Wednesday, August 6, 2008
I took this picture a week ago today on Carmans River. It is, I believe, a female Red-breasted Merganser. In my three most recent trips along the Carmans I’ve made about five sightings of this species, always female and always alone. It’s possible that I’ve been seeing the same bird each time. Mergansers are diving ducks with serrated bills – cool, huh? – that they use to catch small fish and crustaceans. JK
Monday, August 4, 2008
This is the group of Wild Turkeys that I was looking for when I came across the fawn that I posted a pic of last Monday. When I first found the turkeys it was still raining and very dark in the woods. The pics I took didn’t come out very well at all. Later in the day, the skies cleared and so I thought I might try to find the turkeys again. After searching for only about twenty minutes I found them in a clearing that borders my neighbors property. Finding wildlife is rarely that easy. I was lucky, pure and simple.
This group is comprised of a hen and her young, which are called poults. I counted six babies but my neighbor had counted seven a week before. It could be that I missed one in the woods but it could also be that one was lost to predators. There is a fox living in the area as well as several hawks. JK
Friday, August 1, 2008
Last week I took a trip with some friends and we kayaked the Lower Carmans River. This river used to be one of my favorite haunts when I lived on the south shore. I would kayak there at least once a week in good weather. Since I moved close to the Nissequogue River I only rarely make it over to the Carmans but that’s already changing. I had such a good time and so many photo ops that I’ve been back twice since my initial visit. You can expect more posts concerning the Carmans in the coming weeks. Be prepared. I may bore you with Osprey shots. JK