A Rare Warm Day in January

I haven't been visiting Fontenelle Forest this winter.  It has been bitterly cold.  Omaha has been one of the coldest cities in the nation several times.  It has been below -13 degrees but it doesn't feel that warm when the wind is strong.  It seldom gets above freezing during any time of the day.  Today's forecast was for 54 degrees.  It was perfect weather for a walk in the woods.

I didn't expect to see much wildlife.  The deer are hiding - they aren't aware that the hunters have left.  All the ducks, geese and water birds are gone - it's hard to swim in ice.  Most of the birds have migrated.  I usually have more birds at my feeders than I see in the forest this time of  year.  My best chances for wildlife would be a muskrat or a hawk.

I did see a nuthatch, a junco and a Blue Jay on walk to the stream.  I saw plenty of other people enjoying the warm day.  When I was approached parents with a couple kids running everywhere but on  the trail,  I knew that the wildlife would be hiding today.  Apparently not, the father told me that they had seen a beaver walking along the trail.  I knew better than that, the beavers are never out until dusk.  I was sure that they had seen a muskrat.  Even so, if the muskrat was out, it was what I wanted to photograph today.

I carefully scanned the stream as I slowly walked down the path.  No muskrat.  I didn't see the beaver next to the path until I was way too close.  I was too close to focus.  I was too close for comfort.  Why was the beaver out and why didn't it run when it saw me?  Was it that hungry or was it sick?  Did it have rabies?  I backed up as far as I could go and still see the beaver.  The light was harsh and there was plenty of brush in the way so I didn't get very good shots.  He decided to much on one of the few remaining cottonwood and was out of my sight.   

While I waited for the beaver to reemerge, I photographed a distant cardinal.  I took a few shots of a couple of distant bald eagles - the first pair that I have ever observed in the wetlands.  As I waited, I tried to decide what was up with this beaver.  A couple of other people came by and walked within a couple feet of it.  It ignored them until it decided to cross the path and back into the stream.  This was the shot I had been waiting for but the spectators were in the way.  When the beaver left, so did they.

I was totally frustrated and decided to wait to see if it would come out again.  As I continued to wait for a better beaver shot, a hawk circled above.  I took a few shots before it circled away and discovered that the beaver had crossed the trail again.  This time, he found a branch and pulled it across the trail to the water.  I wasn't able to get a clear shot.  Once he was in the water, he nibbled on the branch.  I took photos but conditions were bad.

The weather man was wrong.  It didn't get up to 54 - it got up to 60.  While I was disappointed that I didn't get a good shot of the eagles, I thoroughly enjoyed a warm day without mosquitoes in the wetlands.   If today is any indication, 2014 is going to be a very good year.

The One That Got Away

 I have attended many air shows but have never seen any performance to equal the flying demonstration of the Northern Harrier I watched this weekend.  It was flying very low over thick grass and weeds that were about 3 feet tall.  It flew very slow and came to a complete stop at times.  Occasionally it would drop down into the vegetation.  Unfortunately, It was an unsuccessful hunt.

I wasn't totally successful in my attempt to photograph it either.  I parked along the side of the road and photographed from the open window.  The Northern Harrier is a small hawk to start with and it was many yards out in the field.  I was using a Canon 1D Mark IV with an 800mm lens coupled with a 1.4x extender.  The images above and below represent between 1/4 and 1/8 of the original image.

This setting had the potential for a prize winning photograph.  I had a great subject that was exhibiting interesting behavior.   I have years of experience with super telephotos.   I had sufficient light.  The 800mm lens is able to optically shrink the distance between the camera and subject.  The 1D Mark IV  is capable of focusing at f8.  It doesn't get much better than this.  What else could I have wanted?

I had too much hot air between me and the Harrier. The heat causes distortion.  It wasn't possible to achieve the necessary sharpness without moving closer.  I couldn't move closer to it so I needed the Harrier to move in my direction.  It didn't.

The Northern Harrier is an experienced hunter and has mastered flight.  I'm sure that it had captured a meal before the day was over.  I know from experience that if I get this close to a great photo enough times, sooner or later my subject will be in the right place at the right time.  If I'm ready I'll be rewarded with a great image.  In the meantime, I'll enjoy my time with nature and the privilege of watching animals in the wild.

Fontenelle Forest - March 28

I visited the Fontenelle Forest wetlands on March 28.  More trees are starting to get leaves.  The forest floor is still very bare, but grass covers the ground in areas outside the trees.  Even with the fresh grass, the deer continue to avoid the area.

 .Robins are searching for worms.

A red tail Hawk patrols overhead.

 This muskrat is the first mammal I've observed back in the wetlands this year.

 Insects are starting to reappear.  I observed a couple of dragonflies starting a family.