Palm Warbler, Magee Marsh Wildlife Area, Oak Harbor, Ohio

Sometimes circumstances just conspire for a great photo. Early evening light on the boardwalk at Magee Marsh Wildlife Area and a very close Palm Warbler, and me being there at just that moment, is such a confluence of circumstance. Okay, it is “only” a Palm Warbler, perhaps the second most common warbler in the USA pretty much everywhere (and the most common where it is not second), but still, we take what we get and are happy, thank you! Sony RX10iv at 600mm. Program mode. 1/500th @ f4 @ ISO 125. Processed in Polarr.

Prothonotary Warbler, Magee Marsh Wildlife Area, Oak Harbor Ohio

The Prothonotary Warbler is one of my favorite warblers at Magee Marsh on the Erie Shore in Ohio (or anywhere for that matter). I was disappointed last year when they did not arrive on territory (they are nesting birds here) by the time the Biggest Week in American Birding was over and I was headed back home, but this year the “waves” of early and late warblers are all mixed up, so they are here with the early birds…much to my delight. They are among the brightest residents of Magee Marsh, and certainly among the loudest. I wrote a little poem about it.

Prothonotary Warbler! Just over my head.

Almost too close to focus on. Yellow!

Such a yellow it leaves a blue bird burned on

your retina, like a color negative. And loud.

Singing, head tipped back, neck twisted,

belting out its song. Such a bird! If I don’t

see another warbler all week I am satisfied.

(But of course I fully expect to see a lot more.)

Sony RX10iv at 600mm. Program mode. 1/800th and 1/500th @ ISO 100 @ f4. Processed in Polarr and assembled in FrameMagic.

Magnolia Warbler, Magee Marsh Wildlife Area, Oak Harbor, Ohio.

Here I was trying to get off the boardwalk at Magee Marsh Wildlife Area on the Erie Shore in Ohio after my Point and Shoot for Warblers Class…I was supposed to be back at the ZEISS booth working…when this Magnolia Warbler, my first for this trip, popped down to eye-level 6 feet from the boardwalk. What could I do? So I was 15 minutes later to work. So. Sue me. It is the Magee’s fault and just what you would expect in Magee Marsh during migration. Sony RX10iv at 600mm. 1/500th @ f4 @ ISO 250. Processed in Polarr.

Blackburnian Warbler, Magee Marsh Wildlife Area, Oak Harbor, Ohio

I only got to spend slightly less than an hour on the boardwalk at Magee Marsh Wildlife Area on the first day of the Biggest Week in American Birding, but I can already tell that it is “on” for migration. People saw 24 species of Warblers during the day, and in good numbers…and, in a mix of early and late migrants that is pretty unique for Magee. This Blackburnian Warbler was one that put on an eye-level show for us. Today is supposed to be sunny and seventies, and I expect you will not be able to get a parking spot at the Marsh after 9 am. 🙂 The real question is will any new-come warbler be able to find a feeding spot. Sony RX10iv at 600mm. Program mode. 1/500th @ f4 @ ISO 200. Processed in Polarr.

Cattle Egret, St Augustine Alligator Farm wild bird rookery, Florida

Great Egrets, Wood Storks, Roseate Spoonbills, while not easy, are easier to catch in flight at the St Augustine Alligator Farm wild bird rookery in St Augustine Florida than Cattle Egrets and Snowy Egrets. The smaller egrets move faster, and are, well, smaller so there is less for the focus to lock on to. Still, with the Sony RX10iv and its hybrid focus, I managed a few shots of both Snowy and Cattle Egrets in flight this year. This one, of a Cattle Egret with nesting material is an example. Sony RX10iv at 600mm. Program mode with BIF modifications. 1/1000th @ f4 @ ISO 200. Processed in Polarr.

Brown Pelicans, Washington Oaks Garden’s State Park, Florida

When I was in San Diego, I was shooting the breeding Pelicans at La Jolla Cove with Robert Wilson, who is from Florida, and we were both under the impression that the Brown Pelicans there were considerably more colorful than the Brown Pelicans on the Florida coast. This photo of three coming up the coast at Washington Oaks Gardens State Park south of St Augustine, south of Marineland in fact, is evidence that our impression was perhaps not accurate. They might be a dad less vivid, but they are certainly colorful. Sony RX10iv at 600mm. Program mode with BIF modifications. 1/1000th @ f4 @ ISO 100. +1EV to keep detail in the silhouettes of the birds. Processed in Polarr.

Great Egrets, St Augustine Alligator Farm, St Augustine Florida

The Great Egret chicks must have hatched early this year. The Florida Birding and Photo Fest was a week early, and still the Egret chicks were well grown. They are often tiny in the nest. These chicks were very demanding and mom had a hard time keeping up with their appetite. I like the dark background of shade under the nest tree and the way the foreground foliage makes a bowl for the nest. Sony RX10iv at 600mm. Program mode with action and BIF modifications. 1/1000th @ f4 @ ISO 400. Processed in Polarr.

Roseate Spoonbill and Wood Stork, St Augustine Alligator Farm, Florida

With the density of birds at the St Augustine Alligator Farm wild bird rookery, some conflict is inevitable. There is competition for nesting materials, nest spots, and, in this case, perches. This is the tallest bare tree in the rookery, and a favored perch for resting birds. One or two Roseate Spoonbills generally occupy it…but on occasion a Wood Stork decides to take it…and there is, of course, no contest. The Stork is bigger (and scarier), and easily displaces the Spoonbill. Such is life. Sony RX10iv at 490mm. Program mode: 1/1000th @ f7.1 @ ISO 100. Processed in Polarr and Apple Photos and assembled in FrameMagic.

Roseate Spoonbill, St Augustine Alligator Farm wild bird rookery

A few years ago it was rare to see even one nesting pair of Roseate Spoonbills at the St Augustine Alligator Farm wild bird rookery, but this year there must have been a dozen or more. They were all competing for nesting materials. In this shot, a male Spoonbill brings a twig (or something more than a twig) to the nest. The subdued light of an overcast day still highlights the amazing pink of the wings and body of the Spoonbill, never more evident than when backlit…and catching it against the green foliage only makes it more vivid. Sony RX10iv at 600mm. Program mode with center lock on focus and Minimum Shutter Speed ISO set to 1/1000th. -.3EV. 1/1000th @ ISO 250 @ f4. Processed in Polarr.

Elk, Gardiner Montana

The in-town herd of Elk in Gardiner Montana provide some amazing close up opportunities. I am not sure if they are year round residents, or if they come in for the early spring grazing that lawns provide. There were 7 to 8 elk in the morning, each morning, right behind our hotel, on the grassy slope between the parking lot and the river. They were wary, but not easily alarmed…which pretty much describes my attitude toward them as well. 🙂 This one was down over a sharp slope, with just its head showing over, and very aware of me as I approached, still in the safety of the parking lot above. Sony RX10iv at 600mm. Program mode. -.3EV. 1/500th @ f4 @ ISO 640. Processed in Polarr.