Belted Kingfisher

Nikon D300s 300 f4 + 1.7X TC f/10, 1/800s, ISO 500, 50% of original

The Belted Kingfisher is one of the hardest birds to get in photography range in the U.S. - they have a penchant for taking off from their perches right when you get into position and mock you with their unmistakable rattle call.  Dune Rd. is almost always good for at least 1 Kingfisher - usually perched along the power lines peering down into the mosquito ditches that border the road and today was no exception.  A male and female were both present but it was the Male who put on the show.  He made quite a few dives into the water (though I couldn't discern if they were successful) and a few times it hovered above the water waiting to strike which allowed me to photograph it from my car.  These pictures are a big improvement over anything I have but still a long ways from what I want.  A blind and set-up will probably be required to fulfill that desire - but for now I'll take these!

Nikon D300s 300 f4 + 1.7X TC f/6.7, 1/1250s, ISO 640, 25% of original

Here is the female - notice the rust coloring:

Nikon D300s 300 f4 + 1.7X TC 1/1250s, ISO 640, 65% of original

And here's a different pose:

Nikon D300s 300 f4 + 1.7X TC f/6.7, 1/1250s, ISO 640, 25% of original

A juvenile Black-Crowned Night Heron was skulking around the marsh looking for food in the areas of open water:

Nikon D300s 300 f4 + 1.7X TC f/8, 1/2000s, ISO 400, Full Frame

Moving around:

Nikon D300s 300 f4 + 1.7X TC f/8 1/1250s, ISO 400, Full Frame

Merlin with a Sanderling for Breakfast

This morning I set out on Dune Rd. in hopes of finding some American Bitterns which have been plentiful this week (with up to 4 being seen in a small area).  I drove from Quogue East and didn't find anything other than a juvenile Black-Crowned Night Heron, a Belted Kingfisher, and a Song Sparrow.  The inlet was dead with only 2 old squaw (long-tailed ducks) flying by and the expected raft of Common Eiders hugging the western jetty.  While I drove back toward Quogue, right before Dolphin Lane I spotted a Merlin on the wires with a Sanderling.  I turned around and positioned myself to photograph it...after a minute or two someone on a bike came by and flushed the bird which flew about 100 feet to the east which was actually a blessing for me as the bird now faced the other way and I could get a head-on look.  After 30 minutes or so, the man on the bike returned and I was ready for the flush shot (having taken the teleconverter off of my camera and reduced my focal length from 500mm to 300mm).  The only problem was I forgot to aim where the bird WILL fly, instead of where the bird Was.  If I'd adjusted my camera up and to the left, I would have nailed the above shot, but instead I must deal with a clipped wing.  Oh well...
I'll start off with a teaser of the other species, before the grand finale of Merlin shots.

Here is the Song Sparrow which looked so beautiful in the Spartina:

The Juvenile Night Heron had me hoping Bittern from the road... but as I approached it was clear I would not be so fortunate:

And the Belted Kingfisher, in it's less than exciting perch and pose...:

And now for the Merlin... this was when I first approached the bird and you can see the prey is facing the North which isn't ideal.  It was Full Frame however, which was awesome:

 After it had been flushed, with a feather stuck in the beak:

 Head turn.....

 It looks like it's yelling, but I assure you it was just trying not to choke on the feathers.

 Trying to pick off each morsel of meat:

 This again was before it flushed the first time:

 A close-up:

Lastly, a mouth full of feathers....

More Archives

Between the weather, work and the prospect of moving this week I haven't been able to get out and create any new images, so we are diving back into the archives.  Enjoy.  (Above/Below: Barn Swallow)

A Brown Thrasher was a few dozen feet away:

The end of June brought these images of a Belted Kingfisher and Great Egret at Weesuck Creek in East Quogue:

A meal the Kingfisher above would have loved to have gotten:

Mornings can often coincide with large numbers of egrets feeding along Dune Rd. in the marshlands after a long nights sleep.  Here is a Snowy that was quite difficult to properly expose but I'm thrilled the bill stands out against the dark background.

And lastly here is a Double Crested Cormorant in flight - which is not an easy task.  Taken at the Shinnecock Inlet.

Coots, Ducks, Kingfishers and Dueling Hawks

Coots and a Gull to Boot:
Lake Agawan was free of Northern Shovelers, but the 3 Coots from last weekend were still hanging out along the western side.  I was able to sit down on some concrete along the Lakes edge and waited until the Coots swam by.  Since they seem to come quite close to me, I'll try the 105mm Macro + 1.7X TC next time around to try and eke out a little more detail.  One advantage to overcast skies is it really can bring out details that otherwise wouldn't be seen because of the strong glare of the sun.

The Gulls were fighting over bread that people were feeding them.  This one had lost the fight and was flying back to where the action was happening, lucky for me it was right in front of my camera:   

Lots of Ducks:
A stop Mecox Bay produced Canvasback Ducks, Greater Scaup and Hooded Mergansers, all of which were quite shy and scared easily.  The Canvasback Duck is similar to the Redheaded Duck, and at a distance it is tough to distinguish the two.  Redheads are smaller with a shorter bill and a golden eye, whereas the Canvasback Duck has a red eye.  Additionally, the male Canvasback Duck has a mostly white body, compared to the grey body of a Redhead.

The Greater Scaup is also another species which can be tough to ID at first.  It looks nearly identical to the Lesser Scaup as well as the Ring-Necked Duck and if you're really far away it could be confused with a Goldeneye.  The easiest way to tell the difference between the Greater and Lesser Scaup is by looking at the iridescence on the head which is purple in the Lesser and Green in the Greater.

Shinnecock Canal:
I've never stopped at the Shinnecock Canal to photograph birds before, but as I drove over Montauk Hwy. I noticed a lot of gulls, many of which were feeding and thought perhaps there would be an unusual species (not liek I could pick it out as they all look so similar).  Well, none of the gulls stood out to me, however I did find this female Red-breasted Merganser fighting the ripping current in the canal.

Dune Rd. produces again:
The Shinnecock Inlet seemed to have less action than the canal, however it DID have 8 surfers and body borders hoping to catch some of the wild incoming waves that poured into Shinnecock Bay.  While this isn't unheard of, it's pretty unusual to see and by the looks of it they weren't too successful.  On the other hand, it was a much easier go than surfing the ocean which was a mess from this latest storm.  (sorry for no photos of the surfers, but this is a bird photography blog!)

ALMOST the 2nd Best Photos I've Ever Taken:
As I continued along Dune Rd. though, I found a kingfisher and the sun was trying to peak out so I parked the car and tried to take some shots when it took off and landed on this log.  I was hoping for a photo akin to the female kingfisher shot I had back in early January that was calling out in the foggy air - but my autofocus  was off a little and none of the shots came out as sharp as I would have liked.  The Kingfisher eventually took off and started flying west which is where I was headed anyway so I drove along the flooded Dune Rd. keeping my eyes peeled for Harriers.  I saw one on the south side of the road and stopped as it landed on the ground.  As I took my camera out it flew into the air and I heard the kingfisher calling.

At first I thought the kingfisher had flown to the south side of the road and caught the interest of the Harrier when I saw a 2nd Hawk (which I presumed to be a harrier as well) take off and attempt to spar with the first.  I kept my finger on the trigger hoping for the best, when the first Harrier broke off and started flying west which I then put myself into a position to photography.  It's not unusual to see Northern Harriers get into these types of arguments, particularly along Dune Rd. where 3 or 4 of them spend their winter.  When I got home and looked at the shots (aside from being disappointed at the quality, deleting most of them) I realized it was not TWO Norther Harriers, but a Cooper's Hawk and a Northern Harrier.  What's more is the Cooper's Hawk was chasing off the Harrier!  Talk about unusual.  Cooper's Hawks generally hangout in the woods (or along the fringe of the woods) and are a rare sighting along the ocean like this.  Also the hawks are both about the same size (the Harrier has a slight size advantage), but I would speculate the Harrier is the better flier and certainly it was THERE territory, not the Cooper's.  Either way, an interesting interaction that I was happy to witness and photograph.  

I had to delete all but these 2 shots, which aren't that spectacular from a technical standpoint, as my focus and shutter speed were both inadequate.  This is NOT the same problem I had experienced last week, and in fact was a result of the poor lighting conditions, fast action and wrong settings (as I didn't anticipate needing a SS of 1/2500+).  Last weeks problem seems to have been solved as it appears the connection between the lenses was a little loose - hopefully it won't rear its ugly head again.  I continued to photograph the Harrier which gave me a few close ups and these are by far the sharpest photos I've gotten of this Hawk.  I can't wait to see what Dune Rd. produces next time.

A Great Start to 2010

A Good First Sign
Happy New Year to you all.  I started my day at EPCAL in Calverton, with the hopes of seeing a Short Eared Owl which was spotted earlier in the week.  The weather was supposed to be partly cloudy by mid-morning, but it was dreary and cold when I drove around the former air base, not seeing anything.  Trying to make the most out of my morning, I figured I'd check up on the Guillemot as it's been a while since I'd last seen it and I was interested in getting some unique photos of it.  Driving along Sebonac Inlet Rd., I kept my eyes peeled for Bluebirds (which were spotted today again, but unfortunately not by me) and anything else of note, when I heard the unmistakable rattle of a Belted Kingfisher.  It was perched on an Eastern Cedar tree, and as I pulled over to try to photograph it, the female bird (the orange on the breast distinguishes it from the more plainly plumaged male) flew to a sign post, and then to leafless Tree-Of-Heaven, as seen below.  This photo has been a long time coming, as the Belted Kingfisher is one of my (and many photographers) nemisis, so I particularly appreciate the open beak.

Black Guillemot Continues
Bullshead Bay Inlet was placid, flat calm.  Not a hint of wind, but the skies were sadly still dim and overcast.  A few "birders" were down there searching Peconic Bay for the bird, but I knew better.  I parked where I had seen it recently, by the dilapidated bulkhead and set out on trying to put myself in a good position for photography.  I was able to nestle in against the bulkhead, between 2 breached areas which allowed for me to get nice and low and rest my arms and the camera lens on the bulkhead, stabilizing my shots.  The air was so quiet and still I could hear the Black Guillemot slip into the water each time it dived.  Since the light was terrible, I wouldn't be able to improve on the shots I already have gotten of this species, and with it constantly diving, I figured I should try and get some interesting Dive shots, which I was quite successful in doing.  I'm certainly not getting tired of watching this bird, and I hope you aren't either.

Shinnecock Inlet
A trip down to Shinnecock Inlet was sure to produce some Bonaparte's Gulls which I have never seen/photographed before.  This is one of the more attractive Gull species, with its pinkish legs/feet, black sideburns, and diminutive size.  The gulls were feeding in the middle of the inlet (a tease) so I focused on a herring gull that found a sea star to eat which made me quite happy.  Just the other day I had seen a shot (with much better lighting) of a gull with a sea star and thought "how come I never get to see something like that?", well, now I have.  A Bonaparte's Gull gave me a good fly-by (seen below) and there was plenty of activity.  The Bay was flush with hundreds of common Eider and 3 Eiders gave me a nice fly by.  Just when I was about to leave, I checked the NY Bird Listserv and saw a fantastic posting - a Snowy Owl had been spotted on the other side of the Inlet!  I scanned the other side (known as Shinnecock County Park East) and came up with nothing. . . until I noticed what appeared to be a seal hauled out on the rocks just on the north side of the park.  While I wasn't crazy about driving all the way back to Southampton (A 40 minute round-trip drive to get somewhere that was literally 1,000 ft. across the inlet, I had to take the chance and would possibly be rewarded with a Snowy Owl photo.

Seal, Yes.  Owl? Not so Much.
A Common Loon greeted me upon arrival, sitting quite close to the shoreline, while some Red-Breasted Mergansers were a bit more wary.  As I walked further West, what appears to be a Harbor Seal (though it could be a Harp Seal) was hanging out on the rocks, hauled out waiting for some sunshine to warm it up.  While it was a little nervous upon first seeing me, it quickly settled down as I sat still a ways away until it got used to me.  Just when I was about to make a move a few feet toward the water to get some more photographs (I had only taken 3) a truck came rumbling by, keen on seeing the same thing I was looking at, which promptly scared the seal into the water. . . Quite a few seals however were coming up for air in the inlet on the Eastern Side, keeping there eyes and interest on me, but nothing too great, and the lighting was pretty bad so I just watched the Bonaparte's divebomb the water as if they were terns.  As I left, I debated walking South to the ocean and scanning the dunes and snags in hopes of seeing the snowy, but I figured I would have seen it by now, so I headed back to the bay side and watched the seal who had been scared off swam about 3 feet from the shoreline debating if it should haul out again or not (it didn't).  As I write this, I see a report that the Snowy Owl was still present at 3:15, about an hour and change after I left.  I need to stop being so lazy when it comes to this. . . Hopefully the bird will be there tomorrow.  Here's a shot from December 1, 2008 of a Snowy Owl (my first and only encounter) at Rd. I on the West Side of the Shinnecock Inlet.  Can't wait to see what tomorrow (and the rest of the year) brings!

And a few more images from today:

 A Herring Gull with its hard-won meal

Three Common Eider Drakes.  The first 2 are in "Eclipse" plumage while the last one is in Breeding Plumage 

Black Guillemot with picture perfect diving form

And now showing off the red legs - Notice how far back they are set on the bird.