I had hopes that these three American Coots would synchronize their swimming direction or angle for a portrait composition.
They circled, they zigged and zagged, they separated and came back together, but an organized group shot was not to be.
Eventually they did all turn their heads in the same direction, almost.
Small and chunky, the Pied-billed Grebe always looks like a baby-faced juvenile to me.
Last week several of them were swimming in the rice field canal. Saltbrush seeds from shrubs that lined the bank were drifting over the water.
The lowering late afternoon light and growth on the opposite bank changed the look of the water as I proceeded down the canal.
Further along the Saltbrush seeds looked like sparkly feathers floating on the water. Saltbrush, Baccharis halimifolia, is a woody shrub or small tree in the Asteraceae family, and is also known as Groundsel.
I hear Common Gallinules more often than see them. Per All About Birds they “make all sorts of chicken-like clucks, whinnies, cackles, squawks, and yelps.” Needless to say, many a birder has jumped when that racket starts, often accompanied by one or more Gallinules running across the water to safety. I often refer to them as the early warning system for other ducks and wildlife I might have been hoping to see.
These images were taken on different days, but in the same area. The stump in the image above is newly sticking out of the water as the rice field pond has been drained for repairs.
The red bill in the image below looks almost like fake plastic, but that is how they look. Bald Eagles will stalk Gallinules in this pond and I wonder how that beacon of red appears to them.
A flock of Double-crested Cormorants was hanging out on a dead tree that has fallen into a pond on a recent sunny afternoon. When I first spotted them my view of the group was blocked by reeds, but this one had found a higher perch.
As I worked my way along the bank I saw these two were having a squabble.
One exited with a big flap while the rest ignored him. You can see the bird from my first image near the top, towards the left.
As I rounded the end of the pond I was able to get a view from a different angle and closer to the water.
With a wingspan of 95 to 115 inches (244-290 cm), the American White Pelican is one of the largest birds in North America. It’s quite amazing to have one fly right over you!
For such a big bird they make a remarkably delicate landing, with very little splash.
My, what big feet you have!
Brown Pelicans will land on almost anything around the dock, including this shrimp boat rigging, and somehow their feet adapt. This one is looking down into the creek, alert for any chances at lunch.
This Anhinga was performing his drying ritual fairly close to the dike. Hoping he wouldn’t fly I took this from the car, which limited my angle. This was the shadowy end of the pond and I didn’t capture much color, but of course I liked the reflection.
I was intrigued by the frame the shrimp boat rigging made around this Brown Pelican and was hoping for a view that included his massive feet.
What I got was a goofy view of him stretching out his throat pouch…
and his neck.
Just because they can, I guess.
I didn’t see the shrimp arrive or which gull had it first.
The gull on the right was in hot and noisy pursuit when the possessor of the moment took to the air.
Unfortunately the shrimp broke apart.
Or not, if you are gull number two diving in for the recovery of what looked like the bigger piece.
At first at seemed that the White Pelican had no interest in the Wood Stork as he casually paddled along.
But as he got closer I began to wonder.
Surely, the Wood Stork would have some kind of reaction.
I wish I could have seen this from another angle–did the Wood Stork reach into the Pelican’s beak?
Whatever happened, the White Pelican decided to move on, continuing to make a little flap about it.
The Wood Stork continued to pay no attention.
11/19/2018 Donnelley Wildlife Management Area
