Copyright © 2013 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.
These little guys are so cute. I took this last week-end while up north in Lodi for the Sandhill Crane Festival.
Nikon D300s| Nikkor 80-400mm G| Hand-held
Category: Birds
Sandhill Cranes are Arriving!
Copyright © 2013 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.
I’ve been looking forward to this week-end for a month. It’s that time of year when the Sandhill Cranes return for the Winter Migration. A friend of mine (Judi) has been posting Sandhill Cranes from Merced Wildlife Refuge in the Pacific Flyway this past week which really excited me. She reported that they were less skittish, and were a bit closer to the “Auto-Route” we take to see them. I’ve been wanting a really good close up of a Sandhill Crane for years. This report gave me hope that this might be my year.
Yesterday, my friend Rainey and I went over to the Refuge and had a wonderful time. We called Judi and met her at the Refuge. We were not disappointed. The weather was California perfect; sunny, warm, and with a slight breeze. The Cranes were closer than I’d ever seen them.
They are so beautiful with their Red Heart shaped face, and wonderful plumage.
We drove the “Auto-route” several times in the late morning and early afternoon.
We even saw a family group with a juvenile. It’s the little one in front without a red face.
Then we went to lunch at an” old-time” family drive-in Burger Joint called H&M in Merced. They say they’re famous for their seasoned fries which are delicious, but their Guacamole Burger is just as good. The Avocado Burger is my next favorite burger on the menu. After a diet busting lunch we went back to the Refuge for another drive around before heading home.
On this last trip around the refuge we saw groups of Sandhill Cranes flying in for the night.
Today, Rainey, Dali, and I went up north to Lodi to the Sandhill Crane Festival and found the weather completely different from yesterday. Overnight our warm Indian Summer changed to Fall; it was cold, and so windy the top soil was blowing so thick visibility was only 10-20 feet! We didn’t see too many Cranes and those we saw were pretty far back in the fields near the Levees or in the taller rows of mowed corn for protection.
We did see other birds of note: a Belted Kingfisher ( still my nemesis I’m afraid), Dali got the Kingfisher shot today. We also saw Lesser Sandpipers, and a Snipe shown below so, the day wasn’t a total loss.
It was a great birding week-end with friends. I’m looking forward to going back to both Wildlife Refuges this winter.
Nikon D300s| Nikkor AF-S 80-400mm G
Bushtit
Copyright © 2013 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.
This is my first Bushtit capture. These little birds usually stay deep in the branches and are quite flitty. This morning while birding with Rainey and Dali we saw quite a few on two bushes so, I hung out hoping I’d be quick enough to capture a photo of one if it happened to venture out onto an exposed branch.
This was a great morning. Birds of note that we saw are a Merlin having breakfast, Thompson Warblers, Vireos, Hummingbirds, Ruddy Ducks, Acorn Woodpeckers, a few Cedar Waxwings, and the Mandarin Duck.
Note: This was shot at a very high ISO 1250 to stop action and blur so there is quite a bit of noise even after using a noise reduction tool. I’d rather have noise than a blurry photo. I delete the blurry ones.
Nikon D300s| Nikkor 300mm f/4
Sun salutation
Copyright © 2013 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.
Taken last week-end while looking for Cedar Waxwings. He was a delightful pause along the journey.
Nikon D300s| Nikkor 300mm f4 @ f5.6| 1/1000s| ISO 800| Manual Priority|
Two hours in the park
Copyright © 2013 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.
Last Saturday I had the pleasure of going birding with a my friend Dali. We heard the Cedar Waxwings were returning, and we hoped to find them.
We found a good size flock of them zipping through the Aspens, and pines in the park. We spent most the morning photographing them.
We spotted several other birds too. I managed to nail this photo of a White Crown Sparrow as it was just about to take off.
There was an old dead tree along the creek that had several Acorn Woodpeckers, and Starlings perched on it. Here’s an Acorn Woodpecker taking a quick break from pecking for bugs.
In the wooded area we came across these lovely berries. I don’t know what plant this is, but it was lovely in the morning light, and the colors were vibrant, and perfect for the season.
It was in this area we also saw several Anna’s Hummingbirds flitting around.
Dali says this is a Yellow Throat Warbler. If it is this is the first one I’ve ever seen.
Here are a few more Cedar Waxwings. I just love seeing them. They’re so exotic.
The Aspens in the park were at peak Fall color, and the Waxwings liked being in the yellow branches.
…and here’s one that was high on top of a tree feathering its nest.
It was a very successful outing for birding, and a lovely way to spend two hours.
All the photos were taken with a Nikon D300s with a Nikkor 300mm f/4 lens, hand-held.
“Summer, and the livin is easy”
Copyright ©2013 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.
Tufted Puffin-Adult Summer
Copyright © 2013 Deborah M. Zajac. All Rights Reserved.
This is the first time I’ve ever seen a Puffin in the wild! I went on a Birding trip out to the Farallon Islands 27 miles outside of San Francisco in the Pacific Ocean. We weren’t allowed on the island-only Biologists are allowed on the island, but we cruised all around them and then we went out to deeper water from there. Along the way we saw 3 Tufted Puffin.
There are only 50 pairs of Tufted Puffin nesting on the Islands at this time, but there thousands of gulls, Common Murre’s, lots of Cormorants, seals, sea lions, and one lone Gannet. In deeper water we saw Hump Back whales, and a Blue Whale too.
I saw so many new birds on the trip, and the one bird I hoped to see was the Tufted Puffin. I went home a happy sailor just seeing one. I hoped I got one good shot.
The weather was overcast, and to get the shutter speed I needed I really pushed the ISO. Shooting from the boat was challenging. I would focus on a bird then the boat would go up or down and my focus point was off. I didn’t start to get the rhythm of the sea til near the end of the day, and then there wasn’t much to see as we were pushing hard to get back.
We were out at sea for nearly 9 hours. I went with Alvaro’s Adventures out of Half Moon Bay. I would definitely go again.
Alvaro is a Biologist, and he had two expert birders along for the tour. One was on the starboard side calling out birds and mammals, and the other on the Port side doing the same. I don’t think we missed anything flying or swimming on our route.
I’ve not been able to spend much time online lately. #1 Grandson is very busy and takes all my attention these days. I’m looking at your photos when I can and I’ll catch up soon!
Nikon D700| Nikkor 70-300mm VR@ 280mm| f9| 1/1000s| ISO 1250| Manual priority| Matrix Metering| Hand-held
Related articles
- Bird of the Week: Tufted Puffin (valleybirder.wordpress.com)
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