Vignettes Around The Impoundments

A break from my other photography project allowed me to wander over to Great Meadows twice this week. The first visit was quite quiet. I was starting to wonder if it was some sort of a karmic payback for not spending enough time there this summer. The second visit was a bit more productive photographically. However, to paraphrase an old saying, "Even a bad day at the refuge, beats a good day at work."

I was greeted by several of my avian friends. The Marsh Wrens which seemed so scarce this year, seemed to have successfully produced the next generation. It seems like there are many more to been seen or heard.

Back by the grapes near the "Poison Ivy" bench this female Common Yellow Throat posed for a moment. But like most divas she quickly shot me a menacing look and was gone.

With all the hot weather you would expect to seen many dragonflies. It's hard to walk down the dike paths without scaring up one with each step. My visits didn't disappoint.

Female Common Pondhawk


Male Blue Dahsher. The background is the original, with the right angle & aperature the gravel path becomes this solid grayish / brown color. It was the perfect match for the pinkish / magenta flowers.


Male Twelve-spotted Skimmer - the guide book calls the body color pruinose gray


I can't decide whether I like the horizontal or vertical orientation better, so it's up to you to choose your favorite.

Of course the American Lotus still dominate the landscape. Sometimes obscuring the wildlife, other times providing a pleasant backdrop.

The shorebirds are big fans of the water draw down in the lower impoundment to allow the dredging of the drainage canals. My birder friends also concur.

Unfortunately, they are drawn to the muddy flats one the backside of the lower impoundment. The best views are from the observation deck, with a scope or binoculars.

While my big camera lens looks impressive, it is not up to the task of photographing them that far away. Don't forget to check the outflow from the upper impoundment to the river, occassionally some of the shorebirds can be found quite close feeding in the mud.

Personally, I find the shorebirds section of my Sibley guide a scary place. They all look so similar. I know these are members of the sandpiper family, but I'll leave precise identification to my birding friends.

I believe that this one is a Wilson's Snipe based upon the striped head, long beak and general coloring. However, the buffy stomach is not described in Sibley so I can't be sure.

Many summers we are treated to visits by Great Egrets. Their white plumage is a nice change from the drab grey of of Great Blue Herons. Usually they are well out in the impoundments, but today one was fishing near the outflow near the boat ramp. Still a challenge because of the backlighting and drab background their beauty still comes through. When they get in front of the lotus, they are a treat for the eyes.

If your life is driven by the calendar you have probably noticed that Labor Day is just around the corner. School will resume soon and our summer fun will be over. If you however your life is based upon the rhythm of nature, you too will probably have noticed the subtle signs that summer is winding down and a new season is approaching.

It's Been A While

Between traveling, vacations and my summer photography project, I have hardly had a chance to make it over to Great Meadows. While I have missed it, my summer photography project has been exciting. I've been photographing loons from my kayak. I would encourage you to click on the link and take a brief detour to view some highlights from that project.

When I finally got over to Great Meadows I could see that summer was alive and displaying it's full glory. The lotus have expanded to consume most of both impoundments. It seems like they only liked last year's mowing. They are pretty flowers. It's just do they have take over the whole refuge?

As you would expect there were many of the usual summer suspects at the refuge, but also quite a few of our special summer visitors.

Great Blue Herons flying to & fro


Flock of ducks leaving for the morning


Plenty of dragonflies including this Twelve Spotted Skimmer


In the woods the Eastern Wood-Pewee was calling. Though it is rather plain, it get's its name from its distinctive "pewee, pewee" call


This Cedar Wax-wing was hiding its head in the shadows to protest my absence


Summer sometimes brings us Egrets who alternate between fishing and preening


While Great Blue Herons are common, Green Herons are a bit more uncommon at Great Meadows. To see both together is rare. Green Herons look fairly large on their own, but look tiny next to the Great Blue. While the Green Heron wanted to fish in peace. the Great Blue kept pushing it along the bank.

Fish & Wildlife has lowered the water level in the lower impoundment in preparation for dredging out the canals in the lower impoundment. The vast areas of exposed mud has attracted the shorebirds.

Normally you would have to Plum Island to see Semi-palmated Plovers


But today they were flying around the imundment as a small flock


If you look closely you will probably notice sandpipers foraging among the weeds in the mud

I know Purple Loosestrife is an invasive plant, but my photographer's eyee was attracted to the complementary purple and yellow colors.

Don't worry, I promise it won't be as long to my next Great Meadows blog post.

The 2013 Generation - Part II

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was a time of hope and new birth, it was a time of sadness and tragedy. That is the problem with observing nature. Some stories have happy endings, others not so much. The drama associated with observing nests, is day by day you never know what sort of story you are watching. Today's two stories cover the range of emotions.

Near the bench at the beginning of the Cross Dike trail, alongside the path, just before the trail emerges from the woods to cross the impoundments is a small crab apple tree. If it were a bird we might even call it a juvenile tree.

This tree is an unlikely candidate for a nest. After all it is hard by the trail. People are constantly walking very near. It is quite low, relatively easy access for many predators. But here a pair of Yellow Warblers decided to build their nest. About the only defenses were that the tree was leafy, and there was a branch running across the top of the nest sort of like bars on the windows to keep out vandals.

Word about the nest spread quite rapidly. Many of us feared for the viability of the nest, so we were careful not to share the location to rapidly, but news of the nest spread. Photographers, bird watchers, second graders, and casual observers descended upon the nest. Some observing from a safe distance, others a bit more closely.

We watched and we waited. Four eggs appeared. The parents continued to sit on the nest. The one day someone saw a chick.

My first photo containing a chick's head (look closely)


It continued to grow


Parents exchanging food. Dad tended to hunt. Mom feed the kids.


Children can be so demanding. Sometimes moms need me time.


But more often they are nurturing and caring for their young

The warblers looked like they were on the path to success. They had avoided the predators. They had survived the on-lookers. But then the rains came. After the last photo it rained heavily, almost continuously for a day and a half. The next morning I stopped by to check the nest and they were gone, there was no sign of the chick, the nest lay empty with two eggs still inside. I felt sick. It was the worst of times.

Meanwhile, up on the Rail Trail up on a dead branch of a tree, Blue-grey Gnatcatcher also built a nest. This nest was also in a somewhat unlikely place. Normally, Gnatcatchers build nests high up in trees, surrounded by the leafy canopy. They are tiny things so they are hard to see. This nest was much lower in the tree, almost in the open, but built tightly into the fork of the branch.

We were blessed that this nest was so visually accessible. Gnatcatcher nests are beautiful in their construction. Cornell's site describes one as Open cup with high walls, made of spider webbing or caterpillar silk, covered with lichens or bark flakes. Lined with grass stems, bark strips, plant down, hair, feathers, or other fine fibers. Placed far out from trunk on tree limbs

The following photos take you through the sequence, from incubating the eggs, through feeding the young. You can see them grow in size.

Notice the closed eyes, I guess young beaks are sharp


I don't know why but at several nests I notice parents sitting with their butts towards the youngs' head




Big food for big kids

Near the time of this photo, while the parents were away, I saw one of the chicks lean too far and step / fall out of the nest onto the branch. Surprised / scared it climbed quickly back into the nest. This was one of the flooding days.

I had brought every memory card I owned. I filled two cards with just Gnatcatchers. Towards the end, I was deleting "bad" photos between feeding runs trying to hold on until they fledged. But finally my cards were full, I was exhausted and had to leave. Sometime later that day they fledged, the next morning the nest was quiet....It was the best of times.