'Nesting' Black Crowned Night Herons

A visit to the Heron Rookery on Old Hickory Lake in Hendersonville Sunday afforded me a plethora of species of birds. Since I rarely get more than a glimpse of a Black Crowned Night Heron, I thought I would post images of them first. They were very busy flying in and out of the rookery. In this image, you can see the late afternoon sun casting its golden glow.

This Heron Rookery never ceases to amaze me with the different species that nest together in one large tree along the shoreline. I wonder have you ever tried to capture a Black Crowned Night Heron in flight? It's not like photographing a Great Blue Heron. They move much much slower than Night Herons. Night Herons fly much faster as they are not nearly as large a bird as their Great Blue Heron cousins. One never knows when you snap an image of one in flight, if it's even viable, but on this day I got very lucky.

I had trouble differentiating the leaves and tree branches from the Black Crowned Night Herons. The Great Blues stick out more as they are bigger, but the Night Herons being so small blend in. I snapped an image of a Great Blue Heron standing on a nest only to realize later that this Black Crowned Night Heron was sitting on its nest right below it.

Today there were Great Blue Herons, Black Crowned Night Herons, Cormorants and Great White Egrets flying all about the Heron Rookery, not to mention Barn Swallows and Canadian Geese. What a plethora and a pleasure to be in the company of such great species and able to photograph them. I will share Great Blue Heron images in a post soon. I hope you had a wonderful weekend. We finally, as you can see from these images, had a beautiful day Sunday with blue skies and low temperatures in the 70's. It was wonderful. ENJOY!

Springtime at Bernheim

Walking around the wildflower meadow at Bernheim, a strong scent of Crab Apple blooms hung in the air. It's Springtime at Bernheim and there is lots to take in.

The bright pinks and soft whites of the Crab Apples were so beautiful. The branches of the Crab Apple trees lay low to the ground laden down with the blooms.

The bees were buzzing and Cardinals and Robins were flying in and out of the trees. The sky was bright blue with lots of gorgeous sunshine.

After spending some time walking among the Crab Apple trees, I decided a visit to Lake Nevin across the main road from the meadow was in order. I noticed some Canadian Geese from a distance and wondered if it was too early for Goslings. As I began to approach the lake, I could see their tiny heads. Lucky me! The parents are never happy to see visitors as I and others were walking along the path that circles the lake. The parents decided to take the kiddos for a swim out in the lake and off they all went. I love photographing the Goslings at Bernheim because you can get some really good images.

Easter is behind us and Derby week is fast approaching here in the Bluegrass State. That all important Fastest Two Minute in Sports, the Kentucky Derby, is Saturday after next. But before that comes hot air balloons, bed races downtown, concerts, Derby parties, the Oaks where the Fillies race for that coveted first place spot.

I'm in awe how Spring has finally taken hold and can hardly wait for the warm nights of Summer. ENJOY!

Happy Easter All!

Have a wonderful day. ENJOY!

Tundra Swans, Frozen Reichart Lake

Five Tundra Swans, that I've been able to see so far this winter, have taken up residence at Mustatatuck, as mentioned in an earlier post. On Saturday, on a quick drive down to the refuge, I found the Swans floating or standing on the frozen ice right in the middle of Reichart Lake. And obviously with a 200mm lens, this is as good an image, albeit cropped, that I could get. A good deal of Reichart was frozen from a cold snap we had had a few days prior. Mustatatuck is the perfect winter home for these Swans what with the marshes, lakes and ponds and better yet, lots of agricultural fields surrounding the refuge where the Swans can feed.

Amazingly these Tundra Swans summer during the breeding season all along the coastline of North America, hence the name Tundra Swans. They build large round nests along the edge of the water and generally lay 3-5 large cream colored eggs. One of the North American Migratory Flyways goes right through (traveling north to south) southcentral Indiana. Many Tundra Swans fly much farther South, but apparently this flock has decided Mustatatuck is their winter home. Lucky me!!! Have I mentioned lately I'm turning into a bonafide birder.

Oddly, Tundra Swans sound very much like Canadian Geese. And speaking of which, these six Canadian Geese were walking, or more like sliding, along the ice at Reichart just a few yards from the Swans.

It was so funny watching them. If one of a pair of Geese didn't keep up with his partner, and they got very far away, he would lift up like he was taking off and fly a few feet or a yard or two, and then come right back down. And all the way he's slipping and sliding on the ice, and in the case of the Goose on the right falling through the ice. It was hysterical to watch them. I plan to visit the refuge again this winter. Perhaps I'll get better images or perhaps not. I was just thankful on this visit that the Swans hadn't flown to the fields to feed and it was a beautiful sunny day. And on a more pressing matter, the New Year is almost upon us. Are you ready? ENJOY!

Little Pigeon River

The first time I took a close look at this image I have to a admit I really didn't care for it all that much. And then today I took a closer look, and decided, yes, I like this image. What's not to love about shiny green moss growing on rocks and the water falling across the rocks in the foreground has such a mystical feel to it. But what I really like is the light and how it falls on the rocks. Those shiny rocks remind me of jewelry. I admit it's work photographing rushing water like this, but the results far outweigh the work. ENJOY!

Grace in Nature

Sometimes we find such beautiful grace in nature. Have a great weekend everyone. ENJOY!

Canadian Goose and Goslings

There are two families of Canadian Geese who have taken up quarters at Lake Nevin at Bernheim this Spring. It has been such a beautiful week that I couldn't resist making a trip out tonight to check out the Goslings. You have to admit they're cute. These Goslings appear to be about two weeks old as they still have all of their down. In another two weeks or so, their feathers will start to come in. ENJOY!

Baby Canadian Goslings!

Have a wonderful weekend. ENJOY!

Happy Mother's Day!

To all Mothers everywhere, Happy Mother's Day! And as I remember my own mother, I miss you Mom. I miss talking with you. As I grew up and would stop by to visit, you kept me dialed in to all of my siblings and their little ones. I can see you now sitting across the room from me. I wish you were here. Happy Mother's Day Mom! ENJOY!

Wildlife, Mustatatuck NWR

The wildlife were busy living life yesterday as I drove through the wildlife refuge. These aren't the best pics I ever took, but I wanted to share these anyway. I'm thinking I need to get a digital camera with a real zoom lens. There were tons of Canadian Geese and their ducklings or is that geeslings swimming around Reichart Lake. The moms and pops were especially attentive. This is probably the best close up I can get of the Great Blue Heron. He was also in Reichart Lake. I've never seen a heron in that lake before. Usually they're around to the far corner of the refuge in the swampy marsh area. Enjoy!

A Gaggle, Bernheim

Bottoms up!

The squawker!

Brrr!

A gaggle of Canadian Geese were having a high old time at the lake at Bernheim last weekend while I was visiting there. Enjoy!