While kayaking a lake that is mostly shallow, I saw this osprey hanging out there. I think it flies between another body of water and this one. It seemed to come back to the same area of the lake when it caught the fish.
Osprey with Fish
I did see it splash into the water on the other side of the lake before it flew back in circles with a fish. Lucky for me that it landed nearby.
Osprey with Fish
Look at those talons speared into the fish. I am assuming the fish is already dead.
Osprey with Fish
He seemingly holds on with one foot. This was a cloudy day and very windy. Sitting in my kayak to try to take shots was far from steady. I’m still okay with these. Here’s hoping to see one dive in close by in the future. Have a great weekend.
Kingfishers in New York , known as belted kingfishers, are less colourful than the kingfishers in England (common kingfishers). They are interesting to watch. They are very skittish though and do not let you come to0 close usually. I was kayaking on a windy day and was surprised when this one let me drift closer than usual. It was not until I got home and looked at the images on my computer that I may have seen why.
Kingfisher Stuck in Fishing Line- This was on one tree down over the water
This kingfisher seemingly has a fishing line attached to it. It did fly from tree to tree overhanging the water and I did see it drop into the water. However, I hope if it needs help, it will allow someone to get close enough to bring it to help.
According to NOAA Fisheries: “Entangled animals may drown or starve because they are restricted by fishing gear, or they may suffer physical trauma and infections from the gear cutting into their flesh.”
Kingfisher Stuck in Fishing Line – This is on a different tree that is down over the water
The lake I went on is popular with fishermen on shore and on fishing kayaks. Although this bird was on an unpopulated side of the lake, those on kayaks could fish in that area.
Kingfisher Stuck in Fishing Line
It was not possible for me to get there before dark today, but I have put the word out. Incidentally, I also have a picture of a turtle with fishing line stuck to it as well from the same outing. Hopefully if this bird needs help it will allow someone to get close enough to grab. The hazards of life for wildlife that depend on water seem to be many.
I have always wanted to see a barn owl. We do have them in New York, but the Ebird reporting site protects the location of where they are sighted as they do exist, but are rare in the state. Going to a castle in England was my best shot at seeing one of these owls.
Some castles have many different activities to bring in money. They may have tours, host large concerts, put on Medieval or other historical shows, have high end lodging, etc. However, my favourite event to see are the falconry shows.
This falconry show at Warwick Castle does not disappoint. They had four falconers flying the birds. They had owls, falcons, hawks and eagles. Unfortunately it was raining that day. I did remove the raindrops from these photos. However, it messed with my autofocus and most of the flight shots did not pan out. I think the size of the owl came into play as well.
If I ever return to England, I hope to spend a few days visiting this castle. They have many shows and multiple falconry shows a day. I would also like to see a barn owl in the wild some day. Have a great rest of your week.
This great blue heron showed no fear. It hung out near a boat launch. I kayaked out a short ways and it actually walked towards me. It was fun to watch.
Great Blue Heron Flipping FishGreat Blue Heron Flipping Fish – Swallowing it down
As usual these are taken with a zoom lens. I am thinking this is a juvenile. It seems it is not as knowledgeable as it should be in the ways of the world. As much I enjoyed it walking towards me and these are not cropped a lot, I just hope it becomes more knowledgeable about safety in the future. Have a great week!
Before I took this picture, the cormorant kicked off this floating platform some other turtles who just wanted to enjoy the sun. The lone turtle to remain was not having it. He kept standing his ground. The turtle was trying to engage him in a stare down, but the cormorant never looked him in the eye.
The Stand-Off – The Turtle and the Cormorant
When I left the turtle was still standing his ground. Maybe my presence gave him some bravado. I believe this may be a juvenile cormorant. I caught it on this pond near the Hudson River on three separate nights. Given that great blue herons and green herons stop here to fish and numbers of turtles call this home, there must be food to be had. Have a great Labor Day Weekend!
The following photo is of the loon tagged B4 on Rollins Pond in the Adirondack Mountains of New York. I think this year was the first year I have been on this pond, but decided to return to it a few times for a few reasons.
Rollins Pond Loon
The number one reason I went back to this pond on this trip was loons were there. Secondly, although this pond does allow motor boats, I did not see any the trips I was there, only kayaks. Thirdly, it does connect to other nearby bodies of water, some of which I have been on in the years past as well as on this trip. Some of these include Floodwood Pond, Fish Creek Ponds, Square Pond, Little Square Pond, Copperas Pond, Follensby Clear Pond, etc. Through Fish Creek Pond you can paddle into Upper Saranac Lake. Incidentally, this pond has what looks like a very nice DEC state run campground with a lot of spots that have water access, perfect if you want to kayak. This may make another reason to return in the future.
Rollins Pond Loon – tagged B4
I did notify the Adirondack Loon Center with pictures of this loon with its tag that it was alive and well and was sighted in Rollins Pond. If you see a tagged loon in New York notify the Adirondack Loon Center. If you see a loon in winter further south, do the same. They like to track where these loons are year to year and since some loons visit other ponds daily, they like to know that as well. Happy Sunday!
I believe in order to control where osprey build nests in different spots in New York they are building platforms on top of telephone / power poles etc, to attract their nest building to that location. I usually see these as active osprey nests once they are built.
If You Build it, They Will Come: Osprey. – It even has a pole to perch on.
This osprey nest had two osprey on it when I first saw it , but one flew away to an area with possibly a creek or river nearby. I assume this is an adult. I do not think I saw any young. I am guessing they fledged already.
It was a nice find. My GPS actually led me the wrong way to get to the nearby location I was stopping at. I’m actually glad it did. It had me backtrack and go a different way when I continued ahead after it readjusted. A mistake by the GPS worked out to be a good thing. Take advantage of these moments. Have a great week!
All you bird experts out there, I need your help. Can you identify this bird? I assume it is a duck, but I ran this through Merlin North American and Europe and nothing seemed to be an absolute match. I am far from an expert.
Mystery Bird
It appears to have red eyes and an orange beak. The colour on top of its head is a darker brown. I do not know if this is a juvenile or an adult. I saw this in one of the parks in London. That of course does not mean necessarily that it is native to Europe. What are your thoughts? Can anyone identify this mystery bird? Or could this even be a hybrid cross between two birds?
I was lucky to see a lot of birds I have not seen before in England. The royal Parks and other parks in London were great places to view some of these birds. The chiloe wigeon was one of them.
Chiloe Wigeon
Appearance
With Chiloe Wigeons both male and female look similar, but the male may be brighter. It has rusty coloured sides. They have white cheeks and a white forehead. They also have a metallic green head. Chiloe wigeons are small ducks.
Diet
The diet of a chiloe wigeon includes water plants, crustaceans, and tadpoles.
Location
The chiloe wigeon is often found in wetlands, marshes, lakes, and along rivers. The chiloe wigeon gets along with other waterfowl, but more often seen near or on the shore shore, grazing in grassy areas. This bird is mainly found in the southern part of South America, but it is also seen in parts of Europe including England.
Don’t discount parks in cities, you may find a lot of wildlife you are not expecting.
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