03 Thursday Aug 2017
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
These two Great Egrets looked like they were dancing a pas de deux. Actually they were being chased away from a fishing spot by a fierce Great Egret that was overzealous in guarding its feeding station.
Great Egrets.
09 Sunday Apr 2017
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
Two different kinds of birds, an American Robin and a Great Egret, with two different ways of finding food.
Male American Robin looking for worm.
He dove toward one.
Maybe not this time.
Great Egret diving after fish.
Caught one!
17 Wednesday Aug 2016
Posted in Photography
Great Egret and Snowy Egret.
04 Monday Jul 2016
Posted in Photography
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July 4, 2016 is a good day for Red, White, and Blue birds!
Cardinal.
Great Egrets.
Blue Jay.
Here are red, white, and blue, all in one photo, the banner image: East Point Lighthouse at the southern tip of New Jersey.
04 Saturday Jun 2016
Posted in Ocean City Welcome Center, Photography
Tags
Black-crowned Night Heron, glossy ibis, great egret, hatchling, Ocean City Welcome Center, photography, postaday, yellow-crowned night heron
As predicted, the eggs in the Night Heron nests have begun to hatch. I went to the Ocean City Welcome Center today to look at them, and saw little balls of fur moving while the parents were busy preening or redecorating their nests.
Yellow-crowned Night Herons with new hatchlings in nest.
Yellow-crowned Night Herons planning redecoration.
At another nest, the male heron brought a twig back.
Female heron: “What took you so long?” Note that one egg still had not hatched.
Male heron passing twig to female.
While he flew away to look for other twigs, she tidied up their nest.
At yet another nest, no eggs had hatched.
All the eggs were still whole.
There were many other birds around the herons. I only managed to get shots of Ibises and Great Egret.
Great Egret throwing up food.
Several Glossy Ibises were flying around. Maybe they also had nests in the rookery.
Black-crowned Night Heron. They also had nests but those were well hidden in the rookery trees.
Yellow-crowned Night Heron on the hunt.
20 Wednesday Apr 2016
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
Tags
Bomaby Hook National Wildlife Refuge, canada geese, common tern, Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, great egret, photography, postaday, snowy egret
Northern Shovelers at Edwin B Sorsythe National Wildlife Refuge.
Canada Geese at Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge.
Common Tern at Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.
Snowy Egrets at Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.
Great Egret at Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge.
16 Saturday Apr 2016
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
Snowy Egrets are probably among the best egrets at catching fish. Here’s a series of photos I took at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge last week when there were many of them, together with Great Egrets, flying around and fishing.
Snowy Egret landing.
Snowy Egret jabbing at water.
Caught one!
Great Egret landing.
The Great Egrets were not so successful at finding fish. At least I did not see any of them catching anything while the Snowy Egrets were plucking fish now and then out of the same pond.
31 Thursday Mar 2016
Posted in Photography
Around this time of the year, breeding season makes the Great Egret grow long feathers called aigrettes. Those were much in demand by women more than a hundred years ago, leading to the extermination of 95% of the Great Egret population by the end of the 19th century. Today, they are no longer an endangered species and can often be seen in wetlands in North and South America. The one pictured below was standing by itself, occasionally straightening his neck to look for fish.
Great Egret waiting for fish. Note the long plumes and the green around the eye, signs that it is prepared for the breeding season.
Great Egret moving along shore as he saw fish swimming nearby.
With his long yellow bill, he suddenly jabbed violently at the water several times.
“*##**#, missed!”
26 Wednesday Aug 2015
Posted in Photography
Tags
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.
03 Wednesday Jun 2015
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
Tags
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!”
26 Tuesday May 2015
Posted in Photography
Spring means mating season for many birds, and to be at their best their feathers change to more vivid colors, their breeding plumage in other words. Here are a few photos of this phenomenon taken at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge within the past two weeks.
As its name implies, the Black-bellied Plover displays a black belly in breeding colors. Normally its belly is white.
Black-bellied Plover in breeding plumage.
The Willet is of a gray dull color when it is not breeding, otherwise it is mottled brown and much more noticeable.
Willet in breeding plumage.
Incidentally, in the 19th century people used to eat Willet eggs and meat for food, just like chickens. That brought this bird almost to extinction until the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918 stopped that practice. Now it is abundant again and very striking when it flies with blank and white stripes on its wings.
Willet preparing to fly.
Willet flying.
The Great Egret is always white, but during breeding season it shows some green color on its face and it sports long plumes of feathers. Those airgrettes used to adorn ladies’ hats in the 19th century. That fashion craze led to a serious decline in egret population until the fad was eventually banned.
Great Egret with a successful jab at a fish. Note the green breeding color on its face, and the feather plumes.
08 Wednesday Apr 2015
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
In a pond at EBF National Wildlife Refuge, a Snowy Egret looking for food passed by a preening Great Egret. I don’t often see Snowy Egrets preening like their bigger colleagues do.
Snowy Egret and Great Egret.
02 Thursday Apr 2015
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
Yesterday at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, several egrets were standing enjoying the rising sun. They were wearing their breeding plumage with long airy feathers (see https://janthinaimages.wordpress.com/2015/04/01/she-sits-in-her-beauty-upon-her-nest/).
Great Egrets enjoying the sunrise.
One was playing pickaboo as it preened itself.
Great Egret peekaboo.
Great Egret: I see you!
03 Wednesday Sep 2014
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
This past Monday was Labor Day and, like many humans, the egrets were having a fishing festival at one corner of the Edwin B Forsythe Wildlife Refuge. This was where water from the Atlantic Ocean poured into the marshes as the tide rose. It was an excellent fishing spot and we saw many egrets there looking for a meal.
Great egrets looking out for fish
Every few minutes, as one of them flew up into the air, I pressed the shutter on my camera hoping for a nice picture of an egret in flight. It was only when I got home and looked closely at the photos that I realized those who flew up had caught a fish and were holding it in their yellow bill. It was a good fishing day!
Great egret catching a fish
Great egret with fish
Great egret with fish
Great egret with fish
16 Monday Sep 2013
Posted in EBF Refuge, Photography
Tags
After sunrise (see my previous post) I drove on Wildlife Drive and saw many birds, perhaps thousands, feasting in and around the marshes. Many dove into the water then flew up with a small fish clasped in their beak. Every once in a while there were food fights, not only between different species but also among kindred birds like the two great egrets in the following photo.
The great egret on the right was fleeing from an attack by the one on the left. Usually these fights only lasted a few seconds and there was no actual damage inflicted. The marshes are vast enough that a bird could just move away a short distance and resume their search for breakfast.
