We came upon this scene on a Seattle area beach . . . a small stretch of private community beach where we have a pass. Planted on the pebbles, way far away, too far for my 70-300mm lens, we watched as this Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) wrangled with a second eagle, a group of crows,…
A Merlin’s Dragonfly Day
I expected duck photos and got a Merlin. This female used her perch to survey the mass of dragonflies below. She regularly dove then reappeared on this tree with a dragonfly in talon. The Merlin Falcon Foundation has information on Merlins of Western Washington and British Columbia, including Merlin behavioral insights and audio of their…
The Art of Gull Feet
Pigeon Over Seattle
This pigeon did aerial turns and hovers that rivaled a raptor’s. I captured a few frames as she took off from Pike Place Market and hovered for a few seconds against Seattle’s skyline. Thanks to SkeletalMess on Flickr for the Creative Commons texture “Tainted” which I used in the above rendering. Related Pigeon Posts: Lancelot-Guinevere:…
I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart
A Starling’s tribute to Duke Ellington . . . jockeying for best song position, and losing it to a crow. Shot with my Olympus E-520 and Zuiko 70-300mm. The photo was taken as the sun receded behind clouds, just above the horizon, so it was later-afternoon warm and filtered.
Balde Interloper
I was shooting in the fog — the silhouettes of crows foraging at low tide — when every bird on the beach suddenly flushed and flew into the mist …
Redondo Pelicans
On a last-minute work detour through Los Angeles (en route to the Northwest), I caught my favorite group of Redondo Beach pelicans waiting for fish scraps to drain into the harbor.
One More Reason [for Me] to Love Starlings . . .
. . . because they have artistic sensibilities: Related posts: The Lady Fairer How Starlings Colonized the United States
Miss Them Already: California Pelicans
We’re packing up for a move to the Northwest. It will be a year-plus endeavor — a relocation based on pragmatic considerations. I’ve been a Californian for the better part of 20 years, so the best way to embrace a transition across state lines is to see my future there as a photographic adventure. That…
Floating Fast Like a Hummingbird
Hummingbirds occur only in the New World. There are occasional reports of hummingbirds in Europe but they’re thought to be escaped from captivity. Fossilized skeletons of ancient hummingbirds were, however, found in Germany.