WOOD DUCK CHICK

This newly hatched Wood Duck chick climbed to the opening of the nest box and paused to see his new world. He leaned forward and, with a big push plummeted ten feet to the ground. As he bounced up, the little chick scurried to his mother's side. After all the chicks finished jumping from the nest box, the proud mother collected her babies and marched off to start their life's adventure.

It's been fun bringing you pictures of different birds found in Louisiana for 2013.

Best,
Tom

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TROPICAL PARULA

Robby Bacon's amazing find of the stunning Tropical Parula at Peveto Sanctuary now has a face. This bird wanted to hide behind any branch available just to make photography that much harder. :)

I am not certain how many have been documented in Louisiana but to the best of my understanding it is approximately six.

Hope you enjoy the pictures of this rare-to-Louisiana bird.

Best, :)
Tom

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MERRY CHRISTMAS

May your holidays be filled with joy and laughter. :)

Merry Christmas to all,
Tom

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WHITE-FACED IBIS

You are in for a treat if the sun hits just right on the plumage of the White-faced Ibis.

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GREEN-WINGED TEAL

A photo finish for two blazing fast Drake Green-winged Teal !

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OMG, this large flock of Teal is heading toward the decoys!
Can you feel your heart pounding?
Where are you going to shoot?
How many Teal are in this flock?
Would you believe 103?

The blast of a shotgun is over in a flash but with a camera the memories live on providing the proverbial 'thousand words'.

CRAZY STUFF !

  WHAT YOU LOOKING AT !!!
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How do you like this intense 'in your face' crazy look and the mismatched pupils (sun vs shade) of this 'wide body' model Green Heron? Crazy, huh?

I thought both pupils matched regardless of the conditions. Is this a natural phenomenon or is this some sort of alien Green Heron? :)

 

THE LITTLE GUYS

As I was watching some Geese fly by something didn't look quite right. "Could the smaller ones be Ross's Geese?", I thought. In no time at all the camera went up and the shutter clicked. I checked the camera's lcd and my suspicions were correct. The three little guys at the top of the picture were indeed cute little Ross's Geese. It makes me happy to share such pictures in case you haven't seen them. I now know to scrutinize groups of Snow Geese and look for the "Little Guys" that blend in so well.

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Gotta love the 'Little Guys'

HOLLY BEACH FERRUGINOUS HAWK

The Holly Beach Ferruginous Hawk that Paul and Mac discovered on December 7, 2012 was alive and well on December 10, 2013. It was perched atop a utility pole close to the Apache building on Highway 82 a bit west of Holly Beach. It was calm and collected as it checked out its surroundings for a meal. After a while it flew from the utility pole and flew north over a marshy area. Approximately a half-mile out it began hovering, dropped to the ground, and was never seen again. It was a pleasure seeing this magnificent Raptor so I bid him adieu and left for home.

I'm not certain how many Ferruginous Hawks have been documented in Louisiana. I have been fortunate as this is my second to see. Interestingly enough the first one I saw a few years back was a mere ten miles west from this location.

What you looking at?

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Looking around for a snack.

Keeping an eye on the photographer.

Still keeping an eye on the photographer.

It is cool how his legs have feathers to his toes.

A closer look.

Thanks for visiting LA!

A white Little Blue Heron + 10

Here are a few pictures taken of our fine-feathered friends when I was out and about yesterday. Hope you enjoy them.

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A Blue-headed Vireo aka Solitary Vireo,

Little Blue Heron

Another Little Blue Heron (juvenile)

White-faced Ibis

A Snowy Egret fussing while giving me a tongue lashing. What do you think of that tongue?

A deer ran through the marsh and walked up the bank with the water still dripping from him. He paused for a second, looked my way then trotted across the road and disappeared in the marsh on the other side.

A Pied-billed Grebe snagged a fish and wasted no time downing it.

How does that make your throat feel? :)

Northern Shoveler aka 'Spoonbill'

A lone White-fronted Goose aka 'Specklebelly' flew over apparently looking to find the rest of his buddies.

Seven Blue-winged Teal blasted by. You have to look close to find all seven of these speedy guys.

GRANDSON'S FIRST DUCK HUNT

Our neighbor graciously asked my grandson Grant and me to accompany him and his father to hunt ducks on the opening day of duck season. It was an adventure for Grant as he had never experienced anything quite like this. He enjoyed watching the ducks, watching the dog work, and riding in the Gator Tail Boat / Motor as it sprayed water high into the air behind us getting us safely through the shallow water marsh to the blind and back all while building memories from this outing. He is a crack shot with his BB gun and will hopefully one day acquire a .410 to give duck hunting a go. We were rewarded with eight Gray Ducks and a Mottled Duck for the morning hunt.

I almost got run over while taking this picture of our neighbor (driving), his father and our grandson Grant. A great time was had by all.


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CRESTED CARACARA

Not too many years back the presence of a Crested Caracara caused quite a stir amongst the birders in Louisiana. Their numbers have increased and these magnificent Raptors are indeed quite a pleasure to see when you happen to come upon one.

Two cooperative Crested Caracara were sitting in the grass alongside Pintail Loop. One of them poked his head up from the grass. He was scavenging something on the ground and did not immediately fly.

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He launched from the ground carrying what appears to be a leg of some animal as you can see some furry hair still attached.

He became airborne with his tail feathers spread yielding excellent views of his plumage as he circled to the left.

Still clinging on to his snack he made a wide circle then landed atop a nearby snag.

This is one good-looking Raptor and they always seem so meticulous about their looks as every hair seems to be in place on their black crest atop their head.

A BAD HAIR DAY! The Crested Caracara glanced downwind causing his hair to fluff up giving his crest an almost chicken-like appearance. :)

Even the alligator basking in the sun smiled at the Crested Caracara with the funny-looking crest.

BROWN CREEPER

What are your thoughts of the Brown Creeper's protective coloration / camouflage? How well does he blend in with his surroundings?

This was the my first ever Brown Creeper and its behavior was fascinating. He flew to the base of a tree and spiraled upward searching the bark crevices with his thin, curved bill for food such as insects and spiders. Once he reached one of the lower limbs he would fly to the base of another tree close by and repeat the process. His spiky stiff tail assisted him in climbing and foraging for food similar to that of a Woodpecker.

I hope you enjoy the pictures and thanks for looking.

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A closer look.

BROWN BOOBIES

Kevin Savoie had a fantastic find last Thursday and these guys are still hanging around. Brown Boobies are not supposed to be in Louisiana but apparently nobody told them.

The three Brown Boobies from afar.

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The Three Amigos sitting on their 'Christmas Tree'.

What do you think of their blue eyes?

We go a bit close. They flew away and landed on another 'Christmas Tree' nearby. We thanked them for their hospitality, left and bid these far away guests adieu.

I hope they realize that Duck Season is around the corner so they need to be careful. :)

One more

AMERICAN BITTERN

My personal 'Ghost Bird' f-i-n-a-l-l-y made his debut after many years of looking.

This slow moving sometimes statuesque guy with his remarkable camouflage typically stays hidden in the cover of dense reed beds making him difficult to see as pictured below.

How easy would it be to miss this guy as he peers from the dense vegetation?

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If discovered / alarmed, an American Bittern freezes in his tracks and stands motionless with his bill pointed straight into the air thereby blending in with the reeds. He is a true master of disguise and interestingly enough as large as he is he only weighs about a pound.

As luck would have it this guy came skulking through the dense marsh vegetation searching for food and stepped into an opening . After remaining motionless for quite some time this stealth hunter slowly eased up on a frog and picked him off with a sudden strike of his bill.

How do you like this guy's hairdo?  :)

Below is a short video clip of the American Bittern disappearing into the dense marsh vegetation to dine in privacy after catching the frog. This slow and deliberate guy with his excellent camouflage vanishes from view seemingly right before your very eyes. Sorry for the slight out-of-focus clip.

Left-click on the arrow below to view the short video clip

Hope you enjoyed the narration and pics of this not often seen bird

Best,
'Tom