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The Sun Came Out at Lake Morton! Lifer Louisiana Waterthrush

Posted Friday, April 16, 2021Sunday, April 11, 2021 Jess YarnellPosted in Lake Morton

My last visit to Lake Morton turned out to be incredibly productive. After my first walk around the lake in deep fog, the sun finally came out! So I set out on a second pass around the lake, this time enjoying lots of flight shots and my lifer Louisiana Waterthrush. :)

Remember the American White Pelicans from my last post? After photographing them up close, they flew right me from across the lake. It reminded me of my early days of photography at Circle B. :)

The ducks have mostly left Florida for the summer. However, the mixed crew of hybrid Mallards lives at Lake Morton year-round. They entertained me flying across the lake and showing off their beautiful colors.

As I wandered around the lake, I spotted a small bird hopping around at the edge of the lake. It was a little bigger than a warbler. Intrigued, I got closer, and spotted my lifer Louisiana Waterthrush! Waterthrushes migrate through Florida in the spring and fall. He bobbed his tail up and down continuously as he fished little bugs from the water’s edge.

The resident birds are showing off their breeding colors and thinking of the families they’ll be raising in the new few months. This White Ibis is sporting a bright red face and nose. You can tell she’s a girl because of the pouch under her chin. Her babies will be brown to provide camouflage at her nesting site.

White Ibis - Female in Breeding Plumage — White Ibis – Female in Breeding Plumage

I looked up just in time to snap a photo of the American Coot walking on water!

This Great Blue Heron wasn’t impressed by the coot’s super-powers.

As I left, I spotted a Red-shouldered Hawk sitting in a nest at the top of a Kapok tree. She looked bored. Pretty soon she’s be running herself ragged trying to feed her babies!

My best shots of the morning came towards the very end of my visit. You’ll have to wait for the next post to see them!

American White Pelican Head Shots at Lake Morton

Posted Tuesday, April 13, 2021Sunday, April 4, 2021 Jess YarnellPosted in Lake Morton

On my recent walk around foggy Lake Morton, I found four American White Pelicans perched on a small wall at the edge of the lake. Normally they would have been strongly backlit by the rising sun, but since the fog was so thick, I could sit low and get some fun head shots.

Look at that blue eye! These pelicans are getting their “breeding bumps” on their bills, an interesting feature of their breeding plumage.

I find it challenging to get a good head angle on the preening shots. I liked this one, where I could see both eyes and the end of the large beak carefully arranging the bird’s tiny feathers. Big birds can be so graceful.

I tried for some juxtapositions with two birds in the same frame. It seems easy, especially when the birds are right next to each other and frequently in each other’s way as they preen. But getting two heads at good angles in the same focus plane requires some patience. In my case, it also took a little Topaz Sharpener to un-soften the bird in the foreground.

This next bird’s bump is a little deformed…but he gave me some of the best head shots!

It’s not every day that I can get close enough for head shots of these beautiful birds! The fog that had initially disappointed me turned out to be one of the best parts of the morning. As I finished with these birds, the sun started to peek out a little, forming a giant softbox that backlit the white birds. I liked this last head shot the best because of the white light that emphasizes the soft, angel feel of the back feathers.

A Foggy Walk around Lake Morton

Posted Saturday, April 10, 2021Saturday, April 3, 2021 Jess Yarnell1 CommentPosted in Lake Morton

It’s been too long since I made it to some of my favorite springtime photography locations! I recently headed to Lake Morton to check on the ducks and nesting swans. The sun came up shining bright in my rearview mirror as I drove, but when I arrived at Lake Morton, a heavy fog settled in over the lake. It turns out fog can make for good photos…

All around the lake, swans were nesting. Three pairs of Black Swans had cygnets in the pens, and a number of Mute Swans were sitting on nests around the lake. Hopefully I can get back to find some newly-hatched cygnets again!

It was a good morning for Wood Ducks. I found a pair on the edge of the lake. These usually skittish birds were not at all bothered by me. I dropped down and got on eye level with the male, who posed for a head shot.

A few minutes later, the male took his mate out for a swim in the fog.

I found some Great Blue Heron nests at the top of some cypress trees. Most Great Blue Herons started making their nests back in late November, but this heron waited until early April to start throwing his head up and courting a prospective mate. I loved this image of him peering down at me.

I continued my way around the lake, surprised to see fewer geese and swans that on my previous visits. I think the City sold some of the swans. I missed seeing Father Goose. He took such good care of the Muscovy Ducklings.

Speaking of Muscovy ducks, I spotted two of them in an unlikely place – sitting in a treetop!

I found a couple of Common Gallinule nests, nested in the vegetation at the edge of the lake. One nest had small babies in it! I could hear their calls. Mom was sitting on them, and it was really hard to get a photo. But meet my first baby gallinules of 2021…

A Double-crested Cormorant sat quietly on the edge of the lake. I got a few shots of his bright blue eye before a family arrived to feed the ducks.

Most of the wintering ducks have left. I didn’t see a Ruddy Duck at all. So I was extra-surprised to see two female Lesser Scaups swimming near the water’s edge. The sun had finally started to come out, so I got a hint of light on their dark brown feathers. Pretty!

As the sun emerged and the fog burned off, I started out on another lap around the lake. More on that in the next posts!