Monthly Archives: May 2008

Another Ring-neck Pheasant at David Weld

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Saturday, May 10, 2008

I took a hike through David Weld on Wednesday morning. Birds were everywhere. I went looking for this guy through the open fields. As I was following him I flushed up a hen. I snapped a quick pic but the focus was lousy. This male was content to let me trail him for a bit. I suspect he was leading me away from his loved ones. The colors on these birds really come alive in the sun. That breast flashes just as brilliantly as his red face. I’m not sure the camera truly captures it. Here’s another shot of the same bird. JK

Common Terns

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Friday, May 9, 2008

It’s a dark and rainy day out there today so I’ll do another post. These Common Terns were enjoying the sun on a floating dock off San Remo. In a few weeks the tops of their heads will become all black as they slip into their breeding attire. They look cool either way. I love to watch these acrobatic birds. I’ve seen them share (maybe steal) food in midair and later in the season I’ll get to watch them bring whole fish to their older chicks. At the end of last July I was lucky enough to get several shots of them doing just that. JK

Correction: These birds are not Common Terns. They are Least Terns. Go here for the whole sordid story. I apologize for any inconvenience my incompetence may have caused. JK

Big Snapper

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Friday, May 9, 2008

This is the big Common Snapping Turtle that I mentioned in my last post. Ordinarily, I would not post a shot that includes trash but in this case the discarded wood helps to show just how big this guy (or gal) is. That’s a 1×4 piece of milled lumber next to our friend. Turtles are measured by their shells, the head and tail are not included. I estimate this guy’s shell at about 16 inches. According to my Peterson’s Reptiles and Amphibians Field Guide the average size for snappers is 8 to 14 inches, with the record coming in at just under 20 inches so this is one good sized snapping turtle. JK

Terrapin Station Is Open

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Thursday, May 8, 2008

I spent five hours on the river Tuesday. I did the bull and back, about 3.5 miles each way. The bull is the Smithtown bull on Rt.25 where Rt.25A splits off and goes north. That is almost the southern end of the navigable part of the river. There’s less than a quarter mile of river south of Rt.25. It does not take five hours to do the bull and back. I went at a very leisurely pace and afterwards I explored some of my favorite haunts at my end of the river. Generally the bull run can be done in three relaxed hours or less.

I cruised through Terrapin Station both coming and going and saw at least a dozen Diamondback Terrapins. As long as you approach quietly and slowly you can almost always find terrapins here. The scales on the guy below are peeling. I neglected to bring my sunblock, too.

I also saw several snappers, one of which was huge. Humungous. You could land planes on his back. I’ll post his pic tomorrow. There were lots of pretty red-orange jellyfish in the water. You may not want to swim with them but they are cool to watch. Common Terns are starting to show up in numbers as well. Sharp looking birds. JK

Golden Slippers

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Tuesday, May 6, 2008

I hit the river for about three hours yesterday. I took 499 photos. This was the best shot of the day. I nailed this Snowy Egret as he was flying past me. You can clearly see his bright yellow feet in this shot and his face is in near perfect focus. I lucked out here. The only thing lacking here is green. Green really helps bring a nature pic alive. In another month this same scene will be much more colorful, with that yellow face and those feet standing out against Mother Nature’s favorite color. Of course I won’t manage to put the bird in focus then. JK

Here’s the same shot, with a close up of the head.