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BABY EAGLES-SPRING, 2014!!

5/25/2014

Since last December, I have been following two eagle pair in Pitt County, NC, as they go through their yearly cycle of bringing new eaglets into the world. In each case, the pairs have regularly produced offspring for the past 5 years to my knowledge, and longer than that according to other observers. This steady and prolific pace of two per pair per year can only help the growing population of this National Bird in our area of North Carolina. It is very gratifying to see their great comeback since coming close to disappearing in the past. While there is a long way to go in assuring a truly healthy population across the US, observations across the country indicate that the scene we see here in our local area is being repeated in most areas.

The pictures below will show the two separate pairs in sequence. The first set of pictures will follow the growth of what I will refer to as the Cypress Couple. They started nesting in late January and their two young'uns are getting close(if they did not already this past week) to fledging. The last pictures shown of them below were taken last Tuesday, so they may well be already cavorting in the sky above us. The second couple, referred to as the Pine Couple started in late February and I have yet to get pictures of the eaglets with their heads up and visible, although I expect to see them any day now. When I do, I will add their pics to those below.

It is truly a privilege and a real thrill to have the chance to photograph these beautiful birds. See pics below.

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GREAT EGRETS ON THE CREEK

5/15/2014

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Last week I had the neat opportunity to spend a few days at one of my favorite springtime birding areas. The Wading Bird rookery on Socaste Creek in South Carolina is a sight to see, with well over 300 pairs of all species of herons, egrets, anhingas, etc. For several reasons, I wanted to concentrate on the Great Egret and its nesting behaviors. I think we sometimes take this bird for granted, perhaps because it is so common in the southeast and is frequently seen almost everywhere one goes. I was surprised to learn that they almost disappeared in the late 19th century because their wispy mating feathers, called aigrettes, were sought after for hat and clothing decoration.

They are slightly smaller than the Great Blue Heron, standing about 3-4 feet tall with solid white feathers. They are usually found in wetlands, fresh or salt, and feed primarily on fish, frogs, crayfish, and a variety of insects. Their lifespan is 16-20 years. While concentrated in the southeast, they are found nationwide as well as in Canada.

Like most Wading Birds, they nest between March and May. The male builds the nest almost to completion, then tries to attract a female who helps finish the finer points of the home. She will lay 1-6 eggs over several days in a nest from a few feet to 100 feet off the ground, or more likely, the water. Incubation time is 23-26 days, and the chicks will fledge in 22-25 days from hatching. Both male and female feed and care for the young, who are fed regurgitated food.

At the rookery, there were nesting pairs in all the early stages of baby making, from nest-building to week old chicks. It is fascinating to watch as they fly out and in with twigs, leaves, etc. They are noisy when they re-enter the nest and with 300 or so pairs around, the racket is constant! I was fortunate to locate a nest about 15 feet off the water that I could see into from a small footbridge over the creek. This allowed me to get some shots into a nest of 3 less than one week old nestlings. The chicks are very aggressive and older ones can sometimes kill weaker siblings. They will also attack predators who try to get into the nest.The pictures below are mostly of these parents and their babies.

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DRAGONS!!

5/4/2014

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The Dragons are coming! If you follow this Journal at all, you surely know that this site is mostly about birds, but when the Dragons arrive, i can hardly resist their fiery and varied colors, their frightening big eyes, and their fast and erratic flights. Their voracious appetites should make us all run for cover on the warm, humid days when they roam our fields and streams, ruthlessly stalking their prey! These are the most successful killers in the kingdom, having a 95% success rate in getting the prey they go after. The earth may well have been ruled by them if the ancient Dragonflies of 300,000 years ago had survived and evolved. They were 3-4 feet long!(see artist's rendition below.)

Dragonflies can live 5-6 months and can consume thousands of insects including a love of the human-hated mosquito. They can fly forward, backward, sideways, upside-down. They can turn instantly and hover. The have been clocked at 60 mph. Their eyes perceive the same blue, green, red spectrums we see, but they can, with their 30,000 eye facets also see UV light and the polarization plane. They can see you flying toward or away from you with their 360 degree vision. With these visual and flight skills plus their ability to discern their prey's speed, angle of approach, distance, and flight direction, they can intercept them in mid-air rather than "chasing them down". The prey fly right into the dragonfly's mouth!!

What I like about these guys is their fascinating colors, textures, and fearful appearance. I can spend hours trying to photograph them in all their perch positions. For a list of 10 fascinating facts about Dragonflies go here See the pictures below of some of my favorite DRAGONS!!