I wasn’t sure what this bird was at first, but his postion in a dead tree made an interesting image.
Mourning Doves are fast when they take off, and I don’t think I ever got an image of one in flight before.
He had flight skills to show off, too.
Did I say fast? And also they are prone to changing their flight plan as they go, so tracking him didn’t pan out so well. But he was looking right at me as he went by.
Magnolia Cemetery, Charleston, SC
August 21, 2023
A pair of Roseate Spoonbills just hanging around in a tree while the tide was up; they need the water to be shallow to feed.
Magnolia Cemetery, Charleston, SC
August 21, 2023
A stand of Lantana was thriving in a shady spot next to a small pond.
This Swallowtail was all over the flowers.
Why fly when you can walk?
Magnolia Plantation & Gardens, Charleston, SC
August 20, 2023
Great Blue Heron perched over a pond, just looking around.
Magnolia Plantation & Gardens, Charleston, SC
August 20, 2023
This Little Blue Heron has just a few remnants of his juvenile white feathers. By next year’s breeding season he’ll be a full adult and completely blue.
He seemed to have something to say, and I was expecting him to fly.
What?
I have no idea what caught his eye, but he did not fly.
He did, however, give the sky a good look.
Magnolia Plantation & Gardens, Charleston, SC
August 20, 2023
This Green Hero seemed un-phased that he was being watched. Usually they are quick to fly when humans approach, but this one not only stayed for this photo session, when I looked from the other side of the pond twenty minutes later he was still there.
Looking at the duck weed stuck to his legs I expect he recently had been feeding along the pond edge.
Then it was all about tidying up, preening each feather.
A cloud went over the sun just as the heron turned towards me, completely changing the light.
Magnolia Plantation & Gardens, Charleston, SC
August 20, 2023
His feathers still well separated from being wet, this Anhinga must have just climbed out of the pond.
From a little further down the path, the tree reflections, pond surface, and light were quite different.
Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, Charleston, SC
July 25, 2023
July 2022
The early morning sun made an interesting pattern across the sides of this walkway as a Great Blue Heron flew up.
This pond is part of the new Dorchester County Ashley River Park and I suspect this GBH has taken the pond on as his own. He was very comfortable with human passerby and I saw him fly back and forth several times.
Ashley River Park, Summerville, SC
August 1, 2023
A damp, shaded path on a nature trail was brightened by a strikingly colored fungus.
The big piece was easily seen in the distance when I rounded a corner.
I was delighted to find it was natural, not a human discard.
