Black-crowned Night-Heron

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Black-crowned Night Heron, edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, photography, postaday

The American Bittern is a medium-sized heron that is supposed to be elusive, even secretive. Yesterday I thought I saw one, but Observer, see comment below, pointed out that this is not an American Bittern, but a Black-crowned Night-Heron, probably a juvenile one. It was standing out in the open on a wooden beam by the side of Wildlife Drive at Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. Maybe it was relatively early in the morning, as it allowed me to come within 20 ft (6 m) of it to take these up-close pictures. It stood still in one pose, so the dozen shots I took are almost all identical.

Black-crowned Night-Heron.

Close up of Black-crowned Night-Heron head.

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Osprey Drama – Continued

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, osprey, photography, postaday

In my first Osprey Drama post, I wrongly attributed selfishness to the male Osprey who denied food to what I thought was his mate. As Donna pointed out, that younger Osprey was in fact an Osprey chick, his child. Adult Ospreys, male or female, encourage their fledglings to go find their own food by intentionally denying them the food they usually bring back to the nest. Once hungry enough the young ones have to fly out and find fish on their own.

Today I went back to the nest and found the father with another fish in his talon.

Osprey father with fish in his talon.

He kept looking around, as if searching for the young one.

He looked to his left.

He looked to his right.

I too waited for the young one to return to the nest, for almost 20 minutes. When I left him, he was still waiting.

Osprey at empty nest.

Osprey Drama

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, great black-backed gull, osprey, photography, postaday

This post is now updated to reflect the correct information given by bayphotosbydonna in her comments below. Thank you Donna!

This morning I drove to the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. Many of the Osprey nests were empty, perhaps because the young chicks have fledged and have begun migrating South with their parents. At one nest, however, the male Osprey had caught a big fish.

Male Osprey with big fish.

He ate the head of the fish while I could hear the young chick clamoring for food at their nest nearby. It called out to its father, asking him to hurry up and bring the fish back to their nest.

Osprey chick calling out to father.

He went on eating.

… and eating. That sashimi must really taste good.

Osprey chick called him several more times.

Finally, after waiting 25 minutes, it flew over to his perch.

It attempted to peck at the fish.

He flew away. Osprey parents usually hold back giving food to their fledged chicks to encourage them to be independent and go find food on their own.

The chick could only look at him. Neither of them noticed a juvenile Great Black-backed Gull flying toward their nest.

Osprey chick dejected.

Meanwhile, the Gull had snatched something from the Osprey nest.

The chick saw the intruder and immediately flew back. It made repeated alarm calls, but the Gull had already left.

Osprey father came back with the fish.

The chick was very agitated, spreading out its wings.

Not a happy Osprey chick.

When I left them, it was still fussing around the nest, not bothering to eat the fish.

Vivid Sunset

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, photography, postaday

In January of 2015, I spent half an hour watching the sun set over the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, taking a photo every minute. The colors kept getting more vivid and the clouds more intricate. The scene became most intense in the last few minutes, after the sun had plunged below the horizon.

Sunset over Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.

Osprey Update

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, osprey, photography, postaday

Eight weeks ago at the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, the Osprey chicks were still small.

Osprey mother feeding chicks.

This past Monday, all three chicks have grown up. They appeared to be waiting for their parents who were out looking for fish.

Young Ospreys.

It was a hot day with lots of mosquitoes and flies attacking me constantly, so I didn’t stick around to wait for the parents to come back to their nest.

Tossed Fish

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, great blue heron, great egret, photography, postaday

Two days ago, a Great Blue Heron was stalking fish at the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.

Great Blue Heron stalking fish.

I saw it repeatedly stab at something in the water, but never saw it catch anything, unless it swallowed its prey even before coming up for air.

Great Blue Heron jabbing at something, but came up empty.

Meanwhile, a nearby Great Egret had better luck and seemed to enjoy its tossed fish.

Great Egret: caught one!

Great Egret smiling and tossing fish before swallowing it whole.

More Butterflies

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butterfly, edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, monarch, painted lady, photography, postaday, swallowtail

Milkweed was in bloom around the Visitor Center at the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, and butterflies continually fluttered among its flowers and plants. Here are some photos of the three different kinds I saw yesterday.

Painted Lady

Swallowtail

Swallowtail

Monarch with hole in wing

I’ve read that it is quite possible to repair butterfly wings, either by gluing on parts of real broken wings or cellophane! There are even videos showing how to do it.

Monday Blah

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, photography, postaday, willet

Last June, this Willet was standing in the marshes at Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge and answering wake-up calls from its siblings, its eyes half closed.

Willet: What? Is it Monday again? Blah…

Weekly Photo Challenge: Inspiration

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daily post, edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, house finch, lotus, marsh mallow, nuthatch, photography, weekly photo challenge

These are my submissions for this challenge: https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_photo_challenge/inspiration/

The sources of my inspiration of course vary with the season and the location, but over time they tend to be mostly birds and flowers.

I took the following shot last month at my favorite location, the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. It was raining so I took the picture through the open car window and the rain.

Rainbow over the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.

Nuthatch, the Cyrano bird

White Lotus

Marsh Mallow

No Tern Is an Island

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, Forster's Tern, photography, postaday

I took this picture two months ago. It shows a group of Forster’s Terns on a tiny island in the marshes at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.

Tern Island

Shore Birds

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dowitcher, dunlin, edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, oystercatcher, photography, postaday, ruddy turnstone

I took the following photos of these beautiful shore birds at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge in May of this year, but somehow never got around to post them here. Better late than never, so here they are.

Ruddy Turnstone

Dunlin

Short-billed Dowitcher

Oystercatcher: standing on one leg while scratching with the other.

Glossy Ibises

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, glossy ibis, photography, postaday

There is a flock of Glossy Ibises at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. Birds of Pharaoh Thot, Glossy Ibises originate from Africa but have migrated and established themselves in the Americas.

When I see them, they are always looking for food, their curved bills half immersed in the water of the marshes.

Glossy Ibises

Glossy Ibises

While taking photos of Ospreys and Willets, I saw a pair of Glossy Ibises flying gracefully overhead and quickly shot the following.

Glossy Ibis

Glossy Ibis

Raccoon

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, photography, postaday, raccoon

Raccoons are one of the few animals native to North America, although they have now been introduced to Europe and Japan. I saw the following Raccoon twice on Wildlife Drive at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. It calmly crossed the road to go get a drink in the marshes.

Raccoon drinking.

Once done, it headed back, aiming straight at my car!

Raccoon

At the last moment, it swerved and walked among the reeds, sniffing here and there. I lost sight of it for a few minutes, and put the camera away. Then I almost jumped out of my seat when it reappeared right under my car window. However, it continued walking back in the direction it came from. I was too stunned to take any picture.

Raccoons can be a predator to Ospreys, and I did notice that some Osprey nests which had birds incubating are now devoid of life. I wonder if the above Raccoon had anything to do with it.

Black Skimmers

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black skimmer, edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, photography, postaday

Black Skimmer at Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge

The Black Skimmer has a most unusual bill among birds, with the lower mandible longer than the upper one. It uses it to skim over water in search of small fish. When the lower mandible senses a prey, the upper one clamps down.

As it hunts for food, Black Skimmers leave amazingly perfect straight lines on the water surface as seen in the following photos. Two days ago, a pair of Black Skimmers put on an aerial show and spent several minutes flying back and forth in front of me. However, they did not seem to catch anything that I could see.

Black Skimmer ready to begin skimming

I heard the sound of fish jumping in the water, probably scared by the skimming action, but maybe they were too big for these birds to catch.

Black Skimmer

Black Skimmer

Black Skimmers and Laughing Seagulls

Osprey Chicks

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, osprey, photography, postaday

Yesterday I finally saw young chicks in some of the Osprey nests at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. The one shown below had two, possibly three, chicks who were very hungry.

Mother Osprey and chicks

Osprey mother feeding chick.

After a few minutes, the mother reminded her stoic mate that more fish was needed.

Mama Osprey: We need more food, dear. Will you go get more fish?

Tree Swallow

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, photography, postaday, tree swallow

Among birds, the best aerial acrobats must be tree swallows. Every time I see them they are darting left and right, up and down at all angles, never staying in one place long enough for a decent photograph. However, three weeks ago, I saw one lonely swallow perched at the top of a birdhouse at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, apparently resting and enjoying a nice breeze ruffling its feathers.

Tree Swallow

Tree Swallow on top of birdhouse

It stood there for several minutes, even after it saw me.

Tree Swallow: You finished taking pictures of me?

The staring contest ended when I had to leave and continue my drive. The swallow, however, stayed at the same perch.

Great Egret and Goslings

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canada goose, edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, gosling, great egret, photography, postaday

Monday was a cloudy and rainy day. At the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge a Great Egret was standing by himself, very dainty and haughty in full breeding plumage.

Great Egret

A family of Cannada Geese with nine goslings loved the weather and went in for a swim.

Great Egret: “I tell you, this is why we need birth control!”

Of course, the goslings thoroughly enjoyed the water.

Second gosling from the right: “Who cares what he says!”

Forster’s Tern

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, Forster's Tern, photography, postaday

As they hunt for food, Forster’s Terns like to hover over the salt marshes at Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. They fly in small loops and dive into the water at fairly high speed to catch some fish, not always successfully. This makes them somewhat difficult to photograph, and I’ve tried to do that many times. It’s only a few days ago that I was able to get some shots where a tern has actually caught a meal.

Forster’s Tern hovering.

Forster’s Tern catching a fish.

Forster’s Tern hovering like a bomber. 

Aerial Acrobat

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, Forster's Tern, photography, postaday

Forster’s Terns like to hover above the salt marshes, making quick, unpredictable turns before diving into the water to catch something to eat. They can be real aerial acrobats as shown in the following photos taken at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge a few days ago.

Forster’s Tern flying above the marsh.

An aerial acrobat.

Forster’s Tern flying away with a catch.

Forster’s Tern landing.

Catching a Meal

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, photography, postaday, snowy egret

The Snowy Egret is one of the most beautiful birds to watch, even when it is trying to catch a fish, as shown in the following photos taken yesterday at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.

Splash: a Snowy Egret diving after a fish.

Snowy Egret looking for a fish.

Snowy Egret: Sigh, that one got away… I have to do better than that.

Two minutes later: Caught one!

Fish, you are not getting away, no way!

Ah, that tastes so good!

Gosling: He’s Mine

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canada goose, edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, gosling, photography, postaday

JeanInJackson post Only Child prompted me to post this photo I took today.

Canada Goose mother: He’s my only child! He’s mine!

Meanwhile, at another part of the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, five goslings were being taught to look for food by their mother.

Goslings being taught to look for food.

Here’s another view of four of the goslings.

Four goslings.

Diamondback Terrapin

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diamondback, edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, photography, postaday, terrapin

A Diamondback Terrapin crossed Wildlife Drive at EBF right in front of me. It stopped and so did I to grab my camera and take the following pictures. As soon as it saw me get out of the car, the turtle scurried to hide behind some rocks.

Diamondback Terrapin crossing the road.

Diamondback Terrapin trying to hide.

Time between the two shots: 12 seconds.

Sharing a Meal

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edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, osprey, photography, postaday

Yesterday at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge I stopped to check on an Osprey couple. At the same time, the male Osprey flew back to the nest with a sizable fish in his claws. He glided by the female who was sitting in the nest incubating.

Female Osprey incubating.

Then he went to a perch and proceeded to eat the head of the fish.

Male Osprey eating fish head.

After about 15 minutes, the male Osprey probably had its fill, stopped eating and defecated!

Male Osprey defecating.

Then he took the fish to his patient mate. She saw him flying to her and rose up in their nest.

Female Osprey getting up.

He gave her the fish.

Fish hand over.

She grabbed what remained of the fish and flew away to the same perch he had used.

Female Osprey leaving nest with fish.

At the perch, before she ate, she looked back one more time to make sure that he was going to sit on their eggs.

Female Osprey checking on her mate before eating: Dear, are you sitting down?

He of course sat down and took his turn incubating.

Male Osprey preparing to incubate: Don’t worry honey, I am doing my part.

Only then did she start eating.

How Low Can it Fly?

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bald eagle, edwin b forstythe national wildlife refuge, photography, postaday

On Monday, as soon as I entered the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, I noticed some commotion going on in the reeds. A bald eagle was diving for a fish, there was a splash of water, wings beating furiously. It all happened very fast, and I had only time to take out my camera and take this one shot.

Bald eagle flying low

The eagle did not catch anything!