As I slowly made my way through the tall grass on the lake shore, my eyes were focused on the low-hanging branches where I had seen a Belted Kingfisher earlier in the day. Suddenly the water exploded at my feet.
I was startled and so was the Double-crested Cormorant (Phalacrocorax auritus) that scrambled into action and started moving across the surface of the water. The cormorant had apparently been resting or feeding at the water’s edge and had not heard me approach. It was interesting to see the cormorant move—it rose up a bit and seemed to walk across the water and then settled back into the water once it was a good distance away from me.
The action happened so quickly and in an unexpected location that I initially had trouble framing my shots. This is my favorite of the ones in which I managed to get the entire cormorant in the frame. I especially like the details that you can see on the wings. As I was working on the image, it was interesting to note that there are almost no colors in the shot, except for the bird’s bill. When I adjusted the hue and saturation, for example, almost nothing changed.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Great catch!
Thanks. It caught me by surprise, but I was happy to be able to react quickly enough to get this shot.
The last time that happened to me it was an immature mallard that couldn’t fly yet, but it could and did make a lot of noise. I almost ended up in the water with it.
That happens quite often to me, and I wonder how it is I overlook them sitting there.
LOL ! I had to laugh as this scene is one I have seen many times after flushing something I didn’t know was there. Great quick on the draw there Mike.