Surrounded by hearts in nature.
Taken last summer at Donnelley Wildlife Management Area, SC.
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Tag Archives: Photography
Pond Reflections 2
Today had none of the brilliance of my last images from these spots: it was grey and few sprinkles of rain had graced us. But the pond was just as still and the reflections as clear.
Our recent cold weather has slowed the nesting activity with only a few herons tending to nests today.
01/10/2018
Click on photo for larger view
Taken with the Sony Alpha 6500, 18-105 Lens, Processed in Lightroom and NIK Color FX Pro 4.
Movement in the Water
The movement was subtle, especially for a 15 foot Alligator. I’m guessing on the length–I could just say very long. This fellow was swimming quietly, but covering some distance.
He had places to go and wasn’t wasting any time getting there, swimming in a straight line from where I first spotted the movement towards an island where the Alligators often lounge at the edge of the water. And watch for wading birds to land or chicks to fall.
With the length of his back out of the water and a tree for reference you can see just how big
I didn’t see the second one until I was looking at the photos later. Tucked under the branches on the left, he didn’t move as the older and much larger beast went by.
Click on any photo for larger view.
White Ibis Pair
This pair of White Ibis were sitting quietly in a tree when I came upon them at the pond last week, beaks tucked in and one blue eye showing. A pair of Great Blue Herons are making a nest just above this limb and I was surprised the Ibis weren’t driven away in a territory dispute.
One was a little more alert, perhaps the lookout or maybe ready to move on. It was a gray day showing off the colors of the mossy tree.
I walked passed the tree and the Ibis pair put some space between them. From this angle around the corner you can see how close the Great Blue Heron from the tier above was to the Ibis.
Click on any photo for larger view.
Taken 12/26/2017.
Reflective
I’m feeling reflective as we close out 2017 and think about what 2018 will bring.
Happy New Year and thanks for following along!
Great Blue Heron pair working on their nest as seen reflected in the pond below.
Sharing Space
The turtles are the most likely to be seen sharing space with other creatures around the swamp and ponds. They crave the sun just like the alligators on this reptile ramp and don’t show any fear in the presence of an alligator that could easily eat them.
Wading birds like this Great Egret like a sunny spot, too, and easily find a spot in between the turtles on a nearby ramp.
I don’t know what this “foot in the air” display from the turtle just to the right of the egret is all about, but a little further along in another small pond I saw it again, with both hind feet straight out.
Symmetry in the Pond
We see much of the Great Blue Heron nesting and flying action that we witness from the path that runs through the trees on this end of the pond. The pond is a man-made, roughly a rectangle, with a paved path that runs along three sides.
The portrait oriented photo above gives a better sense of the height of the trees, but doesn’t show the width of the pond the way the landscape oriented image does, below (click on image for larger view).
December 22, 2017
Fences Between Neighbors
Many of the borders of family plots in older sections of Charleston’s Magnolia Cemetery are marked by decorative metal fences. The styles are as varied as the families must have been and all are in some state of decay.
This fence with a Lyre and Star motif is particularly intricate. Sadly a large chunk of it is gone.
The cemetery is dotted with centuries old Live Oaks and giant Magnolias that take a toll on the fences and stone work below with every big storm that passes over Charleston.
From the cemetery’s website:
Magnolia Cemetery first opened in 1850. It is on the land of a former rice plantation. The property was designed during a new rural cemetery movement that crossed from Europe to America in the mid-19th century. With lovingly landscaped paths and ponds, trees and green space, Charlestonians would come to Magnolia to picnic and play, as well as visit lost loved ones.
Aside from status, the fences may have been a way to protect a wealthy family’s plot from the picnickers. The cemetery occupies over 130 acres at the edge of a marsh on the Cooper river and it remains a beautiful spot to visit.
Click on any photo for larger view.
Wood Duck Pair
There is no mistaking the shape of a male Wood Duck and it’s always a treat to see them close enough to see their colors.
This pair was hanging around with a small group of Blue Winged Teals, paddling around the edge of a small pond.
There is a walking trail that loops along both sides of this pond and the ducks gradually work their way from side to side, not in any great hurry, but changing direction as people pass by.
Click on any photo for larger view.
Great Blue Heron in the Skinny Tree
I call it the “skinny tree” because there isn’t much to it. It is not completely dead, but not far from it. I’ve taken hundreds of photographs of various birds in this tree, which sits in water about 60 feet / 20 meters (as measured using Google Maps) from the edge of the pond.
As mating and nesting season has gotten under way last year’s nest, which was used by a Great Blue Heron family and the one below it used by Great Egrets, are completely gone.
This week I’ve seen a couple of Great Blues come to this spot and steal a few loose twigs left behind after late summer storms took the rest.
If there is going to be a nest here this season there is a lot of work to be done. This Heron may be holding the spot while her mate is off finding foundation branches or she may be surveying the pond for a better potential home. We are about to have some cooler weather with the next ten nights going below freezing. This might put a damper on the whole nesting business.
View a GBH in a complete nest on this spot from February, 2017
View a GBH Chick in the nest on this spot from June, 2017