Nest Box construction has begun

This weekend I started assembling Boreal Owl nest boxes for Labrador!!!! This year will be my biggest build yet and if everything goes to plan I will construct upwards of 100 boxes. This year I have two main goals, the first being that I get boxes into Labrador... (Done) and then get more boxes into the central & western portions of the Island of Newfoundland. 

I've got my hands full for the next few weeks, limiting my time even more for photography. I'll post again soon once I get a chance to place a few boxes on the lower salmonier line with CBC's Todd OBrian.

Sometime in March CBC's Here and Now will be doing a TV episode. Stay tuned 

The journey to Labrador has started 

Rain & Wind

So far this winter season the Avalon Peninsula has experienced quite a lot of wind and rain. Although we have had snow on the ground many times, it never lasts with the rain and constant fluctuating temperatures. Again today the island is being hit with yet another winter storm. The west coast of the island has over 60+ cm of snow in some places. I herd on the radio that there was an avalanche that consumed a car, causing the driver to climb out of the window! Here on the Avalon we have had winds gusting upwards of 100km/hr and rain all day. Tonight temps will fall rapidly to -10 or -11c causing a lot of ice tonight.

 
Ive tried venturing out many times to find more photo opportunities but had few. Recently i did have a good weekend photographing some Tufted Ducks and scaup. Also i got my best images yet of Northern Shoveler!

Northern Shoveler 

 

Eurasian Wegion

Tufted Duck

Tufted Duck

Hen Tufted Duck

Greater Scaup 

This weekend past Brad James & I had a great morning at Cape Spear photographing Purple Sandpipers in nice morning light. The waves were very big that morning causing a lot of salt spray (Not good on the cameras). Im very happy with the couple images i was able to capture of the large group of birds.

 I like how in the above image you can slightly see the purple coloration on the birds wing. This is the  first time I've be able to capture this.

Trip Report part 2

Like i mentioned before, one of the things i focused on was waterfowl and more specifically waterfowl that is uncommon to Newfoundland. The great lakes abundant supply of Zebra Mussels which are an invasive species seem to provide and excellent food source for the tens of thousands of wintering waterfowl.

Redhead

Hen Common Goldeneye

I had a great time seeing so many ducks that were reasonably approachable. I find that when I'm out shooting as soon as i find a subject to photograph such as a Hooded Merganser it seems that i don't even notice I'm cold anymore because of how focused i am on getting the shot, this happened many times during my trip to Toronto!

Drake Hooded Merganser

Drake Hooded Merganser


Hooded Mergansers are one species of duck that i am determined to get good images of one of these days. Id like to get an image of a drake with his crest all the way up. Maybe next year when i return!

Canada Goose

Trumpeter Swan 

Trumpeter Swan REAL close 

Hen Common Goldeneye

Late one evening as the sun was beginning to dip below the horizon i was very doubtful that i wasn't going to see any owls on my trip. Just as Mark & I got in the car to drive away from the location we both noticed something move to the right of the car about 10ft up.... A Barred Owl!!!

Barred Owl

I really thought that this would be my favourite image from my trip, until about 20 minutes later we stumbled upon this amazingly cute saw-whet owl. Anyone that knows me would know that this was HUGE for me. Each year i build countless boxes for Boreal &Saw-whet owls but have never set eyes on one of them in the wild. What an amazing little owl hey?

Saw-whet Owl

- Trip Report -

  Ontario January 8-15th 2015

For some time now I have been fantisizing about images of sea ducks and owls that residents of Ontario post during the winter months. This year just after Christmas I got a great deal on a flight to Toronto,Ontario. January 8th I was on my way!

Some of my target birds were Saw-whet Owls, Long-tailed Ducks, Cardinals, and just about any other waterfowl that do not occur here in Newfoundland on a regular basis. I'm very happy to say I was able to get great shots of almost every species I wanted to see expect Buffelhead. Those beautiful little ducks have been eluding me for a long time. I am sure eventually I'll get some shots of them.

Id like to thank Mark Peck for taking me out shooting on Friday, Saturday & Sunday as these were my best days shooting. Without knowing the local hotspots i surely  would not have captured half as many images! Our first day shooting we focused on Long-tailed Ducks & song birds. It was a great day shooting but bitterly cold.

Drake Long-tailed Duck

Hen Long-tailed Duck

Long-tailed Duck pair

All my images of Long-tailed Ducks were taken at the Burlington shipping canal. It was amazing to have hundreds of these ducks zipping by in the nice morning light. This is a location that i will surely be re-visiting next winter! Next we headed to a valley near the Botanical Gardens for some Song birds that have been fed by people so they are extremely friendly and tame.

Male Cardinal 

Female Cardinal

Yellow-rumped Warbler

Mourning Dove

White-breasted Nuthatch

Downy Woodpecker

More to come in Part two

Happy Holidays!

I got this image last weekend during the Cape Race Christmas bird count. Taken in Chance Cove Provincial park. Figured id post this on top of my last blog post as i have been very slow lately in updating the blog! Ill be heading to Toronto, Ontario on Jan 8th for one week of photographing Owls and Sea Ducks! Expect lots of photos! Hope you have a great Holiday Season!

Feeder Set-Up's

Late fall and early winter is one of the toughest times of year to capture images of birds. Compared to all other months it seems November & December is when I take the least number of photographs. This is mostly due to the lack of birds around and harsh weather.

                                     

One thing that never seems to fail in drawing birds is a bird feeder. A bird feeder set up isn't just a bird feeder. A bird feeder set up usually consists of multiple established bird feeders in an area drawing in many birds. An established bird feeder is simply a bird feeder you have had out for a while that the birds are used to. On the day you plan on photographing birds you need to find a way to get the birds closer to you. The easiest way to do that is to remove all feeders except a single feeder. I usually use my car as a blind near by, i also have a Kwick Camo blind if need be. The trick is to be set up and ready for when the birds arrive. This usually means being there before sunrise waiting in the cold, standing or sitting very still.

Northern Flicker

Squirrels always take advantage of bird feeders and can become a real pest.
 I simply leave some bigger nuts for them to feed on.  

I usually go out in the forest before the day I plan on shooting and collect some interesting sticks to use as perches for the birds. Anyone can get a photo of a bird sitting on a stick. If you want your images to go to the next level then you need to find interesting sticks or stumps. This usually means that they are coverd in moss, leichen, buds, or flowers. I then place the sticks just before or to the side of the single feeder and then wait... And wait... Eventually the birds will come to the feeder. As they drop down from the higher trees they will usually land near the feeder for a final look to make sure the coast is clear before feeding. With any luck the birds will choose the interesting moss coverd sticks you have erected near by. 

Dark eyed Junco

Northern Flicker

This all sounds easy enough but a lot of time and planning goes into getting "the shot". Each morning for the last few weeks I have monitored a feeder setup for many hours. At minimum I check on my set up two to three times a day to make sure all feeders are full and also to get an idea of what species are hanging around and to learn the habits of the birds. I've learned that Northern Flickers seem to feed from 8-10am each day with peak feeding being around 9am.  The only types of bird foods I use are suet cakes & black oil sunflower seeds.

When you are attracting many birds into an area it never goes unnoticed by local cats and also birds of prey like the Sharp shined hawks. Just this morning this hawk bombed the bird feeders after some smaller birds. It was so focused on capturing a meal it didn't notice me get out of my car and walk right up to it.

Sharp-shined Hawk

Id like to thank everyone that takes the time to read my blog. Wishing a safe and fun filled Holiday Season to you and yours  

The Coots Are Back!

When i first began watching and photographing birds it seemed to me that coots were somewhat common and could be seen at local ponds regularly. Last year it seemed coots were almost non existent here on the avalon or as far as i could tell. Now in recent days it seems coots are once again being spotted all over town and this time I'm making sure i get my fill of images before they disappear again.

Besides the few coots around i haven't lucked out with finding any other real interesting birds. On Tuesday fellow photographer Brad James called me with a frantic tone to his voice, "FEMALE LONG -TAILED DUCK AT POND ROAD!!! FULL FRAME SHOTS!!" When i herd those words come out of his mouth i gobbled down my supper and rushed to Kelligrews with hopes of getting some images of this duck. Long Tailed Ducks are quite common around the coast of Newfoundland. However seeing one up close is unheard of. 

When i arrived sure enough the duck was there...but about 200ft away. I decided to wait and see if it would work its way back towards me and Brad. After what seemed like a very long time i decided the light was fading quickly and the chances of this bird staying in the little back pond were slim. So i did what any mental patient or bird photographer would do. I walked across the river in my sneakers and cotton pants in order to be on the same side as the duck. That was a bust, by the time i got in position to shoot the duck had begun feeding closer to the side i was originally on. At this point i really was unsure i was going to get a decent shot. I was wet, cold and far from clean lying in the muddy grass but i walked back around to the other side. Sure enough we got in position and the duck began to work towards us. The sound of our cameras made the duck curious of us. This behaviour is also how i got my images of the coots above. 

The duck made a few close dives before the light faded but in that short time i did get this one image. I cant complain! Not every day you get photo opportunities like this one. It was something Brad & I will certainly remember for years to come.

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Also on Tuesday i filled up a few feeders at Neville's Pond here in Paradise. The feeders have already been visited by the following species:

Junco

Chickadees

Song Sparrow

Blue Jay

Common Grackle

If things keep going the way they are i predict that by winter the feeders will be swamped with birds. Hopefully something real interesting will visit such as a Chaffinch or a Hoary Redpoll. If things go as planned my next post will involve a review of my new Canon 7D Mark ii and possibly some images of my feeder set up!