Black-crowned Night-Heron – Page 2 – CrazyM Bird & Nature Photography

Snow Day!

Well today was one of the rare occasions we actually got some snow down here at sea level. Not wanting to pass up the opportunity I headed out to Reifel this afternoon. When I arrived there was only one other family group out in the sanctuary. Not often you practically have the place to yourself.

George C. Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary

A shot from the warming hut overlooking the gift shop ponds. On the opposite side at Fuller’s Slough,

… a Black-crowned Night-Heron was roosting nicely on snow covered branches. Then it was down the east dyke trail. It was not long before I could hear the drumming sound of woodpecker. As I slowly made my way to the other side of the tree,

… a Pileated Woodpecker was busy looking for food. While this is usually a good area for them, there were no owls along here today. Next up was the centre dyke trail,

… where I found this American Robin foraging for the few remaining berries. While approaching the main covered viewing platform,

… this Great Blue Heron was moving slowly on a snow covered log in the slough.

Then one last shot of one of the inner display ponds. All in all, a fun day in the snow.

Saw-whet & Night-Heron

The day was better than I expected weather wise, but the breeze was cool. On arriving at Reifel I was a little surprised by the smaller crowd this afternoon. Some of the interesting birds that had been seen of late, Swamp and Tree Sparrow, had not been spotted today. But one sign that winter is coming,

… is the arrival of the tiny Northern Saw-whet Owl. They have been around for a couple of weeks now, but are starting to show up regularly along the public trails.

On my way back at the end of the day was another winter regular,

… the Black-crowned Night-Heron. This one was at the foot of the east dyke trail.

Night-Heron & Eagle

It was not a bad day and I did manage a shorter walk later this afternoon. One pleasant surprise was one of the wintering Black-crowned Night-Heron at Reifel.

Usually tucked away in the trees and obscured by branches, this one was roosting relatively out in the open.

Then in the tree tops adjacent to the tower were a couple of Bald Eagles. It is great when they show up here because when shooting from the top of the tower you are at almost the same height as they are. I focused my attention on the mature bird.

For photos I will usually try to capture them when it appears they are looking at something behind me just over my shoulder. I find this a more natural look.

Having said that, it is still fun to get the odd shot when they are looking right at you.