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Kip's Tick Count for 2008 is currently at: 3 Ticks

Flood Damage Inspection and a few Warblers 4/27/08

Today I had an opportunity to boat around Sweet Marsh to assess the impact of the flash flooding on nesting birds.  Many of the nesting geese are no longer around, neither are their nests.  Probably the most impressive observation noticed as a result of the flooding and wind was the realignment of the cattails in Marten's Lake.  Nearly 50% of the center cattail "island" has been relocated in various sized clumps around that impoundment.  Instead of fretting over the "new look" of Marten's Lake, I've begun to learn the new routes and critter "hiding nooks" inside the remaining cattails.  

I've been told there are at least 2 godwits (marbled?) on the dike near Marten's Lake. There is also a lone snow goose on the water of Marten's Lake.  While out, I observed/photographed several warblers:

Male Yellow-rumped Warbler:

Female Yellow-rumped Warbler:

Palm Warbler:

And possibly a Nashville Warbler, unless someone is certain of a different identification for this bird (photo created from a long distance):

No Pics - 4/25/08

We had a flood today.  Sorry, but I have no new pictures to post.

No Sandhill Cranes Hatched Today 4/24/08

After today's rain finally paused for a few hours, I paddled (against the wind) to the sandhill crane nest.  The adult was sitting on the nest, which still contains 2 eggs.  I'll keep watching it.  I tried to create an image of the adult on the nest, but the adult had other ideas.  Instead, I managed to record this close-up glimpse.

On the trip out to the nest, I passed by the "Double-crested Cormorant Tree."  The mature bird on the right has a band on its leg.  The light-colored birds are immature birds.

Thanks for the Phone Call!! 4/23/08

This morning I looked for the reported white-faced ibises near Sweet Marsh.  Sure enough, they are out there.  Unfortunately, they were located a very long distance from the road.  I'm hesitantly posting a low-quality image for reference only.  

This afternoon I received a phone call from a friend who thought he may have found a sandhill crane nest.  This person has provided me with wildlife information before and he knows what he is talking about, so I abruptly stopped what I was doing and took him up on his offer to show me where the nest was.  We traveled by boat and then I waded near the possible nest.  It didn't take long before I found the nest with two eggs!  The nest is a simple mat of cattails floating in/on bogs.  There are no feathers around the eggs and their mottled color helps them blend well with their environment.

The adult birds stayed in the area so we took a few photos of them in various poses and then left the birds to tend to their egg-hatching duties.

Sandhill Crane Trivia - Until today, I did not realize the eyelids on a sandhill crane move horizontally, not vertically as our eyelids do.  This image captured a sandhill crane's eyelid in "mid blink."

A Variety of Wildlife in a Variety of Locations 4/22/08

I spent Earth Day 2008 enjoying the many different species we have sharing our small portion of the planet with us.  The day began with shooting backyard birds after I noticed the white-throated sparrows had arrived.

While shooting white-throated sparrows (from a blind) I also photographed a couple of other species.  First I captured this mourning dove:

Then I notice inappropriate behavior from this female Common Grackle.  Notice her body language.  She was screaming for the company of the male persuasion.

Even though she was doing her best to draw attention to her needs, the males concentrated on my bird feeders and the seeds that had fallen to the ground.

Then I read on the Internet that several white-faced Ibis had been seen near Sweet Marsh.  I went looking for them but was not able to find them.  I did however, find cooperative blue-winged teals.  The first image is a nice shot of a male blue-winged teal.

This second image features an acrobatic blue-winged teal demonstrating balancing skills.

From there I went looking for rattlesnakes.  Although I didn't find any rattlesnakes, I was able to photograph two species of garter snakes.  This is a Plains garter snake.

This is a Redside garter snake:

Finally, I assisted Crawdaddy Outdoors with their "Cattail Tour" tonight.  Much to our surprise, we found a tree filled with great egrets and one cattle egret.  

We had a bunch of paddlers on the water tonight and everyone saw wildlife.  We'll be paddling the next three Tuesday evenings from 6:00 - 8:00 (weather permitting).  Pre-register with Crawdaddys if you are interested in joining us.

Sunshine and Turtles - Everywhere!  4/20/08

When the sun finally came out today and warmed things up, the turtles and snakes responded.  Marten's Lake at Sweet Marsh was covered with basking painted turtles and Blanding's turtles.  Blanding's Turtles are on the threatened list for the State of Iowa, so it is always a treat to see them.  If you look closely at this one, it appears to be smiling at me.

Painted Turtle:

Northern Water Snake:

One of several Canada Geese hoping the high water doesn't get any higher.  Its nest will be threatened.  I was told of this goose today in church.  Thanks Wade!

Pelicans a Plenty, and Plenty of Other Birds Too - 4/19/08

Today was the annual crane count across the Midwest.  The crane count is where volunteers are supposed to be at assigned sites from 5:30am to 7:30am to listen for and watch for sandhill cranes.   We then log any birds heard or seen and the totals are tallied and submitted to International Crane Foundation at Baraboo, Wisconsin.  I was out in my kayak, in the dark, by about 5:25 am.  While it was dark, I hid myself and tossed out a couple of decoys.  As the sun began to rise over the horizon, I was pleasantly surprised by the wide variety of birds surrounding my "blind."  Following are a few of the images created today.  Please understand the sun never shone brightly, meaning we had drab skies and very low light levels.

First I had pelicans everywhere!  Pelicans filled the sky and water of Sweet Marsh.  Pelicans could be seen throughout the entire day at the marsh.  The first image was a startling view I had when pelicans began flying around when only a sliver of light was visible.  Due to low light levels, my camera had difficulty focusing and I had trouble following the birds at such a close range.

With little light to work with, anything moving recorded as a blur.

Pelicans, coots, grebes, coots, ruddy ducks, and more coots swam peacefully past me until the day brightened.

Later in the day the pelicans still tolerated my close presence!

While hidden in the cattails, I heard quite a few American Bitterns making their burp-like calls.  I wasn't able to locate them, but I did find three Black-crowned Night-herons.  Unfortunately, they took to the air before I could record a clean image.

I did find my first sora of the season.  I'm not thrilled with the image, but it was all I could capture today.

This was the only sandhill crane I was able to capture digitally  today (Crane Count Day).

When the skies finally brightened some, I was able to photograph a couple of horned grebes.  This is one sample.

Throughout the day, double-crested cormorants were observed either perched on tree stumps or flying through the air.

Finally, I've included this photo of what I believe is a Common Tern.  If any readers have a different opinion, please contact me.

Love is in the Air! - 4/16/08 (afternoon)

In case you haven't heard them in every little pool of water, the western chorus frogs are awake and in the mood for love.  These little frogs will almost fit on your thumbnail.  They may be small, but they sure are loud!

Leopard Frog Watching the Chorus Frogs Calling:

The Bloodroot are blooming too: 

Another Very Active Photo-Shooting Day! - 4/16/08

Wind, wind, and more wind...there was no escaping the incessant wind!  Even early in the morning we suffered with wind.  Since the lighting was nice and even, I did my best to cope with the wind by searching for critters in locations protected from the wind.  Following are a few samples.  Note: Two of the species profiled here were captured in action-sequences.

Bufflehead in Flight:

Blue-winged Teals in Flight (near collision):

Blue-winged Teal:

Pied-billed Grebe:

Turkey Vulture in Flight:

Ring-necked Duck in Flight:

ACTION SEQUENCE #1

Blue-winged Teals in Love!

ACTION SEQUENCE #2

Pied-billed Grebe Eating a Crawdad 

(Note: The grebe not only had to subdue the crawdad, but it also had to defend itself from a coot attempting to steal an easy meal):

Horned Grebe - 4/15/08

On Tuesday evening, between dog incidents, I had another unique opportunity to photograph a horned grebe.  This small grebe would never approach very close, but over time did work itself within range for a couple of acceptable images:

Double-crested Cormorant:

American Coot in Flight:

EMS Training and a Few Photo Opportunities - 4/13/08

After several days filled with cold, snow, wind, and drenching rains, we finally had an afternoon of sun, mostly blue skies, and EMS training!  I really enjoy my EMS involvement and won't give it up any time soon, but the sunny day sure looked inviting.  While driving home from training, I took a couple of photos I'm sharing here:

Osprey in Flight:

American Kestrel on Power Line:

Early this evening I was out watching backyard birds.  I noticed this one-legged common grackle.  At first I thought maybe the leg was tucked underneath the bird, but after brightening the photo, it still wasn't there.

American Robin obviously in the nest building mode:

Just Like Lawn Ornaments - 4/13/08

I received a telephone call around mid-morning asking if I had seen the egrets in a local couple's front yard.  No, I hadn't, but I assured the caller I would check them out.  Sure enough, just like lawn ornaments, only better than plastic pink flamingos, there were six great egrets in the yard not far from the road.  I didn't want to stress the birds, which meant I didn't approach too closely, but I was able to make a few photos.  Thanks for the call Kathy!

The Camo-Covered Kayak Revealed - 4/13/08

Fellow photo shooter and friend Jason emailed a photo of what my camo-covered kayak looked like the other day.  I'm working my way toward blending perfectly with the surrounding habitat and may need to add a 3-D coat, cap, and face mask.  Thanks for the image Jason!

A Quiet Day  4/6/08

Sporadic rain showers and heavy clouds meant photography efforts today were minimal.  I looked for western chorus frogs, but found none.  Late in the afternoon a golden-crowned kinglet crashed into our window.  The little bird survived after a few minutes of seeing stars.

Thank Goodness for Technology!  4/5/08

As I was preparing equipment to go out this morning, I received a text message from a local birder telling me pelicans had arrived at Sweet Marsh (Thanks!).  My destination plans quickly changed and I headed out to Segment C of Sweet Marsh.  Sure enough, there they were...an estimated 150-200 American White Pelicans that had arrived overnight.  I approached slowly in my camo-covered kayak and snapped picture after picture.  Here are a few images from the collection:

Incoming Pelicans - notice how minimal their profile is as they fly...

Just a few of many pelicans:

A pair that left the larger group for a brief float in the wind:

Two American White Pelicans in flight:

A solo bird in flight:

An interesting view of a pelican's mouth:

Can any readers push their tongue/pouch out of their throat?

Finally, a most interesting view of a pelican posture:

Along with the American White Pelicans, I also photographed the following species.

Red-winged Blackbird (Male):

 Northern Shoveler in Flight:

In this image I may have captured a mid-flight collision.  Notice the northern shoveler below the "K" in my name.  It is turned sideways and appears to be temporarily out of control.

Finally, I noticed this Canada goose acting quite "motherly":

She was sitting on this nest filled with eggs.  Note: She returned to the nest as soon as I paddled past her.

Fog and Then Interesting Photo Opportunities  4/4/08

Although it was very foggy when I headed out this morning, I certainly didn't think the fog would hang on for hours!  Even with (or because of) the fog, I had several interesting interactions with waterfowl.  I'll post three images where I was able to bring out the content with minimal effort:

Common Mergansers:

Common Merganser (female) (in fog):

Common Merganser (female) taking flight (in fog):

After the fog lifted, I paddled further up the river and found quite a battle going on.  A pied-billed grebe was battling a frog - not for who gets a meal - but whether or not the frog becomes a meal.  I'm surprised a pied-billed grebe can even swallow a frog without choking, but apparently they can!  Following are a few images from the sequence.

I thought the grebe was going to pull the frog's leg off.  The frog is attempting to get away while the grebe has a firm grip on the right rear leg of the frog:

Maybe a different grip will help:

Nope, grabbing the back leg works better...notice the water drops from the struggle to survive:

Let's crush the head to end the battle:

Now to position the frog for a head-first swallow:

There it goes!  The predator/prey relationship in action in the wild!

A short while later I took a walk through the timber and observed several of these birds that I believe to be Rusty Blackbirds:

Finally, I spent some time on Segment A of Sweet Marsh.  Among the coots were scaup and these redheads:

It Was One of Those Great Days!  4/2/08

My schedule allowed only an hour or two (or three) to get out this morning.  Not only was this a short-duration outing, but it was also the test voyage with my new camo for me, my kayak, and my kayak paddle.  I finally found some 3D cattail camo for the kayak, some cattail-type camo for my face, and a camo paddle wrap that removes all glare from my paddle, except for the blades.  The blades still reflect when wet, but with the camo pattern I applied to the paddles and shaft, the reflections are minimized.  I didn't know what kind of reaction to expect from the wildlife.

Not only was the lighting great, but the camo worked better than expected.  After battling current in high water, I was finally able to clamp my kayak to a small shrub along a narrow channel and hide.  I tossed out a decoy and waited, but only for a short time.  In a matter of minutes the birds started flying in, one after another.  

Before I add any photos, I want to stress that I believe it is important that we do not ignore the "ordinary species" that inhabit our areas.  Yes, we see them all of the time.  But, they too have interesting characteristics that make them as photogenic as the migrating visitors. Following are just a few images from today.  I'll start with the resident-type birds.

Canada Goose Taking Flight:

Canada Geese in Flight:

American Coots Taking Flight:

Sandhill Cranes (Isn't it ironic that I now consider them "ordinary" visitors to the Sweet Marsh/Wapsie River area?)  These birds were performing courtship dances:

Greater White-fronted Goose in Flight:

Scaup on the Water:

Green-winged Teal on the Water:

Scaup in Flight:

Canvasback in Flight:

Finally, I've included an image of a duck seldom seen in this area, the Decous Americanus.  This particular duck is useful in attracting wary species to the area:

I've Added Another Killdeer Image  4/1/08

I wanted to add an image of a killdeer not involved in any activities.

A Daytime Image and a Sunset Walk 4/1/08

This morning I observed a pair of killdeers minimizing their footprint on the earth's surface.

While walking at Sweet Marsh this evening to check the status of the ice on Marten's Lake, I had the opportunity to create images of another 'possum.  This one posed first and then stuck its head in dry grass.  I suppose since it couldn't see me, it didn't think I could see it.

After finding the opossum, I then watched a muskrat swimming through the cattails.

I also watched some scaup at Tot's Lake before calling it a day.