Colorful Chincoteague

I have shared various images from my trip to Chincoteague of all types of Egrets and many types of Herons, various sizes and shapes of Gulls, even a photo of a strange looking bird called an Oystercatcher. And, of yes, let's not forget the Ponies. Brown, black, checkerboard, tan. Well here's an image I like to call Colorful Chincoteague. Scrounging around in my archives I found these photographs I had taken on my trip to Virginia's Eastern Shore in mid July, in the throws of a heat wave no less, to visit Chincoteague Island and the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge. On my first day out, after trekking to the wildlife refuge, I drove back across the short bridge to the main island and headed for the road that ran parallel to the bay on the north side of the island. One of the first things I noticed and stopped to photograph was an old fishing shack which had a nice array of crab traps stacked up outside right off the porch.

As I made my way back to the road that lead to the wildlife refuge and my hotel, I noticed this sailboat. The guy at the helm was readying to bring down the sails so I grabbed a quick pic before he did. Not far from the sailboat hanging off the side of the dock was this life preserver shrouded in rope. Who could resist such an image. A few days later, I found myself on the east side of the island right the bay cuts through and, more notably, where the Ponies make their way across the water for the Pony Penning every year. As I drove the road traversing the bay, I looked over to see this large group of kayaks sitting idle. What a colorful array. It's been a mainly 'single digit' temperature day here in the Bluegrass State. If you go outside, your breath travels through the air leaving you to wonder if it just might freeze mid air. My God is this what the Upper Midwest has been dealing with all these years? Not to mention the Canadians. I feel for all of you. ENJOY!

Beautiful Great White Egrets

Have a Wonderful Weekend All. ENJOY!

Wild Ponies of Chincoteague

Every day in the early evening the Wild Ponies of Chincoteague would gather in the wildlife refuge way out in this field. The field is to the right as you drive past the Welcome Center along the main road that traverses the refuge. The Ponies would play and romp and run around and munch on the grasses for hours. I count about 26 horses just in this one image alone. And swarming all around the Ponies were lots of birds, no doubt eating the insects that were biting the Ponies.

Lucky for me I had bought that longer zoom lens prior to leaving on this trip especially when I saw how far out the Ponies were from the road. The younger Ponies would play and frolic and run around their mothers and the rest of the herd. It was a treat to watch them.

Some day I would love to go back to Chincoteague. But if I never get back there, I can say I saw a great deal of what Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge and Chincoteague Island has to offer. Wading birds, shore birds, the bay, the beach, the lagoon, the saltwater marshes, the Ponies. It is a magical place.

I'm hoping to get outdoors this weekend and get some new images. Of what, I'm not sure yet, but the desire is there so we'll see. ENJOY!

IN MEMORY
I've not forgotten what this day means to every American. My thoughts all day off and on have shifted somehow toward the memories from 9/11/01. Oh, how I wished this day was not in my memory. But as it is and we cannot go back . . . to all of those whose loved ones were lost and those who were directly affected by the attacks on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and the flight in Pennsylvania that crashed, and to all Americans who watched on that fateful day, I pray. I remember . . .

Laughing Gull, Chincoteague Island, VA

As I drove out onto the causeway that leads from Chincoteague Island to the mainland in Virginia in search of well, birds, I stopped and snapped a few photos of this Laughing Gull sitting on a stump among the saltwater reeds.

The Laughing Gull species name is Cachinnans which comes from Latin and means to laugh heartily. Linguists believe that the word came about because it sounds like laughing. These birds are typically found along the Eastern Seaboard. I only saw a few of these at Chincoteague and they were mostly along the causeway and not so much on the beach.

To me he looks like he is sporting a tuxedo. Or something. He's just cool looking I think with his dark head and dark upper body. I hope you had a great weekend. Mine has been spent nursing a sinus infection. This week it continues to be in the 90's, but next weekend, the weather cools off and is sunny. I'm looking forward to that. ENJOY!

Birdapalooza!

One evening while staying on Chincoteague Island back in July, I drove part of the way across the causeway to see if there was any bird activity along the bay road late that day. I hit the jackpot as you can see in these images! There were too many birds to count, but no doubt as you can see, a signicant number of wading birds hanging out in the low lying marsh area

Most of the birds were Snowy Egrets, but this first image which I cropped very very heavily, shows two White Ibis foraging for a meal. Yes, I got to add another bird to my Life List. The Ibis has a long curved bill and while it is a wading bird found in the Deep South, they also forage for insects on lawns.

And luckily there were also several Glossy Ibis foraging in the marsh. Another Life List bird I added. The Glossy Ibis, again with a curved bill, sports dark coloring, and is only found along the Atlantic Coast. There were tons of Snowy Egrets hanging about with the Ibis, as well as a Laughing Gull which you'll find in the top of this image. I have better Laughing Gull images I'll post another day.

I didn't see any Great White Egrets hanging out in this crowd or any Herons of any type which was odd. Mostly just Snowy Egrets and there were numerous ones sporting breeding plumage. So cool looking seeing their billowy feathers standing straight up on their heads. I was amazed at the sheer number of birds in close proximity, but also how well they seemed to co-habitat with each other. The best I can surmise is Snowy Egrets and Ibis get along great together. I have no idea what drew them all to gather in this area that evening. Nevertheless, it was a sight. We've turned the corner toward the weekend. It's supposed to be nice this weekend and I would love to get out and take in some scenery, maybe even a hike. Do you have big plans for this weekend? And hey, the next weekend is Labor Day. I love three day weekends so much I've already decided to make it a four day weekend. ENJOY!

Little Blue Heron, Chincoteague Island, Virginia

Of all of the birds I added to my Life List from the Eastern Shore, this is one of my favorites I captured in this 'Birder's Paradise'. This Little Blue Heron has such soft blues in his feathers, but I especially love the cool blues of his head. This wading bird actually is born solid 'white'. As a juvenile he begins to turn blotchy blues all over his body and finally into adulthood turns this beautiful array of blues. The degrees of blue color that make up this gorgeous smaller species of Heron was captured, unbeknownst to me, on my first day out on the western bay side of Chincoteague Island along the shore.

After capturing several images of a Heron the second day out over on the wildlife refuge, I had decided that was going to be the closest I could get to what I learned after looking at those images closely was a Little Blue Heron. I didn't realize that the day before these images, which I thought was a Tricolored Heron, was actually a Little Blue Heron.

If you read my blog, you know I'm not a birding expert. It wasn't until today after heavily cropping these images that I realized the true identify of this bird. After I cropped one of the images really close to see if there was anything in this little guy's mouth, I got to looking at his color, and that's when I realized he was a Little Blue Heron. I had thought he was a Tricolored Heron, but nope, he wasn't. Aside from cropping to see what was up with his bill, his colors intrigued me as they were a little bluer than the Tricolored Heron I saw that day over on the refuge. My new philosophy after this trip . . . take a good long close up look before making the final decision on the species of bird. Nonetheless, he's beautiful. Don't you agree? ENJOY!


PHOTOGRAPHER'S NOTE: I'm on deadline this week with the magazine, so for the first time I am 'scheduling' a post to view the following day after I wrote it. I've never done this before, but will be excited to see if all goes well. Okay, it's the little things in life that really make me happy!

American Oystercatcher, Chincoteague Island, Virginia

While on my Eastern Shore excursion in July, I made the acquaintance of the American Oystercatcher and happily added this gorgeous bird to my Bird Life List. Yippee! Let me just say, they are one cool looking bird! Their long red bills are so bright, not to mention perfect for prying open bivales such as mussels and clams which is their primary diet. Apparently, I got very lucky, as the waters off the coast of the Eastern Shore are the American Oystercatcher's summer breeding grounds. In winter the Oystercatcher is found along the coast of Florida and the Caribbean. The remainder of the year, you can find the Oystercatcher along the southwest and southeast coasts of the United States, as well as South America. Apparently, there's a Black Oystercatcher that can be found mainly around Baja California also.

This was one colorful little bird scurrying about amongst the remains of oyster shells on the western side of Chincoteague Island. I only saw a few Oystercatchers in this one location on the island. I love their long red bills and their yellow eyes with the red rings around them.

As you drive out past Tom's Cove on Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, at one point the road is closed with signs posted due to nesting birds in the area. I wonder if one of those nesting birds could be the American Oystercatcher. They normally build their nests up high on sandy spits or in lowland areas where there is good cover. The area closed past Tom's Cove was covered in higher sand dunes definitely a great breeding area for the Oystercatcher. I wonder have you seen the Oystercatcher in your travels? Our weather here has been unseasonably cool with an abundance of rainfall, not the typical Kentucky August weather of hot, humid and dry to the point of drought. ENJOY!

Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday

Boardwalk on Chincoteague

The marshes in and around Chincoteague Island and also on the refuge were absolutely beautiful. When I originally planned my trip, I hadn't really taken the marshes into consideration as something I would fall in love with. But the tall reeds and the day's light casting shadows on the waters around the island was irresistible.

As I drove around the parameter of the island, I discovered a band of Chincoteague Ponies on the northwest side of the island. They were the only Ponies I saw that weren't in the refuge. I also discovered this gorgeous marsh near the Ponies that at certain times of day, especially near the evening light, was gorgeous. This particular marsh kept drawing me back to this area as much as the Ponies. On one of the drives I noticed this boardwalk extending across the marsh. I took a day to think about how best to photograph it. I decided that I wanted the viewer to feel themselves walking across this old boardwalk as though they were right there with me. So I walked out a short distance on the boardwalk and then snapped away. The feeling was magical with the marsh and the tall reeds on either side of me. I love this perspective. Every time I see this image I feel as though I'm right there walking across that boardwalk.

I have taken trips before with high hopes and at times been somewhat disappointed, but on this trip I wasn't quite sure what to expect and was totally amazed at the grandeur of nature all around me. The one feeling that keeps resonating with me throughout this whole trip and even after every time I open my software and make my way through each day's images is just how wild this place is. Here the birds, the ponies, the water, the marshes, the island, the beaches, the shore. It's all totally wild and each day it is left to its own devices. Should you ever find yourself on the Eastern Shore of Virginia, I would advise a stop on beautiful Chincoteague Island. Hopefully, if I travel to the Eastern Shore again, it won't be 105 degree heat index and me constantly wanting to 'get back in the car' into the comforts of my air conditioning. I would have loved to spend more time out in the 'wilds' of Chincoteague. Hope you have a fantastic weekend. ENJOY!

Saltwater Marshes, Chincoteague Island, Virginia

In an effort to not bore you to death with my wading bird images, I decided something a little different might be in order. I mentioned in a previous post that I had fallen in love with the beautiful saltwater marshes of the Eastern Shore and especially enjoyed photographing them around Chincoteague Island. So I wanted to share a few more images of the marshes with you.

I eyed this weather worn driftwood laying randomly in the marsh early one afternoon, and after passing it several times, I decided to stop and take a photograph later in the day when the light was better.

I also noticed these dock poles randomly sticking up out of the marshes. Perhaps the dock they were attached to was blown away by a storm. Nonetheless, I couldn't help but snap a few images.

The Wild Ponies were everywhere I turned on Chincoteague Island and off in the distance on the wildlife refuge. However, I enjoyed photographing them most in the marshes with the beautiful green grasses swaying back and forth in the wind. The week is wrapping up too quickly. I had hoped to make plans to get out of town for a night this weekend, but rain seems to be moving in. Perhaps. ENJOY!

Great White Egrets, Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, VA

Everywhere I turned on Chincoteague, albeit the island or the wildlife refuge, I encountered the Great White Egret. So graceful looking. So beautiful. On this particular day the Egret was busily catching a meal. I was lucky enough to capture that image.

Later the Egret flew off into the distance. I wasn't certain I'd captured a decent image of him as he flew away only to realize after dropping my photos into my software that evening that I had. I love the out of focus feel of the Sandpiper in the upper right background too. Long bills, long necks, long legs. Everything about a Great White Egret is long, large and looming. It commands your attention.

Later this week I'll post some images of the Snowy Egret. I also have images of Sandpipers, American Oyster Catchers and more from my trip. To say I was in my glory at Chincoteague would be putting it mildly. It's still cool here day and night and totally unlike the Ohio River Valley. I'm sure most of us don't know what to do with ourselves, but loving every minute of it, nonetheless. ENJOY!

Tricolored Heron, Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, Virginia

Just another day in paradise! That's how it felt on this particular day at Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. Where else can you travel and find Life List birds everywhere you turn. At least where I'm concerned anyway. I probably don't need to remind you that I hail from the great state of Kentucky where Bluegrass and Thoroughbreds reign supreme. But here on the Eastern Shore, the horses aren't corralled. They run wild going where the wind takes them. And the refuge is wild with shore birds and wading birds numbering in the hundreds.

As I pulled off of the road along the refuge motor route, I sat in my car and watched this Tricolored Heron as he stealthily stalked his prey. The late afternoon light was upon us reflecting in the emerald green waters of the lagoon. With his reflection staring back at him, he stood stone cold still, the only motion were tiny ripples in the water as insects came and went.