Bug on a Stem

A few years ago I had a lecture that I gave several times to various groups titled "Bird on a Stick". In it I discussed three stages of bird photography as I saw them.

The first stage was "UFO" or Unidentified Flying Object. At that level, the photographer knew she had witnessed a majestic bald eagle soaring overhead but she was having a hard time convincing anyone else based on her grainy, out of focus image of a black dot against a white sky.

Her frustration might lead her to take some classes, maybe upgrade her equipment and, most importantly, practice, practice, practice. That would lead to the second stage which I called "Bird on a Stick". In that stage, the photographer was making lovely, technically correct images of identifiable birds. She was now the star of her Facebook birding group and all her non-photographer friends were telling her how great her images were. But in her heart, she knew something was still missing.

So then she started studying the photographers whose images spoke to her. She began exploring the stories behind the images and learning more and more about her subjects. At that point she discovered the third stage which I like to think of as the "Tell Me More!" stage. At that level the photographer has ceased being a mere image recorder and has begun to truly communicate something about her subject to the audience. She has sparked a reaction in the viewer that makes them want to know more about the intriguing creature they see in front of them.

I believe those stages also exist in bug photography.

In the beginning, you may be trying to capture that beautiful butterfly in your garden. But bugs have very good eyes and you may quickly discover they really don't like having cameras shoved in their faces. And bugs are fast! Just as you get set up, ready to click the shutter, off they go, never to be seen again. Photographing butterflies and bees can quickly morph into trying to capture images of all sorts of bugs, many of which are probably unidentifiable unless you study entomology in your spare time.

My first shot of a flea beetle in my yard.

So you study up, do your research, watch some podcasts and Youtube videos. That leads to buying a decent macro lens and maybe even some lighting equipment. Now you can capture those great i.d. shots, the "Bug on a Stem" images that allow you to search in your new bug book to discover that the tiny creature you are looking at is a flea beetle, Disonycha latifrons, to be exact.

A beautiful flea beetle seen from above.

But something is still missing.

Flea beetle peeking around the corner of a leaf, watching the watcher. 

So now it is time to strive for those "Tell Me More!"shots. With bugs, these types of shots seem even more critical because it is not easy to get people to stop and look in wonder at the beauty before them.  The variety in insect appearances and behaviors is mind boggling and absolutely intriguing, if only we can spark that curiosity in people to look more closely and to ask for more of the story.

That is my goal. To make people look. To introduce the individual in all his wonder and glory. To be the storyteller.

Circle B Bar Reserve

I have an ever-growing list of places I like to visit in Florida for birding and photography. At the top of the list for the last few years has been the Circle B Bar Reserve near Lakeland. I was all set to go last year but came down with the flu the day before we headed south and so ended up with an unproductive visit as far as photography or much of anything else. 

This year I was not going to miss another chance and so we headed inland on the day before Christmas with my mom and dad in tow. We had not been able to find out much on-line or by calling so were disappointed when we arrived to find the nature center closed for the holiday and a large portion of the paths closed to hiking. 

Even so, I have to say the experience was memorable and it is definitely a place I will continue to visit every chance I get. The sheer amount of birdlife was amazing. And what was there seemed to have very little concern for the excited public walking the well-marked trails through their habitat. 

 Some of my favorites were the Limpkins. Their strident voices could be heard from the time we arrived and there seemed to be brown and white birds everywhere we looked. At one point I heard an especially loud voice and when I tracked it down I discovered an adult Limpkin apparently warning her youngster who seemed to be wandering too close to a large alligator.

 I think these birds are beautiful and the shape of their bills is a study in evolution as they seem perfectly designed to get into the apple snails that make up most of their diet.

 Although birds are the most abundant inhabitants of the reserve, they are certainly not the only ones. This turtle seemed to pick a questionable location in the middle of one of the lesser used trails to lay its eggs.

 We spotted Sandhill Cranes in a number of locations. Although I have seen many of the big birds in the past, it was fascinating to watch them apparently hunting in water that reached up to their bellies.

 One of the more unusual birds that makes the marshland of the reserve its home is the Black-bellied Whistling Duck. They are easily identified by their beautiful colors, including the reddish bills.

This Snowy Egret, below, was nice enough to walk through a patch of wildflowers that mimicked the color of its lores.

Other birds we saw were Roseate Spoonbills, Wood Storks, Glossy Ibis, Coopers Hawk, Red Shouldered Hawk, Tricolored Herons, Little Blue Herons, Great Blue Herons, Bald Eagles and even a few Pied-billed Grebes. I am sure I am missing some but one of my goals for this year is to finally start recording my sightings so hopefully next time I visit this amazing place, I will be able to relate all the things I see!

A Tale of Da Feet

I spent a week in Florida over the Christmas holidays. While the main purpose was to visit family, I admit I was thrilled at the opportunity to photograph birds. It is not that I have no chance of doing so in Northern Wyoming in the winter but there is no doubt the avian population here is greatly reduced in terms of species this time of year. 

This first collection of Florida birds is not representative of my best shots - instead it is a small study in the incredible diversity of feet!  

It is easy to see why Anhingas are commonly known as Darters in many places! In this shot I was able to get a really good look at the bird's large webbed feet which it uses to propel itself through the water as it swims in search of food. 

 I wasn't planning on including this photo of a Great Blue Heron flying overhead but I was struck by the length and straightness of the bird's legs and feet as it soared by. I am sure it is incredibly aerodynamic with its neck pulled in and its legs stretched out behind it.

The Common Moorhen has really impressive feet with remarkably long toes that help it walk on floating vegetation. I am not sure I have ever seen one perched on a branch before but it really allowed me a good look at the oversized yellow-green appendages!

One of the easiest ways to identify a Snowy Egret is by its "golden slippers". I usually try to avoid photographing birds and animals from behind but in this case the easily seen feet were the focus!

Wood Storks use their feet as well as their bills to stir up prey as they move through the water. It is not unusual to see them standing at rest with one foot raised and relaxed. I always think "tree pose" of yoga should be renamed "stork pose"!

Catching up - PEI Birds

 The focus of my visits to Prince Edward Island is family, not photographs, but I always manage to grab a few shots of bird life on the island, even though I usually travel there with minimal equipment.

The trip this year was especially fun as we were celebrating my parent's 61st wedding anniversary and the whole family was there to participate.

I love photographing the Great Black-backed Gulls at the beach. They are huge and are relatively tolerant of people. The red spots on their bills add a bit of color but the markings were especially noticeable on this big bird - maybe a sign of age?

 The red cliffs of Rustico Beach are visible in the background.

 The Finches on the Island were exhibiting signs of disease this summer so people were asked to take down all their feeders to prevent large numbers of birds from gathering in one spot. Of course that didn't stop the Goldfinches from finding natural feeding areas such as Sunflowers and Thistles.

The Kingfishers were out in force along the river in New Glasgow and that was where I really missed having a longer lens with me.

 There were lots and lots of shorebirds at Cavendish Beach, including this Greater Yellowlegs that I snapped off the Homestead Trail.

One of my favorite bird shots of the trip was this one of a pair of Ruddy Turnstones with a Bonaparte Gull for size comparison on the wharf in Summerside. The Turnstones are not residents of the Island - they stop by on their way through during migration. I was actually taking part in a water obstacle course in the harbor (another story!) when I spotted these guys near by.

Harvest Time

A sure sign of the beginning of the end of summer is the arrival of flocks of Pinyon Jays and Clarks Nutcrackers. Our yard goes from being relatively silent one day to a cacophony of screeches the next as word gets out that the Limber Pine nuts are ready for harvest. 

 The two species have differing goals for their plunder. The Pinyon Jays seem to grab a nut and then immediately find a hard surface upon which to crack it and eat it. The Nutcrackers, on the other hand, gather numerous nuts in each sitting, stuffing them into their cheeks until they can't fit any more. They then fly off and try to stash the nuts for later consumption. In the meantime the Rock Doves hover at the base of the trees hoping to grab any nuts that fall from the beaks of the birds above.

 This is the only time of year I seem to see Clarks Nutcrackers flying in loose flocks. The noise made by dozens of them flying overhead has to be heard to be believed. Their strong wingbeats flapping in unison sound like the approach of a fighter jet!

 I was reminded that these birds are not the only consumers of pine nuts when I found a large, fresh bear scat on the trail this morning during my morning run. By the look of the nuts and berries in the scat, the bears are finding plenty to eat right now!

Arctic Birds - Part 2

This second group of Arctic birds are those I consider more exotic for one reason or another. 

We expected to see Common Eiders on our trip and we weren't disappointed. I think they are beautiful birds even though they are often overlooked in favor of their more colorful and more rare relatives, the King Eiders. Several people warned us we were unlikely to see the latter as they are uncommon but in fact we saw quite a few more King Eiders than Commons! 

 We had the opportunity to photograph Common Eiders close up near the town of Longyearben but I prefer this image of a male and female pair flying in front of a glacier.

 Although we saw far more King Eiders than we expected, the sightings were always at some distance. Still, it is easy to see why they are so sought after as the colors of the males are quite spectacular.

 One of the birds I was really hoping to see was the Pink-Footed Goose. I finally had my chance to photograph a small group as they flew in front of a Kittiwake nesting wall. You will probably have to click on the image to really see the geese as they blend in so well with the background.

 We saw a few individual Puffins in the water but no groups. I believe we were too early for the nesting time.

 Another bird we saw quite regularly was the Purple Sandpiper. I really don't know how they got their name as they did not appear to be purple!

 My favorite bird images from the trip are those of the Red Phalaropes. This is the only bird species I have ever seen where the female is more colorful than the male. There is a good reason for the difference in coloring - in this family the female lays the eggs but the male then takes over and does all the work of raising the chicks, including sitting on the nest. He is more dully colored so he will be less visible. Red Phalaropes live almost their entire lives at sea. They are partners with the Blue Whales that they follow around for the majority of the year, finding food where the big mammals feed. They are only on land long enough to mate and raise their young and then back to sea they go.

 This pair of Red-throated Loons is a little distant to really appreciate their beautiful markings but they were a treat to watch.

Last but not least is another predator of the bird world, the Arctic Skua. We saw three of the four types of Skuas on our trip but none as close as this one who was protecting her "scrape" (nest) on the ground amidst the Purple Saxifrage.

Arctic Birds - Part 1

No matter where I am in the world, birds are always a focus for my photography. Although the variety of birds in the Arctic was less than in many places I have been, the sheer number of individuals was staggering. Most Arctic birds have a short time when they can come on shore to nest so they make the most of it.

 This post shows some of the more common birds we saw, such as the Arctic Tern, above. These birds are so delicate looking but they are ferocious in defense of their nests.

 Barnacle Geese are similar in size and coloration to Canada Gees.

This wall of Kittiwakes and Guillemots is indicative of what we saw in a number of locations. In the closer shot, below, you can get a sense for just how dense the population was. There were thousands of birds on each wall we visited.

 The Guillemots were also visible hanging out on ice floes far out from shore.

 We saw several different types of guillemots including this Black, left. It was fascinating to watch this guy use his red feet as rudders.

 One type of birds we saw constantly was the Fulmar. These guys are really, really cool, in my opinion. They are tube-nosed, which means they have a tube on top of their beaks which allows them to smell food from a long way off. They have a salt gland which excretes excess salt since they are constantly ingesting it as they skim along the top of the ocean. So their nose is always running with salt snot. And their greatest defense against predators is to throw up on them. Their puke is so toxic it will mat the plumage of predators, causing them to be unable to fly and so to die. Wow!

 Speaking of predators, the most common one of other birds on Svalbard is the Glaucous Gull. These guys are huge and ferocious. They steal eggs and attack smaller birds and chicks.

 In the photo above, the female Glaucous Gull is sitting the nest while the male watches over her. It looked to me like she was riding side-car.

The only song bird of the Arctic is the Snow Bunting. It was such a treat to see and hear them since they occasionally show up in Wyoming in mid-winter. Their version of going south in the colder months!

Arctic Fox

The list of animals I hoped to see in the Arctic besides Polar Bears was long but near the top was the Arctic Fox. We were lucky enough to see several on a couple of different days although the largest number were spotted, not surprisingly, on the day we visited the Dovekie colony. 

 The foxes are incredibly hard to see as they blend in extremely well to their surroundings. This time of year is even more difficult than most as they are mottled - at various stages between their white coats of winter and the dark brown of full-on summer. The only way to really see them is to watch closely for movement in the rocks or - as we did - stumble across a sleeping fox who stands up basically at your feet!

This photo may look like just a pile of rocks on a scree slope but if you click on it to make it larger and then look closely you will see the hundreds of Dovekies or Little Auks nesting among the rocks. The foxes are here because of the opportunity to eat the birds' eggs as well as chicks and even full size birds if they are quick enough.

 Little Auks are (surprise!) little. They measure about half the size of their cousin, the Atlantic Puffin. Their short, stubby bills and size make them easily identifiable. Their wings are better suited for swimming under water than for flying and in many ways they resemble tiny penguins.

 As we were sitting close to the slope and photographing the birds, we suddenly realized the animal we were searching for was right at our feet. This small Arctic Fox stretched out and yawned before giving us a curious look and sauntering off to a quieter location.

 A second fox was spotted just up the hill as he searched for dinner. His bands of white and dark brown fur blended in to the rocky background, making him almost invisible as he moved across the slope.

The third fox of the day was pretty far off. I would not have even included the photo except for two things: He is being harassed by a Glaucous Gull which is quite a bit larger than he is and the reason for the harassment is that he has an adult Little Auk firmly clenched in his jaws. Nature at its most real!