My day at the Fontenelle Forest wetlands didn't start out
great. I hiked to the lake and found it relatively
empty. There were a few Northern
Shoveler Duck at the far side. I checked
out the prairie area. It was quiet too -
only a couple of Redwinged Blackbirds.
As I hiked in the forest on the way to Stream Trail, I could
hear birds but couldn't see them. I
spent some time trying to get a Ruby-crowned Kinglet photo but it remained deep
in the branches. I spotted several
Brown-headed Cowbirds high in the trees.
I noticed a large bird fly away out of the corner of my
eye. I thought it was an owl. I hiked near the area it had flown to and
discovered a big hole in a huge cottonwood tree. I thought I saw something move in the hole so
I decided the owl was about to fly out. Elliott
Bedows walked by. I told him about the
hole and the owl. Elliott said that
Great Horned Owls don't live in holes.
He did point out that it was in plain sight several trees away. Sure enough,
I was able to photograph it there and in a couple other places as it
moved around. I wonder if the lack of
ducks on the lake had anything to do with their fear of the Great Horned Owl.
As soon as I started walking down Steam Trail, I saw many
more birds. There is more cover for them
along this trail. A group of Blue-winged
Teal flew by. It isn't easy to focus on
little ducks when they are in front of trees - the camera's autofocus always
picks the trees instead of the ducks. I
panned the camera and was able to get a shot of the flying ducks.
A Redheaded Woodpecker was on a fallen log. I seldom get to photograph them at eye level. They are usually high in the trees.
As I proceeded down the trail, I ran into Elliott
again. Elliott had found another great
thing for me to photograph - a Great Egret.
Apparently all I need to do to get great photos is to follow Elliott
around.
A couple of male Cardinals were chasing each other
around. I watched them for awhile - but
they didn't stay in any place long enough for a photo. The only image I got isn't very good but it
reminds me of the chase.
Canada Geese are so common in the wetlands, that I usually
ignore most of them. Today was
different. This shot is my favorite
image of the day. It isn't just a photo
of geese, it shows behavior, action and the interaction between them.
