Sunrise at Possum Point

I made another trek to Possum Point this morning to try for some sunrise images and I did OK. There weren’t many birds around, so I also stopped at Jonas Green Park, which was dead, then Quiet Waters which was somewhat better. Tomas Pointt remains nearly sterile.

Double Crested Cormorant 86

This is one of a small flock of Double Crested Cormorants that flew into Possum Point.

Wood Duck 203 Wood Duck 206 Wood Duck 205

Wood Duck 204

These Wood Ducks are nesting at Quiet Waters.

Tundra Swan 110

Tundra Swans will be heading North very soon.

Black Backed Seagull 26

I don’t often catch a Black Backed Seagull with a fish.

Osprey 267

This Osprey is carrying a stick for his nest.

Possum Point 31 Possum Point 33

Possum Point 35

Possum Point 36

Possum Point 37

Possum Point 32

The sky was beautiful this morning.

 

Gadwall at Quiet Waters

Yesterday I went to Wooton”s Landing and Sands Road Park with very little success. Early days yet.

Today I hit Sandy Point, Jonas Green, Thomas Point and Quiet Waters and had a little better luck. Migration is just beginning, though, and there’s better days to come.

Sandy Point 19

Sunrise at Sandy Point.

Cardinal 175

This Cardinal was singing at Jonas Green Park.

Belted Kingfisher 100

I was lucky to do this well with a Belted Kingfisher.

Winter Wren 101

This Winter Wren is the only decent image I got yesterday.

Great Blue Heron 270

Great Blue Heron 269

I saw Great Blue Herons at Thomas Point and Quiet Waters.

Bufflehead 193

This Bufflehead flew by me at Quiet Waters.

Gadwall 101 Gadwall 101

Gadwall 102

I don’t often get a chance for a flight shot of a Gadwall .

 

Wood Ducks at Quiet Waters

I took another chance on Quiet Waters this morning, with somewhat more success. The weatherman promised a partly cloudy day and that’s what we got. There was plenty of light this morning, and more birds than yesterday.

I also stopped by Thomas Point, which continues to be very slow.

GBH Statue

This bronze statue of a Great Blue Heron is at Quiet Waters.

Cove 7

Cove 6

Overlooking South River.

Bufflehead 192 Bufflehead 191

Bufflehead 190

A small flock of Buffleheads was feeding at Quiet Waters.

Tundra Swan 109

Tundra Swans are moving North.

Mallard 124 Mallard 123 Mallard 122

Mallard 121

Mallards are year round residents.

Great Blue Heron 268

I almost always see a Great Blue Heron in my favorite cove.

 

Horned Grebe 65

This Horned Grebe was at Thomas Point.

Osprey 266

We’ll soon have a full complement of Ospreys.

Wood Duck 202 Wood Duck 201

Wood Duck 200

Wood Ducks breed at Quiet Waters.

Mallard at Quiet Waters

Graeme and I met early, and went to Possum Point for the sunrise. We found a few Ospreys in the cloudy, dark morning, them went to Jonas Green and Quiet Waters, both of which were very slow, except for a handful of ducks.

Thomas Point wasn’t any better, with no waterfowl at all.

Possum Point 28

There was very little color in this morning’s sunrise.

Graeme Simpson 100

Graeme Simpson in action.

Great Blue Heron 267

This Great Blue Heron was at Quiet Waters.

White Breasted Nuthatch 100

I found this White Breasted Nuthatch at Thomas Point.

Chickadee 200

This Chickadee was moving about rapidly.

Hooded Merganser 133

Hooded Merganser 132

Hooded Mergansers have been scarce this year.

Osprey 264

Osprey 263

These Ospreys are preparing to mate.

Mallard 120

This hen Mallard was the best shot of the day.

River Otter at Thomas Point

I got a late start this morning, but I got to Possum Point in time for a few sunrise images. The Ospreys have returned, but no ducks were around.

Thomas Point had a surprise, distant Otter, which is the first I’ve seen there. All the ducks were quite distant.

Possum Point 25

Possum Point 23

 

 

Possum Point 24

Sunrise at Possum Point.

Mallard 119

This Mallard was one of the few ducks near enough to photograph.

Osprey 262

I found a single pair of Ospreys, and there will be more soon.

Tundra Swan 108

These Tundra Swans were headed west.

Thomas Point 9

There hundreds of ducks at the west end of Thomas Point.

Otter 6

Not a great image, but it’s the first River Otter I’ve seen at Thomas Point.

 

 

 

 

Red Fox at Thomas Point

I got to Thomas Point early this morning in hopes of catching some migrating ducks, but didn’t have much luck. I did find some small birds and an eagle, but the ducks were some distance west of the point. The fox was a day saver.

I made a short trip in the afternoon, and was surprised to find that a huge amount of ice had moved in, keeping the ducks even further away.

White Throated Sparrow 202

This White Throated Sparrow was probably glad to see the last of the snow cover.

Bald Eagle 398 Bald Eagle 401 Bald Eagle 400

Bald Eagle 399

The Bald Eagle pair seems to still be courting.

Fox 15

I looked up and was surprised to see this Fox staring at me.

 

 

American Wigeons at Thomas Point

It’s a wigeon kind of week. When the promised rain hadn’t materialized by 9:30, I took a trip to Thomas Point to see what was there.

There were easily a thousand ducks, but most were hidden in the fog. I was pleased to see wigeons in the mix, as I haven’t seen them at Thomas Point before this.

 

Thomas Point 8

I could hear the sounds of the ducks and the ice crashing, but visibility was poor.

Lesser Scaup 193

There were several large flocks of mixed Lesser Scaup and Canvasbacks.

Song Sparrow 129

Song Sparrow 128

Song Sparrows often forage in the grass.

Tundra Swan 107

These Tundra Swans were hidden by the fog until they flew overhead.

American Wigeon 16

 

American Wigeon 14

American Wigeon 14

American Wigeons are quite beautiful, but the poor light makes for lousy images.

 

 

 

Rabbit 20

My first Rabbit of the year.

 

 

American Wigeons at Hillsmere Beach.

Graeme and I met early this morning and set out for Sandy Point. We shot a few landscapes, but there were very few birds. We then stopped at Possum Point and Jonas Green Park, with pretty much the same results. The wigeons at Hillsmere were the only decent ducks of the day. I know the ducks are on the move, but we didn’t expect such poor results.

Sandy Point 16

Sandy Point 15

Sandy Point sunrise.

Possum Point 21

Looking East from Possum Point.

Possum Point 22

Graeme at Possum Point.

Ring Billed Gull 91

This Ring Billed Gull was having a tough time with this fish,which may be frozen.

 

 

Song Sparrow 128

Song Sparrows are thriving at Jonas Green Park.

American Wigeon 12

American Wigeon 11

We saw these American Wigeons near shore at Hillsmere beach.

 

Red Breasted Merganser at Thomas Point.

We’re finally getting some decent weather. I’ve lived in MD for nearly 40 years, and this has been the coldest and snowiest in a long time.

I started at Quiet Waters Park, but the coves were still iced up, so I went to Thomas Point next. Calm water and blue skies greeted me, and I found a Bald Eagle nest which I hope will provide some good photos this Spring.

Thomas Point 7

Thomas Point 6

Calm water and clearing skies at Thomas Point.

Ring Billed Gull 90

Ring Billed Gulls are very photogenic.

Common Merganser 110

Common Merganser 109

These are the first Common Mergansers I’ve seen at Thomas Point.

Bald Eagle 397 Bald Eagle 396

Bald Eagle 395

I believe this Bald Eagle nest is new. It’s likely to get much larger.

Horned Grebe 64

This Horned Grebe is molting into breeding plumage.

Bald Eagle 394

These Bald Eagles were fishing on the far side of the river, and took a break on this piece of ice.

Tundra Swan 106 Tundra Swan 105

Tundra Swan 104

Tundra Swans are still feeding in the coves.

Bufflehead 189

Bufflehead 188

There were fewer Buffleheads than usual.

Greater Scaup 100

The amount of white on the wings IDs this Greater Scaup.

Redhead 21

I didn’t see the Redheads in this flock until I uploaded the images.

 

Red Breasted Merganser 131

This Red Breasted Merganser flew by me right at the point.

 

 

 

Osprey at Sandy Point State Park.

It looks as though Spring is coming at last. It was clear and warming this morning, and I removed my jacket by 9:30. I got to Sandy Point around dawn,but there wasn’t much to see until my first Osprey of the season flew over. Most of the ducks have moved out to the middle of the bay now that the ice is melting.

Jonas Green Park had a lot of ducks, but they, too were quite distant.

Thomas Point was relatively barren also, but a Bald Eagle flew over, being pursued by an immature eagle.

Sandy Point 12

Sandy Point Lighthouse at dawn.

Sandy Point 13

The ice is breaking up rapidly.

Bald Eagle 391 Bald Eagle 393

Bald Eagle 392

This immature Bald Eagle was pursuing the adult carrying a fish.

Downy Woodpecker 023

I heard this Downy Woodpecker before I saw him.

Cardinal 174

This Northern Cardinal was singing loudly from the highest perch available.

Herring Gull 13

If you stand on the bridge at Jonas Green, Herring Gulls often fly by at eye level.

Fish Crow 1

The Fish Crow is distinguished from the American Crow by his croaking call.

Osprey 261

Osprey 260

My first Osprey of the season, and he’s carrying a nice fish.