April 17, 2019 by Mike Powell
I sometimes complain about the names given to species and how little they correspond to what I actually see in the field. That certainly was not the case yesterday when I spotted a Twin-spotted Spiketail dragonfly (Cordulegaster maculata) along a creek in Northern Virginia. If you look closely at the image, ideally by double-clicking it, you will see the double row of spots on the dragonfly’s abdomen (the “tail”) and the long pointed ovipositor extending well beyond the end of the abdomen, the “spiketail.”
As I post photos of dragonflies, I realize that it is hard for readers to get a feel of the relative size of these beautiful creatures. The Uhler’s Sundragons that I have featured recently are about 1.7 inches in length (44 mm). A Twin-spotted Spiketail, by contrast, is much larger, about 2.8 inches in length (69 mm).
Both of these species are uncommon to rare in our area, primarily because of their specific habitat requirements—they require clean forest streams, which are not common in the Washington D.C. metropolitan area and they have an early and short flight season of only a few weeks.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon 50D, Cordulegaster maculata, creek, Northern Virginia, Tamron 180mm, Twin-spotted Spiketail, Twin-spotted Spiketail dragonfly | 5 Comments »
April 16, 2019 by Mike Powell
You know you are pretty close to a dragonfly when you can see individual grains of pollen on its head and body. I photographed this Uhler’s Sundragon dragonfly (Helocordulia uhleri) on 12 April alongside a creek in Northern Virginia. Ideally it would be best to stabilize macro shots taken at this close a range by placing the camera on a tripod, but in a field situation with a live subject, that is rarely possible.
If you click on the individual images, you will see some wonderful details, like the ommatidia, the individual optical units that make up the amazing compound eyes of these dragonflies.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon 50D, creek, Helocordulia uhleri, Northern Virginia, ommatidia, Tamron 180mm, Uhler's Sundragon, Uhler's Sundragon dragonfly | 8 Comments »
April 15, 2019 by Mike Powell
One of the hazards of exploring creeks and streams at this time of the year is that snakes may be sunning themselves at water’s edge. Last week I was startled when I suddenly realized that there was a snake right in front of me, precisely in the direction in which I had been moving.
I managed to get a shot of the sunning snake, which I believe to be a Northern Water Snake (Nerodia sipedon), just before it set off swimming down the creek. Although the first shot may make it look like I was really close to the snake, I was actually a good distance away—generally I prefer to use long telephoto lenses with snakes.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Nature, Photography, Reptiles, snake, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon SX50, creek, Nerodia sipedon, Northern Virginia, Northern Water Snake, Northern Watersnake | 8 Comments »
April 14, 2019 by Mike Powell
As we move deeper into spring, more and more butterflies are starting to appear, like this beautiful Zebra Swallowtail (Protographium marcellus) that I spotted yesterday at Accotink Bay Wildlife Refuge. Zebra Swallowtails are most often associated with pawpaw trees, which is helpful to know, though I must confess I don’t know how to identify a pawpaw tree. What I do know is that these butterflies are constantly on the move and fly in such an erratic way that I have trouble getting a decent photograph of one.
Yesterday I managed to get a shot of a Zebra Swallowtail when it paused momentarily at a small tree, perhaps a possible pawpaw. What I like about the shot is that it shows well the colors of the butterfly as well as its long “tails.” I could not decide how much to crop the image, which was taken from a pretty good distance away, so I am including tow versions of the image. Personally I am drawn most to the second one, but recognize that many folks may prefer the first versions, which draws you more quickly to the butterfly’s beautiful details.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Accotink Bay Wildlife Refuge, Canon 50D, Fort Belvoir VA, Protographium marcellus, Tamron 180mm, Zebra Swallowtail, Zebra Swallowtail butterfly | 9 Comments »
April 13, 2019 by Mike Powell
Do you associate certain colors with certain seasons? For me, yellow is definitely a springtime color. After months of winter weather dominated by shades of gray and a palette of faded colors, spring explodes with bright colors, with yellow daffodils popping up all over the place. Usually I have to wait a bit longer for yellow to pop up in the birds and insects that I enjoy photographing.
As I was exploring with my camera this week, I ran across bright yellow subjects in two very different locations. One, a Pine Warbler (Setophaga pinus) was quite appropriately perched high in a pine tree. The second was an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly (Papilio glaucus) that appeared to be probing the sand on the bank of a forest creek. I suspect that the butterfly needed the minerals and salts, although I confess to initially thinking that butterflies needed only nectar from flowers for sustenance (and there were definitely no flower in the area of that creek).
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Butterflies, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Accotink Bay Wildlife Refuge, Canon 50D, Canon SX50, Eastern Tiger Swallowtail, Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly, Papilio glaucus, pine warbler, Setophaga pinus, Tamron 180mm | 14 Comments »
April 12, 2019 by Mike Powell
On Wednesday I finally photographed my first dragonflies of the season, some Uhler’s Sundragons (Helocordulia uhleri) that I spotted while exploring a creek in Northern Virginia. This was my first time seeing this species and I was particularly excited, because it is considered to be rare in my area. According to the Dragonflies of Northern Virginia website, this species is a “scarce and seldom seen member of the emerald family” and is a “habitat specialist with a brief and early flight period.”
Initially I took some medium distance shots with my 180mm macro lens and them moved in closer to get the first shot. In order for me to get such a close-up shot, the dragonfly has to be cooperative and this female Uhler’s Sundragon was quite accommodating.
As you probably notice in the first photo, only a limited amount of details are in focus when shooting a subject this close. One of the biggest challenges is to ensure that the most important features are the sharpest. Following the usual rule for photographing live subjects, I attempted to focus on the eyes.
For me, dragonfly season is now open and I anticipate that I will be featuring different species of these beautiful aerial acrobats quite regularly in the upcoming months.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Dragonflies, dragonfly, Insects, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon 50D, first spring dragonfly, Helocordulia uhleri, Northern Virginia, Tamron 180mm, Uhler's Sundragon, Uhler's Sundragon dragonfly | 6 Comments »
April 11, 2019 by Mike Powell
When you truly love someone, you love them warts and all (and as the second image shows, American Toads (Anaxyrus americanus) have lots of warts). I spotted these amorous amphibians earlier this week at Prince William Forest Park in Triangle, Virginia.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Amphibians, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged American Toad, Anaxyrus americanus, Canon SX50, Prince William Forest Park, toad, Triangle VA | 4 Comments »
April 11, 2019 by Mike Powell
As I was exploring Accotink Bay Wildlife Refuge earlier this week, I spotted an unusual shape in a small tree. I moved a little closer and zoomed in with my camera and discovered that it was a fairly large animal. It was bigger than a squirrel, so my initial thought was that it was a raccoon or an opossum, but as I studied my viewfinder, I quickly rejected those possibilities.
What was the animal? When I uploaded the images to my computer, the facial features reminded me of a beaver, but the visible portions of the animal’s tail look to be hairy, so I eliminated both the beaver and the muskrat. Grasping at straws, I started looking at photos of porcupines, but they didn’t match at all what I was seeing in the photo. Finally I came across some photos of a Groundhog (Marmota monax) and I realized that I had finally found a match.
I guess that the name “groundhog” threw me off, because I expected a groundhog to be on the “ground,” not in a tree and I can’t imagine a “hog” climbing a tree. According to Wikipedia, groundhogs, also known as woodchucks, “occasionally climb trees when escaping predators or when they want to survey their surroundings.”
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Accotink Bay Wildlife Refuge, Canon SX50, Fort Belvoir VA, groundhog, marmota monax | 12 Comments »
April 10, 2019 by Mike Powell
I was a little surprised and quite happy this past weekend to spot a Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) poking about on the ground at Occoquan Regional Park. Most of the time I have to settle for high-angle shots when I am lucky enough to spot one of these giant woodpeckers. I have been told that these woodpeckers regularly probe fallen trees, but this was a first for me.
After I inadvertently spooked the woodpecker, it flew to a nearby tree. The light was coming from the side and the front when I took the second shot and it made the woodpecker red crest look like it was on fire. Somehow it seemed appropriate, given that most redheads I have known have tended to be quite fiery.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon SX50, Dryocopus pileatus, Occoquan Regional Park, Pileated Woodpecker, Woodbridge VA | 10 Comments »
April 9, 2019 by Mike Powell
Can you actually see a sound? Yesterday while I was exploring Prince William Forest Park, I heard a whole lot of croaking. Eventually I spotted one really loud male toad with an inflated vocal sac, which was pretty cool. What were even cooler were the concentric ripples in the water generated by the toad’s croaking.
The second image shows the toad resting in between performances, whose main purpose is to attract mates. His song did not appear to have had any immediate benefits, although I was certainly impressed.
UPDATE: I initially identified this as a frog, but fellow blogger and wildlife enthusiast Walter Sanford pointed out to me that this is probably an American Toad (Anaxyrus americanus).
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Amphibians, frog, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged American Toad, Anaxyrus americanus, Canon 50D, Canon 70-300mm, Canon SX50, croaking frog, frog, Prince William Forest Park, Triangle VA, vocal sac | 19 Comments »
April 8, 2019 by Mike Powell
Last week I took a break from exploring Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge and hiked about in Prince William Forest Park in Triangle, Virginia. According to Wikipedia, this park is the largest protected natural area in the Washington D.C. metropolitan region at over 16,000 acres. I went lighter than usual with my camera gear, carrying only my Canon SX50 superzoom camera, because I knew that I would be doing a lot of walking on hilly forest trails, which fortunately were well-marked with signs and colored blazes on the trees.
I did not see much wildlife, but was quite happy to capture these shots of a Hermit Thrush (Catharus guttatus) that was poking about in the underbrush. The shape of the Hermit Thrush reminds me of that of the American Robin, another bird in the greater thrush family, though, of course, the breast of the Hermit Thrush lacks the distinctive reddish-orange color of the robin.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon SX50, Catharus guttatus, Hermit Thrush, Prince William Forest Park, thrush, Triangle VA | 7 Comments »
April 7, 2019 by Mike Powell
I’m still looking for my first dragonfly of the season, but was thrilled yesterday afternoon when I spotted my first damselfly, a Fragile Forktail (Ischnura posita), at Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge. In anticipation of seeing one of these small insects, I mounted my Tamron 180mm macro lens on my camera, a lens that has gone largely unused during the long winter months in favor of my telephoto zoom lens.
Yesterday was a nice reminded of how much I enjoy using a macro lens. (To give you a sense of scale, a Fragile Forktail damselfly is about 0.8-1.1 inches in length (21-29mm).)
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in damselfly, Dragonflies, Insects, Macro Photography, Nature, Photography, spring | Tagged Canon 50D, Fort Belvoir VA, Fragile Forktail, Fragile Forktail damselfly, Ischnura posita, Jackson Miles Abbott Wetland Refuge, Tamron 180mm | 10 Comments »
April 6, 2019 by Mike Powell
I’ve noticed that recently I have been really sensitive to lighting and moods and not just to specific subjects. It’s problematic for me, because it is so difficult to figure out how to capture a feeling.
That is part of what was going through my head when I took this photo early in the morning this past Wednesday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The sun had already risen, but it was still low in the sky. I loved the way that shafts of light were visible coming through the trees. It was a cold morning and mist was hanging over the still water of a small pond. Could I possiblycapture the details that took my breath away?
So what do you think, or more importantly, what do you feel?
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Art, Landscape, Nature, Photography, spring, sunrise | Tagged Canon SX50, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, sunrise, Woodbridge VA | 29 Comments »
April 5, 2019 by Mike Powell
Ospreys (Pandion haliaetus) in my area have been building nests in all kinds of places, including on some channel markers in the Potomac River off of Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I personally don’t really think that there is enough space there for a nest, but the ospreys seem to think otherwise.
I am amused by the “No wake” sign that they have chosen. During busy periods, I would think that “No sleep” would be more appropriate.
Have a wonderful weekend. 🙂
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Humor, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon 50D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Osprey, Pandion haliaetus, sleeping osprey, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA | 4 Comments »
April 5, 2019 by Mike Powell
There is no doubt that I love photographing majestic raptors, like the bald eagles that I regularly feature. Yet there is something equally special about capturing images of tiny songbirds, like this perky little Blue-gray Gnatcatcher (Polioptila caerulea) that I spotted earlier this week at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
How small are these birds? According to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Blue-gray Gnatcatchers are 3.9-4.3 inches in length (10-11 cm) and weigh 0.2-0.3 ounces (5-9 grams), just slightly larger than a hummingbird. The same source notes that, despite the bird’s name, gnats do not form a significant part of a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher’s diet.
Who comes up with these names?
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Canon 50D, gnatcatcher, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Polioptila caerulea, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA | 7 Comments »
April 4, 2019 by Mike Powell
A Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) paused for a moment to check on its catch as it flew away on Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Occasionally I will see an eagle flying with a fish in its talons, but it is quite rare for me to see an eagle actually catch the fish.
In this case, I was fortunate enough to spot an eagle circling low over the water and I captured a few images just after the eagle snagged the fish. In the second shot, which chronologically speaking was the first shot, you can just make out the fish. In the third shot, the eagle appears to be adjusting itself to the additional weight and is starting to increase its speed and altitude.
These are the kind of action shots that I love to capture. I never know when such situations will arise, so I always try to remain ready to react.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Bald Eagle, birds in flight, Canon 50D, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA | 17 Comments »
April 3, 2019 by Mike Powell
On Monday it was cool and windy and I didn’t expect to see many birds at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I was pleasantly surprised to spot several Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) flying about. The wind seemed to slow them down a little and gave me a slightly better chance of capturing images of them in flight.
My favorite subject was this juvenile eagle. Sometimes juveniles can look somewhat bedraggled with their multi-colored feathers, but I thought that this one looked quite handsome, especially when the light hit it from a good angle and illuminated its body. One unexpected benefit was that it was easier to get a proper exposure with the juvenile because it does not have the extreme contrasts of the dark body and white head of the adults. In many of my shots of adult eagles, the body ends up underexposed and/or the head ends up overexposed.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Bald Eagle, birds in flight, Canon 50D, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, juvenile Bald Eagle, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA | 4 Comments »
April 2, 2019 by Mike Powell
Yesterday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge I spotted my first warbler of the spring, a Palm Warbler (Setophaga palmarum). For several weeks, I have been diligently searching the ground and the trees for warblers, whose appearance marks the beginning of spring for some birders. It was not surprising that the first one I saw was a Palm Warbler, because they are traditionally one of the earliest species to arrive, but I was a little surprised to find several of them at water’s edge, poking about in the rocks and the debris. In the past, I have most often spotted them on the grassy trails.
I was not able to get close to these little warblers, so my normal temptation was to crop my images, as I did in the first one, in order to highlight the bird. As I was working on the second image, I decided I liked the idea of including more of the environment, even though it is a bit cluttered. What do you think?
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon 50D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Palm Warbler, Setophaga palmarum, Tamron 150-600mm, warbler, Woodbridge VA | 10 Comments »
April 1, 2019 by Mike Powell
Some birds are so round in appearance that they look more like cartoons than real birds. That was certainly the case with this tiny Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Regulus calendula) that I spotted last week at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon 50D, kinglet, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Regulus calendula, ruby-crowned kinglet, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA | 3 Comments »
March 31, 2019 by Mike Powell
Yesterday I spotted this pair of Eastern Bluebirds (Sialia sialis) perched on a nesting box at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The female appeared to have nesting materials in her bill and seemed ready to build a nest. The only problem is that this nesting box, I believe, is currently being used by some Tree Swallows.
I don’t know for sure if this is the place where the bluebirds plan to make their nest and I never did see either of the bluebirds enter the nesting box. However, a short time later I spotted the male bluebird with nesting material in his bill, so it is quite likely that they are determined to construct a nest somewhere nearby.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged bluebirds, Canon 50D, Eastern Bluebird, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Sialia sialis, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA | 2 Comments »
March 30, 2019 by Mike Powell
Normally when I see a Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos), it is perched in a tree. This past Wednesday at Occoquan Bay National WIidlife Refuge, I spotted one foraging in a field. The mockingbird was perched on the stalks of the vegetation and periodically would bend down and grab a few seeds.
I love the way that the cooler tones of the bird contrast with the warmer shades of the vegetation and the background. That contrast makes this fairly common bird really stand out and shine.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon 50D, Mimus polyglottos, mockingbird, Northern Mockingbird, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA | 4 Comments »
March 30, 2019 by Mike Powell
During one of my recent early morning forays to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, I was thrilled to spot several beavers. I had seen plenty of gnawed off trees in the area around this pond, so I knew that there had to be some beavers nearby. You generally have to be really lucky to see one, because they are mostly nocturnal creatures.
There were three beavers when I initially spotted them swimming towards me. Two of them seemed to sense my presence as they got a little closer and dove underwater. One kept approaching and I was able to capture the first image, a head shot of a handsome North American Beaver (Castor canadensis). The second image shows the beaver as it was swimming and gives you a better sense of the environment in which it was found.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in animals, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged beaver, beaver swimming, Canon 50D, Castor canadensis, North American Beaver, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA | 3 Comments »
March 29, 2019 by Mike Powell
I love the sweet sounds of a Carolina Wren (Thryothorus ludovicianus), like this little beauty that I spotted on Wednesday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Most of the times when I see a Carolina Wren, it is hopping about in the underbrush, but sometimes when they are going to sing, they choose a higher, more visible perch.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon 50D, Carolina Wren, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Thryothorus ludovicianus, Woodbridge VA, wren | 5 Comments »
March 28, 2019 by Mike Powell
I love the feeling of the early morning, when the sun is just beginning to rise. Some mornings begin with fog hanging over the fields, giving the scene an eerie feeling. On other mornings, the sun adds color to the sky and produces beautiful reflected light in the clouds. I never know what the sunrise will bring when I set out in the dark, but I love to start the way watching darkness give way to light.
I captured these images on separate mornings during this past week at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Inspiration, Landscape, Nature, Photography, spring | Tagged Canon SX50, morning fog, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, sunrise, Woodbridge VA | 5 Comments »
March 28, 2019 by Mike Powell
This past Monday I spotted this juvenile Cooper’s Hawk (Accipiter cooperii) high in a tree at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Initially there were a lot of branches between us, but I was able to move slowly and stealthily closer to the little hawk and get a relatively clear shot of it.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Accipiter cooperii, Canon 50D, Cooper's Hawk, juvenile Cooper's Hawk, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA | 4 Comments »
March 27, 2019 by Mike Powell
This past week at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge I observed two large birds consuming large fish using very different techniques. The first, a Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias), carefully positioned the fish and then swallowed it in a single big gulp.
An Osprey (Pandion haliaetus), pictured below, used a much slower and methodical approach, tearing small chunks off of the fish. It takes a lot of bites to finish off a fish in this way. In between bites, the osprey would often look around to make sure no other bird was approaching and attempting to steal its catch.
When it needed to tug extra hard on the fish, the osprey would sometimes extend its wings in what I assume was an effort to stay balanced and keep from falling out of the tree. I believe that is what was going on at the moment when I captured this image.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon 50D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Osprey, Pandion haliaetus, Tamron 150-600mm telephoto, Woodbridge VA | 9 Comments »
March 26, 2019 by Mike Powell
Insects are becoming more active now as the weather warms up a bit, like this tiny Spring Azure butterfly (Celastrina ladon) that I spotted yesterday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.
There is something about chasing after a butterfly that makes me feel like a child again. I am sure that I would have looked ridiculous to an outside observer, who would have wondered what it the world I was doing.
Try it yourself. Chase a butterfly today or, if you can’t find one, let go of your inhibitions and do something equally childlike, like coloring with crayons. I think that most of us take ourselves too seriously too often.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Butterflies, Insects, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon SX50, Celastrina ladon, childlike, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Spring Azure, Spring Azure butterfly, Woodbridge VA | 8 Comments »
March 25, 2019 by Mike Powell
This Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) dropped more quickly than I anticipated when it took off last Friday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, but somehow I managed to keep most of it within the frame.
Whenever I see an eagle perched in a tree, my mind starts to go into overdrive and my fingers get twitchy. Should I take an immediate shot or should I try to get closer? If I manage to get closer, should I zoom in all the way to capture the perched eagle or leave room in the frame if the eagle decided to take off? I try to anticipate what is going to happen, knowing that I will most likely will have to react to a scenario that I hadn’t predicted.
This eagle, for example, did something unusual—it initially flew towards me. In my experience, eagles almost always fly away from me when they take off. A bird flying right at you is a real challenge to photograph. My focus on the eagle’s eye was off a little bit, but I was very happy to capture an image in which I am looking straight at the eagle’s face from in between the wings.
Growing up, I was a member of the Boy Scouts and the Scout motto of “Be Prepared” serves me well when I am trying to photograph wild creatures like this bald eagle.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Bald Eagle, Canon 50D, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA | 2 Comments »
March 24, 2019 by Mike Powell
When I accidentally flushed this enormous Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) last week at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, it flew to another tree and tried to hide from me.
Note to woodpecker—you need to find a much bigger tree if you want to avoid being seen.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon 50D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, peekaboo, Pileated Woodpecker, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA | 9 Comments »
March 24, 2019 by Mike Powell
I captured this image this past Tuesday morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge as an Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) was starting to take off from its perch high in a tree with a partially eaten fish firmly in its grasp. I had watched the osprey consume the top portion of the fish and hope that it was carrying the remainder to its mate.
I am somewhat romantic, so I want to believe that this is a story about love and sharing and caring—and maybe it is. It is also possible that the osprey is selfish and fearful and is seeking a more secluded, secure perch when it can enjoy the rest of its catch without having to worry about it being stolen by eagles or potential predators like me.
Whatever the reality of the actual situation, I love the way that this image shows off the osprey’s impressive wingspan and how the v-shape of the wings is repeated in some of the branches and in the tail of the fish.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife | Tagged Canon 50D, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Osprey, Pandion haliaetus, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA | 5 Comments »
March 23, 2019 by Mike Powell
Why did the Snapping Turtle (Chelydra serpentina) cross the road? It sounds like the opening line of a joke, but I asked myself that question yesterday when I spotted a snapping turtle lumbering its way across one of the trails at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The turtle’s back was covered with mud, suggesting it had only recently emerged from its winter sleep. In the past I have sometimes seen snapping turtles out of the water when they were getting ready to lay eggs, though it seems a little early for that to be taking place.
I have always thought that snapping turtle look like dinosaurs. What do you think?
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Posted in Nature, Photography, Reptiles, spring, turtle, wildlife | Tagged Canon 50D, chelydra sepentina, Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, snapping turtle, Tamron 150-600mm, Woodbridge VA | 5 Comments »
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