Gotta love an "IRRUPTION"

Okay, so right off the bat you're probably wondering what this dang fool is talking about and why am I so happy about the ground shaking.  Well, first let me clarify that I said irruption and not to be confused with an eruption where the pictures fall off the wall.  There are subtle similarities though and I will point out two of them.  The first similarity is that both events occurs in nature and is out of our control.  The second similarity is that both events make our eyes get bigger than normal.  Let's face it when the ground begins shaking my eyes get real big and I'm pretty sure you concur.  Now how does that relate to an irruption and just what the heck is an irruption.  Well, in my case when I get wind of an irruption my eyes get real wide if I think I can witness it and photograph it.

What's an irruption, you may be asking.  An irruption can have many faces but in this particular case it involved a big and beautiful Snowy Owl.  Let me explain in greater detail before you write me off as a complete nut case.  An irruption can occur for various reasons and involve different critters.  Most generally the popular opinion is that an irruption occurs when there is a shortage of a much needed and popular food source and happens from time to time when nature feels it is necessary.  In this particular situation it involved a Snowy Owl who typically resides in the Arctic.  While we may drool over a Prime Rib as our favorite staple the Snowy Owl craves a good old tender Lemming.  A Lemming is a small rodent that lives in the Arctic area and provides a tasty treat to a Snowy Owl.  In fact these Owls will consume 3 or more per day and 1600 per year.  If this food source experiences a shortage the Snowy will move southward in search of food and occasionally will end up in the northern states.  In this case this Snowy Owl decided he liked an area in western New Jersey at the back end of a beautiful reservoir.

Fortunately I got word of this from a photographer friend and the temptation was too much to resist.  I sent an e-mail to my son and although a bit apprehensive he opted to join in the adventure.  It turned out to be win-win all the way around.  Sure it meant driving 550 miles in 28 hours and heading out in the early morning cold, climbing an extremely steep and treacherous rocky embankment, and nearly freezing our fingertips.  And certainly it involved possibly getting arrested because we found ourselves in an area where we weren't supposed to be.  But the nice gentlemen with the megaphone made it very clear that we needed to vacate the area which we did, well kinda'.  After speaking to this fella we formulated another plan and another approach which really paid off.  And of course the fact that he now drove away really helped us.  Just kidding, I think we were legit at that point.  At any rate, our final approach from the hill and through the trees paid off and we got some good images.  Between my son and I we fired off approx. 500 images.  We had a field day!

So just how magnificent is this Snowy Owl?  Well the Snowy is one of the largest Owls and is the heaviest in North America.  It is approximately 24" tall and has a wingspan of 52".  It's more than capable of making small species of ducks it's next meal.  In fact I believe this female is acquiring a real taste for small ducks.  By the way, this Snowy is a female as the male is nearly all white.  The male is also considerably smaller than the female.  All things considered, there were only two disappointments with this shoot.  The Snowy Owl has incredibly large yellow eyes with dark centers but this one seemed to be squinting almost the entire time we were shooting.  I only ended up with a couple images that show the yellow.  Also the feet and talons are amazing on a Snowy but this female was making every effort to keep them tucked under her plumage to stay warm.  On one picture you can just see the claws.  So you're probably wondering was all the effort worth it?  That would be a definite yes.  It was an awesome road trip with my son Jeremy and the Snowy Owl was a big bonus.  I'd do it again in a heartbeat!

In the image below the X marks the spot where we climbed to in an effort to get withing shooting range.  It was extremely steep and very treacherous walking on the loose rocks.  That is a stairway to nowhere above us and it's close to 150 foot long so it gives you an idea how high this embankment is.  We were staged at the X and shooting when we heard the megaphone telling us to vacate immediately. The red arrow shows the approximate location of the Snowy but she was actually out of frame and on the fringe of the woods.

Photo courtesy of Jeremy Dorsey

The picture below was taken by Jeremy as I clicked like a wild man.

Be advised...this is not Plumbers Butt, it's my t-shirt.

Photo courtesy of Jeremy Dorsey

The yellow eyes are barely visible in this image as are the claws.

This amazing predator can rotate her head a full 360 degrees.



Let The Migration Begin!

Well, to be perfectly honest this title is a bit misleading because the migration is well underway already and will continue for a bit yet.  And then I guess we should clarify which migration, the fall or the spring.  These pictures were just taken this weekend so it's kinda' obvious this is from the fall migration.  It goes without saying that the Peninsula which juts out into Lake Erie is a hotbed of activity during the nice weather.  There's swimmers, boaters, bikers, hikers and rollerblader's pretty much from one end of the Peninsula to the other.  As fall gets into full swing gone are most of the sun lovers and it's time for many species of migratory birds including waterfowl and shore birds.  Most people aren't aware that the Peninsula is an annual stopping point for migrating birds making their way to their winter nesting grounds.  In fact it is on the direct route of the Atlantic Flyway.

There is gobs to write about the Atlantic Flyway and the importance of the Peninsula as a stopping point.  At the risk for boring you silly let's just say that there have been over 320 different species of birds recorded on the Peninsula.  Many of the migratory birds travel long distances on their southern journeys.  Unfortunately their idea of catching a flight is somewhat different than their human counterparts.  Many of these birds begin their journeys from Alaska, Greenland, Iceland, Baffin Bay and all across the Arctic.  There are some incredible looking birds to be sure.  On this trip we decided to kayak out to Gull Point which is a protected area for the migratory birds.  On this particular trip we ran smack dab in the middle of the American Coot migration as they were everywhere.  We also had the pleasure of spotting at least 5 Tundra Swans, and a male Bufflehead.  The Peninsula is a totally different place this time of year but never fails to amaze us and hold our interest.  I'm including a couple  images from our recent outing.

These are Tundra Swans and they typically migrate in family units from Alaska.  They stop here for rest and nourishment before continuing to their destination.  In the case of the Tundra Swans they are most likely heading for the Chesapeake Bay area.  It was getting close to dark as we watched these beautiful birds so we couldn't be certain of the total number but we glassed 5 for sure.

This is a male Bufflehead and it's colors and patterns are far more eye catching than the female Bufflehead.  This is always the way it is as the males are always much more pleasing to the eye in the bird world.  This isn't the case in humans.  Night was approaching quickly as we fired off the last few images.  It's so common to have beautiful sunsets on Lake Erie and this evening would be no exception.  The reflection of the beautiful sunset is quite apparent in this image.

I need to find out what these puffy plants are because they pretty much border the lagoons, ponds and the shores of the bay.  I couldn't help but fire off a few images and thought having one in this Blog would be appropriate.

American Coot aka Marsh Hen

Today's surprise snowfall was a firm reminder that winter is just around the corner.  This was one of those days where the temptation was strong to just stay indoors and enjoy the fresh snowfall from the comfort of the living room.  Well maybe that would have been the smart thing to do but that just isn't the way we roll.  We decided to load up the camera gear and see what kind of animals were around.  We checked out the local elk herd but they seemed to be sitting pretty tight and probably resting comfortably under some thick hemlocks.  Our next mission was to check out a spot where a big old bruin has been frequenting but that didn't pan out either.  So far it's not looking like it's going to be a very productive day.

We decided to check out a couple area ponds and reservoirs to see if there were any waterfowl that stopped for a rest on their southern migration.  As we approached the one large body of water we spotted a couple birds but they had made up their mind that they didn't want their picture taken.  One bird that we watched through the binoculars was definitely a Loon.  A Loon is a diver and can travel quite a distance underwater.  After watching this Loon for a few moments it was obvious he wasn't getting close enough for a decent picture.

Our next subject was a Grebe.  This little duck is a diving duck and he was anxious to demonstrate his skills.  For a good 15 minutes we watched this little duck and tried to anticipate where he would surface so we could be ready to snap his picture.  Let's just say that the Grebe won this little game.  He always outsmarted us and at times would dive and we never did see where he would surface. 

After playing "chase the Grebe" for a good 15 minutes we spotted something that we just had to check out in a nearby wetland.  As we scanned the wetland with the binoculars we spotted a dozen male and female Mallards casually swimming along.  But there was another bird close to the right side that definitely caught our eye.  We worked our way over towards that side of the pond and got a pretty decent look.  We identified this duck as an American Coot.  These are real cool ducks.  They have a whitish bill with a grayish bad around the tip and a featherless shield just above their bill at the front of their head.  In fact this is where the saying "bald as a Coot" was derived from.  Their feet aren't webbed but instead they have floppy lobed toes.  The American Coot can actually run pretty fast on land and seem to run on the water to take flight.  Seeing this American Coot made our day outdoors worthwhile. 

We ended our day by once again trying to get some close up pictures of the albino's that we have been watching.  One of these days we will be in the right place at the right time and get some great images but today would not be that day.  All in all though it was a great day to be out and about enjoying nature.

American Coot

I have tons of excuses for these being bad pictures.  It was snowing hard and mixed with rain.  I was shooting with my tripod fully extended which doesn't make for a stable platform for sharp images.  Aside from that it was a dreary day which made for slow shutter speeds and a duck that bobbed continuously.  If it sounds like I'm whining it's because I am.  Poor pictures or not, we were still thrilled to add a new duck to our photo collection.

As I said, their feet are rather unusual.

Early Morning Mist

This is another prime example where the quality of an image doesn't mandate whether it will be Blog worthy or not.  Once again  poor quality photos are included because of the story they tell.  These particular images were shot on a particularly foggy Sunday morning.  Fog and beautiful sunsets are two things that I just don't have the ability to predict.  In fact, I'm not sure anyone has that ability.  The way I work around that is to not worry about it.  If an evening sunset turns out to be vibrant and beautiful we enjoy it to the fullest.  In the case of fog, I can't change it, I can't worry about it and it won't stop me from pressing the shutter release. In fact I am finding more and more that I'm embracing it and amazed by it.  Sure it doesn't make for the sharpest of images but the images left in my mind are priceless.  My advice is to get out there on a foggy morning and as the fog clears just watch nature unfold before your eyes.  Those sights and sounds won't soon be forgotten.

On this early foggy morning I found myself sitting in the middle of a large herd of elk.  Since I was there when the fog began to lift the animals didn't seem bothered by me.  I on the other hand was a bit concerned by how close I was to an enormous bull. As the fog lifted I became aware of the identity of this large bull.  Sure enough this was "Ear Hook" probably the toughest bull on the hill.  The day before he had done battle in this same field and I would imagine some of the  cows present today were the result of yesterdays battle.  He's a huge intimidating animal with a very noteworthy characteristic.  He's got one tine on his left side that curls around in front of his ear.  That would be an awesome find come shed time.  We'll be looking for it for sure.

The other thing that stood out on this foggy morning was the sight of a small calf with the herd.  This calf was way too small for this time of the year.  I come to learn that this calf was born in mid August which is quite late in the year.  We hope he's strong enough to endure a hard winter.  I shot a few pictures that really show the contrast between Ear Hook and the baby.  We call this Big and Little.  I'm sure you'll see why.  One of the images show what I like to think as the family with Daddy, Mommy and the little guy.  While I'm not certain if that cow mothered this calf, she sure seemed to keep an eye on it.

The final picture shows a head shot which really gives you a grasp of how he got his name.  Hope you enjoy Ear Hook, Momma and baby.

How about some color!

What a day!  Early in the morning we were capturing images of our local elk herd in the peak of the rut.  Toward evening our viewfinder focused on a big old black bear, some deer and of course more elk.  The subjects for our afternoon shooting were quite a bit smaller but still proved to be a challenge.  The models for our afternoon photography session were Monarch Butterflies.  One thing is certain these little buggers also require a lot of patience to get a decent shot.  The reward for your patience is a viewfinder full of vibrant color.  Yep, big or small, we shoot em' all!