Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Ardea herodias, Canon 7D, Great Blue Heron, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, reflection, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on January 31, 2025| 8 Comments »
This Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) had its neck extended so much on Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge that it reminded me of a giraffe. The mind can sometimes make weird associations.
We have finally made it to the end of January. What a crazy month it has been in so many different ways.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Canon 7D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Troglodytes hiemalis, Winter Wren, Woodbridge VA, wren on January 30, 2025| 5 Comments »
Throughout this winter, I have been trying to capture an image of Winter Wren (Troglodytes hiemalis), a tiny bird that spends the cold season in my area. As described by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, “Winter Wrens hop and scamper through the understory moving more like a mouse than a bird as they investigate upturned roots and decaying logs for food. These energetic birds often bob their entire bodies as if doing squats while they nervously look around in the forest understory.”
I have occasionally caught glimpses of Winter Wrens, but they have invariably moved away before I could get a shot. These wrens are really elusive as they scurry about among the tangled branches and leaves and my camera has struggled to focus on them, choosing instead to focus on the surrounding vegetation.
On Monday, I finally managed to get a shot of a Winter Wren, after tracking it through the brush for almost 15 minutes. It is definitely not a prize-winner, but I am pretty confident that I achieved my goal. Parts of the bird are hidden by branches, but I think helps viewers to better understand the environment in which this little birds are found.
Now I have a new challenge—to get a better shot of a Winter Wren. That’s part of the cycle of being a wildlife photographer, celebrating small achievements, but always believing that I can do better. That’s why I return again and again to the same places, always watching, always waiting, wildly optimistic that new opportunities will present themselves.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, Winter, tagged Canon 7D, frozen foraging, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Procyon lotor, raccoon, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on January 29, 2025| 15 Comments »
I photographed this raccoon on Monday (27 January) as it foraged in an open water area of a small pond at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Although the weather was considerably warmer, i.e. above the freezing level, the water in the small interior ponds and in the shore areas was still almost completely frozen over.
I couldn’t tell for sure if the raccoon had any success in finding something to eat, because I was quite a good distance away from it. It was fascinating nonetheless to watch the raccoon at work, repeatedly dipping a paw into the frigid water.
The second image below provides a much clearer view of the raccoon’s face, but there is something about the body and head position in the first photo that appeals to be a slight bit more. What do you think? Do you have a preference for the first photo or the second one?
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, Winter, tagged Canon 7D, Melospiza melodia, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, snow, song sparrow, sparrow in the snow, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on January 23, 2025| 2 Comments »
Many of the trails were still covered in snow (but passable) at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge when I visited the refuge after a recent snow storm over a week ago. Much of that snow is still on the ground and the temperatures continue to be well below the freezing level. Fortunately the weather forecasts predict warmer temperatures next week so eventually the snow will begin to melt away..
On the day of my visit small groups of Song Sparrows (Melospiza melodia) were feverishly foraging for tasty tidbits in the bare patches in the trail paralleling the water. In most of my shots the sparrow’s head was buried in the vegetation. Occasionally, though a sparrow would momentarily lifted its head to check me out, as I captured in the final image.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Landscape, Photography, Winter, tagged Canon 7D, iPhone, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, winter, winter landscape, Woodbridge VA on January 21, 2025| Leave a Comment »
When I visited Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge last week, the sky was mostly blue, with patches of clouds to add additional visual interest to the landscape photos that I captured. The first photo shows one of the ponds at the refuge that is fed by the tides of the Potomac River.
In other parts of the refuge, though, the ice covering the waters of the bay on the shore served as a stark reminder that winter is far from over. Today, for example, the temperature is currently 18 degrees (minus 8 degrees C) and it may be even colder tomorrow. Yikes!
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Accipiter cooperii, Canon 7D, Cooper's Hawk, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on January 20, 2025| 2 Comments »
I spotted this cool-looking Cooper’s Hawk (Accipiter cooperii) last Monday in a sycamore tree at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Cooper’s Hawks usually have an upright posture and long tails, which help me to distinguish them from the Red-shouldered and Red-tailed Hawks that I see more frequently.
However, Cooper’s Hawks and Sharp-shinned Hawks are quite similar in appearance, so it is always a bit of a gamble for me to try to make a call. In this case, some more experienced birders in a Facebook forum confirmed my tentative identification.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Canon 7D, Golden-crowned Kinglet, kinglet, kinglet in winter, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Regulus satrapa, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on January 18, 2025| 4 Comments »
Golden-crowned Kinglets (Regulus satrapa) are among the smallest birds in our area of Northern Virginia at about 4 inches (10 cm) in length. These tiny songbirds are also extremely fast and frenetic and they move about high in the trees.
I spotted a Golden-crowned Kinglet this past Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge on a rare January day with blue skies. When I am tracking kinglets, I usually shoot in short bursts, hoping to capture a moment when the birds are stationary. I often ended up with blurry shots of the back of the head of this kinglet and sometimes the bird moved so quickly that it was already outside of the frame by the time I clicked the shutter.
The favorite two images, as you can see below, show the little bird in motion. In the first photo, the kinglet seemed to hover momentarily as it flitted about among the branches. In the second image, which I cropped significantly, I captured the moment when the kinglet pushed off from one branch and flew downwards towards another prospective perch. I just barely managed to keep the kinglet in the frame—in the original image the kinglet is in the lower third of the image, with its extended wing almost touching the bottom edge.
Patience and persistence helped me get this image, along with fast reflexes from lots of practice. To be honest, though, I must admit that luck played a significant role my success.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Canon 7D, Catharus guttatus, Hermit Thrush, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on January 16, 2025| 5 Comments »
This handsome Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus) posed momentarily for me during my visit earlier this week to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. It was unusual for me to be able to get such an unobstructed shot of a bird. Although the leaves are gone from the trees, most of the birds at this time of the year seem to forage within the vegetation where my view is often partially blocked by branches.
I am reasonably sure that this is a Hermit Thrush, though I do not see this species very often, so it is possible that I am mistaken in my identification. Let me know if you think that I have misidentified this bird.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Canon 7D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, sparrow, sparrows in the snow, Tamron 150-600mm, white-throated sparrow, Woodbridge VA, Zonotrichia albicollis on January 15, 2025| 6 Comments »
Many of the trails were still covered in snow (but passable) on Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, so I finally went trekking with my camera. Sparrows were feverishly foraging for tasty tidbits in the bare patches in the trail paralleling the water, including these White-throated Sparrows (Zonotrichia albicollis), one of my favorite winter birds.
These little birds were in constant motion, but it was a lot easier to track them when they were on the ground than in the trees (and I had a long telephoto lens). It was, however, a challenge to capture a moment when the sparrow’s head was not buried in the debris or pointed away from me.
These images may not be as impressive as ones of larger birds, like bald eagles, but I am nonetheless pretty happy to have captured these moment with the sparrows in the snow.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Buteo lineatus, Canon 7D, immature Red-shouldered Hawk, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Red-Shouldered Hawk, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on January 13, 2025| 2 Comments »
I have mostly stayed indoors this past week because of frigid temperatures, strong winds, and a snowstorm that dumped about 9 inches (23 cm) of snow on us. This is the most snow that we have seen in years and only yesterday has the weather gotten warm enough to melt any of the snow. Today is supposed to be a bit warmer, possibly reaching 40 degrees (5 degrees C) and then the temperatures are forecast to drop again.
Here are a couple of shot of what I think is an immature Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus) that I spotted almost two weeks ago at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I often have trouble identifying hawk species, so I may not be right in this instance. Please let me know if you have a different idea about the identification.
The hawk was perched in a tree and the vegetation on the ground allowed me to get relatively close to the hawk, though the same vegetation partially blocked my view and limited my shooting angles.
I hope to get out with my camera later today after things have warmed up a bit. When I first looked out my window this morning, there was a lot of frost on my windshield and the last time I checked the frost was gone. It will be nice to stretch my legs a bit. I have been doing plenty of shoveling (with frequent breaks), but my phone indicates that my daily step count has dropped precipitously.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged acrobatic, Canon 7D, Melanerpes carolinus, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA, woodpecker on January 7, 2025| 11 Comments »
This acrobatic Red-bellied Woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus) was twisting and contorting its body as it foraged last week in the trees at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge when I spotted it. In the first photo I managed to get a look at the bird’s red belly, a feature that is often hidden from view. The woodpecker seemed to be enjoying some success, though not surprisingly the pickings were fairly meager at this time of the year.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Ardea herodias, Canon 7D, Great Blue Heron, Great Blue Heron fishing, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA on January 4, 2025| 6 Comments »
This Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) was having pretty good success in catching some small fish one morning last week at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I personally do not like to have fish for breakfast, but am aware that some people like lox, mackerels, or other kinds of fish with their morning meals. As the old Latin saying goes, “De gustibus non est disputandum” (“There is no accounting for taste.”)
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Canon 7D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Setophaga coronata, Tamron 150-600mm, warbler, Woodbridge VA, Yellow-rumped Warbler on January 2, 2025| 7 Comments »
I had been lethargic and uninspired throughout December, but decided on Monday to visit Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge to try to find some birds before the end of the year. As I walked along one of the trails, I spotted a small bird in the trees and tracked it as it moved about. I was not sure what it was, became a little excited when I thought I spotted a bit of yellow.
There are not many colorful birds in our area during the winter months, so I patiently kept tracking this bird. When I captured the first image below, I convinced myself that I would see traces of yellow in the breast of the bird. Eventually the bird turned and faced the opposite direction and I got a good look at the bright yellow patch on its rump—it was a Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata), one of very few warbler species that I might see during the winter months.
It was a nice treat for me at the end of the year. Happy New Years to you all and best wishes for a healthy and happy 2025.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 