Wading Birds

Families: Ardeidae, Ciconiidae, Phoenicopteridae, Threskiorithidae

Wading birds are long legged, long necked, long billed birds that include herons, egrets, flamingos, ibis, bitterns, spoonbills, and storks. Many of the wading birds forage by wading in shallow water but not all do that exclusively, some wading birds forage in pastures, wet meadows, on beaches, fresh and saltwater shorelines, grassy slopes, mudflats or from vegetation in marshes.

Birds, Beasts and Bits About Me – My 500th Blog Post

By |October 4th, 2012|Categories: Bald Eagles, Birds, Burrowing Owls, Coyotes, Dunlins, Florida, Laughing Gulls, Little Blue Herons, Loggerhead Shrikes, Pronghorn, Reddish Egrets, Roseate Spoonbills, Sanderlings, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Wow, this is my 500th blog post and it has been great fun to share my images and the stories behind them. I thought I'd share a few images and bits about my thoughts on photography.

4 Years ago today when Hurricane Ike stirred things up at Fort De Soto

By |September 12th, 2012|Categories: Birds, Black Skimmers, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Laughing Gulls, Pinellas County, Reddish Egrets, Ring-billed Gulls, Willets|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Four years ago today Hurricane Ike was out in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico and the waves that it generated made a strong splash at Fort De Soto County Park.

Yellow-crowned Night Heron or Orange-eyed Day Heron?

By |September 4th, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Yellow-crowned Night Herons|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Despite having "Night Heron" in their name Yellow-crowned Night Herons (Nyctanassa violacea) are not strictly denizens of the dark, they can and do stalk their prey during the daylight hours too.

What I could have done to improve this image

By |August 19th, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Pinellas County, Snowy Egrets|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

This image could have been better. I have no doubt about that. I did get the exposure right and I like the action. But there are far too many things about this photo that just don't work.

Great Blue Heron Portrait

By |August 2nd, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Great Blue Herons, Pinellas County|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

This Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) got up close and personal with me a few years ago in Florida, it largely ignored my presence altogether as it stalked prey on shore of the Gulf of Mexico.

Black-crowned Night Heron fly by

By |July 10th, 2012|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Black-crowned Night Herons, Box Elder County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

I spent yesterday morning photographing at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge in Box Elder County, Utah. Black-crowned Night Herons seemed to be everywhere on the south side of the auto tour loop, both adults and hatch year birds.

Farmington Utah’s Voles – Just My Opinion

By |June 25th, 2012|Categories: American Kestrels, Antelope Island State Park, Conservation, Coyotes, Environment, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Glacier County, Great Blue Herons, Great Horned Owls, Loggerhead Shrikes, Montana, Northern Harriers, Rough-legged Hawks, Salt Lake Valley, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Recently KSL.com; a Utah news station, had an article about a vole (a small rodent) infestation In Farmington, specifically in the neighborhood of Foxboro Community. While I sympathize with the residents about the damage being done to their yards I am disturbed by the advice many of the people commenting have left on the story.

White Morph Reddish Egret in Stormy Light

By |June 11th, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Reddish Egrets|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

In my two previous posts of a Snowy Egret and a Great Egret I mentioned how the early morning light and a nearby storm gave those images a feeling of drama. These white morph Reddish Egret images were taken that same morning not long after I created the Great Egret photos.

Great Egret on a Stormy Morning

By |June 10th, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Great Egrets|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Yesterday I posted a Snowy Egret hunting in early morning light and mentioned that early morning or late afternoon light can add drama to an image, in today's post I will explain a bit more about the dramatic light in the Snowy Egret image and these images of a Great Egret (Ardea alba).

Snowy Egret hunting in early morning light

By |June 9th, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Snowy Egrets|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Light plays a huge part in my photography, I try to be at my location just before the sun comes up or goes down to take advantage of the beautiful light that occurs at those times of the day.

Birds of Bear River MBR – Snowy Egrets

By |June 5th, 2012|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Snowy Egrets, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Recently I spent two days in a row photographing birds at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge (aka Bear River National Wildlife Refuge) and found plenty of birds to aim my lens at.

Snowy Egret – Moody Blues

By |May 18th, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Low light, Pinellas County, Snowy Egrets|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

This Snowy Egret image was taken just after the sun had risen above the horizon in about the same location as the egret image I posted yesterday but at a completely different time of the year.

Snowy Egret – Show Me Those Golden Slippers!

By |May 17th, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Snowy Egrets|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I was photographing at Fort De Soto's north beach on May 30th, 2008 when I had a very cooperative Snowy Egret start fishing in the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico right in front of me.

Tricolored Heron (Egretta tricolor) in Breeding Plumage

By |May 14th, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Tricolored Herons|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Some images remind me of the wonderful day I had when I created a certain image, this photo of a Tricolored Heron in breeding plumage photographed at the north beach of Fort De Soto, Florida is one of those files.

Great Egret Hunting in Still Waters

By |April 2nd, 2012|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Great Egrets|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |

I've always liked the calm mood this image conveys partially because the stalking pose of the Great Egret (Ardea alba), the silky smooth surface of the water, the reflection and how the out of focus Snowy Egret and Little Blue Heron give the frame a depth that wouldn't be there without them.

White-faced Ibis in flight

By |March 22nd, 2012|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah, White-faced Ibises|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

White-faced Ibises (Plegadis chihi) breed and nest in the freshwater marshes around the Great Salt Lake. Generally they migrate south for the winter though this winter there were a few that stayed at Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area.

Birds with “Blown Eyes”

By |February 27th, 2012|Categories: American Oystercatchers, Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Glacier County, Great Horned Owls, Montana, Pinellas County, Yellow-crowned Night Herons|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I recently read about a congenital condition in humans called "iris colobomas" which is also found in other mammals and birds and have begun to wonder if that might not be the cause of the abnormal pupils I see in some species of birds instead of an injury to the eye.

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