Maine! Feed me!
Least Tern: York County Maine, USA, August 2024 — The Least Tern chicks are fully fledged and have been flying around the beach for weeks, but they aren’t hunting on their own yet. They gather in little pods to wait for mom or dad to bring them a Sand Eel or Rock Gunnel, all calling out softy until an adult appears and then really squawking. It can’t be long now before the adults leave them to their own devices. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii VC VXD zoom at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my action and flight modifications. Animal/bird subject recognition auto focus. Processed in Photomator and assembled in FrameMagic.
Maine! Walk this way
Snowy Egret: York County, Maine, USA, August 2024 — We have a lot of smoke from the wildfires to the west of us in the air right now, and it makes everything sort of soft…at least when photographing (not to mention making it a bit hard to breathe). It does not seem to be bothering the birds, though it is hard to tell. This Snowy Egret was in the marsh quite close to the path. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii VC VXD zoom at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my birds and wildlife modifications. Animal/bird recognition auto focus. Highlight metering mode. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Ruler of the roost
Ruby-throated Hummingbird: York County, Maine, USA, August 2024 — Yesterday this immature male Ruby-throated Hummingbird showed up in our yard, and promptly took ownership of the hummingbird feeder…fending off our local male and female, and even the Chipping Sparrows who use the seed feeder near by. Feisty and determined. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii VC VXD zoom at 600mm equivalent in low light. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Animal/bird subject recognition auto focus. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Monarch on Rose Hips
The Monarch Butterflies are coming back through, down the coast, on their way to Mexico. They come around Great Head point and across the Mousam River mouth, over the beach and the marsh, and continue on south, 20 or so of them in the short time I am looking. They rarely light for more than a few seconds, and most don’t light at all while I am looking. This one settled a moment on the ripening Beach Rose hips (Rosa Rugosa). Sony a6700 with my action and flight modifications (just in case it did not sit for me). Insect recognition auto focus. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Frumpy Egret
Great Egret: York County Maine, USA, August 2024 — This was just a passing mood…the Egret was in fine form…it just had a moment of frump, such as comes to us all in the course of a day in the marsh. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii VC VDX zoom at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Animal/Bird detection auto focus. Highlight metering. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Forest orange
Perhaps Jackson’s Slender Amanita (I love to photograph mushrooms in season but I don’t pretend to know what they are, and I don’t eat them.) Little and bright orange at any rate. Less mature specimens looked like little orange buttons. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii VC VXD zoom at 90mm equivalent. Program mode with my macro modifications. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Loosestrife Honey
Western Honey Bee: Roger’s Pond Park, Kennebunk, Maine, USA, August 2024 — Loosestrife Honey sounds like a good brand name…if not for Loosestrife being so aggressively invasive here in Maine. The Honey Bees seem to enjoy it, but look how dark that pollen sack is! Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii VC VXD zoom at 115mm equivalent from about 5 inches. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Insect recognition auto focus. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! The family that hunts together stays together
Snowy Egrets: York County Maine, USA, August 2024 — I am pretty sure, from other photos taken at the same time, that this is an adult and this year’s immature Snowy Egret feeding in a tidal creek. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii VC VXD zoom at 600mm equivalent. Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Animal/Bird recognition auto focus. Highlight metering. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Ghost Plant
Indian Pipe (or Ghost Plant), Rachel Carson Headland Trail (at the headquarters), Wells, Maine, USA, August 2024 — Growing up in up-state New York, we called this Indian Pipe, but I see that many internet resources are using the name Ghost Plant. I can see why…it does have a definite ghostly appearance. It is a flowering plant, each stem producing one flower, but it has no chlorophyll and cannot use sunlight to generate nourishment. Instead it is parasitic on Russula type mushrooms, which are themselves parasitic on the roots of host trees. Ultimately the Ghost Plant gets its nutrients third hand. Talk about complicated living arrangements. This arrangement does mean that it can grow in deep undergrowth under dense canopy where little sunlight penetrates. Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii VC VXD zoom at 75mm equivalent. Program mode with my macro modifications. ISO 2000 @ f4.5 @ 1/250th. Processed in Photomator.
Maine! Eastern Calligrapher
Eastern Calligrapher: Roger’s Pond Park, Kennebunk, Maine, USA, August 2024 — This is another tiny bug…it was a good day for them yesterday at Roger’s Pond. There were lots of these tiny (just about 1/4 inch) hover flies working the (invasive) Purple Loosestrife. This is the only shot I got with the wings open. I was debating making this a Pic for Today, but when I looked it up and saw the name I could no longer resist. Calligrapher! I wonder if it is called that because of the pattern on the back or because it draws letters in the air as it hovers around flowers? Sony a6700 with the Tamron 50-400 Di iii VC VXD zoom at 115mm equivalent (the macro range on the Tamron, so this about half life size depending on what you are viewing it on…more than life size on anything larger than a phone. 🙂 Program mode with my bird and wildlife modifications. Insect recognition auto focus. Processed in Photomator.