birds

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Life and death, death and life

Posted by Photonstopper on June 21, 2011
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Photo: Great Blue Heron catches a fish. Photo by James Guilford.

A Great Blue Heron with a fish it has speared with its lower beak.

I’d taken the day off in order to deliver Tasha to animal hospital for iodine 131 treatment … a cure for hyperthyroidism. Yesterday I received a call from the hospital informing me of their need to postpone admission. It seems there is a shortage of iodine 131. Without the treatment, and because of her apparent sensitivity to methimazole, Tasha would remain untreated until the rescheduled date for the procedure; her thyroid levels might return to their formerly dangerous highs. So I decided to take advantage of my scheduled day off. I would pick up a prescription of methimazole gel for trans-dermal dosing (less trouble for Tasha) at the compounding pharmacy which has very limited mid-afternoon hours. My morning was open so I headed to Hinckley Lake for the first time this season or even this year. It was a comfortable but hazy morning with thin to moderate overcast as I began my little hike along the lake. On the walk “out” I saw no large wading birds at all –unusual, I think– but was content to look around at the quiet beauty of the area. Low rumbles of thunder began but seemed to be to the north and west of me. As the skies darkened I felt I’d better turn around and so began a somewhat faster walk back around the lake. As I approached one of my favorite spots for finding herons I did, indeed, spy one. It was wading slowly through the shallows, apparently looking to spook a fish and find a meal; that’s just what happened. The Great Blue Heron struck lightning-fast and hauled a writhing fish from the muddy waters. The big bird had speared the fish with its lower beak. It held its prey aloft for a bit, lowered it into the water briefly, and repositioned the fish so it was head-first in its mouth. Then it lifted its head high and in a few gulps swallowed the fish. In less than a minute it was all over. The fish was gone and the heron was again wading slowly through the muddy waters, seeking another meal. It’s the way of nature: life and death, death and life.

Respite at Magee Marsh

Posted by Photonstopper on May 22, 2011
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Photo: Perching Barn Swallow by James Guilford.

This Barn Swallow needed a rest from its constant work... not unlike us!

It’s been tiring and stressful lately, let’s leave it at that. Today was a fine day to take a few minutes and begin to explore the Magee Marsh Wildlife Area on Lake Erie, not far east of Oregon, Ohio. Visiting the Bird Center was delightful. We were surrounded by swooping and diving Barn Swallows, singing and chattering Purple Martins, and the sounds of many other birds singing all around us. We saw a Baltimore Oriole, a Great Egret, a Great Blue Heron, and other birds, all in the space of an hour or less. It would have been easy to put out a lawn chair and lounge for hours in the shade –it was a hot day, around 84F– just relaxing, taking in the scene; I hope we do that some day. We had, however, someplace to go and loved ones to see, so departed all too soon.

I had vegetarian chili for lunch

Posted by Photonstopper on December 30, 2010
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Visiting my mother at her home over Christmas holiday, someone began remarking about the many birds that were visiting her feeder… including one large pigeon. The more they described the bird, the more I had to see it. From the window I saw a very sizable bird that was not a pigeon at all but a Cooper’s Hawk! The visit wasn’t for a meal of seeds but likely for a snack of sparrow. The hawk, perched on a tree limb, hadn’t caught anything; it soon hopped down to the ground just below our window, then took flight, disappearing amongst the trees.

Today I received a phone call at the office and, pacing while talking, I gazed blankly out the window then snapped into focus. To my surprise a hawk was perched upon a brick wall but 10 feet away! At first I thought it was another Cooper’s Hawk but began to think that this one may have been a Sharp-shinned Hawk; they can be tricky to tell apart and I’ve only begun to recognize them. Today’s bird, however, was eating. Holding some unfortunate, tiny kill to the wall with its talons, the hawk stripped bits of flesh off and gobbled them down.

I find the raptors to be among the most beautiful birds both in their appearance and their flight. They also happen to be among the fiercest predators around. It’s hard for me sometimes to reconcile the two aspects: beauty and slaughter. It is, however, their nature and they must eat to survive.

Unfortunately, though my camera was in the room, I was on the phone. By the time the call had ended and I looked out the window again, the hawk had finished its meal and taken flight.

I had vegetarian chili for lunch.

A good day to be an indoor cat

Posted by Photonstopper on November 5, 2010
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Photo: Cat on bed looking out windows. Photo by James Guilford.

Tasha, dry and warm on the bed, watches birds flit to and from bird feeders hanging from the tree.

It was a truly miserable November day. Skies were overcast, temperatures never rose out of the 40s, there was rain, there was rain with ice pellets. I started work on my 2011 photographic calendar. I ventured outdoors only to hang the freshly-cleaned bird feeders and travel to Taco Bell for lunch. That was enough. The damp cold seemed to penetrate to the bone. It was a good day to be an indoor cat… or a “cat” indoors!

Photo: Birds on bird feeders. Photo by James Guilford.

Freshly-cleaned, the bird feeders were hung out today. Within a short time the neighborhood birds found the bounty and had some lunch. A red-bellied woodpecker and a cardinal were seen already. Shot through two panes of glass and a screen door!

Photo: Tall window on the stairwell landing. Photo by James Guilford.

The tall window at the landing in our stairwell. We have never put window treatments on that window -- the view of the sky, trees, and the light itself are too good to block.

Rewards of the day

Posted by Photonstopper on October 17, 2010
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Photo: Great Egret near Lake Erie. Photo by James Guilford.

A Great Egret feeds in the shallow waters of Sheldon Marsh State Nature Preserve.

Too beautiful a day to spend indoors yet not motivated enough to ride our bicycles, we took a trip by car instead. This time we traveled to the Sheldon Marsh wildlife area, just west of Huron, Ohio. It’s a spit of land that juts out into Lake Erie and, as such, is a seasonal way station for migrating birds making north-south lake transits. We saw few birds today but the few we saw offered a big surprise. I was pretty sure the large wading birds native to this area –Great Egrets and Great Blue Herons– had headed south; I’d seen none in weeks. Today we were rewarded with sightings and photo-ops involving likely three Great Blues and two Great Egrets all within a short walk of the roadway. I was a bit disappointed that the majority of my “grab shots” of herons in flight were in poor focus; they looked so good in the viewfinder. A couple of images, however, nearly made up for the bad ones. Many other nature scenes from Sheldon Marsh and nearby Old Woman Creek were also very beautiful. The ODNR’s visitor center at Old Woman Creek, by the way, is quite impressive. Photography aside, simply seeing great Lake Erie again and being out in the fresh air and sunshine of a fine autumn day were wonderful rewards in themselves.

Photo: Great Blue Heron flies directly overhead. Photo by James Guilford.

Surprise! A Great Blue Heron flies directly overhead after rising unexpectedly over a line of trees.

Start and finish

Posted by Photonstopper on September 20, 2010
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Photo: First color of autumn trees stands brilliantly illuminated against dark, clouded sky. Photo by James Guilford.

First color of autumn trees stands brilliantly illuminated against dark, clouded sky.

I may not have the most beautiful or interesting commuter route to follow in my daily routine but it does have much to offer. This morning I was treated to trees, many of them with early fall color, brilliantly illuminated by morning sun against a dark, cloudy sky. I stopped in the outskirts of Stongsville to snap a few photos on my way to work. This evening, traveling home via the Cleveland Metropark’s Parkway, I caught a glimpse of a Great Egret I’ve been wanting to photograph. It seemed closer to the shore of Wallace Lake than normal. I swung into a parking space and hiked a short distance to the waters’ edge. My Canon PowerShot G11 is a terrific little camera but didn’t have enough telephoto power to capture the image I wanted but I got something. In fact, I noticed in the distance behind the big white bird, there was also a big gray bird… a Great Blue Heron. I moved closer but, each in its turn, the birds flew off before I could get in good range. Not bad: beautiful scenes at the start and finish!

Photo: Two birds fishing at Wallace Lake. Photo by James Guilford.

A Great Egret and a Great Blue Heron have neighboring fishing spots at waters' edge in Wallace Lake.

Surprising morning

Posted by Photonstopper on August 6, 2010
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What?! #1751
What?! #1751

Fridays off with not much to do are a good thing. I did not plan to go to Hinckley Lake this morning but the day began too pleasantly to spend much time indoors. I tossed the camera bag in the trunk and headed out. I stopped along the way to watch and photograph turkey vultures, perched on bare tree branches, warming themselves in the early rays of the sun. At the lake, I set off to see what birds {herons} I might see. Checking their favorite haunts from the lakeside trail, I was richly rewarded. In one of those favorite spots, I crept towards the water and peered around the lakeside vegitation. There, a literal stone's throw away, was a Great Blue Heron standing still as a statue. We regarded each other cautiously and I squeezed off a few shutter clicks. The bird was nervous. I was being attacked by mosquitoes. Not a good combination for a photo session. Off flew the great bird but not before I made my catch of the day! There were other beautiful scenes to be enjoyed and recorded as I hiked around the lake. None, however, matched the close encounter with one truly great bird. It was a surprising morning.

Outta Here! #1753
Outta Here! #1753

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Don’t turn your back!

Posted by Photonstopper on July 22, 2010
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When working with nature, don't turn your back… not even for a second! This morning I was strolling to the back of my car to stow camera gear for a quick pre-work visit to Hinckley Lake. As I cleared the corner of the garage I spotted, directly across the drive, a doe deer and three tiny spotted fawn. They froze, uncertain whether to flee and in what direction. Carrying my camera bag, I slowly opened the back of the car, turned and placed my bag inside, withdrew my camera, changed lenses, fired up the camera, and turned back to photograph the scene. Gone! In the space of 30 seconds or less the whitetail family had silently fled the scene to the relative safety of a nearby wooded area. I felt bad about it until I realized my camera lens had completely fogged over and was useless — it had come out from a cool storage area into a warm and muggy world. Ready or not, I'd have missed the shot. {sigh}

Sneaky Heron #1625
Sneaky Heron #1625

I climbed into the car and headed to the lake. Strangely, though Hinckley Lake is a favorite fishery for Great Blue Herons, I saw none. I can usually count on seeing several in the early morning hours when the lake is quiet and human fishermen are scarce. Eventually one of the big birds descended from a tree and alighted in a favorite fishing area, a bit distant for my purposes but at last I was seeing a heron! I watched the bird as it stood still, waded a bit, and stood still even longer. Eventually it jabbed the water with its spear-like beak and produced a minnow which it promptly swallowed. Again it stood. And stood. Tired of staring I examined my more immediate surroundings. Two brilliant yellow flowers –cone flowers– were lit beautifully in the morning sun with a deep green grassy background that made them really stand out. I focused and shot a couple of images. Nice. I turned to see what the heron was doing only to discover that it had silently taken to the air and was already more than 100 feet away and flying close to the water. I'd wanted to at least see and photograph that takeoff and missed it entirely because I'd turned my back for half a minute again.

Repeating, the lesson for the day: Don't turn your back.
 

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