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Tempted by Friday's sighting of coyotes, I was drawn back to Great Meadows early Saturday morning ahead of the pending storm.  This time I was brought my 50-500 lens.

Unfortunately, the title of this post, isn't referring to the great coyote photos I took, but instead the Great Blue Heron photos I finally got.  During the summer there are usually a few Great Blue Herons around, and though skittish, often one will cooperate photographically.  This winter there is one Great Blue that has decided not to head to warmer climes, but to hang around and feed at the two bits of open water at the refuge.  This one has frustrated me.  It is even more skittish than your typical Great Blue Heron.  It often has hid out in a place obstructed by reeds or trees, or just decided to be somewhere other than where I was looking for it at the moment.

Today that all changed.  I managed to catch it feeding by the dike bridge.  Due to the weather there were only a couple of other people walking the paths.  When they crossed the bridge they would scared it away, but it soon returned.









When I first arrived at GMNWR, I could see one of the coyotes near the dike, but it was moving quickly away.  Afraid that it would disappear before I could get setup, I wandered up the tower and tried to get a few shots, hand held.  Unfortunately, someone else arrived & started walking onto the dike, which scared the coyotes into the woods by the river.

One wandered back couple times over the course of the morning, but it was very skittish.  The closest it got was in the reeds next to the under bush near the tower.  But as soon at it saw me, it boogied away, later showing up on the fas side of the lower impoundment.  So even though I had my longer lens, the coyote photos are not as good as Friday's.









While waiting for the coyotes to come back, I entertained myself by shooting a group of squirrels near the road that were busily running around, retrieving nuts from their caches.  That resulted in a couple of cute images with snow on their noses.  There must have been 6 to 8 squirrels in this one area.





I assume it's only a matter of time before the red tail hawk decides that this would be a wonderful place to visit.  Hope I'm there then to get the shot.

Quiet, but Eventful

I am tired of shoveling snow off of everything, off the driveway, off the walks, off the deck, off the roof, off the foundation (after I shoveled it off the roof), I just needed to some time for myself with my camera.  Bundled in all my winter hiking gear, it was a frigid 16F as I left the house for Great Meadows.   

With each successive storm, it appears fewer and fewer people venture out to hike the trails at Great Meadows.  However, since Wednesday's storm there had been a couple of skiers and snow-shoers who had blazed a path.  

It was a very quiet morning.  There weren't many birds.  The kiosk's last entry was from 1/28.  The water by the bridge was 1/2 way frozen over & the marsh wrens were no longer there.

With not a lot to see, I focused on details.  The frost on the branches.  Plants buried in snow.  Noticing how the weathered snow is starting to get more crystalline, icy and crunchy.

As I walked out towards the observation platform, you could see tell tale signs from the coyotes.  There were the weaving tracks across the snow and a place where one started to dig for something.  What was interesting is that the frozen snow was starting to bear their weight, with most of the foot prints just in the most recent dusting of snow.

Out by the observation deck, the trail begins to narrow significantly as most people didn't continue on past there.  Stopping to rest, I started scanning the impoundments for anything interesting.  At first, it was dead still.  But then on the far side of the upper impoundment I noticed something in the distance.  At first I thought it was just one of the duck boxes, but I broke out the binoculars to get a clearer look.   Then it moved.  That was no duck box, it was a coyote.  Continuing to scan the horizon, I noticed another, and then a third coyote.  

Of course, wouldn't you know that today, I decided to travel light.  My 50-500mm lens was resting comfortably at home.  The distance was a bit far for my 70-300mm even with the 1.4 extender.  But since these were the first coyotes that I've seen outside of captivity, I took some shots for posterity.  It seemed like they have acute hearing.  They stopped to look at me whenever my shutter clicked.  They appeared somewhat bothered, but seemed more interested in foraging for food.

If I wasn't able to get a career shot, I might as well observe them more closely.  So I hiked back to the tower, to use the telescope, to get a better view.  (I should have brought my shovel, but I kicked snow off of most of the stairs.)   One of the coyotes wandered off, while the other two wandered around hunting.  One spent quite a bit of time in the reeds, near the woods, while the other wandered across the middle of the upper impoundment.   I was able to watch them for probably 45 minutes to an hour.

Up in the tower, they didn't seem so bothered by my camera.  I was able to use the telescope as a monopod to brace my camera.  One of the coyotes, wandered closer, so I was able to get these shots.  They are still extreme crops, but still worth sharing.

Just as I was packing up to head home, the Massachusetts Fish & Wildlife folks arrived.  They were there to maintain the duck boxes they couldn't get to in the fall because they were too tall, too muddy, etc.  They check each box, note if it had been used, clean it out, put in fresh sawdust, and made any repairs / replacements as appropriate.  They loaded up three sleds full of stuff and dragged it off into the marsh to begin their work.  (I always wondered how the duck boxes got there.)

A Crystalline Morning

At long last, there was no new snow to shovel.  No bitter cold that would freeze skin in minutes.  So this morning it was time to bundle up, strap on the snow shoes and see what was new at Great Meadows.  


I'm glad I got there fairly early.  The sun was still low in the sky, reflecting off the snow and hoarfrost clinging to the trees and plants making them sparkle.  A few hours later that frost was all scattered at the base of the plants.









Several people had been cross country skiing or snowshoeing since the storm ended yesterday, so I didn't have to totally break new trail.  However, the further you got from the parking lot; the less traveled the path.  On the back side of the lower impoundment, someone decided to grace the trail with a snow angel.








I didn't see a lot of animal activity.  Black-capped chickadees were pretty prevalent.  The quiet of the morning was broken by quite a few blue jays constantly scolding me for visiting.  Later in the morning their calls were replaced by the constant calling of crows.


By the tracks in the snow you could see where the coyote made the rounds of the impoundments and the river looking for food after the storm.  It looks like he personally visited each of the muskrat and beaver lodges hoping to gain a meal.






Completing a loop of the lower impoundment, I ventured back to the bridge on the dike to see if any creatures were hanging around the open water.  Unfortunately, before I could get within camera range, the Great Blue Heron saw me an flew away.  I'm still shut out in my quest to get a good shot of it in the snow.  


However, the Marsh Wrens were feeding and drinking from the water.  It was great to finally get a good photo of one.  I guess in the winter they are a lot less camera shy.  Last summer, they tortured me, constantly calling from the reeds, but rarely making themselves visible for more than a brief moment.