31 Monday Dec 2018
Posted in Photography
Tags
Some 2018 pictures to wish all of you a Happy, Healthy, and Prosperous New Year!
Happy New Year: Clivia Miniata in full bloom.
The following three photos show an adult Mockingbird feeding a young one, like 2018 passing the baton to 2019.
Mockingbirds.
Mockingbirds.
Mockingbirds.
Happy New Year: budding Hibiscus.
30 Sunday Dec 2018
Posted in colonial lake, Photography
Tags
american robin, blue jay, cosmos, great egret, mallard, montezuma national wildlife refuge, northern cardinal, photography, postaday
In 2018, some of my photos did not appear on this blog, normally because I didn’t want to have too many in any post. Now at year end, looking at them, some actually deserve to be shown, and here they are.
Northern Cardinal in January 2018.
Mallard mother and ducklings, May 2018.
Great Egret at Montezuma NWR, September 2018.
American Robin, November 2018.
Blue Jay, November 2018.
Cosmos brought inside, October 2018.
29 Saturday Dec 2018
Posted in barnegat, Photography
Long-tailed Ducks breed in the Arctic parts of Canada and Alaska, and only migrate to the coast of New Jersey in the winter. Thursday of this week, I saw several near Barnegat Lighthouse.
Female Long-tailed Duck. Only the males have a long tail.
I could not photograph a male Long-tailed Duck swimming in the water, so here’s a photo of two males taken in 2016.
Male Long-tailed Ducks, immature in background and mature at center.
This past Thursday, there was a male that took off from the water as shown in the following flight shots.
Male Long-tailed Duck taking off.
Male Long-tailed Duck taking off. Noe the long tail in the back.
Male Long-tailed Duck taking off.
Male Long-tailed Duck flying.
These ducks are about half the size of Common Eiders, and their take off is shorter and quicker. Although there are no estimates of their current population, they are classified as Common Bird in Steep Decline as of 2014.
28 Friday Dec 2018
Posted in barnegat, Photography
Since they are so big, Common Eiders take a long time to get airborne and fly, like Cormorants and Swans. Yesterday, one immature Common Eider put on quite a show.
Immature male Common Eider.
Immature Common Eider trying to take off.
Immature Common Eider trying to take off.
Immature Common Eider becoming airborne.
Immature Common Eider flying.
28 Friday Dec 2018
Posted in barnegat, Photography
In late fall, Common Eiders appear as far South as the coast of New Jersey. Yesterday several dozens of them were swimming along the jetty at Barnegat Lighthouse. They are the largest ducks, weighing from 2.5 to almost 7 lbs (1.1 to 3 kg).
Barnegat Lighthouse as seen from jetty.
It is not breeding season yet, so the males are not showing their distinctive and handsome colors.
Male Common Eider.
Female Common Eider.
Female Common Eider and two males.
There was some kind of hunting going on and I often heard sounds of gunfire coming from the other side of the bay. An immature Common Eider was sitting on a rock right next to the jetty. It would not move even as I came very close to it. A fellow photographer said that it may have been wounded by a shotgun pellet, could not move, and would probably die eventually.
Immature Common Eider, wounded perhaps.
In the 19th century, hunting almost wiped out this species in the Atlantic. However, their population has rebounded and Common Eiders are not on the list of endangered species.
24 Monday Dec 2018
Posted in colonial lake, EBF Refuge, Photography
Tags
colonial lake, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, extender, great blue heron, mallard, photography, postaday, snow geese
One of the must-have equipment for wildlife photography in general, and bird photography in particular, is to have a telephoto lens powerful enough to capture subjects with sufficient details and sharpness, without having to come too close to them. Since most of us can’t afford super telephoto lenses, also called second-mortgage lenses, some of us resort to using an extender, which is much less expensive, to increase the reach of our lenses. With a 1.4 extender, a 400 mm lens will be equivalent to a 560 mm lens.
I have had such an extender for two years, but almost never used it because the results had been disappointing especially in terms of sharpness. Finally, looking at photos posted by Jerry from Quiet Solo Pursuits here on WordPress, I decided to give it a try with the Canon 5D Mark IV that I have been using since last year.
Following are some of the shots I took yesterday at the refuge and at Colonial Lake under a bright sun with the 100-400 mm lens and a 1.4 extender.
Great Blue Heron shaking a fish.
Great Blue Heron in “flasher” pose facing the sun to warm itself up.
Mallard in flight.
Mallard in flight.
Female Mallard.
Snow Goose.
Snow Geese.
Snow Geese.
22 Saturday Dec 2018
Posted in Photography
Tags
Black-crowned Night Heron, golden retriever, gosling, great blue heron, great sand dunes national park, lotus, northern cardinal, osprey, photography, postaday, squirrel
The following photos are some of the favorites that you, my WordPress readers, have either liked the posts where they were posted in, clicked on their images to see them in larger size, or mentioned them in your comments.
Northern Cardinal, June 2018.
White Lotus, August 2018.
Ospreys, June 2018.
Goslings, May 2018.
Black-crowned Night-Heron, August 2018.
Great Sand Dunes National Park, October 2015.
Great Blue Heron, December 2018.
Squirrel, October 2018.
Jackie, the Golden Retriever, and frisbee, April 2018.
20 Thursday Dec 2018
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
At this time of the year, I often see Northern Shovelers at the refuge. From afar they look like Mallard ducks, but with longer, oversized bills. They dabble back and forth with those bills to catch crustaceans and seeds from the marsh.
Northern Shovelers, female and male.
Female Northern Shoveler. Note comb-like filters at the edge of her bill.
Female Northern Shoveler preening.
Male Northern Shoveler.
Male Northern Shovelers.
Flocks of Northern Shovelers are known to swim in circle to corral food and make it easier for them to catch. However, I saw this band early in the morning and many were still sleeping.
Female Northern Shoveler sleeping: “Call me back in an hour.”
19 Wednesday Dec 2018
Posted in Photography
American Goldfinch.
American Goldfinch.
American Goldfinch.
16 Sunday Dec 2018
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
Great Blue Heron fishing.
Great Blue Heron fishing.
Great Blue Heron fishing.
Great Blue Heron swallowing fish.
Great Blue Heron.
15 Saturday Dec 2018
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
Tags
atlantic city, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, peregrine falcon, photography, postaday, snow geese
Now that the Ospreys have migrated South, their nests are being taken over by squatters, temporary ones anyway . One of them is a Peregrine Falcon that I saw perched on a nest.
Peregrine Falcon sitting on Osprey nest.
Peregrine Falcon checking out photographer.
This is the season for Snow Geese migration, and there were many thousands of them at the refuge.
Snow Geese at Edwin B Forsythe.
Snow Geese at Edwin B Forsythe NWR.
Snow Geese at Edwin B Forsythe NWR.
Snow Geese lifting off, with the skyline of Atlantic City in the background.
15 Saturday Dec 2018
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
Friday morning, a Great Blue Heron was standing in the water at the refuge, looking left then right. As the light was near perfect, I started to photograph it. When it decided to take off and fly away, I just kept pressing the shutter.
Great Blue Heron standing in water at Edwin B Forsythe NWR.
Great Blue Heron at start of flight.
Great Blue Heron flying.
Great Blue Heron flying and turning.
Great Blue Heron flying and turning.
Great Blue Heron flying.
Great Blue Heron in classic flying pose.
13 Thursday Dec 2018
Posted in colonial lake, EBF Refuge, Photography
Buffleheads are the smallest diving ducks, no larger than 16 in (40 cm) in length. They are a joy to see as they appear to be constantly smiling and moving about, bobbing, and diving to find food. They swallow their catch of crustaceans (shrimps) and mollusks under water, and I have yet to see a photo of one Bufflehead holding food in its short, smily bill.
In past years I usually had a hard time taking good pictures of them, especially the male ones, because their eyes are often lost in the dark patches around their heads. This year sunlight was with me, most of the time, as you can see in the following photos.
Female Buffleheads at Colonial Lake.
Female Bufflehead at Edwin B. Forsythe NWR.
Female Bufflehead at Edwin B. Forsythe NWR.
Female Bufflehead at Edwin B. Forsythe NWR.
Male Bufflehead at Edwin B. Forsythe NWR.
Male Bufflehead beginning to dive.
Male Bufflehead approaching female who just dove.
Male Bufflehead and his harem.
Female Bufflehead angling for photo.
Female Bufflehead and Canada Geese.
12 Wednesday Dec 2018
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
Hooded Mergansers are small ducks that are seen in the fall and winter at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. The male ones have a prominent crest (hood) in black and white, making them stand out from other ducks. This year there seems to be many Hooded Mergansers, male and female, and I had no problem shooting the following photos.
Male Hooded Merganser.
Female Hooded Merganser.
Hooded Margansers. The male was just coming out of a dive.
As I was taking a shot, one Hooded Merganser decided to fly. I missed capturing that take-off.
Hooded Mergansers.
The following day, almost at the same place, I was chatting with a fellow photographer when a male Hooded Merganser decided to fly.
Male Hooded Merganser starting flight.
After about a minute, I saw him, accompanied by a female, flying overhead.
Hooded Mergansers flying.
Hooded Margansers flying.
09 Sunday Dec 2018
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
Several young Bald Eagles were flying around a small island in the middle of the marsh. Some attempted to catch a fish but failed.
Young Bald Eagle.
Young Bald Eagle.
Young Bald Eagle.
The one above landed on the island where a mature Bald Eagle was watching everything.
Young Bald Eagle landing on island.
For several minutes the older Bald Eagle seemed to be calling to the new arrival.
Young Bald Eagle landing. Note the older Bald Eagle calling.
After the young one landed and stood to the side, the mature Bald Eagle kept calling, perhaps telling the younger one to fly again and go catch some fish.
Mature Bald Eagle: “Go catch some fish!”
Finally the younger Bald Eagle had to take off again.
Young Bald Eagle resumed flying.
08 Saturday Dec 2018
Posted in Photography
Yesterday at the refuge, a pair of Bald Eagles were flying in a courtship ritual that was dramatic, fast, and hard to catch for my camera. They were alternatively soaring to the sky and plunging toward the marsh at high speed. Often they were too far from where I was, and I could only get good focus on about half of the shots. The following photos will give you an idea of what took place.
Bald Eagle flying in courtship ritual.
Bald Eagle flying in courtship ritual.
Bald Eagle flying in courtship ritual.
Bald Eagle flying in courtship ritual.
Two Bald Eagles flying in courtship ritual.
Two Bald Eagles flying in courtship ritual.
Two Bald Eagles flying in courtship ritual.
08 Saturday Dec 2018
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
A Great Blue Heron held in its bill a small fish that it had caught. A Willet had just caught a bigger fish, and flew up right in front of the heron. I was too far and actually did not see this small drama until I got home and displayed the image on my computer monitor. It looks like the Willet was bragging about its catch, and the heron was by no means happy.
Great Blue Heron and Willet.
Here’s a closer look.
Great Blue Heron and Willet.
01 Saturday Dec 2018
Posted in Photography
Tags
As of today, the Amaryllis I have been photographing for the past two weeks has opened six of its eight flower buds. Here are some close up of these brilliant red flowers. As the blooms grow larger, it is more difficult to capture all of them in one frame. I am already standing in another room to take the following shots.
Amaryllis.
Amaryllis.
Amaryllis.
neihtn 