Last Days of Summer

(August 31st) By the end of August, there's not much of summer left in Michigan. One of the things this summer has meant for me is macro photography. I just love to bring the small world we rarely see to the forefront. I headed out to my favorite macro location in town. Not many butterflies around here anymore, but there are still some flowers and lots of bees and wasps. One of the first subjects I found was this grasshopper on a milkweed leaf.

You normally think plants don't move, but your opinion changes when you take macro photographs. Plants move a lot then - mostly due to the least bit of wind. Combined with an extremely narrow depth of field and manual focus, it means getting sharp images is tough. It's a fun challenge though as the subjects are generally plentiful and you can try many times. This aster was one of the prettier flowers remaining.

Bees and wasps were everywhere today. I saw over 10 species in a small patch - of all sizes, shapes, and colors. Of all my shots of the day, this one of a Honeybee was my favorite. Although it wasn't one of the unusual species, the composition just came together perfectly and the image sharpness was spot on. Insects are an essential and fascinating part of our ecosystems - pollination is just one of many of the roles they play.

Not the Best of Days

(August 25th) Yesterday I tried some things with flash and the swans with mixed results. So I returned to Gallup Park hoping to test out some improvements and new ideas. No swans were to be found. In fact, there weren't was much around period. I had to occupy myself with some Mallards who were bathing and preening. It was one of those days where you aren't quite sure whether or not to make any images. This is a bad attitude though, and you usually don't work the subjects as hard as you should.

The subjects weren't the most unusual, but the light was fantastic, so you just have to press the shutter. Aside from the mallards, the only other things around were some Canada Geese and Eastern Chipmunks. I had taken so many chipmunk pictures earlier in the summer, so it was time to give the geese some camera time. A lot of people give Canada Geese a bad rap since they are everywhere these days, but I still think they are a handsome bird. This one was wearing a leg band.

Growing Up

(August 24th) I took an early morning trip to Gallup Park to see how it had changed in the couple of months since I had last been there. Summer is definitely almost over. Most of the birds are on their second or third brood and these offspring are almost already grown. I saw a Barn Swallow who had just left the nest. It didn't make it very far and was resting in an oak. It squawked constantly to its parents to beg them for food. The parents were feeding this full-sized 'kid' non-stop. It was great fun to watch and try and get some action shots. I tried for a slower shutter speed to capture some of the frenzy of the activity.

Introduced species can be a big environmental problem. Mute Swans were introduced from Europe a while back and have spread through some of the Northeast and Great Lakes region. The tend to be fairly aggressive birds, driving many other waterfowl away. But I have to admit, they are pretty birds. I tried to capture some of the soft intimacy of this swan that was preening in front of me. I used the opportunity to get some good practice at fill flash on a white subject - the white can reflect too much of the flash light if you're not careful.

Trip Across the Border

(August 13th) This morning I took an early trip to Canada to check out Pt. Pelee for the first time. Although Pt. Pelee is primarily known for migration season, I had never been there before and was curious to see what it was like. I spent most of the morning being hounded by hundreds of biting stable flies. After fleeing the beach from them, I spent some time in the marsh area. Here there were some young Black Terns circling around and giving me some nice views.

I ran into this Northern Leopard Frog on the boardwalk. These frogs are one of a couple of species of northern frogs that are heavily spotted (the Pickerel Frog is the other). As a child, I used to run into these frogs regularly in our garden, so they can stray a distance from water when they want.

After I left the boardwalk, I decided to check out the western beach at the National Park. A flock of gulls was resting there while some human visitors enjoyed the water. This Herring Gull had found a hole in the sand to huddle in.

Excitement in the Sky

(August 11th)

I headed out again this morning for some shorebird photography. Little did I know that I wouldn't be shooting any shorebirds. I was treated to a nice sunrise over the Detroit River, so I snagged a few shots of it. I'm always a sucker for sunrises and sunsets...

As I walked in further, I spotted some ducks in the water. I was watching them, wondering how I could approach them for some shots. Ducks (aside from your park mallards) are usually quite skittish and one of the trickier subjects to get close to. As I was formulating a plan, something dive-bombed one of the ducks, frightening them all. It was a Peregrine Falcon about the same size as the duck it was attacking. The duck took off flying, but only a few inches above the water. The falcon touched it but wasn't able to grab it. It all happened before I had any idea what was going on. Then the falcon circled around a couple of times. With all my settings not prepared for this, it was a wonder I got any photos at all. It was an amazing thrill to see this speed demon attack a duck that surely outweighed it. For some unknown reason, it was a dead day at the shorebird spot, so the remainder of the morning was pretty dull.

Lying in the Muck Again

(August 6th) I headed back out to lie in the muck for another morning with the shorebirds. It was a different mix of species today - tons of Killdeer and Lesser Yellowlegs. Killdeer are a bird you see all the time, all of the country. I've definitely photographed them a few times already. So when you shoot them again, you need to do something different. You need to improve somehow - better composition, better background, more attractive pose, more action, etc. Today the Killdeer were often chasing each other away. This happens in a blink of an eye and was pretty hard to predict. I didn't quite get the perfect action shots, but I learned a lot about their behavior today.

This Lesser Yellowlegs is in the midst of a molt to non-breeding plumage. That combined with the muck in the water give this shot a gritty feel to me. They are amazingly quick and agile with their long legs and bill.

On warm, sunny days the butterflies come out. They aren't early morning risers like the birds, but they get going as the day warms up. Today there were lots on the walk out - mostly Monarchs and Red-spotted Purples like this one. Sure the shot would have been better with a macro lens and shallower depth of field, but all I had with me was the huge bird lens.

There's Wildlife in Michigan Too!

(August 2nd) While it is hard to compete with what I saw in Alberta, Michigan gets some pretty good wildlife too if you visit the right spots. It's the start of August, but for some species, fall migration has been going on for a while now. Many of these early migrants are shorebirds, so I headed to my favorite shorebird location. I was in for a big treat - one of my favorite shorebirds, a solitary American Avocet was there feeding.

The avocet has a very unusual beak which is strongly upcurved - a rarity among birds. This individual also had smost of the reddish tint of its breeding plumage yet. These birds are pretty uncommon in Michigan, and this one even gave me some amazing poses.

After giving quite a bit of enjoyment, the avocet decided to fly off and I was able to snap a couple of takeoff shots as it left. To get these kind of pictures, I had been lying down belly in mud for hours to get these photos. But hey, it's fun to lie in mud if you have an excuse.

Going through shorebird pictures is always a bit nerve-wracking. For me, it is not easy to tell a Western Sandpiper from a Semi-palmated Sandpiper, so it takes a while to identify all the shots. So it's always a welcome relief to come to an instantly identified bird like this Caspian Tern who flew over looking for fish.

Goodbye Alberta

(July 28th) I woke up to the rain still coming down, but much lighter now. As I went out to start shooting, gradually the rain stopped and eventually even the sun came out. While it was wet, I wasn't the only one feeling a bit miserable over the weather. Actually, wild animals like this bison ignore most weather. I found the expression and rain-soaked coat of this large bull quite humorous. After a couple of days in Elk Island National Park, I really think it should be renamed to Buffalo National Park since the bison are everywhere, but you rarely see the elk.

When it did start to get dryer, I saw an amazing number of birds. I saw some new species for me like some Clay-coloured Sparrows. While not new, this female Rose-breasted Grosbeak provided some very nice poses. Her more attractive mate was around too, but he didn't cooperate and stuck behind cover.

The stars of the day were definitely the Richardson's Ground Squirrels. These are extremely similar to prarie dogs in both appearance and behavior. A slightly longer tail is one of the main differences. They seem to have a relationship going with the bison, hanging out in the same areas. After the shy Columbian Ground Squirrels, I felt confident at being able to approach these guys. Sure enough, avoiding a few "presents" from the bison, I was able to lie down in the midst of the colony and witness some great behavior. Here is one individual giving an alarm call. It's definitely one of those pictures that looks best at full size.

I had great fun watching these critters. They are quite different from the Columbian Ground Squirrels that I saw in Jasper. The colony mentality is even tighter here. They seem to love eating the grass around them and I imagine the reason the field is kept free of shrubs and other plants is split between them and the bison. They can use their hands quite well, like this one grabbing a blade of grass before eating it.

As I left the ground squirrel colony, I came across a puddle from the rain that some Mountain Bluebirds were making great use of. I had to shoot them from inside the car, leaning the lens out the window. It seemed like the whole family was there for the fun - both an adult and several juveniles. I was hoping to get a nice majestic shot of the parent, but he was looking pretty wet and ragged the whole time. This juvenile looked much better. I was sad to leave Alberta - this trip had been amazing and I had seen so many amazing things from its wildlife and scenery. It was such a fantastic place, I definitely know that I'll be back!

A Storm Brewing

(July 27th) For my last night in Alberta, I headed back to Elk Island National Park, since it was only a few minutes outside of Edmonton. I was hoping to get an afternoon of shooting some great wildlife in, but when I got there a major storm was brewing. It started to rain early, but that wouldn't have stopped me from shooting. However, there were such extreme winds and it became very dark that wildlife was basically not there. I did manage to get a shot of an American crow in the marsh right before the storm began. They may be a common bird, but you need the right light and conditions to get all of the detail in their dark feathers. It was quite an experience setting up a tent in the downpour that came.

Tragedy

(July 27th) I like to keep this blog full of photos and the stories behind this, but let me make an important plea to anyone who reads this. If you are driving in a national park or other area abundant with wildlife, please, please, drive slowly. The animals in these areas are often quite tame and automobile accidents are a severe and unnecessary cause of mortality. There is a large road that runs through Jasper where I had noticed for the last few days which people drive uncomfortably fast on considering how the often wildlife crosses the road or stays quite near it. I began my last morning by driving out from near my campsite and seeing a body on the side of the road. Sometime very late at night or early in the morning, a coyote pup had been hit and killed. This poor guy had only made it through the first couple of months of his life. I just hope that we can prevent as many needless deaths as possible and protect our natural treasures - they really are amazing.

It the last of my time in Jasper and I still felt like I had so much left I wanted to do. I quickly found a heard of elk cows and calves. Like most deer, the calves have rows of spots on ther backs. The early light was great to bring out some of the rich color in the elk. After the elk finished their feeding they moved on into higher elevation and tree cover.

I decided to try a trail that went up into pretty high elevation. It was supposed to be a great place to find Bighorn Sheep rams. It was a long walk, but no Bighorn Sheep. I saw a few birds, but nothing photographable. The scenery was fantastic, but I had only brought my wildlife lenses. On the way down, I ran into a super-curious Red Squirrel. He chattered away and came within a couple feet of me. Red Squirrels are probably my favorite tree squirrels.

Next I was in for a total treat. While driving I saw the unmistakable shape of a coyote far in a field. So I did a u-turn to position the window in the right direction and walked. This coyote was so close to the one I had seen hit earlier that I wonder if they were siblings. Another photographer was there in his car, so I didn't leave my car for fear of flushing the coyote. The coyote was a pup and it was hunting something in the field. In fact, it was non-stop pouncing on something. I had no idea what - mice and voles would hide after the first time, so what could it be hunting over and over again. Eventually the other photographer drove out and it was my chance to get out of the car. As soon as I entered the field it was obvious, there were grasshoppers everywhere. The young coyote was too young to hunt mammals yet, so it was getting practice and a meal from the grasshoppers. With slowly approaching, I was able to get fairly close to the little pup as it was busy hunting. It was a total blast to watch this pup pounce on the grasshoppers over and over again.

I had to stop for a killer reflection in front of one of the mountains. Further along there was another great reflection, this time of the trees with a beaver lodge in the water. Everytwhere you go in Jasper you just turn your head and see a great view. I still have a lot of improvement to make on landscape shots, but this was the first trip that I was somewhat pleased with my landscape shots. Even though you may see a gorgeous view, it still takes some time and work to make a good shot from it.

I had seen so much in the morning already, but I wanted to squeeze out the last little bit before I had to drive out. I stopped at the spot for pika, still early enough in the morning that there wouldn't be anyone else there. Without no one else around, the pika were completely at ease with me. One ate a flower a couple of inches from my foot. Tons of great behavior from these little guys. One of my favorites was this pika who was carrying food back to its nest - just look at the size of the grass in its jaws!