[These images were shot in under-exposed conditions and required more post-processing than usual. I took some artistic liberty with selective desaturation to deemphasize the contrasts, etc.] Just a few days into my Seattle relocation, the friends who generously housed us, pointed to some ruckus in a tree. Since ruckus in a tree often signals animal activity, I grabbed my camera…
Gull Chicks and Gateway Birds
“When you take a flower in your hand and really look at it, it’s your world for the moment. I want to give that world to someone else. Most people in the city rush around so, they have no time to look at a flower. I want them to see it whether they want to…
Please Brake for Birds
It seems like common sense … to slow or stop the car if you see an animal on the road. But, in recent weeks, I’ve had several incidents where birds were clearly in harm’s way and people refused to either stop or take even 30 seconds off their commute to let an animal exit the…
Osprey: From Pairing to Fledging
There are three Osprey nests within three miles of our place … one is a pile of branches, marine rope and police tape, layered on a new platform over Commodore Park. The platform was built after Burlington Northern Santa Fe (BNSF) removed an ages-old nest on an even older communications tower on a railroad bridge….
Pelagic Family, On the Rocks
We passed this Pelagic Cormorant family (Phalacrocorax pelagicus) on one of the few isolated nesting spots near Vancouver Island (British Columbia). We were told that in the 1990s, rampant shoreline development eliminated important habitat for the cormorants. This rock island was one of a few ecological reserves the B.C. government set aside for the cormorants’…
Teaching the Kids to Forage
Juvenile gulls are as determined to get free food from their parents– as their parents are to wean them from the freebies. I’ve seen many adult gulls swimming or flapping away from their begging youngsters, forcing the juvies to forage on their own. I haven’t often watched a parent gull patiently teach the babies to…
Under a Watchful Eye
Happy Mother’s Day! Canada Goose parent and goslings, photographed at Lake Union in Seattle, Washington.
A Room With a View
Ever since I saw my first Screech Owl hunkered down in the saddle of an oak, I’ve given extra scrutiny to tree hollows in the woodlands, looking for a bird face peeking out. Our friend in darn-near-the-middle-of-nowhere California found such a face — in a cavity nest in her backyard — a yard that literally…
Parenting, Avocet Style
American Avocet = Recurvirostra americana These images of American Avocets were shot over the past two nesting seasons. I’m particularly careful when photographing nesting birds or young, and will not intrude if my presence causes any disturbance or danger. Most of these photos were captured at Palo Alto Baylands, from a public pathway. The burnt…
Ari the Falcon Fledges
The San Francisco falcons growing up on a ledge at the PG&E building in San Francisco are fledging. Palladin took off a few days ago and at last report, was perched atop a nearby structure. This is recently uploaded video of another baby, Ari, taking that first leap off the ledge. You can fast forward…
