog. The photo connoisseurs among you may wrinkle their nose but I hope some birders and nature lovers can get a kick out of it…

NATURE CLICKS #379 - PROTHONOTARY WARBLER

Prothonotary Warbler, Mississippi River, Green Island Wetlands, Iowa ------  

Another great day here in the Mississippi Valley today. Joan and I took again the kayaks out for a trip on the water. This time we paddled deep into the backwaters of the Green Island Wetlands. We had it all for ourselves and except for the occasional honking of a train far away it was all about listening to the sounds of nature. My excitement grew rapidly when Joan pointed out a small yellow bird on a log in the water. I have only seen and photographed a Prothonotary Warbler once before and that was several years ago.

As always, shooting with the long lens from a kayak, while the kayak is moving, is quite a challenge and the number of misses is of course much higher. The only reason I show the second image here in the blog is for identification. It shows the colors of back, wings, and tail better. The head and eye of the warbler are clearly out of focus and usually a picture like this has only one valid place, the digital trash can. Well, sometimes we need an exception from the rule…😉

IMPORTANT STEP IN A BARN SWALLOW’S LIFE

Juvenile Barn Swallows, Mississippi River, Mud Lake, Iowa ------

The great weather we had lately continued and there was no doubt that paddling on the Mississippi River was a good choice today. We had some good German friends here a week ago and we told them that they are in paradise here in eastern Iowa. Paddling twice this week the same trip that they did last week makes me believe my own words 😉.

Almost back from our tour today and approaching Mud Lake Park we suddenly saw three juvenile swallows sitting on a piece of drift wood. I let the kayak carefully slide into a field of Arrow Heads, a water plant that is very common along the river. Parking the kayak between the plants makes it more stabil, increasing the chance for a sharp image. After I made some quick static shots the adult Barn Swallows suddenly arrived. The young swallows stretched their necks and called for food but the adults did not deliver. Immediately I thought I was the problem, maybe I was too close to the immature birds? But after watching the situation for a little while I figured out that we just witnessed an important stage of a young swallow’s life.

The adults didn’t care much about my presence, they just tried to encourage their offspring to catch their own food. They approached them, but didn’t feed them. I shot like a maniac. Being in a kayak doesn’t deliver always a sharp image but I got a good share. It all became clear when all juveniles suddenly took off and joined their parents in their efforts to catch insects in flight.

MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2017 #9 - DUCKLINGS

Mallards can be found everywhere along the Mississippi and usually I point my lens at them only if there is an extraordinary light situation. While working with the pelicans a few days ago I couldn’t resist to make some clicks when this female duck with her offspring swam by in the choppy water just in front of me. Young birds are always fun to watch.

I had the camera up on the tripod. This was ok for the pelicans, who were a little further away than the ducklings, but for this shot I should have lowered the camera closer to the water surface.

1/800 s, f/6.3, ISO 100, @600 mm, image slightly cropped, Nikon D750, Sigma 150-600mm / f5-6.3 DG OS HSM S, Induro GIT 404XL tripod, Induro GHB2 gimbal head

LITTLE FISH - BIG FISH

Do you see the tiny little fish in the pelican’s beak dancing and saying good bye to the world? Maybe not, especially if you read this blog on a cell phone. But it is there and in full size of the original image I can even see its eyes.

Do you see the really big fish in this pelican’s beak? No, I can’t see it either but the gesture and the big bulge in its throat pouch leave no doubt that this guy just swallowed a big catch.

Both images tell the story about another fishing frenzy of the American White Pelicans down at the mighty Mississippi. Each of the them in a slightly different way.

MISSISSIPPI RIVER STORIES 2017 #8 - PELICANS

American White Pelicans, Mississippi River, Lock & dam #11, Dubuque, Iowa ------    

Earlier this week I noticed a squadron of American White Pelicans near the dam on the Mississippi in Dubuque, Iowa. I found them today at the same place, next to the down stream gate of the lock. This is a location with good photo opportunities and I have been there many times before during other years. The pelicans prefer this place for their fishing and feeding. The best time is mostly the late afternoon, when the sun is still above the rocky bluffs but already low enough for some awesome warm light. At my arrival at the river we still had some overcast and I used a hint of flash to bring out the orange of the pelican’s bills. Later the sun came out and other than that, it’s all about gesture and making sure the concrete wall of the lock on the left hand side is not in the frame…

This was the moment of “game over” for the pelicans. The gate had opened and a barge was moved out of the lock. The guy on the left seems to say, we need another plan…! 😉

NATURE CLICKS #378 - COMMON GALLINULE

Common Gallinule, Mississippi River, Green Island Wetlands, Iowa ----------

The Common Gallinule is often confused with the American Coot, but it is easily distinguished by the red shield-like plate above its bill. This chicken-like marsh bird has unwebbed feet but is nevertheless an excellent swimmer. They are also known under the name Common Moorhen. You may hear their loud squeaks, clucks, and screams before you even have a chance to see one. It took me several years to make my first photo of a gallinule and it wasn’t until this summer that I made a few pictures that can be shown in public without embarrassment. They spend the winter in the southern Atlantic states of the US and in South America.

LOOKING FOR A SHADY PLACE

Young Northern Water Snake, Green Island Wetlands, Iowa ---------

We have seen a steep decline in the number of snakes during recent years, not just here in our woods above the Little Maquoketa River Valley. I have no explanation for that and when I talked to an officer from the DNR a few weeks ago he didn’t know either. We have great habitat for snakes, with wood and rock piles for hiding, and over the years we have recorded five different species here. Unfortunately since about 3 - 4 years we hardly see any. However, at least near the Mississippi River I see occasionally a Northern Water Snake.

This image was made last Friday in the Green Island Wetlands on one of the dykes that I call “snake alley”, just because I have seen snakes there more often than at any other places in the wetlands. This was a very young snake, probably not even two foot long. After a couple clicks from the car I got out and wanted to get low on the ground with the camera. The snake saw obviously its chance to get some shade and squeezed itself behind the left front tire before I was even out of the car. So, what now? I started the engine and moved carefully forward in order not to harm the critter. Well, that worked, when I got out of the car again the young Northern Water Snake was already in the water next to the dyke…

SEVEN, ALIVE AND WELL

Trumpeter Swans, Green Island Wetlands, Iowa

Just minutes before I had my encounter with the four young raccoons (see the blog post from yesterday), I finally found the pair of Trumpeter Swans with their offspring I showed you on May 21st. All seven cygnets were still alive and well. I thought immediately that the story in this picture only works if I have all seven in the frame. They were right beside the road and in order to get them all in the picture I shot with the shortest focal length the SIGMA 150-600 offers. This was only possible at the moment just before the whole family entered the water.

A GANG OF FOUR

Young Raccoons, Green Island Wetlands, Iowa -------- 

When it’s time to leave the Green Island wetlands I usually drive slowly down the gravel road on the left hand side and scan the water canals, ponds, trees, and bushes for any sign of wildlife with my eyes. The camera rests in my lap, turned on, and ready to shoot. Don’t worry about me driving on the wrong side, the road is straight and wide and there is not much traffic at all. If another car shows up on the horizon or in the rear view mirror, I stop and wait until the car has passed and the dust from the road has settled again.

Yesterday evening on my way out I saw some movement in one of the trees ahead. First I thought it was a mink but as I came closer it became clear that a gang of four young raccoons had a feast on the berries of a mulberry tree.

I hate to crank the ISO at the camera beyond 400, but I had no choice and went up to ISO 640, still shooting as slow as 1/80 s at 600 mm. Noise reduction in post means loss of detail and with the fine hair of a raccoon it has its limits, at least for my own photography.

Most of my previous photos of raccoons were taken around the house, on the roof or balcony, or catching them while they robbed our bird feeders. With other words, I’m very happy to have finally some images that have no men-made elements in the frame.

The four little guys were obviously listen pretty good to their mama. I never saw her, she stayed somewhere below in the bushes, but after five minutes of watching the gang they all climbed down at the same time and disappeared in the underwoods.

The “cuteness factor” of young critters is always high and I hope you don’t mind seeing a couple more photos sometime in the near future.

NATURE CLICKS #378 - BALTIMORE ORIOLE

Male Baltimore Oriole -------------

Shortly after their arrival from Central America in early May we see the Baltimore Orioles every day. They like to feed from orange halves and drink from hummingbird feeders that we provide. They need to replenish their reserves after a long distance migration. It is not uncommon to see up to ten different birds the same day here in our woods. Now, in early June, we still can hear them and maybe spot them high up in the trees, but they hardly come down from the tree tops anymore.

GOING BACK TO THE VAULT

Black-necked Stilt, Bolsa Chica Ecological Reserve, California

Live stood in the way for any new photography during the last few days. I like to keep my blog up to date in regards of the season, but if I can’t find the time to shoot new pictures I have no reason to panic. It doesn’t hurt to dig out some images from the vault that are a few weeks or even months old.

Back in April I was in one of my favorite locations to photograph birds, the Bolsa Chica Ecological Preserve near Huntington Beach, California. By the way, a good photography friend of mine from Germany might be there in the next few days (Hi Maren!) and I wish her nothing but the best light for her time in this great location!

As I was about to call it a day, a pair of Black-necked Stilts did everything to attract my attention, just next to the parking lot. The wind from the Pacific swayed the bushes in front of the lens and almost all pictures I made have this green disturbance left and right. My favorite shot, the one you see above, was cropped to “portrait orientation” in post. This leaves all the green, left and right, out of the frame but I had to sacrifice a lot of pixels. So is this all bad? Not really, at least not for this photo in my blog today… 

LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIP

Eastern Gray Squirrel

I have to admit, it’s a love-hate relationship between our Eastern Gray Squirrels and us.  After they have emptied a bird feeder with sunflower seeds within a couple hours or have ripped apart a wooden seed storage box on the balcony, my sympathy level for the squirrels is not very high, to say it mildly…

But then there are these moments, when they make these ‘innocent’ gestures, and all their ‘crimes’ are forgiven in a heartbeat… 😏 😊

SERIOUS BUSINESS

Female House Wren

While the male House Wren is singing his heart out each morning (see my last blog post), the female is doing some serious business now. The males actually start to build the nest, way before a female even makes a commitment, but it is a loose collection of grass and twigs and they usually build more than one. The females choose and finish the nest to their like before they lay the eggs. Our wren in the front yard is obviously giving it the last touch and making it soft and comfortable.