Teal Telltales

Day 140: Let's play "Spot the Differences!" There are some telltale signs you should be able to pick out if you are a keen observer. They will help you tell one male teal from another.

The top photo is of a Common (Eurasian) Teal. The lower image shows a Green-Winged Teal. Right off the bat, I know you're going to say, "But there's no green on the wings of either of these birds!" You're right. Only the females exhibit a flash of green on the wing, and are indistinguishable by eye. Now that we have that out of the way, let's move to identifying the males.

The first feature you will notice is that these birds have a green marking on the head, broken by a light-colored streak on the crown. The Green-Winged Teal (bottom) has darker cheeks, but this may be difficult to see, depending on lighting. Now look at the lower edge of the wing. Do you see the horizontal white bar on the Common Teal's wing? The Green-Winged Teal has a vertical white bar just in front of the shoulder.

Although these two specimens exhibit different body colors, color is not a reliable field marking, nor is the black band near the bird's rump. The wing bar is the most reliable field characteristic, your best "teal telltale," but be warned: the two species interbreed! You'll be lucky to find two birds as clearly identifiable as these.

Heron On The Hunt

Day 138: Great Blue Herons are hard to resist when you have a camera slung around your neck, and I had plenty of willing models at the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge today. I had gone to attend a Site Steward workshop and bonus nature-mapping segment, and good weather tempted me out to the end of the boardwalk yet again. The tide was in but receding, and a number of different varieties of duck were feeding in the shallows, accompanied by herons and gulls. I was able to capture images of both Common (Eurasian) and Green-Winged Teal as well. However, the herons always take the place of honor when I sort photos, my eye captivated by their ungainly yet graceful posturing.

Hooded Merganser, Lophodytes Cucullatus

Day 131: The Hooded Merganser (Lophodytes cucullatus) is in my opinion one of the prettiest of western Washington's "ducks." Although not quite as showy as the Wood Duck, it is more common, and the male's fan-shaped white head marking definitely sets it apart from other species. I spent some time at the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge yesterday trying to get a good photo of this bird which seemed determined to prove its reputation as a diver. Just as I would get the camera trained on my subject, down he'd go, staying submerged for a minute or longer and popping back up to the surface some distance from where I'd seen him go under. As the diving interludes continued, Mr. Hoody kept moving farther north, so I outfoxed him. I moved ahead on the boardwalk until I was well beyond him and then waited for him to come to me. However, like most waterfowl, he was alert for unnatural flashes of light and never did come very close to my lens.

Photo Classics: Duck Butts

Day 130: Sooner or later, every person who carries a camera regularly is going to succumb to the undeniable charm of duck butts. I thought I was immune, but today a mated pair of Mallards proved me wrong. I stood at the rail of the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge boardwalk for ten minutes, enchanted by the synchronized antics of these two as they dived for their lunch in a small backwater. Does anyone know of a support group for duck-butt addicts? I think I need help.

Learn Something New

Day 28: I cannot recall when I heard this piece of advice, but it was a very long time ago and I have sought to live by it ever since. Perhaps it's because my maternal grandmother was a schoolteacher, and instilled in me a desire to inquire into the whys and wherefores of many subjects. "Knowledge," she would say, "is the most valuable thing you can have."

The last ten days have brought me to greater manipulative skills as far as post-processing of photos is concerned. Not only did I learn how to create a "tiny planet" with my PaintShop Pro photo editing suite, I also had a breakthrough with regard to adding curved text to an image. The manual which came with the program was sorely lacking in instructive material for the process, so I resorted to an on-line source which explained how to effect curved text using a much later version of the program. Substantial trial and error and many notes-to-self on a scratch pad finally brought me to a repeatable set of directions for text which followed a circular path. However, I was not content. I wanted to be able to add upright text to the lower portion of the image, as opposed to letters which went upside-down as they marched around the rim of the circle. I was less successful in finding details on line, but having accomplished the first part gave me some clues for achieving my goal.

As you might guess from the photo above, all other projects have been in suspension as I sought to master this skill. Now, if you'll excuse me, I really need to tend to my knitting!

Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge

Day 27: I didn't plan to go to the Refuge today, but after failing to find what I'd gone shopping for in Yelm and Lacey, I figured it was a good Plan B. The last section of boardwalk was closed for the season as I knew, but the first portion of it was enchanting in an autumnal sort of way. Plus, the tide was in, always better for scenic photos. The weather was pleasant for a November day as long as I was protected by the trees, but as soon as I got out in the open, I was wishing I had a couple of sandbags in my pockets. In fact, while I was fiddling with changing the battery in the camera, the tripod took wing. It didn't simply fall over. It lifted off, and I caught it by one leg before it could go over the side of the dike. After that, I kept it pinched between my knees. But here in this protected marsh, the water was barely disturbed by the wind.

Flasher

Day 327: This photo should dispel any notions my readers may have had about Great Blue Herons being graceful, elegant birds. Of course, nobody looks good when they're fresh out of the tub and I'm sure this fellow (?) wasn't expecting the paparazzi to be on his doorstep. Star attractions just can't have a private moment without somebody pointing a camera at them.

Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge

Day 324: "We now return you to our regularly scheduled program..." and a five-panel panorama of the spectacular Nisqually delta. I have been here many times when the tide was fully out and the Refuge landscape was nothing but grey tones and mud, but on this occasion, its beauty was revealed.

The boardwalk which takes you nearly two miles out to the gazebo from where this photo was taken is a marvelous piece of engineering. It stands high above the tide flat with its feet anchored somewhere deep in the mud. You never feel that you're walking on a rickety old dock here. It is as solid as a rock and built to last many decades despite the shifting tides below. Just remember to make a stop before you leave on your walk. There are no "facilities" along the route!

Wapato, Sagittaria Latifolia

Day 322: Wapato (also called Arrowhead for obvious reasons) is resident in the lowland marshes of western Washington. As such, it is not something I see often, and this marked the first occasion I have caught it during its blooming period. It often grows with the leaves partly submersed. The roots (tubers) of this plant provided starch to the indigenous diet.

This photo was taken at the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge just outside the visitor center. Wapato and cattail surround the little pond where yesterday's Bullfrog was hanging out.

You Can't See Me

Day 321: For the next couple of days, I will be featuring photos shot at the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge. Today was the first time I've visited the Refuge when the tide was in, and the weather was perfect for a leisurely stroll on the boardwalk. However, the critter who really stole the show for me was this Bullfrog despite the fact that he's a member of an invasive species. He and several of his fellows were in the pond adjacent to the gift shop and so well-camouflaged by the tiny leaves of some aquatic plant that I never would have known they were there if I had not seen this fellow rise to the surface while I was photographing Wapato (one of the upcoming posts). The vegetation was so dense that even when he swam, there was no break in the blanket of green. It is easy to see why this species is such a successful predator.

About As Far As You Can Go

Day 219: From the Nature Center at the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge, a boardwalk takes you almost two miles out into the tidal delta, passing first through a brushy forest which serves as habitat in season for a variety of migratory birds, then travelling out above the mudflats until terminates at a gazebo overlooking southern Puget Sound. Geese, gulls and herons are common here, searching among the pools and mounds of seaweed for small fishes, mud shrimp and other delicacies for the avian palate. A keen observer may spot other shorebirds: sandpipers, dunlins, terns. In the woodland, feathered songsters flit about during the months of spring and summer, playing "dodge the photographer" with amazing skill. The trees and shrubs resound with the calls of the Yellowthroat, Wilson's, MacGillivray's, Yellow and Yellow-rumped Warblers, but the eye seldom catches more than a flash of color and the lens even less unless one is endowed with a surfeit of patience and an abundance of time. Still, the music of their songs is enough to draw any serious birder back again and again.

No Warblers crossed my field of vision today, although I spotted one Chickadee and several Song Sparrows. Swallows were flying above the flats by the thousands, and geese could be heard honking throughout the day. The weather was a bit too blustery and cold for me to do more than walk out to the gazebo today, but I'll be back. Those Warblers were calling my name.

Great Horned Fuzzball

Day 143: I had a feeling the Great Horned Owl chicks were going to have fledged by the time I got back down to the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge, and I was hoping they'd still be staying close to the nest. I was in luck! Although I only spotted two of the owlets today, reports from other observers indicate that all three have been seen, as well as both parent birds.

Still very downy, the young do not fly well for the first two months after leaving the nest. They will be tended by both parents for some time. Their current activity is largely confined to exploration as they hop or flutter from branch to branch. Eating is likewise a principle pastime. For the number of photographers gathered on the boardwalk today, I think "modelling" should also be added to their job description. Is there anything more adorable than a fuzzy baby owl?

Great Horned Owl And Chicks, Bubo Virginianus

Day 122: I took advantage of the fact that I was already at the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge to attend a workshop, and went for a stroll on the boardwalk. I'd been advised that a Great Horned Owl had a nest with three chicks in a tree near the Twin Barns, so I went prepared to take photos. The site was very easy to find. At least a dozen photographers were crowded onto one twenty-foot stretch of the boardwalk, enormous lenses trained on an object which looked to the naked eye like a stub or knot on an old tree. A bit of bobbing and weaving permitted me to get a clear shot of the parent bird through the tangle of branches, but the young were out of sight in a hole approximately six feet below her.

After photographing the parent, I continued my walk out to the observation platform at the end of the boardwalk, two miles from the visitor center. I saw several Great Blue Herons and a young Bald Eagle en route. When I returned to the area where the owl was nesting, I saw that she had moved to another location closer to the nest and was largely obscured by branches. The bevy of photographers had dwindled to two stalwarts who were hoping the little ones would show their faces. I could see activity in the hole, so took up a position and waited until their heads popped up. A third chick remained out of sight. Satisfied with my day's "bag" which also included a heron, I headed home.