Pic of the Day

Spoonbill in Pastels

Roseate Spoonbill, Platalea ajaja:  Black Point Wildlife Drive, 

Merritt Island NWR near Titusville, Florida

     This photo was taken on a very cool morning right before sunrise.  The clouds in the western sky were glowing pink from the light of the rising sun.  Their reflection in the water provided a perfect match for the tones of the spoonbills feathers.  The pastel colors certainly give the image a light and soft feel.

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4, 1/200 second @ f/7.1

Pic of the Day

Wood Stork, Mycteria americana:

Black Point Wildlife Drive; Merritt Island NWR

      A Wood Stock on a beautifully clear morning at Merritt Island NWR's Black Point Wildlife Drive stirring in the shallows for a fish.

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f/4, 1/2000 second @ f/8

Pic of the Day

Brwon Pelican, Pelecanus occidentalis:  La Jolla, California

     While I have been "West Coasting it up," I stopped at La Jolla with a friend to photograph Brown Pelicans.  Much more colorful that the eastern race, the west coast birds have a brillant red and green pouch.  these birds are accustom to people and perch no more than ten or twelve feet from the tourist who come to see them.  I was shooting a 500mm lens to blur the background as much as possible, so I had to back-up to frame the bird.

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f4, 1/2500 sec. @ f7.1, ISO 800

Pic of the Day

Northern Gannet, Morus bassanus:  Bonaventure Island; Quebec, Canada

     Bonaventure Island lies just east of the Gaspe’ peninsula just a few miles off the coast of Perce’.  The island is one of the world’s largest gannet nesting colony, and one of my favorite photography destinations. 

     I photographed this pair of birds on their nest.  When the male returns to the nest the two birds point their beaks skyward and rub their beaks together as part of the bonding process.  More than 55,000 pairs of birds nest on Bonaventure, so this scene is fairly common to see.  A gannet colony is a remarkable thing to see and experience.  The noise is deafening, and the smell, well, not too pleasant, but the experience is extraordinary.

To see an earlier post on Bonaventure Islands and its gannets, click this link:  http://bobbyharrison.blogspot.com/2010_07_01_archive.html  ,and scroll down to the July 14, 2010 post

Pic of the Day

Plain Chachalaca, Ortalis vetula:  Bentsen State Park, Texas

     On November 15, I was at Bentsen State Park in the Rio Grande Valley photographing Green Jays, Great Kiskadees and Plain Chachalacas.  The Chachalaca is a noisy, social bird that travels through the woods in fairly large groups.  It is a game bird, but it's smaller size makes it less desirable to hunters than the larger turkey.  Maybe one of the reason I liked the Chachalaca so much is that it remined me of the turkey, and it was less than two week before thanksgiving.  Or, maybe its because I just love saying, Cha-Cha-La-caaaaaa!

Click this link to here calls of the Chachalaca: http://birds.audubon.org/birds/plain-chachalaca

Recently Published Work

Living Bird Magazine; Autumn 2014

     The autumn issue of Living Bird is out.  My "Birding Escape" column in the autumn issue is about the White Pelicans on Harland County Lake, and the great spring congregation of Sandhill Cranes on the Platte River near Kearney.

To subscribe to Living Bird Magazine follow this link:  

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/LivingBirdMagazine

Creation Illustrated; Fall 2014

     "Memories of the North Woods" is the title of my latest "Lens on Creation" column, in the fall issue of Creation Illustrated.  The article features a family story, and the fabulous North Woods birding hotspot, Hartwick Pines State Park in northern Michigan.

If you would like to subscribe to Creation Illustrated click on this link: http://www.creationillustrated.com

Pic of the Day

Green Jay, Cyanocorax yncas:  Bentsen State Park, Texas

     Though I shot this image a Bentsen State Park, the Green Jay is a common bird through out the Rio Grand Valley.  In every park and refuge I went, I found the Green Jay to be a loud vociferous bird that ruled the roost.  Well, at least the feeder. 

     This bird was perched on a branch just above a feeder where it typically would alight before dropping to the feeder.  The predictable behavior made it quite easy to get photographs of this beautiful Neotropical species. To learn more about birding at Bentsen State Park go to: http://www.theworldbirdingcenter.com/Bentsen.html

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f4, 1/320 second. @ f6.3

Pic of the Day

 Columbian Mammoth, Mammuthus columbi

     A couple of weeks ago I visited McAllen, Texas on a press tour, where I went to the Museum of South Texas History in Edinburg.  I love museums, and this museum had it all, from prehistoric Mammoths, to a replica of the atomic bomb, Little Boy.  The museum’s premier exhibition, Rio Grande legacy tells the story of the Rio Grande Valley with artifacts from prehistoric times, Spanish colonial rule, the days of the cattle kingdom through the agriculture revolution to the post-war years.

Bull Skull on the side of a General Store replica 

    My favorite parts of the museum were the Paleolithic era, and the World War II exhibit.  I have never before been in a museum that held a mammoth skeleton in one wing and a replica of an atomic bomb in another. 

Chuck wagon like the Vaquero used on 

cattle drives during the 19th century.

    But, the history of the borderland and its people are that diverse, and the Museum of South Texas History pulls the millennia between the two together.

For more information, visit: www.mosthistory.org

A replica of Little Boy, one of the atomic bomb developed during WWII.  

Pic of the Day

Great Kiskadee, Pitagus sulphuratus:  Quinta Mazatlan; McAllen, Texas

     In the United States the Great Kiskadee is found only in the horn of Texas.  Outside of the U.S. it ranges through Mexico, Central America, and most of South America.  It is a large Tyrant Flycatcher in the genus Pitangus.  According to Wikipedia, “The call of the Great Kiskade is an exuberant “BEE-tee-WEE.”  Roger Tory Peterson, in his Field Guide to the Birds of Texas, Describes the call as: “get-ter-heck.”  In his “Field Guide to Western Birds,” he also describes the call as “kis-Ka-deer!.”  The National Geographic’s “Field Guide to the Birds of North America,” gives the call as “kis-ka-dee.”  To hear recordings of the Great Kiskadee click this link: http://birds.audubon.org/birds/great-kiskadee

     I took this photo at the bird feeding station while visiting Quinta Mazatlan, in the heart of McAllen Texas.  A couple of pairs of Kiskadees were stageing on branches before dropping to the feeders.  I also observed the birds flycatching.  By the way, when I heard the birds call, it sounded like “kis-ka-dee” to me.
     Also see post for Tuesday, November 18.  Click this link for more info on birding at Quinta Mazatlan:  www.quintamazatlan.com

Top:  Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f4, 1/320 @ f6.3

Bottom: Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f4, 1/250 @ f7.1

Pic of the Day

Queen Butterfly, Danaus gilippus:  The National Butterfly Center; Mission, Texas

     The Queen Butterfly is a North and South American species of the Nymphalidae family that consist of some 6,000 different butterfly species.  They have colorful upperwings that lay flat when resting.  Their contrasting, dull  underwings look like dead leaves, which provides the Queen Butterfly with cryptic camouflauge.   Other species of the Nymphalidae family include Emperors, Monarchs, Admirals, Tortoiseshells, and Fritillaries.
     To plan your visit to the National Butterfly Center, click this link:  www.missiontexas.net/attractions/naba-international-butterfly-park

Nikon D800, Nikkor 500mm f4, 1/2000 second @ f5