Walking two dogs simultaneously while riding a bicycle? I am not sure that I would try it, but this man in Vienna was somewhat successful in doing so.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Archive for the ‘animals’ Category
Dog walking in Vienna
Posted in animals, Dog, Nature, Photography, Travel, tagged Canon SX50, dog walking, Donau-Auen National Park, Vienna Austria on May 11, 2017| 2 Comments »
Happy Easter 2017
Posted in animals, Easter, Flowers, Photography, tagged Alex, bunny. Easter, Canon 24-105mm, Canon 50D, Easter 2017, green spring gardens, PR, Prime Rib, rabbit, Tamron 180mm on April 16, 2017| 12 Comments »
Best wishes for a blessed and happy Easter to all who are celebrating this day. Earlier this morning I went to an outdoor sunrise service at my church at 6:30 a.m. and I am not getting ready for our normal morning service in a couple of hours. Easter is a bit later this year than in some years in the past and it was already light and pleasantly warm when we began our service—in past years we were often bundled up and needed flashlights to read the programs.
I chose two images to celebrate Easter. The first is a macro shot of a flower from a recent trip to Green Spring Gardens and it speaks to me of the growth and renewal of this season. The second is a shot of my PR (Prime Rib), my very own Easter bunny, who greets me each morning.
Happy Easter to all of you.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Tail of a muskrat
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, muskrat, muskrat tail, Ondatra zibethicus, Tamron 150-600mm on April 14, 2017| 7 Comments »
I am not exactly sure what was going on, but this muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) seemed to be really struggling in the open water one afternoon last week as the strong wind gusts made the water really choppy at Huntley Meadows Park. Normally muskrats use their tails as a source of underwater propulsion, but it seemed really unusual to see a muskrat’s tail completely out of the water.
A Wikipedia article noted that muskrat tails are covered with scales rather than hair, and, to aid them in swimming, are slightly flattened vertically, which is a shape that is unique to them. I somehow had always thought of muskrat tails as being long and skinny, but, as the image shows, their tails are quite substantial.
I can’t tell for sure, but it looks like the muskrat may be carrying something in its mouth and/or front paws. Is that why it was seeking to balance itself with its tail? For now it remains a mystery, but I think I will go back over the other photos that I took of this muskrat to see if I can find an answer.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Early morning swim
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, beaver, Canon 50D, Castor canadensis, Huntley Meadows Park, North American Beaver, Tamron 150-600mm on April 10, 2017| 4 Comments »
Why do I like to get up really early in the morning, striving to arrive at my destination just as the sun is rising? There is something special about the sights and sounds and even the smell of the early morning. At a time when many people are still snuggled in their warm beds, many wild creatures are already active.
It’s a real challenge, though, to pinpoint that activity and it is even harder to photograph it. Even when I am not able to get a shot, however, I am often filled with a sense of awe and reverence as I share the start of the day with all of these amazing creatures.
When things come together, it is truly magical, and I had one of those experiences this past weekend. I was seated on a fallen tree at the edge of a remote beaver pond at Huntley Meadows Park, my favorite spot in the park. I had been sitting there for a while, almost entranced by the reflections in the water, when I suddenly spotted the unmistakable wake of a swimming beaver.
This North American Beaver (Castor canadensis) appeared to be swimming laps in the middle of the pond. The beaver would head a certain direction for a little while and then would turn and swim back in the other direction, moving back and forth, in and out of the shadows and the reflections. Time seemed to slow down. I leaned forward slightly and tried to get as low as I could, but did not make any abrupt movements for fear of spooking the beaver.
It is really difficult to put into words what I was feeling as I observed the swimming beaver and I hope this image helps to convey a sense of the encounter. Eventually the beaver swam off and I continued on my way, filled with a sense of calm and inner peace.
Why do I like to get up early? The knowledge and the hope that special moments like this may await me are sufficient motivation for me.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Greens for breakfast
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Eastern Gray Squirrel, Huntley Meadows Park, Sciurus carolinensis, squirrel, Tamron 150-600mm on April 7, 2017| 14 Comments »
Greens for breakfast? It’s not what I would choose, but it’s what was on the menu for an Eastern Gray Squirrel early this morning at Huntley Meadows Park. The squirrel paused for only a second, so I didn’t have much time to frame the shot. I like the result and this was a rare occasion when I did not need to crop the image at all.
As for my breakfast choices, I think I will stick with my usual oatmeal.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Death of a beaver
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, beaver, Canon 50D, Castor canadensis, Huntley Meadows Park, North American Beaver, Tamron 150-600mm on April 5, 2017| 3 Comments »
What predators at Huntley Meadows Park are powerful enough to kill an adult beaver? Could this North American Beaver (Castor canadensis) have died of natural causes? Why was its body more than half a mile from the water?
The bright orange incisors and the large flat tail make identification of the body easy, but the cause of death is a mystery. A trail runner pointed out the carcass to me shortly after I spotted a Black Vulture this past weekend, which explains why the vulture was hanging around. (Check out my earlier posting Black Vulture in a tree to see photos of this somewhat creepy bird.)
It was interesting to see the reactions of different park visitors to these questions when I posted them to a community Facebook page. Some immediately assumed that coyotes, which have been spotted in the park, were responsibleand focused on the size and ferocity of these predators. Others spoke of disease or about the complex social structures of the beavers and how teenage beavers are kicked out of the lodge at a certain point in time and forced to fend for themselves.
Some readers simply used emojis, including one with tears. Somehow the loss of this industrious herbivore with human-like paws touches many of us deeply, reminding us of the fragility and preciousness of our own lives.
R.I.P., beautiful creature of God.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Beaver reflection
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, beaver, Canon 50D, Castor canadensis, Huntley Meadows Park, North American Beaver, Tamron 150-600mm on March 15, 2017| 3 Comments »
The beavers at Huntley Meadows Park have been remarkably elusive this winter, so I was excited to see this one on Monday as it swam by in the beautiful early morning light.
There are several beaver lodges in the park where I have spotted North American Beavers (Castor canadensis) in the past, but it is hard to know for sure which ones are currently active. Occasionally I will come to the park really early or stay late, hoping to spot a beaver, but this is the first one that I have spotted in many months. With a little luck I will be able to see one a bit closer than this one, which quite a distance away when I photographed it.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Almost too close
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, muskrat, Ondatra zibethicus, Tamron 150-600mm on March 11, 2017| 8 Comments »
This muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) was so close yesterday morning at Huntley Meadows Park that I almost stepped back off of the edge of the slippery boardwalk as I tried to make sure that I was within the focusing range of my telephoto zoom lens.
I ended up wet from the intermittent rain, but managed to avoid falling into the water.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Muskrat in March
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, muskrat, Ondatra zibethicus, Tamron 150-600mm on March 8, 2017| 3 Comments »
It has been quite a while since I have seen any mammals other than squirrels, dogs, and humans at Huntley Meadows Park. Although I long to spot a fox, beaver, or even a coyote (someone saw one recently in one of the remote areas of the park), I was quite happy when I caught sight recently of a little muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) as it munched away on some vegetation. The sound of my camera’s shutter or my movement must have alerted the muskrat to my presence and within seconds the furry creature disappeared beneath the surface of the water.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
PR and Katie
Posted in animals, Dog, Photography, Portraits, tagged Canon 24-105mm, Canon 50D, German Shepherd, Katie, PR, Prime Rib, rabbit on March 5, 2017| 7 Comments »
Whenever I walk the two year old German Shepherd who belongs to my son and daughter-in-law, one of the highlights for Katie is stopping by my house so that she can visit with Prime Rib (PR), my adopted rabbit.
The two of them seem to enjoy staring at each other and sniffing. Katie has never displayed any hostility towards PR and PR is not intimidated by her presence and often just ignores her.
It was an interesting challenge trying to get this shot using available light. Katie kept moving and PR often stayed in a position in which his eyes were not visible. Beautiful morning light was coming in from the right through the sliding glass doors, but it was not exactly where I would have liked it. I ended up using my Canon 24-105mm lens, a lens that I don’t use that often. I particularly like the way that I was able capture Katie’s intense focus and utter fascination with the little rabbit.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Multi-purpose facility?
Posted in animals, Humor, Photography, Travel, tagged Canon 24-105mm, Canon 50D, car wash, dog wash, Fort Benning GA, humor, humour on February 24, 2017| 2 Comments »
I couldn’t help but do a double take when I saw this sign at Fort Benning, Georgia. I was filled with visions of dogs on automatic conveyor belts being sprayed with soap and slapped with moving towels. Was hot wax an option for dogs?
I did a little checking and learned that the dog wash is a separate facility adjacent to the car wash. It is the first of its kind on a US military installation and includes a coin-operated, do-it-yourself, climate-controlled booth that offers washing, drying and flea and tick bathing options. The booth is then automatically sterilized after each use.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Comfort
Posted in animals, Dog, Photography, Portraits, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 24-105mm, Canon 50D, Cocker Spaniel, comfort, Freckles, Runnymeade on January 22, 2017| 10 Comments »
How do you find comfort when you are feeling agitated and anxious? I can always turn to religion or to nature or to my photography, but early this morning I realized how comforting it was to have Freckles, a small Cocker Spaniel, leaning into my leg as I sat on the couch reading the Washington Post. Her slow, steady breathing and the warmth of her body helped to counteract my rising emotions as I read the accounts and editorials about President Trump’s first full day in office.
Freckles is staying with me while her owners are out of town and she is really comfortable in my townhouse, which is not too surprising, given that she lived here for over a year before she moved to an apartment in Washington DC. For her, a trip to the Virginia suburbs is like a vacation in the country, and she particularly likes to play around in the fallen pine needles of my small back yard.
Generally she is in constant motion, sniffing every square inch of the yard, but yesterday I got her to sit still for a moment so that I could take some shots of her. Here are a few of my favorites from our impromptu portrait session.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Beavers take over
Posted in animals, Architecture, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, beaver, beaver lodge, Canon 24-105mm, Canon 50D, Castor canadensis, Huntley Meadows Park, North American Beaver on January 20, 2017| 4 Comments »
Periodically I will arrive at Huntley Meadows Park early in the morning, hoping to catch a glimpse of one of the local beavers, but I haven’t seen one in quite some time. It’s very obvious, though, that North American beavers (Castor canadensis) are present and active, because their lodge, built in part on the boardwalk, keeps getting bigger every time that I see it.
Gradually the beavers are taking over more and more of a bench on the boardwalk. I noticed this morning, when I took this photo, that there is barely room now to sit down on the end of the bench. In the past, park employees have had to remove some mud when the lodge extended too far across the boardwalk and it looks like that has been the case this year too.
I’m fully expecting to see one of these days that the bench has been totally engulfed by the beavers and incorporated into their architectural plans. At that moment I will know for certain that the beavers have taken over.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Busy
Posted in animals, Art, Autumn, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, beaver, busy, Canon 50D, Castor canadensis, gnaw, gnawing, Huntley Meadows Park, North American Beaver, Tamron 150-600mm on November 23, 2016| 8 Comments »
As I wander about in Huntley Meadows Park, I see lots of signs that winter is on its way, including this tree that I encountered in what seemed to be the middle of the woods. Clearly the beavers have been as busy as, well, beavers. I am hoping to be able to capture them in action in the upcoming months.
If you read this blog frequently, you probably noticed that this image is quite different from my “normal” wildlife close-ups. When I stumbled upon this tree on which a beaver had been gnawing, I was struck by the interplay of light and shadows. As I framed this shot, which is uncropped here, I was trying to capture the almost monochromatic look of the scene in a very simple composition. I’m pretty pleased by the different textures that I was also able to capture in the shot.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Don’t mess with me
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, zoo, tagged American Bison, bison, Bison bison, buffalo, Canon 50D, National Zoo, Tamron 150-600mm, Washington D.C. on November 18, 2016| 2 Comments »
“Don’t mess with me while I am eating.” That seemed to be the message that an American Bison (Bison bison) was sending to me during a recent trip I made to the National Zoo. The bison had lifted its enormous head, twisted it violently in my direction, and looked right at me. It then returned to calmly munching on some hay.
Who knew that bisons had such flexible necks?
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Asian Small-clawed Otters
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, zoo, tagged Aonyx cinerea, Asia Trail, Asian Small-clawed Otter, Canon 50D, National Zoo, otter, Tamron 150-600mm, Washington D.C. on November 13, 2016| Leave a Comment »
Otters are so much fun to watch. They seem to be very inquisitive and playful. One of their favorite pastimes appears to be chasing each other around.
I am familiar with the North American River Otter (Lontra canadensis) and have been lucky enough to see one in the wild at my local marshland park. These images, however, are of Asian Small-clawed Otters (Aonyx cinerea) that I observed at the National Zoo in Washington D.C. last Monday.
There is a large group of these otters in an enclosure on the Asia Trail and I spent quite a while watching their antics. They seem to be in almost constant motion in and out of the water, so it was a fun challenge trying to get some shots of them.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Pandas at the National Zoo
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, zoo, tagged Ailuropoda melanoleuca, Canon 50D, Giant Panda, National Zoo, panda, Tamron 150-600mm, Washington D.C. on November 11, 2016| 2 Comments »
Most of the times that I have visited the National Zoo the Giant Pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) have been indoors, but this past Monday I was thrilled to see that they were outdoors and active. There are two levels for viewing the pandas and I was on the upper level, giving me an unobstructed view and some relief from the large crowds.
Here are a couple of my favorite shots. The first one is of the youngest panda at the zoo, Bei Bei, who is a bit over a year old, and the second image shows him with an adult panda that I assume is his mother.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Orangutan overhead
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, zoo, tagged Canon 24-105mm, Canon 50D, National Zoo, orangutan, Washington D.C. on November 10, 2016| 10 Comments »
It was really cool (and only slightly disconcerting) to look up and see a hairy orangutan crossing almost directly overhead on a pair of ropes while I was visiting the National Zoo on Monday.
A series of ropes and towers connects the Great Ape House with another building called the Think Tank. The orangutans can move freely back and forth between the buildings at certain times of the day. Their overhead transit system crosses one of the major roads in the zoo and there are no nets or any other obstructions between visitors and the orangutans.
As you can see from one of the images, there is some kind of system on the towers that keeps the orangutans from climbing down one of the intermediate towers. I was amazed at how effortlessly the orangutan moved and never really worried that it might lose its grip and fall into my arms.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Faces at the National Zoo
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, zoo, tagged Canon 24-105mm, Canon 50D, Castor canadensis, cheetah, elephant, lion, lioness, National Zoo, North American Beaver, Tamron 150-600mm, Washington D.C. on November 9, 2016| 2 Comments »
The National Zoo in Washington D.C. is a wonderful place to explore and has the added bonus of having no admission fee. On Monday I wandered around the zoo for several hours, visiting some of my favorite animals and taking a lot of photos.
Here are some of my initial favorite images: a lioness, a cheetah, a beaver, and an elephant.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Autumn still life
Posted in animals, Autumn, Cat, Halloween, Humor, Photography, tagged Alexandria VA, autumn, autumn still life, Canon 24-105mm, Canon 50D, Halloween, Nalls Produce Center on October 30, 2016| 1 Comment »
Some very creative people must work at the local pumpkin patch at Nalls Produce Center in Alexandria, Virginia. As I wandered about, I encountered numerous mini-scenes celebrating farm life and/or Halloween.
One of my favorites featured a crazed–looking cat in overalls conversing with a cow. I also really liked the jack-o-lantern made with all natural materials. I can’t recall ever before seeing a jack-o-lantern with hair.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posing squirrel
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, Portraits, spiders, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Eastern Gray Squirrel, green spring gardens, Sciurus carolinensis, squirrel, Tamron 150-600mm on September 7, 2016| 10 Comments »
An Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) was scampering across an open area at Green Spring Gardens last week. Suddenly it stopped, got up in its hind legs and turned to me with a half-smile. I think it was deliberately posing for me, so I took this shot.
The squirrel was so tall and upright in this pose that it looked like it was simply going out for a casual two-legged morning stroll through the garden, like so many of the people that were passing by us.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved
Siren song
Posted in animals, Dog, Photography, Portraits, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 24-105mm, Canon 50D, Cocker Spaniel, Freckles, howl, Runnymeade on May 31, 2016| 12 Comments »
When Freckles heard the sound of a fire engine in the distance, she stopped playing and listened intently for a moment. She then leaned back her head and began to howl along with the sound of the siren. Who knew that Cocker Spaniels like to howl?
For the last two and a half weeks I have been taking care of Freckles while her owners have been on their honeymoon. It’s been a joy (and occasionally a challenge) having a dog in my life again. During this short time we have developed our own little routines and, among other things, I’ll miss her curling up around my feet as I use my laptop.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Foraging in forest and field
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, Odocoileus virginianus, Tamron 180mm, white-tailed deer on May 30, 2016| 5 Comments »
I don’t see deer very often at my local marshland park. When I do, it is generally only a flash of their white tails as they bound out of sight. On Friday, however, I spotted a young White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) foraging in the forest at Huntley Meadows Park on the other side of a small stream from where I was located.
I stopped and crouched and the deer slowly moved closer and closer to me. I think that the deer was aware of my presence, but did not seem to view me as a threat. I did not want to move around too much for fear of spooking the deer, so I used the lens that was on my camera at that moment and stayed in place. A 180mm macro lens would not have been my first choice for photographing a deer, but it worked out surprisingly well.
As the deer moved forward, I thought it might try to hop over the stream right where I was at, but eventually the deer moved upstream a bit and made its way to the side of the stream on which I was standing. It lingered for a while in a field before it finally disappeared from sight.
Here are a few shots from my encounter with the young deer. My favorite one might be the first one—I had no idea that deer were so flexible. The third image, which I only cropped a little gives you an idea of how close the deer was to me.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Nibbling on a branch
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, Portraits, spring, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Eastern Gray Squirrel, Huntley Meadows Park, Sciurus carolinensis, squirrel, Tamron 150-600mm on April 11, 2016| 9 Comments »
Would you stop to watch a squirrel as it nibbled on a branch or would you move on in search of more exciting wildlife? I love trying to capture the beauty in the ordinary and spent quite some time recently observing and photographing this Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) at Huntley Meadows Park.
Although the tree looks kind of dead, I think that the squirrel spotted a fresh bud on the end of the branch and decided to chew on it for a little while. Normally a squirrel has its head down when feeding and it was nice to be able to get this shot with its neck extended. The little reflection in its eye was a bonus.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Odd couple
Posted in animals, Photography, tagged Canon 24-105mm, Canon 50D, German Shepherd, Katie, PR, Prime Rib, rabbit on April 10, 2016| 5 Comments »
This weekend I have been hosting the odd couple. Katie, a young female German Shepherd, has been visiting me and Prime Rib (aka PR), my little gray male rabbit. It is an understatement to say that Katie is utterly fascinated by PR—she just can’t take her eyes off of him.
Sometimes she will put her nose right up against the cage and sometimes she will watch him from a short distance away, but she is always watching him. She particularly seems to like to follow him as he moves about in the cage.
PR pretty much ignores Katie and doesn’t seem to be bothered at all by her presence, even when she is only inches away from him. I have tried to keep an eye on the two of them to see if Katie displays any aggression or if PR shows an signs of fear or anxiety, but so far things seem to be working out ok—I think I am the only one showing signs of being a little anxious.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Breakfast with a beaver
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, beaver, Canon 50D, Castor canadensis, Huntley Meadows Park, North American Beaver, Tamron 150-600mm on April 3, 2016| 6 Comments »
Early Friday morning I heard a gnawing sound coming from under the boardwalk at Huntley Meadows Park. I watched and waited and eventually the head of a North American Beaver (Castor canadensis) broke the surface of the water. The beaver chewed on sticks for a few minutes a short distance away from me and then disappeared as suddenly as it had appeared.
This encounter took place just before 7:00 in the morning when it was just getting light. Although I had my tripod with me, I figured that setting it up would require so much movement that I would scare away the beaver. Knowing I wanted to get as low an angle as I could, I slowly sat down on the boardwalk, which was elevated above the water by about two feet (61 cm), and rested my telephoto zoom lens on my camera bag for stability.
I checked the EXIF data for these shots and they were all taken with camera settings of about ISO 1600, f/7.1, 1/15 second, and a focal length of 552mm. Not surprisingly, when the beaver was actually moving, the shutter speeds were too slow to stop the motion, but I did manage to get some shots that were reasonably sharp.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Early morning swim
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, beaver, Canon 50D, Castor canadensis, Huntley Meadows Park, North American Beaver, Tamron 150-600mm on March 26, 2016| 24 Comments »
A dark head broke the surface of the water just after sunrise yesterday at Huntley Meadows Park and the animal slowly and silently swam by me. Was it a beaver or a muskrat? It looks like a Norther American Beaver (Castor canadensis) to me, but I never got a look at its tail—the tail would have provided definitive proof of the animal’s identity.
The many gnawed off tree stumps testify to the presence of beavers in several lodges in the park, but the beavers themselves have remained remarkably elusive. Muskrats are active in the same areas and many park visitors have spotted them in action during the daylight hours.
Beaver or muskrat? What do you think?
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Lunch with a muskrat
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, muskrat, Ondatra zibethicus, Tamron 150-600mm on March 16, 2016| 14 Comments »
As I was walking along the boardwalk at Huntley Meadows Park on Monday, a lady with binoculars around her neck vigorously motioned to me and pointed downwards. A muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) was foraging in the vegetation almost directly below the raised observation deck on which she was standing and she correctly assumed I’d be interested—it might have had something to do with the enormous zoom lens that was prominently attached to my camera.
I don’t see muskrats very often, so it was a treat to get a relatively unobstructed view of one. The muskrat used its “hands” to hold the leafy vegetation as it delicately nibbled on its lunch. The muskrat seemed so prim and proper that I almost expected to see it use a napkin to wipe its lips when it was done.
From this overhead angle, the muskrat looked a bit like a beaver, but the undulations of its long, thin tail as it swam away left no doubts that it was a muskrat.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Raccoon skull
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 24-105mm, Canon 24-105mm lens, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, Procyon lotor, raccoon, raccoon skull, skull on February 28, 2016| 12 Comments »
As I was walking through the woods on Friday at Huntley Meadows Park, I noticed something white among the leaves on the ground. At first I thought it was just a mushroom, but upon closer examination it turned out to be the upper portion of the skull of what I am pretty sure is a raccoon (Procyon lotor). There were no other bones in the area, nor was the lower jaw anywhere to be seen.
I don’t know much about animal anatomy, but I was fascinated by the shapes and contours of the skull, a kind of natural and organic sculpture. It was intriguing as well to examine the sizes and shapes of all of the different teeth.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Katie
Posted in animals, Photography, Portraits, tagged Alexandria, Canon 24-105mm lens, Canon 50D, German Shepherd, Katie, Runnymeade on February 27, 2016| 10 Comments »
It is really nice when I am petsitting to have new subjects to photograph. Katie, a beautiful young German Shepherd, stayed with me last night and I took this shot as she was sitting on my couch, keeping a close eye on P.R., my rabbit.
Katie seemed utterly fascinated by the rabbit and intently watched him as he moved about his cage. P.R. (which is short for “Prime Rib”was more or less oblivious to Katie, even when they were only inches apart. I suspect that P.R. does not view dogs as predators, probably because she grew up with with a dog in the household.
The challenges of photographing a pet indoors are different from photographing wildlife outdoors, but so many of the basic principles carry over. This image looks a bit like a studio shot, because I was able to direct the light of a desk lamp so that it fell on one side of Katie’s face (and amazingly she sat still for a moment).
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
End of deer hunting season
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, deer, Huntley Meadows Park, Odocoileus virginianus, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto, white-tailed deer on February 25, 2016| 8 Comments »
Last Saturday, the final day of the 5+ month deer hunting season at Huntley Meadows Park, I was startled to see the unmistakable shape of deer antlers on the ground a short distance away from where I was standing. As I moved closer, I saw that it was only some kind of decoy used by the hunters.
Looking up, I realized I was at the base of an unoccupied tree stand. I felt a little safer knowing that there were no archers in the stand at that moment.
I understand the problems caused in our area by an overpopulation of White-tailed Deer and the reason for the extended hunting season. Still, I am somewhat amused by the lengths to which the county goes to avoid using words like “hunting” or “killing.” Instead, they refer to the “archery program” and “deer management.” Deer management? I have visions of a deer CEO.
On Monday the 22nd, I returned to the park and was surprised to see that least some of the tree stands were still present. I am sure that someone will eventually come to retrieve the stands, but I am going remain alert, just in case one of the stands happens to be occupied despite the stated end of the deer hunting season.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
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Mike Powell 