Spring Scenes at the Refuge

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, osprey, photography, postaday

Last Saturday was a very breezy and cold day, with wind chill temperatures below freezing. It was also low tide when the refuge did not offer its best views.

Part of Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge at low tide.

Most birds were sheltering from the wind and cold, although many Canada Geese were strolling around, showing off this year’s offspring. The Goslings were busy foraging and tasting food.

Gosling 2021.

The Osprey nests were empty at first sight and, for a moment, I thought they had flown to warmer places. However, when looking again, I could see part of a head peeking out from one nest. A female Osprey was chirping, her head clearly visible as she scanned the sky for her mate. I decided to stop and wait, but kept my window closed because of the strong wind.

Suddenly I saw the male Osprey flying in with a fish in his talons. By the time I got the window rolled down and my camera out he was already landing on the female bird.

Male Osprey landing on female Osprey.

The next photos show the Osprey mating rituals which lasted less than a minute.

Male Osprey jumping off female Osprey.

Male Osprey landing on female, again.

Male Osprey on top of female. Meanwhile she was probably beginning to eat the fish he had brought.

Male Osprey, business finished.

He landed a short distance away, watching her for a few minutes before flying off again, perhaps to find for more fish for her.

Nailing It and More Crocuses

Tags

crocus, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday, ring-billed gull

With the prospect of watching gymnasts at the forthcoming Summer Olympics, I thought that this Ring-billed Gull nailed it.

Nailing It!

Here are some more photos of Crocuses I took yesterday.

Crocuses in the afternoon.

White crocuses.

Red-winged Blackbird

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday, red-winged blackbird

Last week the refuge conducted controlled burning of areas around the marshes to get rid of some invasive plants. That cleared quite a few of the bushes while leaving blackened spots where green shoots have already managed to come up. Hopefully they are not those pesky weeds that were supposed to burn.

There was a male Red-winged Blackbird singing gleefully in a reedy area. I tried to follow it for a few minutes as it switched spots before finally finding a suitable perch and belted its song, spreading and puffing its feathers to impress potential mates.

Male Red-winged Blackbird singing.

Male Red-winged Blackbird looking around.

Male Red-winged Blackbird started singing again.

Fortissimo! It also looked twice as large.

Winding down after song.

Back to normal, almost.

 

Northern Shovelers

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, Northern Shoveler, photography, postaday

The colorful Northern Shovelers are one of the more common ducks throughout the world. During the winter at the refuge, there are at least several hundreds of them foraging for food in the marshes with their typically long bills (2.5 inches or 6.35 cm).

In the US, during duck hunting season, an average of 700,000 Northern Shovelers are brought down each year! Yet, they are not on the endangered species list. Here are some recent photos of them at the refuge.

Northern Shovelers.

Northern Shovelers.

Northern Shovelers.

Male Northern Shoveler.

Male Northern Shoveler in flight.

Young Squirrel

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday, squirrel, turkey vulture

A young squirrel was looking hungrily at our squirrel-proof birdfeeder.

Young squirrel.

“Please, I will only take one!”

At the refuge, a Turkey Vulture was flying in the clear blue sky.

Turkey Vulture.

After a while, it landed not too far away and I drove there to shoot many photos of it. It is not the best looking bird but it is probably the best scavenger, cleaning up the countryside of road kills and dead animals that it sees or smells from high above.

Turkey Vulture.

Turkey Vulture.

Silent Sunday – Sleeping In

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, northern pintail, photography, postaday

Northern Pintails.

Hooded Merganser – Bad Hair Day

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, hooded merganser, photography, postaday

Hooded Mergansers, especially males with their fan-shaped crest, look dashing in the waters of the refuge. A few days ago, one of them was swimming by himself among several ducks.

Male Hooded Merganser.

He kept diving for food, small fish, crustaceans, mollusks, although I did not see him with any in his bill.

Male Hooded Merganser diving.

It happened to be windy that day, and when he came up strong wind gusts played freely with his crest.

Hooded Merganser.

Hooded Merganser.

Hooded Merganser.

Hooded Merganser.

Finally, the wind subsided a little, and he regained his normal looks.

Hooded Merganser.

Last and First

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, moon, photography, postaday, sandpiper

Last December 21st I went out at night to photograph the conjunction of Jupiter, Saturn, and the moon. There were too many clouds for that, but after a few minutes the clouds cleared just enough to allow me this last photo for the year.

Moon on December 21, 2020.

Three days ago, I went out on a sunny day to the refuge for my first shoot of 2021 to be greeted by this sandpiper.

Sandpiper, January 19, 2021.

Buffleheads

Tags

bufflehead, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday

Buffleheads are the smallest diving ducks in North America, often seen at the refuge in late fall and winter. In early December of 2020 I saw one male and two female Buffleheads there.

Buffleheads, male in between two females.

The male gave a signal and all three of them decided to take off, giving me a unique opportunity to capture them in flight.

Buffleheads in flight.

Buffleheads in flight.

Buffleheads in flight.

Buffleheads in flight.

Silent Sunday

Tags

common tern, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday

Common Tern.

Common Tern.

Common Tern.

Common Tern.

Juvenile Bald Eagle

Tags

bald eagle, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday

Following are unpublished photos of a juvenile Bald Eagle I took on October 1st, 2019. It was cruising over the marshes hunting for fish.

Juvenile Bald Eagle.

Juvenile Bald Eagle.

Juvenile Bald Eagle.

Juvenile Bald Eagle.

Happy New Year to everyone of you!

Flying Egrets

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, great egret, photography, postaday, snowy egret

I took the following photos on October 1st, 2019 but did not post them as I temporarily stopped blogging to concentrate on finishing my second book. Now, more than a year later, here they are. A large group of Great Egrets and Snowy Egrets (with the black bills) was taking off at the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. Never had I seen so many flying together.

Flying Egrets.

Flying Egrets.

Flying Egrets.

Flying Egrets.

Silent Sunday

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, european starling, photography, postaday

Starlings standing in Osprey nest: “No evidence whatsoever that we stole this nest!”

On One Sunny Day

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, great blue heron, great egret, photography, postaday

This week has been rainy with only one sunny day in the middle. I drove to the refuge and by the time I arrived the sun was out but the clouds were many. The Great Blue Heron that used to stand by a sluice gate was now standing by the water.

Sunning Great Blue Heron.

There was a flash of white among the dried reeds. A Great Egret took off as soon as it saw me, but I managed to take a few shots of it flying away.

Great Egret taking off.

Great Egret in flight.

Great Egret in flight.

Toward the end of Wildlife Drive one tree still had its leaves on.

Autumn scene at Edwin B. Fosrsythe National Wildlife Refuge.

Snow Geese Migration

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday, snow geese

Snow Geese fly south in the Fall, and a week ago some passed by the refuge. There were only a few hundred of them, not as many as during Spring migration.

Snow Geese flying south.

Snow Geese, a closer look.

There was a group of about ten Snow Geese flying in apparent perfect formation.

Snow Geese flying in perfect formation.

But, somehow something happened.

Note one head pointing downward. “Oops, I dropped my lunch.”

Northern Shovelers

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, Northern Shoveler, photography, postaday

Overheard a pair of Northern Shovelers foraging for food:

Female Northern Shoveler in foreground: “Uh-oh dear, we forgot to wear our Covid masks!”

EBF National Wildlife Refuge

Tags

bald eagle, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday

All this time I have shown you the birds and animals at the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. Yesterday, I shot the following photos so you can see what the refuge actually looks like at least in the fall when the green has given way to brown and sepia. The same juvenile Bald Eagle from last week was also there, ruling over the fall landscape.

Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.

Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.

Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.

Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. Dabbling ducks in the distance.

Juvenile Bald Eagle.

Monochrome Monday

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, lesser yellow legs, photography, postaday

Two monochrome views of a Lesser Yellow Legs at Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge on November 7, 2020.

Lesser Yellow Legs.

Lesser Yellow Legs.

The Eyes Have It!

Tags

american avocet, common grackle, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, european starling, great blue heron, mute swan, photography, postaday

Some different interpretations of “The Eyes Have It”:

American Avocet.

Common Grackle.

Great Blue Heron.

European Starling.

Mute Swan.

Silent Sunday

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, lesser yellow legs, photography, postaday

Lesser Yellow Legs.

Lesser Yellow Legs.

Lesser Yellow Legs.

Lesser Yellow Legs.

Painted Turtle

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, painted turtle, photography, postaday

At the end of my drive through the refuge today, I saw a Painted Turtle ahead, in the middle of the road! I got out and took these two photos.

Painted Turtle.

Painted Turtle.

After that I moved the turtle gently to the side of the road. Still, it withdrew inside its shell as soon as I touched it.

Painted Turtles are small creatures and have been around for 15 million years. Today was very warm, 76 °F or 24 °C, which may explain why this turtle came out and tried to cross the road. When it gets colder, they will go into deep hibernation.

Wordless Wednesday

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, Northern Shoveler, photography, postaday

Northern Shovelers.

Northern Shovelers.

Northern Shoveler.

Juvenile Bald Eagle

Tags

bald eagle, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, photography, postaday

Yesterday was cloudy and cool, ending up with heavy rain. Only a few people showed up at the refuge while the birds were even more scarce. I got some lucky shots of a juvenile Bald Eagle before it flew away from its perch. It is probably between two and three years old.

Juvenile Bald Eagle.

Juvenile Bald Eagle.

Juvenile Bald Eagle.

Two other cars stopped by and it finally had enough of the photography sessions.

Juvenile Bald Eagle. Atlantic City in the background.

Silent Sunday

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, Forster's Terns, photography, postaday

Forster’s Terns.

Forster’s Terns.

Red-winged Blackbirds

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, european starling, photography, postaday, red-winged blackbird

Starting in late summer, when you drive on Wildlife Drive, flocks of birds often fly in and out of both sides of the road in front of you. There could be hundreds of them, and they are mostly Red-winged Blackbirds, European Starlings, and sparrows, sometimes mixed together. The moment you stop your car to look closer, the birds land and disappear in the dried reed and grasses. Last week I stopped long enough to find them and take some photos.

Dried reed. Deceiving, right? The birds were there.

Male Red-winged Blackbird.

Female Red-winged Blackbird.

Female Red-winged Blackbird eating a fruit.

Male Red-winged Blackbird.

Male Red-winged Blackbird.

Finally, a European Starling perched above the reeds, on a road sign.

European Starling.

Nice Catch

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, laughing gull, photography, postaday

It was high tide again, and this Laughing Gull came out of the marsh water with a very nice catch:

Laughing Gull with fish.

It played with the fish for a long minute then got ready to swallow it.

Laughing Gull just before swallowing fish.

 

Silent Sunday

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, great egret, photography, postaday

Great Egret.

Mute Swans and Cygnet

Tags

cygnet, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, mute swan, photography, postaday

Several Mute Swans were swimming and feeding in one of the fresh water pools at the refuge.

Mute Swan.

Mute Swan.

In a more secluded pool, a cygnet was swimming by itself.

Mute Swan Cygnet.

Great Blue Heron Up Close

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, great blue heron, photography, postaday

A new sluice gate has recently been built on Wildlife Drive at the refuge to channel ocean water into and out of Vogt Pool North. As I drove by a few days ago, a Great Blue Heron was standing guard at the gate and would not budge even as I parked no more than 20 ft (6 m) away from it. There was plenty of morning sunlight and the conditions were perfect for photography.

Great Blue Heron at sluice gate.

Great Blue Heron ignoring photographer.

Seven minutes later, it was still on the same rock, staring into emptiness.

Great Blue Heron.

Double-crested Cormorants

Tags

double-crested cormorant, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, laughing gull, photography, postaday

Yesterday, when I arrived at the Brigantine unit of the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge the tide was high and ocean water was pouring into the salt marshes, bringing with it fish and other sea creatures to feed the Egrets, Double-crested Cormorants, Seagulls, and various smaller birds. Some juvenile Cormorants were having a feast and kept diving into the churning water and coming up with fish in their hooked bills.

Cormorant holding fish in its bill.

Another Cormorant was so happy to have caught a fish that it danced around in the water.

Juvenile Cormorant with fish.

Suddenly, it dropped the fish and dove in the water to retrieve it. However, many Laughing Gulls were hovering in the air, and one quickly swooped down.

Laughing Seagull diving after fish.

The Laughing Gull snatched the fish and left the young Cormorant clamoring for its lost meal.

Laughing Seagull flying away with fish despite Cormorant’s protests.

Lens-Artists Photo Challenge 114: Negative Space

Tags

crappie, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, Lawrenceville, lens artists photo challenge, Lens-Artists, lesser yellow legs, negative space, photography, postaday

For the Lens-Artists Photo Challenge 114: Negative Space, here are two images I shot recently. The first one is from 12 days ago.

Lesser Yellow Legs at Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.

The second one is from yesterday at Colonial Lake In Lawrenceville, NJ when a fisherman caught a fish with the name of Crappie! He threw it back as soon as I finished taking the photo.

Crappie caught at Colonial Lake.

Diving for Food

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, Forster's Tern, photography, postaday

As temperatures dropped, a good number of birds have left the refuge. Some non-breeding Forster’s Terns remain, displaying their skills at diving and plucking food out of the water. I finally managed to photograph one of them in a successful dive.

Non-breeding Forster’s Tern looking for fish.

Dive! Dive!

Forster’s Tern in the water.

Coming out, with a fish.

Definitely with a fish.

Triumphantly with a fish!

Early Morning Great Egret

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, great egret, photography, postaday

Yesterday, conditions were almost ideal for photography. The refuge was dry, the sun was shining bright, and an ocean breeze was cool if at times gusty. I had just stepped out when a Great Egret flew toward me. I barely had enough time to lean against the car and bring my camera up to shoot. This was likely the closest I ever came to a Great Egret in flight.

Great Egret.

Great Egret banking away.

Great Egret.

Egret Feeding

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, great egret, photography, postaday, snowy egret

The Great Egret and Snowy Egret shown below were feeding in the marsh, stabbing the water, and jumping and turning around on a dime. They were very successful and got a fish at every attempt.

Great Egret feeding.

Great Egret feeding.

Great Egret feeding.

Snowy Egret feeding.

Snowy Egret feeding.

Snowy Egret feeding.

Snowy Egret feeding.

In this last photo, it was amazing to see the Snowy Egret twisting itself while looking for fish.

Snowy Egret hunting for prey.

Forster’s Tern

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, Forster's Tern, photography, postaday

There were many Forster’s Terns at the refuge, with about half of them being still immature or juvenile. They were all superb acrobatic fliers and their diving into the marshes to catch fish was a challenge I cannot resist photographing year after year.

Immature Forster’s Tern yelling at its friends.

“Nice flight!”

Forster’s Tern in flight.

Dive!

Emerging from dive.

Forster’s Tern coming out of dive, no fish.

I often tried to capture the moment they caught a fish, but the best I could do this time is a not-so-sharp photo.

Forster’s Tern with a fish.

Storms?

Tags

avocet, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, hibiscus, monarch butterfly, photography, postaday, tiger swallowtail

Hurricane Isaias is only glancing at Florida and is headed to the northeast. Storms with strong winds (70 mph or 112 kph) are predicted for our area. Yesterday, I went to the Edwin B. Forsythe refuge and saw groups of shorebirds huddled together on the water sleeping. Maybe they flew away from the storms and were resting there?

Shore birds resting.

There were many American Avocets that are usually rare in New Jersey.

American Avocets feeding in a marsh pool. In the background are reflections of marsh mallows that cover practically all the marsh banks.

Sand flies were also abundant and forced me to go home early. There hibiscuses and milkweed are in full bloom, and butterflies were flittering about.

Pink and white hibiscus.

Monarch butterfly.

Tiger Swallowtail.

Summer Scenes

Tags

asclepias tuberosa, butterfly weed, butternut squash, Eastern Bluebird, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, milkweed, pawpaw, photography, postaday, rubu-throated hummingbird, zucchini

The following images, in random order, are what I am seeing this summer with limited travel, too much heat, and more time at home.

Weed flowers at Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. If you know the name of this weed, please tell me.

The Eastern Bluebird couple in our backyard is still busy bringing food back for their second brood.

Eastern Bluebird mother and father discussing food situation.

Male Eastern Bluebird perched on bird feeder near birdhouse.

Asclepias Tuberosa or butterfly weed growing in our garden. No Monarch butterfly has appeared yet.

Asclepias Tuberosa growing in the back of our house.

Feamle Ruby-throated Hummingbrid diving toward feeder.

Zucchini flowers in our vegetable garden.

Butternut Squash flower.

Pawpaw (Asimina Triloba) is plentiful this year. We have two trees which give more fruit than we know what to do with. Pawpaw does not ship well, and is not available in grocery stores. It has been described as tasting like a combination of banana and mango. Chilled pawpaw was a favorite dessert of George Washington.

Pawpaw a native American fruit.

Pawpaw fruit.

Back to Refuge and Other Birds

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, goldfinch, house finch, northern cardinal, osprey, photography, postaday, red-winged blackbird, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, snowy egret

This week I went to the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge again, after a 5-month hiatus. Greenhead flies were already out and I had to keep my car windows closed, except for brief moments to take a photo. Shots taken through the windows turned out badly. Here are some better ones taken with the window quickly open.

Snowy Egret.

Male Osprey keeping an eye on his nest.

Female Osprey feeding the young ones.

Since I was inside the car and not wearing a mask, a female Red-winged Blackbird could not resist acting like a Karen.

Female Red-winged Blackbird: “Wear your MASK!”

Following are photos taken recently at home of other birds.

Male Northern Cardinal.

Male House Finch.

Goldfinch.

Ruby-throated Hummingbirds have been coming in greater numbers. Capturing their flight is usually a challenge, but here are some of the better shots.

Female Ruby-throated Hummingbird.

Female Ruby-throated Hummingbird.

Female Ruby-throated Hummingbird.

Female Ruby-throated Hummingbird.

More Photos Less Stress

Tags

barnegat light, clivia, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, harlequin duck, magnolia, mute swan, Northern Shoveler, photography, postaday, snow goose

I have not been posting here since last July, but have continued to photograph, although not as often as I used to. Hopefully, the following photos may help reduce stress for all of us during this coronavirus pandemic.

Harlequin Ducks at Barnegat Light , January 2020.

Mute Swan at Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, January 2020.

Snow Geese at Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, February 2020.

Northern Shovelers at Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, March 2020.

Star Magnolia in our backyard, March 2020.

Clivia at home, March 2020.

Green-winged Teal

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, green-winged teal, photography, postaday

I took the following photos of Green-winged Teals at the refuge a month ago. They are the smallest among dabbling ducks, much smaller than Mallards. They feed by looking for vegetation in shallow water. The ones seen below live in North America. They differ from their Eurasian counterparts by having a white stripe on their breast. The Eurasian Green-winged Teal have that white stripe along their shoulders.

Green-winged Teal, male.

Green-winged Teals, male and female in back.

Green-winged Teals, female and male in back.

Green-winged Teal, male.