Cape May Lighthouse

Tags

bunker, cape may lighthouse, mute swan, northern mockingbird, photography, postaday

Tuesday I went to the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge to find it closed because they were conducting controlled burns of invasive plants along the marsh edges. Rather than going home, I drove one more hour to get to the Cape May Lighthouse at the southern tip of New Jersey.

Cape May Lighthouse.

I walked down to the beach and saw a strange bunker, a World War II relic slowly being reclaimed by the ocean.

World War II bunker.

The bunker was used to defend against a possible German invasion! It had four 155 mm artillery pieces which had never been fired and were removed many years ago.

World War II bunker as seen from lighthouse.

Wood pilings in ruin.

Nearby there were several small ponds where swans and various ducks were swimming and feeding.

Mute Swan.

Sparrows and one Northern Mockingbird kept flying around me as if wanting their pictures taken.

Northern Mockingbird.

Northern Mockingbird.

Northern Mockingbird eating a berry.

There were several bushes of holly laden with gloriously red berries.

Holly berries.

Holly berries.

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.

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.

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.

Weekend Photos

Tags

Chipmunk, cygnet, Eastern Blue Bird, Great Swamp, mute swan, photography, postaday, red-winged blackbird

I took the following photos today while visiting the Great Swamp of New Jersey, on a very windy and cold day. There were not too many birds or animals around, but some may be good eye candy for the weekend.

Eastern Blue Bird.

Red-winged Blackbird.

Mute Swan Cygnet.

A Chipmunk ran across my path then took refuge in a tree hole.

Chipmunk.

Wordless Wednesday

Tags

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

Mute Swans.

Mute Swans.

Mute Swan.

Windy and Cold

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, great egret, hooded merganser, mute swan, photography, postaday, snowy egret

Temperatures went as high as 84°F (29°C) yesterday, but today they are back down to 40°F (4°C), and it is very windy and cold. Even though I took the following photos last month and last week, they illustrate well this challenging weather we are having.

Mute Swan.

Great Egret and Snowy Egret.

Great Egret looking for fish.

Great Egret catching fish.

Great Egret and fish.

Hooded Merganser windblown.

Weekly Photo Challenge: 2017 Favorites – 2

Tags

mute swan, photography, postaday, weekly photo challenge

The URL for this challenge is: https://dailypost.wordpress.com/photo-challenges/2017-favorites/

Mute Swans were the favorites of many this past October.  As the swans preened during a foggy morning, they struck poses that were bold and beautiful.

Mute Swan.

You may also be ineterested in two posts with more photos of the swans:

https://neihtn.wordpress.com/2017/10/23/beauty-and-the-fog/

https://neihtn.wordpress.com/2017/10/24/the-conductor/

 

Hooded Mergansers and a Swan

Tags

Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge, hooded marganser, mute swan, photography, postaday

Hooded Mergansers are my favorite winter ducks. The males really look cute with their black and white hood, especially when they try to get a female’s attention, like the one below. He was among many of its kind at the refuge yesterday.

Hooded Merganser.

Hooded Mergansers.

Hooded Merganser couple.

Meanwhile, a Mute Swan flew overhead, a rare sight for me.

Mute Swan.

Hooded Mergansers. Was he looking up at the swan?

Hooded Merganser.

The Conductor II

Tags

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

Here are some more photos of the swan that conducted from the marshes at the refuge. It spent a long time preening, diving into the water, splashing around, and must have ended with a thorough washing of its entire body.

Mute Swan.

Mute Swan.

Mute Swan: “You taking my pictures, right?”

Mute Swan.

Mute Swan.

Mute Swan.

Beauty and the Fog

Tags

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

It was very foggy yesterday. On my way to Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge I could see no more than 100 ft (30 m) ahead, and twice almost ran into deer crosssing the road! When I arrived at the refuge, the usual scenery looked very iffy in the thick fog, but I was not about to go back after a two-hour drive.

Pond in fog.

Slowly the fog lifted, and after half an hour, sunlight fell on beautiful swans and other birds swimming in the sweet water pond. The swans were probably the same I photographed last week, but they had lost their juvenile colors and were all white. They had been preening and looked much cleaner than last week.

Mute Swans.

Mute Swan with Canada Geese in the background.

The following photos show a Mute Swan flapping its wings after it had finished preening and taken a dip in the water.

Mute Swan.

Mute Swan.

Mute Swan.

Mute Swan.

Mute Swan.

Swans

Tags

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

Last week Mute Swans were preening and foraging for food at the Edwin B Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge. Again, I was able to come close to take the following photos. By the way, when you see white feathers floating on the water, they were a by-product of the swans’ preening.

Juvenile Mute Swans.

Mute Swans. The one on the left is an adult, with one leg tucked under its wings.

Adult Mute Swan.

Juvenile Mute Swan.

Adult Mute Swan.

Juvenile Mute Swans preening.

Mute Swans

Tags

glades wildlife Refuge, mute swan, photography, postaday

Mute Swans are monogamous and mate for life. However, when one of a pair dies, the other will try to find another mate. A male will then find a younger or older female, but a female will look for a younger male.

Yesterday, I went to Glades Wildlife Refuge at the southern end of New Jersey not very far from the Delaware Bay. On a pond there, a bevy of Mute Swans was foraging for food, each swan separate from the others, except for a couple. Unless I am mistaken, a smaller female and a younger male where going through courtship rituals. Young male swans have a dull gray bill that will become orange in color when they are mature.

Mute Swans, female on left.

Mute Swans.

Mute Swans.

Mute Swans. 

Young Swan

Tags

cygnet, mute swan, photography, postaday

Almost two years ago, I saw this beautiful cygnet swimming on a pond at the Abbott Marshlands next to the Delaware river.

Young Swan.

The parents were watching close by and enticed her (I am assuming it was a female) to swim away with them.

Young Swan and parents.

The young Mute Swan was almost full size, and differed from her parents by her feather colors and a gray bill. Here’s a look at the three of them preening together.

Three Mute Swans preening.

Swan Couple

Tags

mute swan, photography, postaday

A few weeks ago, the following pair of swans was swimming up and down Spring Lake, which should be renamed Swan Lake, at the Abbott Marshlands. They did not mind my walking along the shore and taking their pictures as they swam gracefully looking for plants to eat.

Mute Swans

Mute Swans

Mute Swans

Mute Swan to Mallards: Good day to you!

Mute Swan close-up. Both swans had a similar size black knob at base of their bill. During mating season, the male knob swells in size, but this couple had finished breeding for the year, and I could not tell which one was the male. 

I was told that this pair are permanent residents of the area. They do not migrate to other places like other swans. They breed, raise their cygnets and those eventually fly away, unless they are killed by predators.

 

Cygnet

Tags

cygnet, mute swan, photography, postaday

In a previous post, I wrote that a pair of mute swans at the Abbott Marshlands had a cygnet that I could not find. Today I found it.

Cygnet with parents and sleeping Canada geese

The cygnet is as large as its parents, although its feathers are grayish and not yet white. Its bill is still pale, and it does not have a bill knob yet. However, it is just as graceful.

Cygnet and parent swans

Mother swan to father swan: “Don’t you think our daughter looks very pretty?” Father swan responded: “You betcha!”

 

 

Mute Swans

Tags

mute swan, photography, postaday, swan

Mute swans are not native to North America and were brought over here in the 19th century from Europe for decorative purposes! They also do not migrate much, staying around most of the year, unlike other types of swans that range from the Artic Circle to warmer regions depending on the season.

Over the past several weeks I have taken pictures of mute swans at the Edwin B Forsythe Wildlife Refuge near Brigantine, NJ and at the Abbott Marhslands on the Delaware River in New Jersey.

Here’s a pair of swans at EBF, where a daily influx of ocean water makes for a much cleaner environment.

Mute Swans at Edwin B Forsythe Wildlife Refuge

The following pairs were at the Abbott Marshlands.

Swans at Abbott Marshlands

Swans at Abbott Marshlands

The white feathers you see floating on the water came from the swans when they were preening themselves. The swan on the right was stretching and making some noise, even though they are called mute swans. They are only mute when compared to other swans, such as the trumpeter swan.

Swans at Abbott Marshlands

The above pair had a young cygnet gray in color, but I could not find it. Instead I took the following pictures of the parents as they looked for food.

Swans feeding

Swans feeding