Aug. 8, 2012 & Aug. 22, 2012 – Ridgefield NWR

Home » Aug. 8, 2012 & Aug. 22, 2012 – Ridgefield NWR

Aug. 8, 2012 & Aug. 22, 2012 – Ridgefield NWR

Posted in

I decided to shake things up a little for this blog post and share some shots I took last summer.  I had skipped over these to get my blog caught up…and of course, now I’m behind again!  Hopefully, these fair weather shots will help warm you up a little as we wait for the spring chilly weather to give way to warmer temperatures.  Let’s get started!

These first four shots were taken on Aug. 8, 2012 at the refuge.

I believe this Great Horned Owl was one of the two owlets that were hatched in the wooded area of the auto tour route in spring 2012.  I recall this one kept opening its mouth repeatedly as if it were yawning over and over.  I thought it was strange behavior.

_MG_0393-Edit20120808RNWR   great horned owl

 

Near marker #3, this juvenile Virginia Rail was not bothered with me in the least.  The sun wasn’t shining from the best direction for a shot but it was fun watching the little one scurrying around for morsels to eat.  After a while, I heard a parent Rail call out from the brush nearby and this little one immediately darted into the brush toward the sound.

_MG_0473-Edit-Edit20120808RNWR  virginia rail juvenile

 

 

In the same area where the Virginia Rail youngster was spotted, and at the same time, this Wilson’s Snipe was also busy foraging for food.

_MG_0515-Edit20120808RNWR   wilson's snipe

 

 

Another look at the juvie Virginia Rail.

_MG_0527-Edit20120808RNWR   virginia rail juvenile

 

The remaining shots were taken on Aug. 22, 2012.   The first Great Blue Heron is on the ground in some typical habitat.  The second shot is a Great Blue Heron perched up in a tree.

_MG_0561-Edit20120822RNWR   great blue heron

 

 

_MG_0578-Edit20120822RNWR   great blue heron

 

A Greater Yellowlegs gives me some poses–the first three shots with cloud cover.

_MG_0581-Edit20120822RNWR  greater yellowlegs

 

 

_MG_0631-Edit20120822RNWR   greater yellowlegs

 

_MG_0643-Edit20120822RNWR  greater yellowlegs

 

These next two images were taken when the sun popped out.

_MG_0719-Edit20120822RNWR  greater yellowlegs

 

 

_MG_0729-Edit20120822RNWR  greater yellowlegs

 

The bird landing here is a Yellowlegs but the other two birds I am not sure of.  Possibly Sandpipers?

_MG_0740-Edit20120822RNWR   lesser yellowlegs?

 

A heavy crop…

_MG_0764-Edit20120822RNWR  lesser yellowlegs

 

I could not identify this bird.

_MG_0860-Edit20120822RNWR    ???

 

And, the Savannah Sparrow, a staple at the refuge during most of the year.

_MG_0881-Edit20120822RNWR  savannah sparrow

 

 

All the above shots were taken with the Canon 7D using the Canon 400mm f5.6L lens.

I’m looking forward to new firmware that is supposed to be released in April 2013, for the Canon 5D Mark III.  One of the features of the firmware allows the camera to auto focus with my 1.4x converter attached to the Canon 400mm f5.6L lens (i.e., it will raise the max AF aperture from f5.6 to f8.  This could open up more opportunities for me in good light.  I’ll keep you posted on this.

Glad you stopped by for this quick look at summer on the refuge.  Thanks much for visiting!

Posted in

I decided to shake things up a little for this blog post and share some shots I took last summer.  I had skipped over these to get my blog caught up…and of course, now I’m behind again!  Hopefully, these fair weather shots will help warm you up a little as we wait for the spring chilly weather to give way to warmer temperatures.  Let’s get started!

These first four shots were taken on Aug. 8, 2012 at the refuge.

I believe this Great Horned Owl was one of the two owlets that were hatched in the wooded area of the auto tour route in spring 2012.  I recall this one kept opening its mouth repeatedly as if it were yawning over and over.  I thought it was strange behavior.

_MG_0393-Edit20120808RNWR   great horned owl

 

Near marker #3, this juvenile Virginia Rail was not bothered with me in the least.  The sun wasn’t shining from the best direction for a shot but it was fun watching the little one scurrying around for morsels to eat.  After a while, I heard a parent Rail call out from the brush nearby and this little one immediately darted into the brush toward the sound.

_MG_0473-Edit-Edit20120808RNWR  virginia rail juvenile

 

 

In the same area where the Virginia Rail youngster was spotted, and at the same time, this Wilson’s Snipe was also busy foraging for food.

_MG_0515-Edit20120808RNWR   wilson's snipe

 

 

Another look at the juvie Virginia Rail.

_MG_0527-Edit20120808RNWR   virginia rail juvenile

 

The remaining shots were taken on Aug. 22, 2012.   The first Great Blue Heron is on the ground in some typical habitat.  The second shot is a Great Blue Heron perched up in a tree.

_MG_0561-Edit20120822RNWR   great blue heron

 

 

_MG_0578-Edit20120822RNWR   great blue heron

 

A Greater Yellowlegs gives me some poses–the first three shots with cloud cover.

_MG_0581-Edit20120822RNWR  greater yellowlegs

 

 

_MG_0631-Edit20120822RNWR   greater yellowlegs

 

_MG_0643-Edit20120822RNWR  greater yellowlegs

 

These next two images were taken when the sun popped out.

_MG_0719-Edit20120822RNWR  greater yellowlegs

 

 

_MG_0729-Edit20120822RNWR  greater yellowlegs

 

The bird landing here is a Yellowlegs but the other two birds I am not sure of.  Possibly Sandpipers?

_MG_0740-Edit20120822RNWR   lesser yellowlegs?

 

A heavy crop…

_MG_0764-Edit20120822RNWR  lesser yellowlegs

 

I could not identify this bird.

_MG_0860-Edit20120822RNWR    ???

 

And, the Savannah Sparrow, a staple at the refuge during most of the year.

_MG_0881-Edit20120822RNWR  savannah sparrow

 

 

All the above shots were taken with the Canon 7D using the Canon 400mm f5.6L lens.

I’m looking forward to new firmware that is supposed to be released in April 2013, for the Canon 5D Mark III.  One of the features of the firmware allows the camera to auto focus with my 1.4x converter attached to the Canon 400mm f5.6L lens (i.e., it will raise the max AF aperture from f5.6 to f8.  This could open up more opportunities for me in good light.  I’ll keep you posted on this.

Glad you stopped by for this quick look at summer on the refuge.  Thanks much for visiting!

2 thoughts on “Aug. 8, 2012 & Aug. 22, 2012 – Ridgefield NWR”

  1. Hey, Papa! You sure got a lot of shorebirds that day! Wow! That was a beautiful set. 🙂

    BTW, I was looking through my books and the unidentified bird you got looks identical to the image I found of a juvenile (or nonbreeding adult) Greater Yellowlegs. Of course, that could be wrong, but that’s what my best guess is. ~ Kimi

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