Red-Tailed Hawk

Red-Winged Blackbird

Pileated Woodpecker

I have seen many Pileated Woodpeckers in my ramblings through the woods over the years, but this past weekend at Riverbend Natural Area, I finally had my camera and big lens ready to get a marginal quality photograph.  I would like to get a better picture of one of these someday, but they are not the most patient of subjects to photograph.

Red Winged Blackbirds

Urban Eagle, Part II

I ventured back out on the Red Cedar River on the weekend to try to track down the Bald Eagles nesting in the swampy area around Potter Park.  On Saturday I only saw one of the eagles sitting on the nest, but it never left the nest and its mate never arrived after three hours of waiting.  On Sunday I found one of the eagles perched on a dead tree nearby its nest.  It sat there for quite a while and preened itself.  Eventually, it flew off toward Potter Park, but circled back around very quickly when a Great Blue Heron flew by the eagles' nest.  The eagle chased the heron a bit and the heron finally got the message and flew away.  This answered my question about whether the herons would return to their rookery this spring and cohabit the area with eagles.  It appears that the two species do not share very well!

Kayaking With The Eagles

About a month ago, I had encountered a Bald Eagle along the Red Cedar River near Potter Park.  Little did I know, this eagle and its mate had built a nest in that same area.  The Red Cedar River and Sycamore Creek converge in a swampy area that has many small islets that have tall trees on them.  In past years, Great Blue Herons have used this area as a rookery and their nests dot the tops of many of the trees.  The eagles claimed one of these nests for themselves and added to it.  The eagles are very purposefully tending their nest and they switch off sitting in it from time to time.  I hope as the spring progresses, I have the opportunity to watch this family of eagles grow and learn to fly.  I was able to get fairly close to the eagle when it was in the tree 30+ feet above me and it did not seemed too concerned with my presence in the area.  A circling Red Tailed Hawk caused it some consternation and it made its feelings known by squawking a bit until the hawk flew away.

A Quiet Menace

Mute Swans look pretty and actually make for nice photographic subjects.  However, their impact as an invasive species on the habitat they inhabit, through their voracious appetites and their overly aggressive nature toward other waterfowl and even humans, has had an negative effect on several species of native waterfowl in Michigan, including the threatened Trumpeter Swan and Common Loon.

Red-Tailed Hawk

Birds At The Feeders

Murder Most Fowl

While wandering the trails at Fenner Nature Center on Saturday, I happened upon some bright red feathers I assume came from a cardinal that met a hungry bird-of-prey.  The red feathers really stood out against the white snow.

Cedar Waxwings

Juvenile Green Heron

I had a fun time stalking this juvenile Green Heron (Butorides virescens) in my kayak along the Looking Glass River.  It did not seem too frightened of my presence, which I chalk up to its immaturity.  I had to navigate though some dense aquatic brush to get good photos of it, but once I got to the right point I had ample opportunities to capture images.  Something in the distance piqued its interest and it ruffled up the feathered crest on the crown of its head for a few moments.

Of Down And Ducklings

While kayaking the other day on the Red Cedar River, I encountered a number of ducklings paddling along separate from any other ducks.  I do not know at what age they venture out on their own, but I thought they seemed sort of small still to be experiencing the grown-up world alone.