Traffic at Click Ponds can be quite minimal at times. A handful of common herons and egrets and Coots are always a guarantee Yet, I find myself there each week as it's quiet and peaceful and there's always a chance of finding something out of the ordinary. For the past two weeks, though, the ponds have been packed; I've probably seen more species in these past two weeks than I have over the past two years.
The White Pelicans have definitely been a highlight for me. With the ponds being so small, I've had a chance to watch these huge birds in action at close range. These migrating groups are most likely passing through as they make their way north. The first day I saw about 35 of them, a few mornings later there were over 150. By that same afternoon, they were just about gone. I arrived early on this past Sunday morning to find just this low key trio. I did wonder why they didn't leave with the large group.
No sooner did I look up to see a new group arriving. They flew past me to the west.
Then made the turn back towards the ponds...
and down they came.
I often saw the pelicans paired up with their fishing partners, Double-crested Cormorants. Check out the size difference in the bills of these two species below.
I'm pretty sure the White Pelicans wiped the ponds clean of all fish!
Many different species of ducks have also stopped by.
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| Mottled Duck and ducklings |
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| male Ruddy Duck |
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| Ring-necked Duck |
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| American Wigeon pair & Coot |
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| Killdeer |
The lower water levels have attracted some long legged friends.
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| Black-necked Stilt & Lesser Yellowlegs |
Thanks to this Stilt I was able to see just how shallow these ponds are.
There was even a pair of Bonaparte's Gulls hanging around. They seemed to be struggling to "fit in". They first to try to join this group of ducks, but that didn't go so well. Where did everyone go? Was it something we said??
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| Bonaparte's Gulls |
The gulls thought maybe they would fit in better with the pelicans.
Many species are now displaying their breeding plumage.
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| Great Egret in breeding plumage |
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| Tricolored Heron in breeding plumage |
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| Anhinga in breeding plumage |
Your beautiful pictures are such eye candy! I esp. love that last picture of the Anhinga. I traveled to coastal TX yesterday and enjoyed lots of pelicans, too. They are so delightful!!
ReplyDeleteFantastic!
ReplyDeleteBetter pass the word " Stay where you are, 30 cm (12 inches) of snow in the north!" :-}
ReplyDeletejust fabulous shots, as always. love the pelicans and the anhinga shots!
ReplyDeleteGreat series Tammy you have photographed.
ReplyDeleteThe last picture I find quite amazing, the attitude of this bird is perfect.
Greetings Irma
This is really FANTASTIC Tammy,
ReplyDeleteso nice the sharpness, light and colors.
This is a great post !!!!!
Great selection of birds caught Tammy. That fish is huge!!
ReplyDeleteO wat zijn dit veel soorten en gewoon samen met elkaar vissen,wat een grote vis heeft hij daar te pakken en dan de laatste foto is helemaal een prachtig moment.
ReplyDeletewow great shots of the pelican eating. love the anhinga's blue eyes. As usual great photography.
ReplyDeleteVery good images .. Colorful, clarity and fantastic details.. Last bird is so beautiful.. and the photo also.. Well done Tammy. Bravo..
ReplyDeleteWhat an outstanding series! Wow!! Love it all. Wonderful lighting, too.
ReplyDeleteDecidedly great series. I am bedazzled!
ReplyDeleteWow wow wow! I cracked up a the pelican/fish shots- such an awkward looking event. I like the Bonapartes storyline too, I hope they found some good buddies...
ReplyDeleteA super series of images Tammy! They are all wonderful.
ReplyDeleteWhat variety, I just love those anhingas!
ReplyDeleteWow Tammy, what a fantastic time you are having at your birding patch! Amazing shots and all I have to do is sit in my armchair and enjoy them the other side of the big pond!
ReplyDeleteGreat photos Tammy!!!
ReplyDeleteNow is fine time when all birds must find his partner and build their nest and then raise their young. We have still som snow left in Sweden so this will have to wait a bit for me.
Greetings / Kenny
Hallo dear Tammy,
ReplyDeletein the first pictures there are so many simmetries :-) so nice to watch!!!
Last picture, the wings look like sterling silver!!
complimenti!! bravissima
Dany
I love the pelican shots. The first two are really, really great!
ReplyDeleteHola Tammy otra de tus magnificas obras fotograficas con una variedad increible de aves.Un fuerte abrazo
ReplyDeleteWowwww amiga Tammy. Una maravilla de fotografías con especies variadas. Me gustan sobre todo las primeras con los reflejos.
ReplyDeleteUn abrazo!!
My-my! What a gorgeous post!
ReplyDeleteAll these pictures are fabulous!
And look at that fish! Not only is it big, but with its spread fins it is beautiful...
Makes for fabulous pics!
The Pelican landing in the sunset is a must!
I bet they will clean up the dam!
Awesome herons too!
Cheers Tammy!
Gosh it would be wonderful to have a pond full of birds to visit right now! All our ponds are frozen over and I don't think we will be seeing any spring birds soon. Thank you for sharing yours!! Lovely!
ReplyDeletexo Catherine
Your bird photos are just gorgeous! Thank you so much for sharing.
ReplyDeleteGreat selection of waterbird photos, Tammy. That pelican has one hell of a big bill!
ReplyDeleteWow, so many fabulous pictures Tammy. I had no idea that pelicans eat such large fish! How long does one fish like that last before the pelican feels hungry again? I love the way you've followed the two gulls as they try to "belong" and can't believe the size difference between the pelicans and them!
ReplyDeleteHi Tammy !
ReplyDeleteYou have got a lot of lovely shots this time. The pelican flight is great
Have a nice weekend, and take care Tammy !
Simply superb photographs! Hopefully, the weather will straighten around soon.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful photographs Tammy. It is enjoyable to see other bird species that we aren't able to see in Maine.
ReplyDelete