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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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This one’s for you

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Agelaius phoeniceus, Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, male Red-winged Blackbird, red-winged blackbird, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 24, 2016| 10 Comments »

Some days it seems like the birds are conspiring against me. They are so skittish that they fly away long before I am within range or they hide behind a wall of branches, where I can hear them but cannot see them clearly.

In moments like that, a male Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) often comes to rescue me from my despair. These birds are so bold and defiant that they refuse to hide. Instead, they find the most prominent perch and sing out as loudly as possible, showing off for rivals and potential mates.

This past Monday was one of those days when I was having trouble finding subjects to photograph. Suddenly a blackbird appeared and flew to the highest branch of a nearby small tree. Undeterred by my presence, he looked in my direction and seemed to smile. After a moment, he burst forth in singing while continuing to look at me, as though he were saying, “This one’s for you.”

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Circle of life

Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, Odocoileus virginianus, Procyon lotor, raccoon, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto, white-tailed deer on February 23, 2016| 5 Comments »

We visit our local parks and wildlife refuges for a short while and return home, forgetting sometimes that many of the creatures we observed live and die within the confines of these small (or not so small) areas. As I wander through Huntley Meadows Park, I see signs of this entire circle of life. Lives have ended and, as we move into spring, new lives are beginning.

Whenever I come across skeletal remains, a clump of feathers, or other evidence of the death of a bird or an animal, I cannot help but wonder how the creature met its demise. Was it a predator, old age, sickness, or starvation? Life can be harsh in the wild, especially in the winter.

As far as I can tell, the animal in the first photo is a raccoon (Procyon lotor). Several months ago a fellow photographer mentioned that he had seen the dead body of a raccoon inside a hollow in the trunk of a fallen tree. I thought that predators would have dismembered the body by now, but instead it seems to be slowly decomposing in its sheltered position.

The skull is the second photo is that of a White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus). Other body parts of the deer were scattered about in the same area where I spotted the skull. There are concerns that the deer population is too high for the park to support, so there is a chance this deer died from starvation.

I know that these photos, especially the first one, are pretty graphic and apologize in advance to those who may have found them to be excessively disturbing.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Spread your wings and sing

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Agelaius phoeniceus, Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, male Red-winged Blackbird, red-winged blackbird, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 20, 2016| 14 Comments »

How do you generate volume when you sing? I remember being told to breathe from the diaphragm, but this male Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) seemed to think that spreading his wings helped him to be heard yesterday morning at Huntley Meadows Park.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Angry cardinal?

Posted in Birds, Humor, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, angry bird, Canon 50D, Cardinalis cardinalis, Huntley Meadows Park, male Northern Cardinal, Northern cardinal, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 19, 2016| 11 Comments »

I don’t know if this male Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) qualifies as an “angry bird,” but he sure did not seem happy to see me this morning at Huntley Meadows Park.

Maybe he was cold and hungry or got off on the wrong side of the bed this morning. In any case, I couldn’t coax a smile out of him.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Tiny appetizer for a Great Blue Heron

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Ardea herodias, Canon 50D, Great Blue Heron, heron, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 18, 2016| 4 Comments »

Sometimes a Great Blue Heron’s catch is big enough for a main course, but sometimes it’s only an appetizer. The good news is that appetizers are really easy for a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) to swallow.

I included the second photo, which sequentially was taken before the first one, because I like the expression on the heron’s face. The heron seems to be both amused and embarrassed at the small size of the fish.

It’s obvious, though, that the heron does not have a catch-and-release policy if the fish is not of a certain minimum size.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Off the beaten path

Posted in Landscape, Nature, Photography, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, landscape, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 17, 2016| 5 Comments »

I love to wander through remote areas of Huntley Meadows Park, often following meandering streams. Each time is different, as the level of the water, the varying light, and the changing vegetation alter my perceptions of the landscape.

The park is a freshwater wetland of over 1500 acres with meadows, ponds, streams, and woods that provide a habitat for the wide range of insects, birds, and animals that I often feature on this blog. I am always conscious of the beauty of my surroundings, but generally have either a telephoto zoom or a macro lens on my camera, so photographing the landscape is not something that I do very often.

I was drawn to the twists and turns of this section of one of my favorite streams after a significant rainfall earlier this month. It was relatively early in the morning and there were still shadows in some areas. I captured some images of the scene with the “short” end of my 150-600mm lens and this is my favorite of the group. I definitely need to work more on visualizing landscape shots, but am happy with this initial effort.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Tightrope walker

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, American robin, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, robin, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto, tightrope walker, Turdus migratorius on February 16, 2016| 10 Comments »

Like a tightrope walker, this American Robin (Turdus migratorius) inched its way along a narrow vine at Huntley Meadows Park, its eyes focused on the prize that awaited it at the other end. Periodically the robin used its wings for balance and moved forward until it reached a steady position almost within reach of the berries.

With a quick thrust forward of its head, the robin was able to snatch one of the low-hanging fruits. When I left it, the robin seemed to be enjoying its prize with a smile on its face.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Not a goose

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife on February 15, 2016| 8 Comments »

As I was watching some Canada Geese foraging in open water at Huntley Meadows Park on Saturday, I noticed a smaller, darker bird in the middle of the group. Clearly it was not a goose, but it too was wading in the shallow water and periodically pulling out tasty pieces of vegetation.

It looks to me like it is a Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus), a cool-looking species that I don’t see very often. According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the “Rusty Blackbird is one of America’s most rapidly declining species. The population has plunged an estimated 85-99 percent over the past forty years and scientists are completely puzzled over what is the cause.”

Rusty Blackbirds often gather in small flocks, but I observed only this single individual. I kept an eye on the blackbird and was fortunate to get some shots as it moved in and out of the light on a frigid day at the marsh.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Pileated Woodpecker in February

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Dryocopus pileatus, Huntley Meadows Park, Pileated Woodpecker, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 14, 2016| 5 Comments »

Although the temperature was 20 degrees (minus 7 degrees C) and the wind was blowing yesterday afternoon, I got fooled into thinking the bright sunshine would warm me up a bit. Most of the creatures at the marsh were absent from view, probably trying to keep warm in sheltered locations.

I was excited, therefore, when I head the unmistakable sound of a Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) at work nearby as I was walking along a path. No other woodpeckers in our area can match the volume of a Pileated Woodpecker when it is burying its bill into a tree.

I managed to locate the woodpecker and was a little disappointed that it was high in a tree in a location where it was obscured by lots of branches. Eventually the woodpecker climbed higher in the tree and I was able to get a few relatively unobstructed shots, although I had to take them at a pretty sharp angle.

My favorite shot is the one in which the woodpecker looks like it is stalking a prey at the top of the tree. Its eyes are fixed on the target and it seems to be trying to sneak up on it. In reality, I have no idea what the woodpecker was doing, but it made for an unusual pose.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Congratulations, grasshopper!

Posted in Birds, Language, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, Mount Vernon Voice, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 13, 2016| 18 Comments »

My good friend and photography mentor, Cindy Dyer, is spreading the news about the two-page photo spread of some of my recent photos that ran in a local community newspaper. What she doesn’t note is that she is a source of constant support, encouragement, and inspiration for my photography as well as for my blog. Thanks, Cindy.

Cindy Dyer's Blog

Congratulations to my dear friend Michael Powell for getting his photos published in a spread in the local Mt. Vernon Voice newspaper. He was out shooting at Huntley Meadows one cold morning and the co-editor of the publication happened to be there. He asked him if he would like his work to be featured in the newspaper. He had a two page spread available to fill and Michael had to get him photos pronto. Nice showcase for your work, grasshopper! You can see more of Michael’s work on his blog at https://michaelqpowell.wordpress.com/.

Michael Mt Vernon Voice

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Contemplating the new day

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, Winter, tagged Agelaius phoeniceus, Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, male Red-winged Blackbird, red-winged blackbird, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 13, 2016| 10 Comments »

As the early morning sunlight hit the cattails yesterday at Huntley Meadows Park, this male Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) seemed to be contemplating the start of the new day.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Another eagle takeoff

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Bald Eagle, birds in flight, Canon 50D, eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 12, 2016| 3 Comments »

No matter how slowly and silently I move, a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) seems to sense my presence very quickly and immediately takes to the air. It’s really not that surprising, given the eagle’s amazingly keen eyesight that lets it spot prey from a long distance away.

Last weekend I spotted this Bald Eagle when it was perched atop a broken-off tree. Most of the previous times the stationary eagles that I have seen have been sitting on branches. When they took off, they seemed to push off of the branch a bit to gain some forward momentum.

In this case, the eagle appeared to initially push in an upward direction to gain a little height before flapping its powerful wings. Here are a few shots that show some of the stages of the takeoff process.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Morning blackbird

Posted in Art, Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Agelaius phoeniceus, Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, male Red-winged Blackbird, red-winged blackbird, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 11, 2016| 5 Comments »

Some of my favorite photos are ones with a common subject and a simple composition, like these shots I took this past weekend of a male Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) at Huntley Meadows Park. The blackbird was perched in a field of cattails and the morning light was beautiful.

Sometimes photography seems so uncomplicated—it just works.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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A robin’s tongue?

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, American robin, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, robin, robin tongue, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto, Turdus migratorius on February 10, 2016| 12 Comments »

Do robins have tongues? I never thought much about this question until I looked at the shots I took this past weekend of American Robins (Turdus migratorius) at Huntley Meadows Park in Northern Virginia.

As a child, I was told that robins were a harbinger of spring and that may have been the case in Massachusetts. Clearly that is not the case where I live now, for an entire flock of robins was present in the park in what I would still consider the middle of winter.

Some of the robins were pecking about on the ground, but many of them were drawn to some kind of vegetation that had bluish-colored berries. I usually think of robins eating worms, so it was fascinating to watch them pick and swallow berries, acting much like Cedar Waxwings.

When reviewing my photos, I saw what appeared to be a tongue in some of my images, so I did a little research. It turns out that robins do have tongues that they use to help them swallow fruit. In fact, different birds use their tongues for a wide variety of purposes, as Laura Erickson illustrates wonderfully in a blog posting entitled “More about Bird Tongues than a Normal Person Would Want to Know.”

In the first image below, the robin has just grabbed the berry and is starting to pull it in. In the second image, the tongue is more clearly visible and the process has moved along a bit. I hoped to get a shot of the final step in swallowing the berry, but the robin turned its head to the side at that moment.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Great Blue Heron’s modest catch

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Ardea herodias, Canon 50D, Great Blue Heron, heron, heron fishing, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 9, 2016| 1 Comment »

I awoke this morning thinking I would see snow on the ground again, but it seems to have turned into rain. This photo of a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) and its modest catch reminds me of how snowy it was a mere two weeks ago in our area.

It’s interesting to me to see how the unusual angle of view and the low perspective make the heron’s bill seem unusually elongated and its long neck appears to be really short. The distorted perspective of the image may cause some viewers to look a second time at the photo to mentally reconfirm that this indeed is a Great Blue Heron.

I think that most photographers would agree that it is a good thing when viewers take a second look at their images or examine them more closely.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Eagle takeoff sequence

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Bald Eagle, birds in flight, Canon 50D, eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 8, 2016| 19 Comments »

I usually miss the takeoff sequence of a Bald Eagle, because the eagle spots me before I see it, but this weekend I managed to capture a series of shots of one such takeoff.

My first indication of an eagle’s presence is often when I see it flying away. Several times this past weekend, however, I spotted a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) perched in the trees at Huntley Meadows Park and I was able to observe the eagle for at least a few minutes at a time.

In the case of these images, I was looking across a beaver pond at the eagle as it perched in the trees. In the first couple of shots, the eagle seemed to getting a little agitated and is lifting its feet and flexing its wings. Then he assumed a position that reminds me of the start of a speed skating race or a sprint, with a flexed wing ready to propel the eagle forward. Finally the eagle pushed off from the tree and descended a little with talons extended before leveling off and flying away.

Some of the time it seems an eagle just springs into motion and ignores most of the items on its pre-flight checklist as it prepares for takeoff. Other times, like this one, it follows the established procedures and waited for flight clearance from the tower.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Bald Eagle takeoff

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Bald Eagle, birds in flight, eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus on February 7, 2016| 4 Comments »

Yesterday was a great day for me photographing Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) at Huntley Meadows Park. I took this photo later in the day than the more close-up shots that I posted earlier. I can’t tell if it is the same eagle, but it too appears to have a band on its right foot.

I really like the way that the dynamic position of the eagle’s wings conveys a sense of the power of this majestic creature. There is a kind of dramatic tension in the pose that captivates me.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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I’m not your prey

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Bald Eagle, birds in flight, Canon 50D, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 7, 2016| 15 Comments »

Yesterday, for the second day in a row a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) flew close to me at Huntley Meadows Park. Unlike the previous day, when the eagle simply soared by overhead, this one looked like he thought I might be a potential prey.

With the snow almost totally gone, I decided yesterday to hike out to some of the more remote regions of the park. I was following a familiar stream when I noticed a dark shape near the top of a tall tree on the opposite bank of the stream. I extended my lens to its full length and was surprised to see that it was a bald eagle.

I had time to shoot shoot only a couple of images when suddenly the eagle took off, initially heading right toward me. I kept firing as the eagle grew larger and larger in my viewfinder. I think I might have startled the eagle when I moved to bring the camera up to my eye and his instinctive reaction was to check out the movement.

Eventually the eagle veered off and flew in the opposite direction and my heart rate started to return to normal. I don’t think that I was actually at risk, but through a 600mm lens, it sure looked like the eagle was speeding toward me with talons extended.

I couldn’t help but notice that the eagle has a band on its right foot. Whenever I capture a shot of an eagle, I will have to check to see if I can see a band. I don’t know how many eagles hang out at our park, but eagle sightings have become much more common this last year than previously.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Bald Eagle overhead

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Bald Eagle, birds in flight, Canon 50D, eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 6, 2016| 7 Comments »

Another eagle? I know that I posted some eagle photos a few days ago, but normally when I see a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), it is flying in the distance. Yesterday at Huntley Meadows Park, however, one flew almost directly over me while I was on the boardwalk.

This different perspective allowed me to get some shots that are much more detailed than usual, showing, among other things, the eagle’s tail feathers and fully-extended wings. The wingspan of this magnificent bird is amazing.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Behind the branches

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged Alexandria VA, Barred Owl, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, owl, Strix varia, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 5, 2016| 9 Comments »

As I walked slowly toward a fellow photographer pointing her camera deep into the woods, I suspected that she was looking at an owl. In a quiet voice, she explained to me where the Barred Owl (Strix varia) was perched. There were a lot of branches and vegetation between us and the owl, but eventually I was able to spot the owl.

Initially the owl was facing directly in our direction, but then shifted its body to the side, all the time watching us from behind the branches. I stretched and bent as I searched for a visual tunnel that would give me an unobstructed shot of the owl, but couldn’t find one. These are the best shots I could manage before the owl flew deeper into the woods. I think they help to give you an idea of the beauty and mystery of this elusive creature.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Winter fishing

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter on February 4, 2016| 13 Comments »

Last week, when we still had lots of snow on the ground, I watched a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) at Huntley Meadows Park catch a relatively big fish. Most times a heron simply tilts back its head and swallows a fish immediately, but this heron walked out of the water with the fish in its mouth, probably to make sure that his prized catch did not have a chance to escape.

The heron placed the fish in the snow and adjusted its position multiple times. After several abortive attempts to get the fish into the optimal position, the heron lifted the fish up one final time and swallowed it in one big gulp.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Bald Eagle in late January

Posted in Birds, Nature, Patriotism, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Bald Eagle, birds in flight, Canon 50D, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 150-600mm, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on February 3, 2016| 5 Comments »

This past weekend at Huntley Meadows Park, I accidentally spooked a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) perched on a distant tree. As the eagle flew away, I was able to capture a few images that highlight some of its beautiful details.

These images were shot from a long way off and I had to do a lot of cropping. I am really happy, though, with the performance of my lens, even when zoomed out all the way, especially when the light is nice.

I continue to hold fast to the view that any day that I spot one of these majestic creatures is a wonderful day. I hope that today is wonderful for you, however you choose to define “wonderful.”

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Portraits of a White-throated Sparrow

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto, white-throated sparrow, Zonotrichia albicollis on February 2, 2016| 8 Comments »

The White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) is one of the few sparrows that I can reliably identify, thanks to its distinctive markings. I love the little white “goatee” and the touch of bright yellow near its eyes.

Like most sparrows, White-throated Sparrows seem to spend a lot of time poking about in the underbrush, where they are hard to see. During this past week, when the ground has been covered with snow, I’ve managed to get some close-up shots of them in relatively exposed positions.

I really like the way that the green vine provides an organic framing element in the first image. The sparrow in the second image was awash with bright light as it perched on a rotten stump at Huntley Meadows Park. The details of the stump were blown away, but the bird itself seems to have been properly exposed (and the background is wonderful).

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Red-headed Woodpecker in late January

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Melanerpes erythrocephalus, Red-headed Woodpecker on February 1, 2016| 23 Comments »

I love the Red-headed Woodpeckers (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) at Huntley Meadows Park, though it is a strain on the neck trying to spot them, because they are always high in the trees. There an area along one of the paths at the park where I often hear the chatter of the Red-headed Woodpeckers, but it is rare for me to get an unobstructed view of one of them.

This past weekend, however, I managed to spot one of them poking about near the tip of a broken-off tree. It was a bit frustrating at first, because the bird kept its head pointed away for me, but eventually it turned its head and let me get a profile shot.

I lost sight of the woodpecker a few seconds and though it probably was hiding behind the tree. I was pleasantly surprised, however, when a bright red head suddenly peeked out from inside the tree cavity and I managed to capture that moment. Later, I was able to capture an image of a Red-headed Woodpecker with an acorn in its bill—at this time of the year, acorns seem to be one of the main food sources for these woodpeckers.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Fox on a frozen pond

Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, fox, fox on a frozen pond, Huntley Meadows Park, red fox, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto, Vulpes vulpes on January 31, 2016| 30 Comments »

Early yesterday morning I trudged through the crusted snow to my favorite spot at Huntley Meadows Park. Along the way I saw a Bald Eagle and a hawk, so I knew that it was going to be a good day.

My favorite spot is a beaver pond in a somewhat remote area of the park. l like to sit at the edge of the pond and watch and wait as a feeling of peace and serenity gradually envelops me. It seems so far removed from the hurried rat race characteristic of the Washington D.C. area and has a restorative effect on my overall well-being.

The pond is frozen now, so I am able to sit on one of the logs that make up the beaver dam and extend my feet over the ice. I place a big plastic bag on the log and sit on a folded towel, so it’s pretty comfortable, even when the temperature is below freezing, as it was yesterday.

As I was looking toward a Great Blue Heron to my left, I detected some movement out of the corner of my right eye. I stopped breathing for a moment when I saw that a Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) was standing on the ice. It looked like the fox had been planning to cross the pond and stopped when it spotted me.

Our eyes met for a moment as I took a few shots. Then the unthinkable happened. I pressed my shutter button and the shutter did not engage. Glancing down at my camera, I saw that the battery had died—several hours of freezing temperatures had temporarily drained the battery. This had happened before, although never at a critical moment, so I had another battery in my pocket.

I tried to change the battery as quickly as possible, but the additional movement spooked the fox a little and and it turned around and made its way back to the far bank of the pond. I managed to get a final shot of the fox after the battery change. The fox’s face is not visible, but at least you can see its bushy tail.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Blackbird in white snow

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Agelaius phoeniceus, male Red-winged Blackbird, red-winged blackbird on January 30, 2016| 3 Comments »

Several male Red-winged Blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus) were calling out loudly in the cattails yesterday morning at Huntley Meadows Park as I walked crunchy snow on the boardwalk. There was no way that I could sneak up on the birds for a closer shot, so I was content to photograph them from a distance.

I love the look of birds against a snowy backdrop and decided to leave a lot of literal white space around the blackbirds to give a sense of the setting in which I found them. Temperature are going to soar in the next few days, so I am going to take advantage of the snow while it is still present in our area.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Song Sparrow in the snow

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Canon 50D, Huntley Meadows Park, Melospiza melodia, song sparrow, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on January 29, 2016| 13 Comments »

Are sparrows cute? Normally I don’t think of them as “cute,” but this Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) that I spotted hopping around earlier this week at Huntley Meadows Park was simply adorable.

I really like the simple white background provided by the snow and the organic shapes and texture of the small stumps that were sticking out of the frozen waters of the pond. Those simple elements add interest to the images without detracting from the main subject, the cute little sparrow.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Great Blue Heron in the great white snow

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Ardea herodias, Canon 50D, Great Blue Heron, heron in snow, Huntley Meadows Park, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto on January 28, 2016| 7 Comments »

Yesterday I came upon this Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) in one of the back areas of Huntley Meadows Park during my first visit there in a week. There was an area of open water in an ice-covered pind and I watched the heron catch several fish. I’m still going through my photos and may post some shots of his catches later. For now, I’ll leave you with this image of the heron walking toward the edge of the water.

Although the park was technically open throughout this recent snowstorm, the gate at the entrance to the parking area was closed. A Facebook posting from a friend yesterday morning noted that the parking lot was being plowed and I immediately headed out to my favorite park. Wednesday is normally a work day for me, but I had decided to take the day off to avoid a commute that promised to be hellish.

The park is still covered with lots of snow, including the boardwalk, but was passable with some effort. In some places, there is a narrow packed snow path where others have walked. My favorite places, though, were literally off of the beaten path and I found myself wading through a foot of wet slushy snow to get to them. The only other tracks I saw in these areas were those of animals.

I’d love to return to the park today, but will probably have to go to work instead with what could be a hellish commute. Local schools have finally decided to call it quits for the entire week after several days of announcing daily closures. Even the federal government is opening with a three-hour delay today.

I feel so much more energized now after having the chance to get out in the wild yesterday with my camera. I guess that I hadn’t realized how much I had missed the experience and how important nature photography had become in my life.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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The morning after the storm

Posted in Nature, Photography, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, Bless My Soul, Canon A620, KIA Soul, Runnymeade, snow, winter on January 24, 2016| 18 Comments »

At 6:00 this morning in the neighborhood, it was clear and cold and the moon was shining brightly. Thank God we made it through the blizzard without losing power and for the fact that the snow is powdery and relatively light, even if there is lots of it to clear away.

All told, I think we had somewhere between 24 and 30 inches of snow (61 to 76 cm), with drifts much higher. It snowed almost continuously for almost 30 hours, sometimes accompanied by howling winds that blew the snow sidewards.

In some areas of North America, that amount of snow might be a normal occurrence, but here in Northern Virginia, it is almost a record-breaking amount for the area. I live in a townhouse area, and there is simply nowhere to put all of this snow. Already I have a pile of snow almost as tall as I am.

The sun is shining now and it will soon be time to return to digging out. Normally I would be getting ready for church now, but there’s no way I can make it through the neighborhood streets that are covered still with well over a foot of snow.

My car’s license plate, however, is a constant reminder for me and a continuous prayer—I drive a KIA Soul.

Here’s what the entire car looked like yesterday during a period when the snow was falling slowly. We got another foot or so after I took this photo. It will be dug out in a short while, but I don’t think I will be driving anywhere for at least a couple more days.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Feeling like a beaver

Posted in Landscape, Nature, Photography, Winter, tagged Alexandria VA, beaver lodge, Canon 50D, Canon 70-300mm telephoto zoom lens, Huntley Meadows Park, winter on January 23, 2016| 7 Comments »

I woke up this morning feeling a bit like the beavers in the lodge I photographed yesterday morning at Huntley Meadows Park. They were snug and warm in their little house, surrounded by a world of snow and ice, with plenty of food at hand.

As for me, there is well over a foot of drifted snow on the ground and more is still falling. Eventually I will need to get as busy as the proverbial beaver and remove some of the snow, but for now at least, it’s nice to enjoy it from the comfortable insides of my warm and cozy house.

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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