Solitary Sandpipers

Several Summers past, I ventured to the Eastern Shores of Maryland in search of saltwater marshes and beaches that stretch as far as the eye could see. A stop at Assateague National Seashore to photograph the wild ponies that make the island their home was on my itinerary. Rest assured I snapped my fair share of wild pony images, however, I also captured countless images of birds. There were birds everywhere from Assateague Island to Chincoteague Island. These I believe are Solitary Sandpipers resting on the water's edge on Assateague late in the day. As I stood to capture this image, I was surrounded by salt marshes and water as far as the eye could see. It was heaven. ENJOY!

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!

Shorebirds, Chincoteague NWR

Let me preface this post by saying, "Identifying shorebirds is not as easy as it sounds." There are Dunlins, Sandpipers, Godwits, Sanderlins, Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs, etc. etc. etc. OMG! So in an effort not to drive myself completely mad, I'm sticking with the 'shorebirds' heading before I take the plunge and tell you what species I 'think' these two lovely little birds are.

Spending time on Chinocoteague National Wildlife Refuge this Summer photographing the multitude of large wading birds was such a great time, in spite of the heat wave. As I drove the main route through the refuge, I would get close to the beaches and in turn the shallow waters where the smaller shorebirds were wading about poking their bills in the water. I snapped several images not really making much of an effort. They were pretty far out in the shallow water so I didn't expect to be able to crop any of the images and use them. However, there were a few that I felt were good enough to post. Keep in mind this image is heavily cropped. Now back to identifying these birds, I believe these are Lesser Yellowlegs as is evidenced by their yellow legs and feet and their long bills. There are Greater Yellowlegs that look similar, but their bills are longer and minutely turned up at the tip. Of all of the information I read about shorebirds and how to identify them, these were the main features that stuck with me regarding these two species. Regardless of whether my I.D. is correct or not, I love these little guys and their speckled bodies and especially their long snouts. Hope you are having a great weekend. It's still chilly here, but a warm up is coming. ENJOY!


PHOTOGRAPHER'S NOTE: I had a very scary header planned for Halloween week, but opted for a less scary one. I hope you like it.

Beautiful Great White Egrets

Have a Wonderful Weekend All. ENJOY!

Lighthouse, Chincoteague NWR

There's beauty everywhere on the island which plays host to Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge. There's Egrets and Herons and Chincoteague Ponies. There's beautiful beaches with creamy white sand. There's emerald green lagoons filled with huge wading birds. There's azure blue waters of the Atlantic Ocean surrounding you.

And then . . . there's this beautiful lighthouse. This lighthouse with its red and white stripes. This lighthouse that braves Fall's fierce hurricanes, Winter's blustery storms, Summers heat and humidity, and then revels in Spring's balmy days. With its new coat of paint the Lighthouse on Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge stands in testament that time really does stand still. And everyone on Chincoteague couldn't be happier as they marvel in its new found beauty.

I didn't want to photograph the lighthouse up close, but rather off in the distance with perhaps the bay in the foreground. And what was so unexpected were the beautiful subjects in the foreground. The Egrets and shore birds were busily searching for dinner as I captured this image. Priceless to me. ENJOY!

Little Blue Heron, Chincoteague NWR

As the warm light of the day faded away, I continued to photograph this Little Blue Heron looking for a catch in the waters around Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge back in July when I visited there.


It is amazing just how light can change the look and feel of a subject. In these images this Little Blue Heron is so dark he almost doesn't even appear to be a Little Blue Heron.

He was busy fishing and only looked up once. Not sure if he was looking at me or not but I doubt it. He probably saw something in the water that I couldn't see. I saw a beautiful Little Blue Heron on Assateague which I posted earlier in the summer and then I posted another image of a Little Blue Heron on the bay side off of Chincoteague Island itself, and now here's a photograph from late day off Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge. So needless to say, Little Blue Herons were plentiful around the Eastern Shore when I was visiting there in July. I hope to get back there again some day, but until then memories and these images will have to sustain me. Hope your weekend is going great. ENJOY!

Photographing Great White Egrets

As you surely know by now, I spent some time on the Eastern Shore of Virginia earlier in the Summer and while there I captured many, many images of large wading birds and shore birds at Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge. Here's a few varying poses of the Great White Egrets I took one afternoon as I drove along the main road which runs parallel to the lagoon. I was truly amazed to find so many of them at one time in one area. Obviously, the lagoon is a popular place to hunt for a meal.

There was a Great White Egret in the dried brush . . .

A Great White Egret in the lagoon . . .

A Great White Egret hiding in the bushes . . .

And a Great White Egret perched on a large downed tree. On this particular afternoon the sun was in full force, so many of the images didn't show quite as much detail in the feathers as I would like, but I was happy nonetheless with what I captured. ENJOY!

Tri Colored Heron in Blue Lagoon

Every now and then a photograph captures your heart and sweeps you away. In the case of these images, the blue lagoon and the greens of the marsh reeds do just that. The last warm light of the day brought out the blues in this lagoon that runs parallel to the main road in Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge.

The beautiful colors of the lagoon were the perfect setting for this Tri Colored Heron on the hunt for a meal. He was especially active moving about in the lagoon. First one direction, then back the other way. My guess is he hadn't had a meal in a while.

My hesitation to bring you more images of wading birds and Chincoteague photos was outweighed by the gorgeous colors I kept coming back to in these images. And well, when you're tired of seeing my Chincoteague images, I know you'll cry uncle.

Sadly, I did not get out this weekend. I have several thoughts on a trip I'd like to take soon. The destination eludes me though. I would like to get back to southern Illinois to the Cache River system and visit two national wildlife refuges situated just north there. The migrating Warblers are passing through Magee Marsh on Lake Erie in northern Ohio in the next few weeks, heading south for the Winter, and I would love to get some photos of them. Then there's Hocking Hills in south central Ohio. I want to try my hand at Cedar Falls again, and perhaps this time, I could get a usable photo of the waterfall at Ash Cave too. I can't let Summer slip away without attempting one of these expeditions. It's the timing that's been off lately. There are subtle signs of Fall visible here in the Bluegrass State. The weather has finally cooled way down especially in the evenings. Hope your week is off to a good start as mine has started out great. 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 . . .

Mirror Image, Great White Egret

Just a quick post today. I captured this image of this Great White Egret one evening during that 'golden' hour at Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge.

Every time I see this image as I scan my archives the first thing that strikes me is his almost perfect reflection in the water of the lagoon. And the second thing that strikes me . . . is his slightly inquisitive or perhaps apprehensive stance as he peers down into the water. It is priceless. ENJOY!

Snowy Egret, Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, VA

It is an under statement to say I was in sheer heaven photographing all of the different birds at Chincoteague earlier this summer. It truly was a paradise that if given the chance I would love to visit again during a migration period. Considering how many birds there were during the slow summer months could only mean it has to be way out there in the numbers during migration. One bird I hadn't had the pleasure of making my acquaintance prior to this trip was the Snowy Egret.

As I researched Egrets to identify this particular bird, I discovered the Snowy Egret is one of the most familiar of the smaller Herons and recently staged a comeback after legislation was passed in the early 1900's and hunting these beautiful birds was outlawed. Their distinguishing features are their long black bills, long black legs and more noticeably their bright yellow feet. I found this Egret amusing to watch as he seemed to crouch his head and neck down towards his body and waded about in the water as though planning a sneak attack on his next catch of the day.

These wading birds are more active than the Great White Egret. Perhaps its their smaller size that allows them to move about in open waters easier than their larger cousins. During mating season, the male Snowy Egret adorns long delicate plumes on their heads, neck and back. I witnessed these plumes over in the bay between the mainland and Chincoteague Island where the Egrets gathered in larger numbers later in the day. I'll post an image I captured of them and the Ibises in another post. As I learned about the history of the Snowy Egret, I discovered why I hadn't noticed these birds sooner. They are mostly coastal inhabitants and I don't get to the coast all that often. These Egrets will migrate south into Central Mexico and the Caribbean in September. But don't worry, they migrate back north into coastal North America in March and April so that we can enjoy them during the warmer months. We've had a gorgeous week for the most part here in the Ohio River Valley which is totally unlike August for us. Normally, August is hot, humid and midway through it, we tend to call it the Dog Days of Summer. But that phrase doesn't really apply this week. ENJOY!

American Bittern or Green Heron

Every now and then a new bird species sneaks up on me. I admit I don't know birds and I am not embarrassed by that fact. One has to learn before they can be an 'expert'. As I become educated on the many species of wading birds, I find myself totally amazed at not just the subtle, but also the more obvious differences in the Heron species. I study birds by photographing them in their habitat in varying seasons and later reading about their variations of size and color and behavior. The Heron species vary widely in shape and color, but they also vary in how they use their surrounding habitat. I discovered this new species of Heron, new to me, the American Bittern, as he was wading among the tall, dense reeds along the marshes that parallel the motor route in Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge.



This particular species of Heron is smaller and stockier. Unlike the Great Blue Heron who is often seen standing in open water, the American Bittern prefers to stay hidden among the reeds in freshwater marshes. They are found mainly inland, but can also be found along the coast, as coastal marshes tend not to freeze during the colder winter months. I intently watched and photographed this Bittern for a while observing him wading in the mud on the parameter of the marsh. At times he would stretch his neck, standing straight up, and peer over the marsh reeds.



At other times, he seemed to crouch while cautiously wading out into the water, but mainly he stuck to his characteristic hidden stance near the reeds, out of sight to most.



My first thought when viewing these images initially was this was a Green Heron. But not being totally satisfied I investigated other heron species and discovered this was the American Bittern. I love learning bird behavior by watching them, and on this day, I discovered while the larger Herons typically stand still surveying the waters around them, oftentimes long necks extended, the smaller Bittern tends to move about more even though he's within close proximity to the marsh reeds. The larger Herons have a bird's eye view as they are so tall. But hey, when you're a smaller species, I guess you have to compensate. Have you seen the American Bittern in your travels? I never had. I personally think he's fascinating and hope to have another opportunity one day to photograph the Bittern again. Hope your weekend is a great one. ENJOY!

POSTSCRIPT: Do you think this is a Green Heron or an American Bittern? I have a reader who feels that my first thought of a Green Heron was accurate and I don't necessarily disagree with his thought. Why? Because that's what blogging is all about . . . learning. And in this case I'm middle of the road as to what species I photographed. But I love the fact that someone had a different opinion, because that means I've got folks thinking. And again that's what blogging is all about . . . learning, thinking. How wonderful is that!

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.