Like mother, like pup

A highlight of our August trip to MacKerricher State Park on the Mendocino coast was the harbor seals that hauled out on the rocks that were just offshore. This provided a great opportunity to observe them at relatively close range, and since there was water between the beach and their rocks, they were at ease when a group of onlookers stopped by.



We saw a handful of young pups in the group, some of which were playing in the water, and some like this one were hauled out on the rocks. Based on the struggles we saw of other pups trying to get out of the water, I'm not quite sure how this little guy made it all the way to the top. But kudos to him, and perhaps some encouraging pushes from his mother were in order.



I found the diversity of coloration and patterns on the seals to be quite interesting, and my personal favorite were those with the really dark colors like this mother. Perhaps her cute pup will one day grow up to look just like her!

Heron with prize

A few weeks ago I posted a few shots from the archives of a great blue heron at Rodeo Lagoon in the act of striking at prey below the water surface. However, I didn't include any shots of the bird with its prize. I've remarked before at how small the fish were that it was catching, and I stand by that with this picture as evidence. It seems like it would take a lot of these tiny fish to satiate a bird of this size. I've got to give it credit though, it was remarkably adept at catching such small prey.

Isolated

A lone western sandpiper preening amidst a large flock of sanderlings. This was a sizeable group of shorebirds along the beach at Limantour Spit in Point Reyes National Seashore, and while laying in the sand with them I was constantly looking for interesting compositions and captivating subjects to isolate from the crowd. My eye kept coming back to the brown plumage of this bird, since it stood out against the grayscale of the sanderlings -- and eventually it started to preen, which further set itself apart.

On one toothpick

A western snowy plover (Charadrius alexandrinus nivosus) standing around on Limantour Spit in Point Reyes National Seashore. At this point in time it had popped up out of one footprint in the sand to have a look around before plopping down into a different one.

Mount Olympus

The summit of Mount Olympus as seen from the Obstruction Point area in Olympic National Park. When starting out on the hike I figured I would want a more wide-angle lens, however, I quickly changed my mind when I realized how small these glorious peaks would be in the frame. Instead, I slapped on my wildlife lens (Tamron 200-500 zoom) and felt that the way I was seeing the sights along the trail was much better represented by the tighter composition of 200mm. It also was nice to be ready when we saw an Olympic marmot along the trail.

Grazing tule elk

A bull tule elk grazing along Tomales Point in Point Reyes National Seashore in August of this year. This area was one of the best for seeing them along the trail, since I could get a nice background of both Tomales Bay and the hills on the other side.

Take a bow

A sanderling (Calidris alba) in a high-contrast plumage phase (probably a molting juvenile) having a stretch and a bow. And really, with how much it stands out from the others who can blame it for showing off a little. Taken along Limantour Spit in Point Reyes National Seashore.

Sanderling zzz's

Some resting sanderlings (Calidris alba) along the beach at Limantour Spit in Point Reyes National Seashore. As a whole, this flock of mostly sanderlings was actually fairly still. For anyone who has watched sanderlings for any length of time, that's rather unusual, since they seem to be in constant motion. And this was mostly still the case -- even though the flock generally stayed in place, the individual birds kept on the move, constantly shuffling positions. These birds were resting in the middle and eventually found themselves at the edge of the group. I like this shot both because it shows a restful side of a normally speedy bird, but also because it shows slightly different stages in the change from summer plumage to winter plumage. The bird on the right still has a bit of the chestnut coloring left, while the bird in the middle is in the plain basic plumage, and the bird on the left is somewhere in between.

Time to stretch

A late afternoon walk along Limantour Spit in Point Reyes National Seashore on an overcast Sunday was a real treat a few weekends ago. I first encountered a collection of perhaps 10 or so snowy plovers all hanging out in the same spot. Its always fun to watch them sprint between footprints in the sand before settling down into one for a bit. And while I was filling up a memory card on those adorable shorebirds, I didn't even realize that a huge flock of sanderlings (with a handful of western sandpipers too) had landed less than 100 ft behind me. So needless to say it was a great surprise to have creeped away from the snowy plovers only to finally stand up again before realizing the scene before me and heading back to the prone position. There was certainly at least 75 birds in this flock, and at this time they seemed to be in relaxation and preening mode.

Trying to pick out a single bird to accent was sort of difficult, as they were constantly scurrying about (even while appearing restful they almost never stop) and changing places. However, I did happen to have my lens on the right bird at the right time on a few occassions, to get some shots with a more interesting pose than just a standing sanderling.

Western sandpiper on the beach

A western sandpiper (Calidris mauri) in breeding plumage strutting along Limantour Spit in Point Reyes National Seashore.

Heron strike

A conversation I had this weekend reminded me about the efficiency of these predators, and how easily this great blue heron managed to catch small fish in the shallows of Rodeo Lagoon. It seemed like every time it put its head in the water, it came up with a meal.



Here's a frame when the heron was facing straight on. I like how you can still see the pattern of its head through the wall of water its forcing towards me.



And if you'd like to see this bird without a wall of water in the way, I posted a few shots of it earlier this year: "Great blue on blue" and "Heron with attitude".

Relaxed bull elk

After coming over the hillside and chasing away two younger males who were mingling with the females (no fighting necessary, the smaller males just turned and ran to the outskirts of the group), this large male tule elk made himself a straw hat by digging around in the grass and then settled in to watch over his harem. He picked a spot that was right in a resting group of females, and he was alertly keeping an eye on the others.

Hilarious

Not to anthropomorphize too much here, but this frame really makes me smile since to me it looks like this harbor seal is hysterically laughing about something and even pounding its flipper as it laughs. Taken in MacKerricher State Park near Fort Bragg, California.

Reaching for a snack

A western sandpiper stretching out to grab a bite to eat while on the run. Taken along Limantour Spit in Point Reyes National Seashore.

Western snowy plover

A western snowy plover in breeding plumage along the beach at Limantour Spit in Point Reyes National Seashore.

How much fun...

...can you have in a cattle grate? Well, if you ask this long-tailed weasel, the answer would be a whole lotta fun!

I encountered this weasel while approaching a cattle grate crossing, and it really put on a show for me while it bounded between the slats, dropping in one area and popping up somewhere else. If you've ever seen river otters playing in a zoo, this it totally what it looked like. This guy was really playful, and seemed only to move in fast-motion -- that is, until it became curious about my car. It cautiously crept towards the vehicle (which I was standing a bit away from) and then would bolt back to the safety of the grate before creeping a little bit closer the next time. Eventually it was brave enough to approach, and was sure to inspect all of the tires and the tail pipe.

Checking out the area behind the tires:

Soon enough though, it realized that a car isn't all that interesting when compared to a cattle grate, and it bounded back to its playground.

A young swallow

A young swallow in the bush on a breezy morning in Shollenberger Park. This one was really getting tossed about on the branches, and it appeared as though it wished it had landed somewhere else.

The calf and the king

One of the exciting things about visiting the Tule elk during the rut, is that in addition to seeing bulls fighting, there is also a chance to see the young calves. I had seen juveniles on previous hikes at different times of year, but in August of this year we were treated to seeing a handful of calves still with their spots! Before this trip, I didn't even know that elk were born with spots, and they sure are cute with them.



While the composition was a bit tricky with that overcast sky above the hilltop, I really liked the contrast between the young calf and the large dominant bull in these shots. Who knows, perhaps this little one will one day have his own harem. I liked the shot below too, with the male seemingly keeping an eye out for, or perhaps on, the calf.

Least peep, on the run

A least sandpiper cruising along the beach at MacKerricher State Park. While panning as it ran, I only managed a few shots that were sharp enough on the bird, and unfortunately I couldn't quite keep the tip of the tail in the frame. These guys seemed really comfortable while picking through the wrack on the shoreline, but as soon as they reached some open sand they took off at a sprint until they found some cover on the other side.

Fawns in the fog

Last July I took what had to be the foggiest hike I have ever gone on. In the late afternoon, I headed over to Tennessee Valley in the GGNRA, and hoped to take advantage of the overcast light from the fog that was rolling in. This probably would have been great had I stayed in the valley, but something told me to do a more elevated loop, and I ascended the Fox Trail. It was on my way up that I began to fully experience what it meant for the fog to be rolling in over the headlands. At times I could barely see past the sides of the trail, and I certainly didn't expect to be able to do any photography. However, when these cute siblings materialized from within the howling fog bank, it was an opportunity I just couldn't pass up. Their mother wasn't at all interested in me, and she just continued to feed, but these two were definitely curious about me. And you've just gotta love the almost too-large ears on these guys!

Olympic marmot

We spent our holiday weekend on the Olympic peninsula in Washington State, and had an awesome trip filled with great views and interesting wildlife! One of the highlights off of my rather lengthy wish-list for this too short trip was to see the Olympic marmot, which is an endemic species to the peninsula. We found this wonderful specimen sunning itself along the trail in Olympic National Park, near the Obstruction Point area.



To give a little perspective on the views these guys enjoy, here's a frame with some of the Olympic range in the backdrop.



Here's a slightly different take on this pose as well, with the nearer hillside in the backdrop instead. I'm not quite sure which I like better, but I think I'm more drawn to the colors in the top frame.

This one looks tasty

A bull tule elk in Point Reyes National Seashore checking out what looks to be a delicious branch of lupine.

Separated from chaos

Harbor seals resting on offshore rocks, well away from the crashing waves behind them. Taken at MacKerricher State Park, near Fort Bragg, CA.

Show me your best side -- California Quail edition

Three different compositions of the same bird in this post, a male California quail along the trail in Tennessee Valley. This is the same bird that I posted a vertical composition of previously, who quite generously gave me a few minutes on top of his bush before realizing that only a lousy photographer was paying attention to him, and he probably should pick a different bush to woo the ladies from.

This frame is perhaps "Quail Classic" with nice posture and that standing tall kind of attitude, surely a stunning find for a female.

But this shot I think is my favorite of the bunch -- a quail with attitude! You can almost see him giving me a Z-snap and making a snarky comeback.

And lastly perhaps his right side is his better side, which he kindly gave to me while working the camera as well.

On a more serious note, a Flickr member commented on my previous post of this guy about how was I able to get such clean bokeh while shooting at only f/8. The secret to this shot is that this is on a portion of the trail that cuts along an elevated portion of the hillside in Tennessee Valley. The background is actually a separate hillside across the valley, which is probably a few hundred yards off.

Browsing tule elk in Point Reyes National Seashore

A male Tule elk along Tomales Point Trail in Point Reyes National Seashore browsing for a snack. This is one of the same bulls that started to fight as we watched them a bit later in the day.

Sandpiper inspection

After following a small flock of these guys around the beach for at least half an hour, this curious one decided to check out what exactly the slow crawling monster with the giant lens coming out of his nose was. He tentatively ran over pretty close to me, gave me a few up and down glances, and then scurried back to the group. Apparently I was deemed no threat (probably because they saw the glacial speed at which I was moving while belly crawling after them through the sand), or perhaps they found me to an acceptable proxy of a new kind of sandpiper species (well, I'm not so sure about that!). Either way, it was a real pleasure to have a chance to photograph them with some summer color.

Quail in a sea of gold, Point Reyes National Seashore

Two more shots from my Weekend of the Quail in May of this year (previous posts from this weekend are here, here, and here). I saw this guy perched a little way off the trail and in front of a beautiful valley of golden wildflowers. This normally skittish species actually let me approach over what must have taken 10-15 minutes to get into the right position. Every now and then he would glance my way (see below), but was totally cool with my approach, and let me snap off a lot of frames with this awesome backdrop.

Evenly matched

A quick post from the many shots I took yesterday on a hike out the Tomales Point Trail in Point Reyes National Seashore to see the tule elk rut. Here are two males trying to determine their ranking order. We watched both of these guys get run out of a harem by a larger male earlier in the day (no fight, these two just ran to the outskirts while the other male introduced himself to the females), and then after hanging out and feeding peacefully together on the edge of the harem they eventually came to blows to figure out who is the next bull in line, I suppose. There was no clear winner in this fight to us, and as quickly as it started, they stopped and went back to feeding near each other, apparently satisfied with the results of the quarrel for the time being.

It was really awesome to see a scuffle like this up close, and what stands out most about this shot to me is the intensity of their eyes while they fought. During the live action it was just a slow shoving match. But when you get to see these frozen moments in time, the intensity of the fight really comes to life.

View more of my photographs of tule elk in Point Reyes National Seashore.

Fogscape in Point Reyes National Seashore

Thick early morning fog shrouds the sandstone bluffs around Limantour Spit and the entrance to Drake's Estero in Point Reyes National Seashore. I do enjoy the fog since it gives that nice diffuse light all morning long, but I don't know that I can remember the last time it was sunny for a sunrise in the Bay Area.

Against the grain

Even when everyone is running in one direction, sometimes its not a bad idea to take a step in the other.

Sanderlings on an overcast evening at Pillar Point Harbor.

Fast

Everything about sanderlings seems to happen fast.



They run across the sand fast, they change directions fast, they takeoff fast and land fast.



And sometimes they even come flying into the frame a little too fast.



It would have been great to have some more space on the left of this shot, but sometimes things just happen too fast.

Quail in the Valley

A male California Quail in the brush along the trail in Tennessee Valley.

Wild turkey, Tennessee Valley

A common sight near the horse stables at Tennessee Valley, these wild turkeys are a fun to see up close. So remarkably ugly, but with beautiful plumage especially when a male displays.

In the crowd

A group of sanderlings in summer plumage along the shoreline of Pillar Point Harbor near Half Moon Bay. The late afternoon was overcast under a heavy fog that just seems to be around all day, every day this summer in the Bay Area. However, I don't really mind the fog as it means there's a longer window for photography both in the morning and evening, and the colors in their plumage come out nice against the bleak scenery.

Sanderling times two

Sanderling duos in summer colors running with the waves at Pillar Point Harbor near Half Moon Bay. There was a decent sized flock of maybe 40-50 birds there last weekend, however, there were also plenty of dogs around that loved to give chase. So I had to get my shots in between the flocks being spooked and flying off to a different area before eventually being chased by a different dog and coming back to where I was.