Tag: Wildlife

Pine Warbler

I spent three hours in the Pinelands with Ray Hennessey hoping to get a photograph of the pine warbler. We could see the birds flying back and forth between the trees that lined the swampy area that Ray had scouted. We waited patiently, but the pine warbler kept out of view the camera. The light was fading, and we were ready to call it quits. Ray suggested that we stay just a bit longer. Our patience and effort were rewarded when this male landed in just the right spot.

NOTE: The light was fading, so the photograph was shot at ISO12800. It's not as sharp as I wanted.

This well-named bird is not often seen away from pine trees, especially during the breeding season. More sluggish than most of their relatives, Pine Warblers forage in a rather leisurely way at all levels in the pinewoods, from the ground to the treetops. This species is only a short-distance migrant, and almost the entire population spends the winter within the southern United States. Unlike most warblers, it regularly comes to bird feeders for suet or for other soft foods.Pine Warbler at the Audubon Society’s website

You can learn more about Ray Hennessy's work and signup for his workshops on his website. You can learn more about the Pine Warbler at the Audubon Society’s website.

Pine Warbler —FujiFilm X-T2 + XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR @ (359.6 mm, 0.002 sec at f/5.6, ISO12800), © Khürt L. Williams

Prothonotary Warbler

Last weekend I joined photographer Ray Hennessey for a field trip to one of his birding spots in Woodbine in the pine barrens of New Jersey. While we had some challenges photographing the elusive pine warbler, we had no problems photographing this Prothonotary Warbler. The bird kept performing for us, stopping on sticks that poked out from the swampland and branches of the trees that lined the water.

The Prothonotary Warbler loves wooded swamps and breeds in flooded river bottom hardwoods, including black willow, ash, buttonbush, sweetgum, red maple, hackberry, river birch, and elm; or wetlands with bay trees surrounded by cypress swamp. This warbler nests near borders of lakes, rivers and ponds, normally only in areas with slow-moving or standing water and Winters in the tropics in lowland woods and mangrove swamps.

I am learning from my bird photography field trips because of the need for patience and persistence. For three hours, we stood among the trees waiting for the birds to arrive and put themselves in the right spots. There was no rushing, no bathroom break, and we kept our talking to the minimum. I could imagine being out in these woods by myself, listening to bird calls, to the sound of the wind in the trees and the water trickling over the stones of the nearby stream.

water lillies, lotus
Sunday 19 May, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR @ 100 mm | 1⁄500 sec at f/4.5 | ISO 5000
lotus flower
Sunday 19 May, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR @ 400 mm | 1⁄400 sec at f/5.6 | ISO 1250
Prothonotary Warbler
Prothonotary Warbler | Sunday 19 May, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR @ 226.6 mm | 1⁄400 sec at f/5.0 | ISO 4000
Prothonotary Warbler
Prothonotary Warbler | Sunday 19 May, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR @ 183.1 mm | 1⁄400 sec at f/5.0 | ISO 320
Prothonotary Warbler
Prothonotary Warbler | Sunday 19 May, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR @ 400 mm | 1⁄400 sec at f/5.6 | ISO 5000
Prothonotary Warbler
Prothonotary Warbler | Sunday 19 May, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR @ 400 mm | 1⁄400 sec at f/5.6 | ISO 5000
Prothonotary Warbler
Prothonotary Warbler | Sunday 19 May, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR @ 359.6 mm | 1⁄500 sec at f/5.6 | ISO 1250
lotus flower
Sunday 19 May, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR @ 400 mm | 1⁄500 sec at f/5.6 | ISO 2000
Prothonotary Warbler
Prothonotary Warbler | Sunday 19 May, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR @ 400 mm | 1⁄500 sec at f/5.6 | ISO 4000
Prothonotary Warbler
Prothonotary Warbler | Sunday 19 May, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR @ 400 mm | 1⁄500 sec at f/5.6 | ISO 4000
lotus flower
Sunday 19 May, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR @ 400 mm | 1⁄125 sec at f/5.6 | ISO 500
wooded area
Woodbine Pond | Sunday 19 May, 2019 | FujiFilm X-T2 | XF100-400mmF4.5-5.6 R LM OIS WR @ 100 mm | 1⁄125 sec at f/4.5 | ISO 2500

White-Eyed Vireo

I discovered this photograph of the White-Eyed Vireo in the set I took a few weeks ago while on a photography field trip with Ray Hennessey. This morning, via an email exchange, Ray helped me identify this bird.

According to the Audubon Society website, the White-Eyed Vireo is:

A busy bird of the thickets, most common in the southeast. Although the White-eyed Vireo usually stays in dense cover, it is not always hard to see; it will come up to examine and scold a birder who stands near the bushes and makes squeaking sounds. Even when it remains out of sight, its snappy song is distinctive. In Bermuda, where the bird is common, it is widely known as "chick-of-the-village," a good rendition of the song.

I started using the Merlin Bird ID by Cornell Lab by Cornell University app for iPhone which I found via the allaboutbirds website. There is an Android OS version. It correctly identified every bird from the photos I took. How cool is that!!