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Archive for the ‘wildlife’ Category

Unexpected spider

Posted in Arachnids, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on May 31, 2013| 9 Comments »

As I was reaching for my camera bag after taking a photo of a spider, I was surprised to see an unexpected visitor—a much larger spider with what looks like an egg sack.

I was in a wooded area and had placed my bag on the ground while I set up my tripod to take a photo of a small spider (shown in the second photo).  After getting the shots, I returned to my bag. I bent down to open the zipper of the bag and suddenly was eye-to-eye with the spider. The spider seemed really large at that moment, although retrospectively it does not seem that big when I compare it with the Adidas logo on the zipper pull. When I tried to adjust the bag’s position, the spider moved away, but fortunately I had the foresight to take some photos before attempting to improve the lighting situation.

I am not sure of the identification of either of these spiders, but find them both to be pretty cool in their own ways. I’d welcome some more information from more knowledgeable readers about the white ball and, in particular, if it is an egg sack.

UPDATE: I have done a little research and think that the spider in the first shot may be a Nursery Web Spider (Psaurina mira), a spider that is known for carrying its egg sack with its fangs. Some other spiders attach the egg sack to their spinnerets.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Heron in the cattails

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on May 31, 2013| 4 Comments »

A Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) seems to be a regular visitor to the beaver pond at my local marsh (and may have taken up residence nearby), but usually fishes in an area in which it is tough to get a clear shot.

One recent morning, however, I was happy to see him in a closer area and was able to get these shots. The first one has a less cluttered background, which helps to highlight the heron’s head.  Sometimes, though, I like the second one better, in which the heron is tucked into the midst of the growth and is partially camouflaged.

Do you have a preference for one of the two images?

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Upward mobility

Posted in Humor, Nature, Photography, Reptiles, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on May 29, 2013| 10 Comments »

It may be hard for this snapping turtle to climb the ladder of success, when he had such difficulties merely getting himself onto a floating log. It would be understatement to note that Eastern Snapping Turtles (Chelydra serpentina serpentina) are not exactly graceful when they pull themselves out of the water (and even in the water, they seem a bit clumsy).

I read somewhere on-line that snapping turtles—unlike most other turtles—generally do not bask in the sun out of the water. Therefore, I was a little surprised when this turtle swam up to the log and began his attempt to climb onto it. It was like watching a movie in slow motion as he struggled and strained to pull his body up out of the water.

The first image shows him taking a break after making it halfway to his goal. I love the details of his visible front leg and all of his wrinkles. In the second shot, he has achieved his objective and seems to be settling in for an afternoon nap in the sun.

I noted that the log is no longer floating out of the water as it was at the start.—apparently success weighs heavy on the victor.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Baby bird’s parents

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on May 27, 2013| 4 Comments »

As I stalked the nest of the rescued baby bird featured in a posting last week, hoping to catch sight of its parents, I took this shot. Can you identify the bird from this photo of it entering the nesting cavity?

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Let me back off a little and explain. The nest in question is inside of a crabapple tree in the front yard of a neighbor’s house, about a yard or so (one meter) above the ground. There are two openings and you can sometimes see the baby birds’ heads pop up through the lower opening, which serves as a window. I learned that the upper opening serves as an entry door for the parents. This is one of my initial shots with my 100mm macro lens of the tree, with one of the parents entering the “door.”

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I came back at a later time with my 135-400mm lens and set up my tripod on the sidewalk and waited. It was mid-afternoon and the sun was shining almost directly into the opening, which complicated the exposure, but my patience was rewarded when the parents made multiple trips into the nest. This is another shot of one of them entering the nest, which you can see is a pretty tight squeeze.

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I am not that great at making bird identifications from the rear, so my job was greatly facilitated when one of the birds paused and turned to the side prior to entering the nest. The mystery birds are Tufted Titmice (Baeolophus bicolor). I can’t quite figure out what the little bird has in its bill, but assume that it is something edible. Can anyone else tell what it is?

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Timing was tricky as I tried to maintain my focus and the sidewalk was not all that comfortable. (I should bring a cushion next time.) Sometimes the parents would signal their imminent arrival with a call, but sometimes they would fly in out of nowhere. I attempted to capture the birds flying in and then flying out of the nest. Here is one of the few shots I was able to get of one of the parents preparing to leave the nesting cavity.

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Sometimes when processing my photos, I come across one that I really like, even though it has all kinds of technical problems. I decided to end this posting with such a photo. The bird has already flown out of focus, but is clearly visible and is casting a cool shadow just below the entry into the nest.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Staredown on the log

Posted in Humor, Nature, Photography, Reptiles, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on May 26, 2013| 10 Comments »

Yesterday, when an Eastern Snapping Turtle (Chelydra serpentina serpentina) crawled onto a floating log, where a much smaller Red-eared Slider (Trachemys scripta elegans) was already basking in the sun, it looked like there might be a showdown.

The two faced off, staring at each other. Despite the size difference, the small turtle did not appear to be intimidated and refused to back off at all. Eventually they both relaxed and decided that peaceful co-existence was the best option.

It turned out that both the log and the sun were big enough to share.

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Click on the photo to see a higher resolution view.

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Not a seagull

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , on May 25, 2013| 6 Comments »

Yesterday was cloudy and rainy and the wildlife seemed to have sought shelter, but I spotted one bird circling over the largest body of water at my marshland park. Judging from the way that it flew, I initially thought it might be some kind of seagull.

From different angles, though, it looked a little bit like some kind of a hawk. I managed to get some photos of the various wing positions while the bird was flying and find them to be fascinating. Eventually I got a somewhat blurred shot of the entire bird and have concluded that it probably is an osprey (Pandion haliaetus), a bird that I have never before encountered, but definitely one I hope to see again in the near future.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Bird cowlick

Posted in Birds, Humor, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on May 24, 2013| 13 Comments »

When I was a boy, I had hair that would stand up in a cowlick and refuse to lie flat, and that’s what I immediately thought of when I saw this Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) with frizzy feathers.

My Mom’s solution to my hair problem was a little saliva on her fingers that she would apply to my hair and smooth it down.

I thought of doing the same to this little bird, but I am not sure that it would appreciate my efforts.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Baby bird

Posted in Birds, commentary, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , on May 24, 2013| 4 Comments »

What do you do when you find a baby bird on the ground? That was the dilemma I faced a couple of nights ago, when I found this tiny baby bird on the lawn of a neighbor’s townhouse.

Earlier in the week another neighbor had alerted me that there were baby birds in a tree a few doors down from my townhouse. I live in a suburban townhouse community and each of us has a postage-stamp size front lawn and a mandatory tree, mostly small crab apple trees. The baby birds were in a cavity of one such tree, a mere two feet (60 cm) above the ground and there seemed to be three or four babies.

When I returned home from work, I checked on the babies and suddenly heard a squawk. I looked down at my feet and saw one of the babies in the grass. There are all kinds of views about the advisability of putting baby birds back in a nest, but I was genuinely concerned that this tiny bird was in an incredibly vulnerable spot (among other things, we have some cats in the neighborhood).

A little fearful of doing it myself, I called my friend (and fellow blogger) Cindy Dyer, who was both willing and able to place the small bird back with its siblings in the cavity of the tree. Yesterday evening, I made a quick check of them and they seem to be ok.

I was mostly focused on dealing with the situation, but did manage to get a few quick shots of the little bird, which I can’t yet identify.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Gone fishing

Posted in Arachnids, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , on May 21, 2013| 12 Comments »

Six-spotted Fishing Spiders (Dolomedes triton) are a particularly fascinating kind of spiders and I was really excited to see one yesterday at my local marsh.

Fishing spiders don’t build a web, but use the surface of the water in the same way that other spiders use a web. They extend some of their legs onto the surface of the water and when they feel the vibrations of a prey, they run across the surface of the water to snatch it. According to Wikipedia, the very sensitive hairs on their legs and feet help them to interpret the vibrations they sense and determine distance and direction. Their eyes play a secondary role in hunting, particularly because they do much of their hunting at night.

This spider was a couple of feet below the level of the boardwalk and several feet away and I was able to use my tripod to help steady the shot. In fact, the spider was cooperative enough that I made attempts with my 135-400mm zoom, my 55-250mm zoom, and my 100mm macro lens. Of the images that I am posting, the first image was shot with the longer zoom and the second with the macro lens. The macro lens let me hang over the edge of the boardwalk a little, which let me get a little closer, but made it tough to brace myself.

If you want to see a few more images of these interesting spiders, check out my previous postings Fishing spider waiting for prey and Fishing in the swamp.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Green frog

Posted in Amphibians, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on May 20, 2013| 7 Comments »

I love taking photos of frogs (I can blame the Muppets and Kermit the Frog) and captured this image of a Northern Green Frog (Rana clamitans melanota) this morning at my local marshland park. I am not sure what was floating on the surface of the water, but it provides a nice contrast to the color of the frog.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Really close

Posted in Art, Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged , , , , , on May 20, 2013| 4 Comments »

I captured this close-up image of a Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) as it rested on a perch a short distance from the location of its nest, underneath a raised portion of the boardwalk at my local marshland park.

I have posted a number of close-up shots of Barn Swallows in the last few weeks (including one that I entitled Too Close), but this one is distinctive for a couple of reasons. The swallow is in the midst of working on its nest, and the mud and twigs in its bill show clearly its primary building materials. Most of my other photos have showed a swallow posing as it took a break from chasing insects.

The other notable feature of this image that I really like is its narrow depth of field. Although I included the sparrow’s entire body in the shot, only a small part of it is in sharp focus, essentially the forward half of its head, including the one visible eye. I think that the limited area of sharp focus really helps to draw attention to the eye and to the muddy bill.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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First harvestman of the spring

Posted in Arachnids, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on May 19, 2013| 10 Comments »

It was raining a little yesterday when I encountered my first harvestman (order Opiliones) of the spring, which explains the drops of water that you may notice on some on its legs.

Growing up, I was accustomed to calling them daddy longlegs and thought they were a kind of spider. Last year, I learned that harvestman in fact are not spiders, even though they do belong to the class of arachnids—harvestmen are in the order Opiliones and spiders are in the order Araneae.

I shot this image with my 55-250mm telephoto zoom, which meant that I couldn’t get in super close to the harvestman. However, I did manage to get at least part of all of his legs in the shot, which was not the case last year when I photographed one with my macro lens—there is an unavoidable tendency to want to get close whenever I put the macro lens on my camera.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Tree Swallow home

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on May 18, 2013| 9 Comments »

Although I never saw the Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) enter the nesting box, she poked her head inside of it and was checking it out as a prospective home.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Least Sandpiper

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged , , , , , on May 17, 2013| 7 Comments »

This tiny shorebird cooperated for me by posing on the boardwalk, allowing me to determine that it is a Least Sandpiper (Calidris minutilla), the smallest shorebird in the world.

Shorebirds are notoriously hard to identify, because so many of them are similar in coloration and relative size is a tough measure when a bird is not in a group. For small sandpipers, the color of the  legs is one of the key distinguishing characteristics. In this case, the yellow legs help to identify it as a Least Sandpiper and not a Western or Semipalmated Sandpiper, which have black legs. I am definitely no expert on this subject (and have no clue what Semipalmated means), but the articles on the Cornell Lab of Ornithology website are full of fascinating information about birds.

Eventually the sandpiper jumped into the water, but remained close to the shore, as if it knew that I wanted to get a few shots before it flew away. I can’t overemphasize how small this bird is at about 6 inches (15 cm), especially compared to something like a Greater Yellowlegs at 14 inches (36 cm), so I was glad it was not immediately spooked by my presence.

As someone who pays a lot of attention to grammar, I must confess that I find the name of this bird a little troubling. There seems to be be a missing adjective to go with the superlative “least.” However, I have given up trying to understand the reasoning behind the names of birds—the names are a hodgepodge of approaches, certainly not a scientific method.

The correctness of the name is the least of my worries when trying to photograph these small birds.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Angry eyes

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged , , , , , on May 16, 2013| 10 Comments »

Although it is usually best not to take head-on shots of birds, I can’t help but post this image of a Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) looking at me with angry eyes. I don’t know if the swallow qualifies as an Angry Bird, but there is no denying the intensity of the stare.

I grew up with the music of Loggins and Messina and one of their popular songs entitled “Angry Eyes”  opens with these words:

Time, time and again
I see you staring down at me
Now, then and again
I wonder what it is that you see

With those angry eyes
Well, I bet you wish you could cut me down
With those angry eyes

(Lyrics from www.elyrics.net)

What does go on in the minds of barn swallows when they encounter us?

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Shorebird Ballet

Posted in Birds, Humor, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , on May 16, 2013| 4 Comments »

Swans have Swan Lake, so why shouldn’t shorebirds have Shorebird Ballet?

It looked like these Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes) were practicing their dance moves in the water one day recently. As you can see, it requires great balance and, as the second photo shows, attention to the foot position—you have to keep the toes pointed. (One or more of these might be Greater Yellowlegs (Tringa melanoleuca), but my identification skills are not honed enough to be able to distinguish between the two with any great certainty.)

You can’t turn on the television these days without seeing commercials for dance competition programs like Dancing With the Stars or So You Think You Can Dance.  These birds could be at the leading edge of a new dance craze, Dancing With the Birds.

They already have a leg up on their competition.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Alone

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , on May 15, 2013| 10 Comments »

All alone, this Hooded Merganser duckling sought refuge on a floating log, separated from his family. I don’t know for sure what happened to the rest of the ducklings and the mother, but I had heard some reports of dwindling numbers of ducklings.

The duckling seemed to feel safe on the log and appeared to relax a little, but kept looking forlornly out into the distance. Eventually he was joined by a turtle on the log. For a brief moment, perhaps, he felt a little less alone. Deep inside, though, he felt a desire to grow stronger, so he stretched out his wings, fervently believing that someday he would be able to fly.

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Where are the others?

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Feeling a little more comfortable

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Someday I’ll be able to fly

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Eagle versus blackbirds—part 2

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on May 15, 2013| 4 Comments »

After doing an initial posting earlier this week on an encounter between a young Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) and group of Red-winged Blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus), I reviewed my photos and came up with a few more to share.

These shots show various moments in the assault of the blackbirds, which seemed determined to harass the much larger eagle. I naturally paid the most attention to the juvenile eagle and tried to capture his attitude of alertness and wariness. After a few minutes of the off-an-on attacks, the eagle finally took off, seemingly in pursuit of the blackbirds.

It was amazing to watch this action and I am glad I managed to get some photos to document the encounter.

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Buzzing the eagle (click on photo for higher resolution view)

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Circling around for the next attack

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Ever vigilant

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Alert for the next attack

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Relaxed but wary

Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Too close

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged , , , , , on May 14, 2013| 17 Comments »

I hadn’t intended to do a head-and-shoulders portrait of this Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica), but my telephoto zoom was near the far end when I carefully placed my tripod on the boardwalk and focused on the swallow.

Sensing that the bird was not going to remain perched for very long, I quickly snapped off a few exposures. My left hand was adjusting the ballhead of my tripod and my right hand was pressing the shutter, so zooming out was not really an option at that moment. The image that you see is as much of the bird as I was able to capture.

I did manage to get some good detail in the eye (and I recommend clicking on the photo for a higher resolution view) and I am happy with the background, which once again looks like a studio setting—it may not be very exciting, but it sure is uncluttered.

I suppose that the lesson for me is to have my camera fully adjusted as I am sneaking up on birds, but sometimes “mistakes” turn out pretty well too.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Juvenile eagle and blackbird

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on May 13, 2013| 6 Comments »

I was checking out a location this morning where I had previously seen an eagle, when suddenly a juvenile Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) landed on the tree at which I was staring. He seemed a little flustered and I soon found out why—he was being harassed by a group of Red-winged Blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus). They may have been crows, but one of my shots seems to show a flash of red on one of the black birds.

I have a few more shots that I am working on, but thought I’d give you an idea of the scene that I witnessed. I am pretty sure that this is a juvenile Bald Eagle, but would welcome a correction if I am wrong. In any case, it was pretty exciting for me.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Eastern Box Turtle

Posted in Nature, Photography, Reptiles, wildlife, tagged , , , , on May 13, 2013| 2 Comments »

Previously I have seen turtles only in the water or sunning themselves on logs, but this weekend I encountered this cool-looking turtle, which I have identified as an Eastern Box Turtle (Terrapene carolina carolina), while I was walking through the woods.

As I was searching to identify the turtle, I came across all kind of interesting factoids, like the box turtle’s ability to close itself up entirely in its shell and its normal lifespan of 25-30 years. The Eastern Box Turtle is so popular that, according to Wikipedia, it is is the official state reptile of North Carolina and Tennessee.

As for me, I am particularly attracted to its eyes, which somehow remind me of those of Yoda, the Star Wars character.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Mating moths

Posted in Bugs, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on May 12, 2013| 9 Comments »

Do you prefer to take photos alone or with others?

Normally I prefer to shoot alone, to move at my own pace and shoot whatever catches my eye at a given moment. However, there are advantages to working side-by-side with another photographer. The other person can serve as a spotter and point out opportunities and subject that you might have otherwise missed. It’s also interesting and instructive after a shoot is done to compare images and see the same scene through another set of eyes.

Friday late in the afternoon, I noticed that my neighbor, friend, and photography mentor, Cindy Dyer, was out in her garden taking photos of her beautiful flowers. Cindy, a noted photographer, has been a constant influence on my photography this past year, encouraging me and inspiring me. She loves this time of the year, when nature explodes with color, and her blog is full of beautiful images of flowers of all varieties (and lots of other cool photos too).

When I started shooting with Cindy, I was shooting a lot of flowers and a few insects, but gradually moved to shooting more insects than flowers. Somehow my eyes are attracted to insects. Shortly after joining Cindy in her garden with my camera and tripod, I spotted what I thought was an interesting looking insect. Upon closer examination, it turned out to be a pair of mating moths, that together were about one inch long (2.5 centimeters). They were positioned in such a way that the only way to capture them was to shoot from directly overhead. I had real problems with depth of field as I got my macro lens as close as it would let me get.

I challenged Cindy (in a friendly way) to photograph this couple and she took up the challenge and posted an image in her blog. It was an interesting challenge pitting Nikon against Canon and teacher against student as we explored the limits of our macro lenses and photography skills.

This little incident helped to remind me of the benefits of shooting with someone else, especially someone who gently pushes me forward. It usually works best for me when we travel somewhere and shoot side-by-side part of the time and wander on our own the rest of the time—the best of both worlds.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Common Yellowthroat

Posted in Art, Birds, Music, Nature, wildlife, tagged , , , , , on May 11, 2013| 9 Comments »

I have been hearing the calls of this little warbler for several weeks, but today was the first day that I got some clear shots of the male Common Yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas).

I was fortunate that the foliage was not too dense when I initially spotted the bird and even when he moved to a second spot in the same tree, I had a relatively unobstructed view. Birders at my local marshland tell me that the male comes north before the female and that soon the females, which are not so brightly colored, will arrive.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Thirsty gosling

Posted in Art, Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , on May 10, 2013| 9 Comments »

The last few weeks I have been following the adventures of a family of Canada Geese (Branta canadensis) at my local marshland and encountered them this morning as they were foraging in the muddy grass.

There are currently four goslings (there may have been six initially if this is the same family I saw previously) and it was fun to watch them as they would wander off a little from their parents and then scurry back quickly.

It was hard to get clear shots of the youngsters, but I did manage to get this shot that I like when one of the goslings walked to the water’s edge to get a drink.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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From the highest tree

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , on May 10, 2013| 4 Comments »

On a heavily overcast day with intermittent rain, most birds seemed to be in hiding, but this male Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) took the opposite approach by flying to the highest tree and loudly announcing his presence to the world with his distinctive call.

I like the way that the limited lighting caused this profile shot to turn into almost a silhouette, but somehow the colorful shoulder markings managed to show through.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Focused Green Heron

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , on May 8, 2013| 13 Comments »

I stopped dead in my tracks on Monday when I spotted this Green Heron (Butorides virescens) as I was walking along the boardwalk at my local marshland park.

Only rarely have I had such an unobstructed view of this beautiful bird. My camera was already affixed to my tripod and I slowly opened its legs and set it down, all the while keeping my eyes on the Green Heron. I didn’t dare to make any sudden movements and felt like I was moving in slow motion as I inched my way forward to the edge of the boardwalk.

I don’t know if the heron was actively hunting for prey, but he seemed really focused and unaware of my presence (or was willing to ignore me). Initially upright, the heron gradually leaned more and more forward and appeared to be focusing even more intently.

My breathing seemed loud in my ears and my shutter sounded like a machine gun to me, but the heron hung around long enough for me to get some pretty good photos. Eventually, though, he got spooked and flew away, but I think I have an idea of the general area in which he hangs out, so I hope to encounter him again.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Wood Duck entering nesting box

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , on May 5, 2013| 3 Comments »

Yesterday I watched and waited as a female Wood Duck (Aix sponsa), perched on top of a nesting box at my local marsh park, decided when it was the right moment to enter into the box and work on her nest.

Initially I was surprised when I spotted the duck atop this particular nesting box, because Hooded Merganser babies had exited from the box only a week earlier. The female moved around a bit on top of the box, looking in both directions (second photo). Eventually she bent her head lower and lower, as if checking to see that the entrance to the box was clear (third and fourth photos.

When she finally did take off, she flew a little to one side (fifth photo) and made a tight little circle in the air. In the final shot, you can see the female duck with her eyes on the target, approaching it from just below the level of the bottom of the nesting box.

I led with the shot that I like the most. I am amazed that the duck can synchronize her movements so well and arrest her forward momentum to keep from banging into the back of the box (and to keep her wings from getting stuck).  The lighting kept changing as waited for the action to develop, to the point that I moved into manual mode, something that I only rarely do. I am happy that the sun was shining at the moment when she entered the box, because I think the shadow adds to the interest of the photo.

I missed seeing the Hooded Merganser duckings leaving the box—maybe I will be luckier with these Wood Ducks.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Portrait of a Barn Swallow

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, tagged , , , , , on May 5, 2013| 14 Comments »

With the arrival of blue skies, I was finally able to a close-up shot of a Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica) with a natural backdrop (vice the white background of the overcast days).

The lighting was beautiful and the swallow cooperated by turning its head slightly, enabling me to capture the catch light in its eye. The shadows are pretty minimal, but help to keep the image from being too flat.

I even like the serious expression on the swallow’s face, as though he had decided that this was a formal portrait.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Wood Ducks take to the air

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on May 4, 2013| 5 Comments »

Wood Ducks (Aix sponsa), especially the males, are probably the coolest-looking ducks, but in the past few months the only ones that I have seen have been flying away from me, generally from branches on which they were perched.

I was not really expecting that I would see any Wood Ducks on the ground when I approached a tiny pond earlier this week. However, I did notice a little movement at the water’s edge and had just focused on that area, when suddenly a pair of wood ducks took off. I snapped off a few shots, not really expecting that they would be in focus and was pleasantly surprised at the result

The ducks in this image ended up pretty much in focus, especially the male’s head, his most prominent and colorful feature. The wings have some motion blur, but it’s not too distracting.

I’d like to say that my focusing skills are getting better, but I know that this shot was primarily the result of luck. It doesn’t really matter that much how I got the shot—what matters more to me is that I like the result.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Unexpected visitors—Glossy Ibises

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , on May 4, 2013| 2 Comments »

Yesterday at my local marsh, several birders were really excited about the unexpected presence of a pair of Glossy Ibises (Plegadis falcinellus). I missed seeing them fly in, but spent almost an hour watching them forage in the distance, listening to the debate among the birders about whether these were Glossy Ibises or White-faced Ibises—they concluded the birds were Glossy Ibises.

I think that these strange-looking wading birds tend to be found nearer the coast and it is relatively rare, though not unprecedented, to have them at our marsh. I was not able to get any close-up shots, but I did manage to take some photos that show their downward-curved bills and colorful breeding plumage. The last shot really gives you a sense of the color—one of the ibises opened its wings to hop over a little patch of water.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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Another swallow confrontation

Posted in Birds, commentary, Humor, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on May 3, 2013| 10 Comments »

Are Barn  Swallows normally hostile toward each other?

As I was looking over once more the shots that I took on Monday, I came across this little series of images of two Barn Swallows (Hirundo rustica) interacting. I had passed over these photos when I did my first sorting, because they were seriously underexposed. Unlike the photo that I posted earlier this week of a confrontation between two swallows, I was not using a flash for these photos, which meant, however,  that I was able to take a burst of photos. (When I used my pop-up flash, I had to wait for the flash to re-cycle in order to shoot again.)

I tweaked these photos in Photoshop Elements (and cleaned up the background a little) and was amazed to discover that this confrontation seems to have escalated a bit beyond the previous one. The flying swallow seems much more aggressive and threatening, going beyond the squawking I had seen before, and looking more like he was ready to attack the sitting swallow, who seems to be paying attention to the incoming bird.

These photos would have been better with a higher shutter speed and better light, but I am amazed that I was able to capture this moment. I love interactions between members of the same species (and between different species) and I enjoy trying to catch those moments.

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Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved

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