Despite suffering my worst bout of Acid Reflux ever, the trip to Galveston Texas for Feather Fest, and then on to Arcata California for Godwit Days, was, photographically, one of the most productive 14 days of my life so far : ) I was able to capture behavior shots that I have always wanted and never gotten before…and more behavior shots that I just can’t seem to get enough of. Terns hovering in mid-air. Closeups of Spoonbills in full flight. Reddish Egret canopy feeding. Pelicans gliding by at point blank range. Egrets bringing in nest materials. And, of course, that is what we have here. The Great Egrets at Smith’s Oaks rookery in High Island Texas had chicks in the nest, but Egrets never really stop building a nest once they start, and the males were still bringing branches. This handsome fellow is just landing.

Olympus OM-D E-M10 with 75-300mm zoom. 600mm equivalent. I used my custom “flight” program (9 spot, center, continuous focus. Auto ISO.) f9 @ 1/640th @ ISO 200.

If you have never visited High Island in the spring, the rookery will make the trip worth your while, even if, as on this day, there is no “fall out” of trans-gulf migrants. On day when the the Warblers and Orioles are dripping off the trees, you might not be able to spare a glance for the rookery. : )