family life

The Dog Days of Summer Roll On and On

Posted by Chris Cunningham
Black-necked Stilt in Late Summer at Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, Texas
Black-necked Stilt in Late Summer 2011 at Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, Texas. The broiling, buggy coastal marshes where these birds summer can test the resolve of the birder. But what a cool-looking bird! Canon EOS 7D/500mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC).

During the past few weeks we haven’t been going out into the field much due to the weather. The dog days of summer are a bit hard to stomach along the Upper Texas Gulf Coast. Patchy rain storms, interspersed with blistering sun, temperatures in the 90’s and dew points in the upper 70’s—not to mention clouds of winged bloodsuckers—can make for tough going. A sense of humor is definitely required.

Driving to High Island last week, passing the turn to Anahauc National Wildlife Refuge I just shook my my head, imagining the bugs. We visited Frenchtown Road, though, on the Bolivar Peninsula, and through the windows of the truck it looked very promising. In fact, Elisa saw a family of Clapper Rails with four young, a first for her. Recent heavy rains and high tide, though, meant everything was soaked and exuding humidity. The instant we opened the truck doors, the cab was flooded with mosquitos. The cloud stayed with the vehicle (in the bed) as we drove away, and even remained as we waited for the ferry to cross to Galveston!

Clapper Rail at McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge, Texas
Clapper Rail at McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge, Texas. Clapper Rails breed in Coastal Texas marshes from late February through September and produce darling fluffy, black young. Frenchtown Road is the most reliable place we know to see Clappers. But for some reason we haven’t been able to get any first-class images there, yet. Canon EOS 7D/500mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). Natural light.

To further dampen our enthusiasm, at East Beach, Galveston, we found astronomical amounts of reeking, rotting seaweed still (summer stuff) covering the beach. Please! A fall storm to wash all this rubbish out to sea! At East Beach we nevertheless tried for some terns in flight. The conditions were strange to say the least: sweltering on the buggy beach in a dead calm shooting at 1/4000 sec with bright sun and simultaneous rain. In early September in Texas, I fantasize about being in the field without being smeared with blood, sweat, and bug parts! Ha!

A close friend and native Houstonian who recently retired to the hills of East Tennessee characterized the close of the Texas dog days best: during September one watches the weather reports from around the country with envious eyes and sees temperatures falling into the 70’s, then 60’s, then 50’s all the while Texas cooks on into month five. But things are changing in subtle ways. The days are decidedly shorter. There is some avian movement: We saw some Spotted Sandpipers at Sea Center Texas. A pair of Cooper’s Hawks has been hanging around our yard and communicating back and forth with their whistling calls. Flycatchers are passing through.

Great Blue Heron in Flight
Great Blue Heron in Flight Over 40-Acre Lake in Late Summer at Brazos Bend State Park, Texas. Even BBSP, my favorite birding gem, needs a breath of fresh air by September. Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). High-speed synchronized fill-flash.

So while the birding isn’t the best now, there is always research and planning for the future. Although I’m not much of a gear-head, I do read a lot of technical reports on photographic equipment in my spare time. I’m currently waiting to read the official specifications for the much-anticipated Canon EOS 7D Mark 2. What is available indicates not a quantum leap forward (no Foveon sensor!), but rather a series of incremental improvements in resolution, speed, etc.–which is a bit disappointing given the innovative products released during the past two years by Nikon (D800/D810) and Sony (a7R), especially as regards resolution. Perhaps I won’t be an early adopter when this new camera comes out later this year.

Finally, there’s always planning for a retirement that incorporates the seven lovely months in Texas. And they are lovely . . . and just around the corner.

“When action grows unprofitable, gather information; when information grows unprofitable, sleep.” —Ursula K. Le Guin, The Left Hand of Darkness

©2014 Christopher R. Cunningham. All rights reserved. No text or images may be duplicated or distributed without permission.

Road Trip! Desert Southwest Birding in Summer (Part 3: Cave Creek Canyon)

Posted by Two Shutterbirds
Acorn Woodpecker Feeding Young at Cave Creek Ranch, Arizona
Acorn Woodpecker Feeding Youngster at Cave Creek Ranch, Portal, Arizona. Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). High-speed synchronized fill-flash.

Visiting Cave Creek Ranch in Portal, Arizona, and environs in Cave Creek Canyon for a few days each year has become a Two Shutterbirds birding tradition. We arrive each time hoping to discover or photograph something new or obtain better shots of species we have photographed before. Usually we do see or document things new to us. This July’s visit was no exception.

White-breasted Nuthatch at Cave Creek Ranch, southeast Arizona
White-breasted Nuthatch with Sunflower Seed at Cave Creek Ranch, southeast Arizona. To get this shot, I filled a small cavity with seed in the exposed roots of a tree just outside our cabin. It was less than an hour before a jar of nuthatches found the cache. I happily sat still as they flew in, hopped down the trunk, and grabbed a sunflower seed before posing briefly for a picture! Canon EOS 7D/500mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). Natural light.

At Cave Creek, we spend days exploring places like Barfoot Park, South Fork, and the Vista trail—trying to include a mix of new and familiar locales. Because the terrain can often be steep, these are typically pure birding trips (binoculars or, at most, small glass only). This July, Hermit Thrushes, Western Wood-Pewees, and Sulphur-bellied Flycatchers were the most commonly encountered birds at lower elevations, and Yellow-eyed Juncos predominated at higher ones. In the evenings, once we were beat, and upon return to the ranch, we sometimes spent a few hours hanging around shooting the numerous birds that visit the seed and nectar feeders.

Blue-throated Hummingbird at Cave Creek Ranch, Arizona.
Blue-throated Hummingbird at Cave Creek Ranch, Portal, Arizona. These are the largest hummingbirds you’re likely to see at Cave Creek, or anywhere in North America—unless you’re lucky enough to see a Magnificent or Plain-capped Starthroat! Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). High-speed synchronized fill-flash.

Seed feeders at Cave Creek Ranch attract large numbers of House Finches, Lesser Goldfinches, Mexican Jays, and Acorn Woodpeckers. Occasionally a White-Breasted Nuthatch, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, Arizona Cardinal, Hepatic or Summer Tanager, or Curve-billed Thrasher showed up as we watched. In the thickets along the road behind the office we saw Cassin’s Kingbirds, Black Phoebes, and Canyon and Bewick’s Wrens. At the nectar feeders, Black-chinned and Broad-billed Hummingbirds predominated. We saw a few Blue-throated and a single Anna’s Hummingbird. Another birder saw a single Violet-crowned Hummingbird, but Chris was looking the other way. A lifer missed by a fraction of a second! A Plain-capped Starthroat was reported in the area (we saw one a few days earlier in Madera Canyon). Without exaggeration, Cave Creek Canyon is a magical place, and place not to be missed by anyone interested in birds or nature.

Cave Creek Canyon at Dusk
South Wall of the Entrance to Cave Creek Canyon at Dusk. The mouth of the canyon opens into the Chihuahuan Desert. Canon 7D/Tokina 11-16mm. Natural light.

Tradition is a guide and not a jailer.—W. Somerset Maugham

©2014 Christopher R. Cunningham and Elisa D. Lewis. All rights reserved. No text or images may be duplicated or distributed without permission.

Road Trip! Birding the Desert Southwest in Summer (Part 2: Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum)

Posted by Two Shutterbirds

Poets say science takes away from the beauty of the stars – mere globs of gas atoms. I, too, can see the stars on a desert night, and feel them. But do I see less or more?—Richard P. Feynman

Male Costa's Hummingbird at the Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum
Male Costa’s Hummingbird at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. Aviary bird. The Tucson area is near the eastern extremity of this hummingbird’s summer breeding range. From many angles his gorget appears blackish, but during courtship the male Costa’s is sure to direct brilliant violet rays toward potential mates! Canon EOS 7D/100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS. Hand-held, high-speed synchronized fill-flash.

The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum is an interesting and highly recommended institution nestled within Saguaro National Park. Composed of zoo, botanical garden, nature park, wildlife refuge, and natural history museum, the 21-acre campus blends into the surrounding Sonoran Desert. Some animals are free to come and go as they please, and others are captive.

According to museum literature, the hummingbird aviary contains up to seven species. On the day we visited it contained only four: Anna’s, Costa’s, Black-chinned, and Broad-billed. Because Black-chinned and Broad-billed are common in the areas we bird, we focused our attention primarily on Anna’s and Costa’s.

Male Anna's Hummingbird at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum
Male Anna’s Hummingbird at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. Aviary bird. Canon EOS 7D/300mm f/4L IS. Natural light.

The covered aviary made for a weird, muted light in which it was difficult to capture the iridescent colors of male humming bird gorgets. Because these colors are the result of the physical optics of the feathers, not pigmentation, getting the colors to show well depends on the spatial relationship between light source(s), bird, and camera. On the whole, shooting hummingbirds in the aviary was a bit unsettling: We are used to hummers being will-o’-the-wisps, and free to wander.

Verdin at the Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum
Quizzical Verdin on Desert Willow at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. Wild bird. Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). High-speed synchronized fill-flash.

We also saw a variety of wild desert birds. Cactus Wrens and White-winged Doves were the most common and were seen singing on saguaros and other plants. Verdin, Phainopepla, and Gila Woodpeckers were also about. Some Ash-throated Flycatchers and Gambel’s Quail made brief appearances.

Gila Woodpecker on Saguaro at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum
Gila Woodpecker on Saguaro at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. Wild bird. Gila Woodpeckers nest in cavities excavated within saguaros. Many woodpeckers were raising families while we visited the Southwest, and we often saw parents bringing fruit and insects home to young. Canon EOS 7D/500mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). Natural light.

The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum also boasts an impressive assortment of desert plants. A number of species were in bloom including fishhook barrel cactus, red yucca, a variety of legumes, and the spectacular red bird-of-paradise (Caesalpinia pulcherrina), a naturalized native of the Neotropics. Some saguaros were in bloom, but coming to the end of their flowering season.

Barrel Cactus flowers at the Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum
Fishhook Barrel Cactus (Ferocactus sp. ) flowers at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. Canon EOS 7D/100mm f/2.8L IS macro. Hand-held, high-speed synchronized ring-flash.

Our visit to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum brought up many philosophical issues about the place of nature in a human-dominated landscape. We have hinted at some of these issues before, but Elisa hopes to explore them more deeply in future writings.

©2014 Christopher R. Cunningham and Elisa D. Lewis. All rights reserved. No text or images may be duplicated or distributed without permission.

The Adaptable Cattle Egret

Posted by Chris Cunningham
Cattle Egret with Feral Hog at Pilant Slough, Brazos Bend State Park, Texas
In Deepest, Darkest Texas: Cattle Egret with feral hog at Pilant Slough, Brazos Bend State Park, Texas. True pigs have been in the New World for centuries due to human introduction. Cattle Egrets commonly follow cattle around Texas pastures, but this is the first time I have seen the birds shadowing prey-flushing pigs. All photos Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC).

Cattle Egrets are among my favorite waders. They are slightly sinister in appearance and behavior as they sneak and skulk around the margins of grasslands and marshes in search of invertebrate and small vertebrate prey. And judging by their large minimum approach distance they are among the most suspicious and distrustful of birds.

Given their dislike of people, it’s ironic that the rapid expansion of Cattle Egrets across the New World in the latter half of the 20th Century has been aided by human agriculture. Not long before the 20th Century the Cattle Egret was an Old World species. The first Cattle Egret was seen in the New World in 1877; in North America in 1941, and it began breeding in Florida in 1953. Today, Cattle Egrets are widely distributed across the Americas.

A Cattle Egret in Breeding Colors at Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas
Spectacular: A Cattle Egret in Breeding Colors at Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas. Natural light.

Although we think that the Cattle Egret reached the New World on its own, the widespread distribution of livestock here, particularly cattle, has has greatly facilitated the bird’s spread. Today, Cattle Egrets snapping up grasshoppers and other prey flushed by cattle (or farm implements!) is a common American sight.

So in the Americas, the Cattle Egret is not a human-introduced species. Yet, I find it hard to consider it precisely a native species (over much of its range) given its close association with domesticated livestock. The Cattle Egret exists exactly at the intersection of man and the rest of nature. It is one of those species well adapted to live in a human-influenced, agricultural landscape. And, as the human population increases with its ever-increasing appetite for meat and animal products, the Cattle Egret’s future looks bright indeed.

Mating Cattle Egrets at the Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas
Mating Cattle Egrets at the Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas. Cattle Egrets now breed in rookeries with native species such as Great Egrets, Roseate Spoonbills, Tricolored Herons, and Snowy Egrets. Natural light.

It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change.—Charles Darwin 

©2014 Christopher R. Cunningham. All rights reserved. No text or images may be duplicated or distributed without permission.

It’s Black Skimmer Nesting Season!

Posted by Chris Cunningham
A Black Skimmer Turns an Egg, at Freeport, Texas
A Black Skimmer Turns an Egg, at Freeport, Texas. All images Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC) unless otherwise noted. Natural light.

Elisa and I recently took the opportunity to visit the Black Skimmer nesting colony at the Dow Chemical plant in Freeport, Texas during the company’s annual open house. In addition to the Black Skimmers, Gull-billed and Least Terns were present within the colony. Defense and reproduction were foremost on the birds’ minds.

Avian nesting colonies are defense mechanisms against numerous threats to eggs and chicks: Hundreds of pairs of eyes are better than one. Also, Black Skimmers are not aggressive defenders of nests as are some other colonial nesters (Common, Gull-billed and Least Terns, for example), and will nest among these species for protection. On the day we visited, Laughing Gulls loitered like juvenile delinquents on the margins of the colony hoping for a moment of inattention or distraction to grab eggs or chicks. Rats and other mammals like raccoons, can also be expected to prey on eggs and nestlings.

Gull-billed Tern over nest at Freeport, Texas
Vigilance: Gull-billed Tern Over Nest at Freeport, Texas.

Another Black Skimmer defensive tactic we observed was the “broken wing act” to distract attention from nests. In the cases I observed, I did not perceive a particular threat. Perhaps the birds were simply responding to a general level of stress due to a large number of human observers.

Black Skimmer Performing Broken Wing Act at Freeport, Texas
A Black Skimmer Performs the Broken Wing Act at Freeport, Texas. Canon EOS 7D/500mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). Natural light.

In addition to defensive behaviors, we observed several instances of Black Skimmers turning eggs. In marked contrast to snake and lizard eggs, almost all bird eggs must be turned often during incubation for proper development.

One of the most charming things I observed was pair feeding as part of the skimmer courtship ritual. In this ritual, the larger male Black Skimmer presents the female with a small fish. If she accepts the fish, the pair copulates. The female skimmer then eats the fish. Interestingly, terns exhibit a similar ritual—but female terns eats the fish before copulation.

On the photographic side, a persistent Tropical weather pattern continued in which moisture flowed up onto the coast from the Gulf providing high humidity and a dazzling, cloudy white sky. The unfortunate placement of the observation areas coupled with the atmosphere meant conditions for photography were poor. Because the birds were backlit, I had to wait for instances when they would turn their heads such that raking light could reveal feather detail and provide catchlights. Sometimes shooting during the Texas summer requires a little creativity.

Laughing Gull with a fish at Freeport, Texas
No Laughing Matter: Laughing Gulls with a fish at Freeport, Texas. Small groups of Laughing Gulls flanked the colony waiting for opportunities to prey on eggs and young. These two gulls couldn’t decide whether to eat or abandon (or bring back to their own young?) their nearly dried-up fish carcass. They kept dropping it and hestitantly picking it up again. Were they hoping for something better? A plump, juicy tern or skimmer chick, perhaps?

I always root for the defense.—Wellington Mara

 ©2014 Christopher R. Cunningham and Elisa D. Lewis. All rights reserved. No text or images may be duplicated or distributed without permission.

Road Trip: Birding the Rio Grande Valley in Summer

Posted by Two Shutterbirds
Buff-bellied Hummingbird at Casa Santa Ana, Rio Grande Valley, Texas
Buff-bellied Hummingbird (Amazilia yucatanensis), Casa Santa Ana, Rio Grande Valley, Texas. Four species of Amazilia hummingbirds occur in the U.S. Only the Buff-bellied is common. Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC): f/8, ISO 640; 1/1000. High-speed synchronized fill-flash.

Chris’s Field Notes: We just returned from a three-day birding adventure in the Lower Rio Grande Valley (RGV) in the vicinity of Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge and Estero Llano Grande State Park. We stayed at Casa Santa Ana, adjacent to the wildlife refuge—highly recommended for the hospitality and birding the extensive grounds. Although the heat, humidity, and biting insects (not to mention chiggers) tested our resolve, we saw a number of new species and obtained nice (or at least better than we had!) shots of some Valley specialities, essentially Mexican species with ranges that barely extend into South Texas in summer.


Birds notable for us included: Buff-bellied Hummingbird, Groove-billed Ani, Clay-colored Robin, Northern Beardless-Tyrannulet, Altamira and Hooded Oriole, Couch’s Kingbird, Olive Sparrow, and Brown-crested Flycatcher. Nests and young birds were everywhere. I saw one adult male Black-chinned Hummingbird at Estero Llano Grande State Park (at the extreme southern extent of their summer range). Although we explored significant wetlands, including some with profuse amphibians (leopard frogs), waders were rare (strangely it seemed), compared to the Upper Texas Gulf Coast. I witnessed a display by the male Bronzed Cowbird. The bird was on a low branch overhanging a path at Santa Ana NWR when it lowered its head, roused its feathers, and flapped its wings while making whistling, buzzing, and clicking sounds. Spectacular.

The Tamaulipan mezquital ecoregion through which the Rio Grande winds is a harsh place in the summer. Scattered trees, often mesquite and “acacia” surrounded by grasses and low shrubs predominate. Shade is usually incomplete. Mosquitos were not a significant problem, but other types of biting (and bottle) flies abound. Dragonflies like Roseate Skimmer (Orthemis ferruginea) and Band-winged Dragonlet (Erythrodiplax umbrata) were profuse and offered many photographic opportunities. I didn’t see many mammals, only one Southern Plains Woodrat (Neotoma micropus). Lizards were abundant, especially the Rose-bellied Lizard (Sceloporus variabilis). White skies due to high humidity often made photography difficult. Many times I had a bead on an interesting bird only to have a dazzlingly white cloud drift in behind and ruin the shot. All in all, an amazing place, and I can’t wait to get back during cooler weather.

Groove-billed Ani at Casa Santa Ana, Rio Grande Valley, Texas.
Groove-billed Ani at Casa Santa Ana, Rio Grande Valley, Texas. That big heavy bill gives the impression of a seed-eater. Anis do eat fruit, nuts, and seeds, but the bulk of their diet consists of arthropods. Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC): f/8, ISO 800; 1/640. Natural light.
Adult Clay-colored Robin gathering nesting material photographed by E.D. Lewis
This Clay-colored Robin made several fiber-gathering trips to this back-yard garden palm tree. Canon EOS 7D/500 mm f/4L IS USM (+1.4x TC): f/5.6, ISO 500; 1/100. Natural light.

Elisa’s Field Notes: This was our first late spring/early summer visit to the Lower RGV, and I hoped that the effort (in defiance of the heat!) would yield many observations of nesting, nestlings, fledglings, etc. I was not disappointed! With excellent summer birding in our own Gulf Coast backyard, we see quite a bit of bird family life, but mostly of the waterbird persuasion. During our short trip into Texas’ subtropical scrubland, I was able to spot White-eyed Vireo, Long-billed Thrasher, Plain Chachalaca, Golden-fronted Woodpecker, and Altamira Oriole juveniles just beginning to make it on their own. Our timing was rewarding in other ways, too. We essentially had the refuge and the park to ourselves! Our host mentioned that anyone who was “out here at this time of year is committed.” I suspect that he might have meant to say that we should be committed!

I was also charmed by the abundance of nests and nesting behavior. Oriole nests, in particular, are standouts. I saw the Altamira Oriole pictured below fly directly into the nest as it swung and bobbed in the wind. It must be somewhat like living in a small boat out at sea. Altamira Oriole nests are typically woven to a fork of a tree branch and, sometimes, to a telephone wire as we saw outside of the state park. I wonder if building the nest so far from stable branches is one way to make your nest more inaccessible to predators . . . Regardless, as an amateur fiber artist, any creature that weaves or works with fiber is OK by me!

Adult Altamira Oriole and nest photographed by E. D. Lewis
An Altimira Oriole emerges from its nest of grasses woven onto the branches of a mesquite tree at Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge. Canon EOS 7D/500mm f/4L IS USM (+1.4x TC): f/6.3, ISO 640; 1/2500. Natural light.

 What dreadful hot weather we have! It keeps me in a continual state of inelegance.—Jane Austen

©2014 Christopher R. Cunningham and Elisa D. Lewis. All rights reserved. No text or images may be duplicated or distributed without permission.

‘Tis the Season to be (Watching) Nesting

Posted by Chris Cunningham

What we observe is not nature itself, but nature exposed to our method of questioning.—Werner Heisenberg

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron nestlings at Brazos Bend State Park, Texas
Watching the Watcher: Yellow-crowned Night-Heron Nestlings at Brazos Bend State Park, Texas. A parent hunted crawfish about twenty yards from this nest. From time to time the adult would return to regurgitate food into the nest. The second catchlights are the reflection of the sun off the water below the nest. Natural light. All photos Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC).

Photographing nesting birds has many of the challenges of other types of bird photography–and a few of it’s own. On the technical side, nests are typically made of sticks (although not always) so nest shots often have the “stick-in-face” problem–like the image shown above. Many bird species also nest well above eye-level in trees, so, short of going to extraordinary lengths, you’re not going to get any good nest shots of many species. More significant, though, are the ethical concerns that come up in the course of nest photography.

Once you’ve found a nest, you know where to look for the action. There’s no chasing birds around in the brush! At first, this seems like this will make for getting great photographic results easily. A little consideration, however, reveals that this is decidedly not the case.

Normally when photographing birds one tries to get as close as possible. If the bird becomes annoyed it will simply fly (or run) off. Obviously nestlings can not flee, so the photographer or observer must use personal discipline to keep an ethical distance. And the duration of the observation must also be taken into account. Unless I’m somewhere like Smith Oaks where the birds are used to being observed all day long by large numbers of observers, after a few minutes of shooting, I’m on my way. Furthermore, although there is no evidence that the use of flash injures wildlife, it is logical that it should not used on nesting birds lest parents and young birds be unduly stressed.

Great Egret feeding young at Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas
Great Egret Feeding Young at Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas. Natural light.

One last philosophical point: We must concede that most of the time we do not really know how birds behave in their natural state. If we are observing them (and their perceptions are much sharper than ours), then they know we are watching and are likely behaving accordingly. Ironically, then, it would seem that places like Smith Oaks where many thousands of birders visit during the nesting season may provide the most “natural” viewing experience as birds simply learn to tune out the human throng completely and go about their business.

Roseate Spoonbill Nestling at Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas
Roseate Spoonbill Tending Nest with Nestling at Smith Oaks Rookery, high Island, Texas. Natural light.

As far as I can judge, not much good can be done without disturbing something or somebody.—Edward Blake

©2014 Christopher R. Cunningham. All rights reserved. No text or images may be duplicated or distributed without permission.

Transitioning Back into Summer Mode: Hunting Waders with a Camera

Posted by Chris Cunningham
Great Egret Nestlings at Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas
Pure Id: Great Egret Nestlings at Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas. These guys are all about lunch. Natural light. All photos Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC).

Now that spring migration, the most exciting time of the birding year, is almost over, I have to seek adventure where I can find it. This often involves chasing waders around at Brazos Bend State Park (BBSP) as they hunt. Of course, a few of the spring (and summer) spectacles are still playing out–like the frenzy of nesting, breeding, and nurturing young observable at the coastal rookeries. Photographing this profusion of life-energy will be mosquito-bloodied interludes in my late spring and summer studies of wader feeding behaviors at BBSP.

Little Blue Heron with little crawfish at Pilant Lake, Brazos Bend State Park, Texas
Little Blue Heron with Little Crawfish at Pilant Lake, BBSP, Texas. High-speed synchronized fill-flash.

Although I’ve only been out to BBSP a few times recently, one thing already seems evident: 2014 is shaping up as the Year of the Crawfish. Despite hearing lots of frog song and even seeing lots of frogs jump when alligators move around, I haven’t been seeing waders eating frogs. But crawfish are being gobbled down left and right! Why are frogs not on the menu? Have I just missed them being eaten? Will wader tastes change with the summer?

White Ibis in breeding color with crawfish at Pilant Lake, Brazos Bend State Park, Texas
White Ibis in Breeding Color with Big Juicy Crawfish at Pilant Lake, BBSP, Texas. Natural light.

This is one of the eternal joys of birding: new observations that lead to questions and more questions. Sorting out (or at least attempting to) why some types of prey proliferate some years while others are scarce is an ongoing research problem. Some years there are spiders (terrestrial or aquatic) everywhere and are eaten by hungry birds, and some years there are frogs and tadpoles everywhere and are grabbed, but sometimes rejected. But if you travel this path beware: you may find yourself reading articles about fungal infections of spiderlings or how winter water temperatures affect crawfish populations or . . . you get the idea.

Yellow-crowned Night-Heron with little crawfish at Pilant lake, Brazos Bend State Park, Texas
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron with Little Crawfish at Pilant Lake, BBSP, Texas. Natural light.

Familiar things happen, and mankind does not bother about them. It requires a very unusual mind to undertake the analysis of the obvious.—Alfred North Whitehead

 ©2014 Christopher R. Cunningham. All rights reserved. No text or images may be duplicated or distributed without permission.

The Songs of Spring

Posted by Chris Cunningham
Singing Prothonotary Warber at Brazos Bend State Park, Texas
Singing Male Prothonotary Warbler at Brazos Bend State Park, Texas. These warblers generally sing in shaded areas within fifty yards of the nest. Photo taken near Pilant Lake. Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). High-speed synchronized fill-flash.

Over the past week, as migration began to wind down, we birded from High Island, down the Bolivar Peninsula, to Pelican Island, and south to Lafitte’s Cove, Galveston Island, taking pains to see a variety of habitats. I also took a solo trip to Brazos Bend State Park (BBSP), hoping to capture wader hunting scenes, as well as nesting and singing birds along the trail between Elm and 40-Acre Lakes (sometimes called Observation Tower Trail), a place I call “Warbler Alley.”

Many of the songbirds that migrate through Texas do not breed along the Gulf Coast, so we are not treated to their songs. Some birds do breed here, however, and at this time of year the forests, fields, and wetlands are filled with singing males of these species.

Perhaps the most noticeable of these singers are the Northern Cardinals, Carolina Wrens, Northern Parulas, and Prothonotary Warblers. The calls and songs of flycatchers can also be heard here and there if you listen carefully. I’ve seen the songs of the Prothonotary Warbler slighted by authors as repetitive, but I am grateful for any help I can get in locating any warbler species, especially such a beautiful one that, in the great majority of cases, sings in the shaded canopy.

Calling Scissor-tailed Flycatcher at Pelican Island, Texas
Calling Male Scissor-tailed Flycatcher at Pelican Island, Texas. These flycatchers prefer semi-open terrain with scattered trees—like on Pelican Island! Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). High-speed synchronized fill-flash.

One of the things I especially like to keep an eye out for at this time of year is cavity nesting. Two of the loud singers common at BBSP, Prothonotary Warblers and Carolina Wrens, nest in cavities, such as abandoned woodpecker holes. Northern Parulas breed in the eastern one-third of Texas among Spanish moss and other epiphytes in forested areas near water. This makes BBSP an excellent place to search for singing and nesting Parulas.

Although Scissor-tailed Flycatchers breed throughout Texas (except for the western extremities of the state) I’ve never noticed any nesting scissor-tails at BBSP, even though there are significant grassy areas bordering forest. Perhaps I’ve just missed them. In total, I’ve seen just two Scissor-tailed Flycatchers at Brazos Bend. Both were flying along Pilant Slough. All the more reason to keep looking!

Singing Male Northern Parula at Brazos Bend State Park, Texas
Singing Male Northern Parula at Brazos Bend State Park, Texas. In Texas, Northern Parulas are closely associated with Spanish moss. Near Pilant Lake. Canon EOS 7D/500mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). Natural light.

The only thing better than singing is more singing.—Ella Fitzgerald

©2014 Christopher R. Cunningham. All rights reserved. No text or images may be duplicated or distributed without permission.

More Glorious Springtime Birding Adventures on the Texas Gulf Coast

Posted by Chris Cunningham
Snowy Egret in breeding colors at Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas
Snowy Egret in High Breeding Color at Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas. All images Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC).

Over the past week we’ve been visiting our favorite springtime haunts and hotspots. The Smith Oaks Rookery on High Island was an explosion of color dominated by Snowy Egrets (some in breeding, some in high breeding colors), Great Egrets, Roseate Spoonbills and Neotropic Cormorants. At Lafitte’s Cove the Hooded Warbler invasion continued, accompanied by a new invasion of Orchard Orioles and Indigo Buntings. Tennessee Warblers and White-eyed Vireos were common, too.

First spring male Indigo Bunting on Bottlebrush at Lafitte's Cove, Galveston Island, Texas
First Spring Male Indigo Bunting on Bottlebrush (Callistemon sp.) at Lafitte’s Cove, Galveston Island, Texas. Bottlebrush is native to Australia and is used as an ornamental in many places around the world. Stamens constitute the bulk of the visible part of flowers, which are highly attractive to insects and birds alike. Visiting birds usually come away dusted with pollen like this fellow. Indigo Buntings winter from Panama to South Texas and summer in the eastern U.S.

Lafitte’s Cove is wonderful because in one small preserve one can explore oak motte, marsh, and prairie habitat. The motte, of course, is famous for migrating songbirds, but the marshes and ponds, too, are almost always productive during migrations. This time, at the pond south of the trail we saw Solitary Sandpipers and Long-billed Dowitchers, both firsts for us at this locale. Explorations continuing . . . .

Long-billed Dowitcher at Lafitte's Cove, Galveston Island, Texas
Long-billed Dowitcher at the south pond, Lafitte’s Cove, Galveston Island, Texas. This bird is fattening up for a trip to the High Arctic.

For an occurrence to become an adventure, it is necessary and sufficient for one to recount it.—Jean-Paul Sartre

©2014 Christopher R. Cunningham. All rights reserved. No text or images may be duplicated or distributed without permission.

Longing for Spring (Sort of)

Posted by Chris Cunningham
Great Egret on nest at High Island, Texas
Great Egret Preening over Nest with Eggs at Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas. Canon EOS 7D/500mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). Natural Light.

Being from Minnesota, I am usually only reluctantly looking forward to spring in Texas—mainly because the summer swelter soon follows. But this winter, the weather (mostly drizzle, fog, mist, clouds; rain) has been so appalling that I am definitely looking forward to spring more than most years. In addition to watching out for migrants, primarily at the migrant traps like Lafitte’s Cove, High Island, Sabine Woods, etc., we’ll be on the lookout for nesting birds, eggs and babies. And the Texas Gulf Coast is a great place for rookeries . . .

Roseate Spoonbill on nest at Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas
Roseate Spoonbill on Nest at Smith Oaks Rookery, High Island, Texas. Canon EOS 7D/500mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). Natural light.

One of the best rookeries for observation and photography, of course, is the Smith Oaks Rookery on High Island. I have not been there since buying our 600mm f/4L, though. Some of the nests at Smith Oaks are just a little too far for optimum results with a 500mm lens, so I am looking forward to what can be gained with the extra focal length.

Unfortunately, two problems exist at Smith Oaks: crowding and mosquitos. Although not quite as bad  as a shopping mall the day before Christmas, High Island can be quite crowded and not all birders are quite civilized. Some birders seem insistent that photographers stay in the “designated tripod photography areas, ” while some others feel free to stand around in those areas without taking pictures. In any case, listening to the snarky comments while swatting mosquitos may be amusing. Or not.

Juvenile Reddish Egret near Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge, Texas
Juvenile Reddish Egret near Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge, Texas. By early summer, there are generally lots of young birds out and about near the many coastal rookeries. Photo taken from a boat. Canon EOS 7D/500mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). Natural light.

We must let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us.—Joseph Campbell

©2014 Christopher R. Cunningham. All rights reserved. No text or images may be duplicated or distributed without permission.

Summer Birding is Here: Young Water Birds Out and About at Brazos Bend State Park, Texas

Posted by Chris Cunningham
Juvenile Wood Ducks at Brazos Bend State Park, Texas
Juvenile Wood Ducks at Brazos Bend State Park, Texas. Wood Ducks are tough to find at BBSP: They are typically suspicious of humans. These were young enough to retain their naiveté. Canon EOS 7D/600mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). Photo taken near Pilant Lake in late June. High-speed synchronized fill-flash.

After a really interesting spring migration, I have settled into summer birding along the Texas Gulf Coast. Although I occasionally run into hearty souls willing to brave the Texas heat to see and photograph their beloved birds, the birding crowds have thinned. On those particularly broiling summer days, it sometimes feels as though I have the whole park to myself.

Common Moorhen Chick at Brazos Bend State Park, Texas
Common Moorhen Chick at Brazos Bend State Park. Mom will spend much of the summer feeding this little guy aquatic insects. Baby Common Moorhens, with their black fuzzy feathers and propensity to stand in blazing sunlight, are difficult to photograph. Photo taken at Elm Lake. Canon EOS 7D/500mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). Natural light.

Although avian diversity is at its nadir at this time of year, certain things can only be seen in summer, and these make going out well worth the effort. These include Purple Gallinules, Common Moorhens, and Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks raising young. The latter are particularly fun to watch as parents coolly and calmly usher their ducklings into the marsh vegetation in the face of perceived threats.

Black-bellied Whistling-Ducklings at Elm Lake, Brazos Bend State Park, Texas.
Black-bellied Whistling-Ducklings at Elm Lake, Brazos Bend State Park. What is there to say, MP? Ducklings are cute. Canon EOS 7D/500mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). Natural light.

While the ducks and ducklings skulk off into the weeds when humans turn up, the Moorhens and Gallinules slowly stroll away from threats real and imagined on top of floating vegetation with babies in tow. Very young Moorhens and Purple Gallinules are fuzzy and black, little balls of darkness. Now and then, an alligator steams past and everyone keeps and eye out (including the photographer). A wader spears a frog. A Northern Parula sings, then a Prothonotary Warbler. And time passes slowly.

Young Purple Gallinule at Elm Lake, Brazos Bend State Park, Texas.
Young Purple Gallinule at Elm Lake, Brazos Bend State Park, Texas. This young Purple Gallinule has passed its black, “ball of darkness” phase. Canon EOS 7D/500mm f/4L IS (+1.4x TC). Natural light.

“Ah, summer, what power you have to make us suffer and like it.”–Russell Baker

 ©2013 Christopher R. Cunningham. All rights reserved. No text or images may be duplicated or distributed without permission.