Wild Side Photographic Art

I have not seen a blue sky in at least a week. I decided to do a few colorful birds tonight for "therapy". It's tough to beat a Hyacinth Macaw, the largest Parrot. This was a bird that I always wanted to see. When I read an article that Jaguars were being seen regularly in Brazils Pantanal, we booked a trip. This is also the best place to see the Macaws too. https://www.etsy.com/shop/WildSidePhotoArt

Here's another "technicolor" bird. This is a Rose-ringed Parakeet from Kanha National Park in India. I've also seen them in South Florida where they were introduced in the 60's or 70's. https://www.etsy.com/shop/WildSidePhotoArt

This is an Acorn Woodpecker. They are a pretty cool little bird. They travel in medium size groups in search of Acorns, of course. They drill hundreds of holes in certain trees and often telephone poles. They pack these holes full of acorns, which they consume later when seeds are scarce. They also eat insects in the process. They are found throughout the west in oak forests. https://www.etsy.com/search/shops

This is a type of butterfly that many of us don't get to see. It's a Clearwing. It's pretty obvious how this type got its name. There are hundreds of species and I haven't identified it yet. I shot this in Soberania National Park in Panama. https://www.etsy.com/shop/WildSidePhotoArt

This is a bird that I always enjoy photographing when we are out west. This is a Roadrunner. Greater Roadrunners are fairly common in dry habitat. They are primarily a ground bird and eat everything from insects to Rattlesnakes. Sometimes they hunt snakes in tandem. I photographed this one in Arizona. https://www.etsy.com/search/shops

It's been pretty dreary here in Upstate NY. It looks like we will have a white Christmas. I wanted to process a colorful image to post tonight. This shot of a Crowned Crane, taken in Kenya, has some green and red and even a gold star. Merry Christmas everybody.

Here's an up close and personal shot of a Cedar Waxwing enjoying a crabapple. They feed in flocks at this time of year stripping trees bare of fruit. Notice this one grabbed one before he finished the one in his mouth. https://www.etsy.com/shop/WildSidePhotoArt

This is a Collared Scops Owl, an Indian relative of the 3 Screech Owl species found in the US, I photographed this in India. https://www.etsy.com/shop/WildSidePhotoArt

I did this one for a customer and I don't think I've ever posted it. It's from favorite place on this planet, Amboseli National Park in Kenya. I've added a bunch of new images and products on our ETSY store. Wild Side Photo Art. Besides photos, we've added several other products. Check us out.

Something a little different for me. This tree got my attention. It was one of the last trees that still has some Autumn color. It stood out nice against the foggy background.

I made a few of these for fun and we were surprised how many people notice them. We have them in our Etsy store Etsy,com - Wild Side Photo Art. I'm afraid we're going to use these for longer than we thought.

Here's something different. It's a big Common Snapping Turtle. These are amazing creatures. Some live to over 100 years. They keep growing all their life. A big old male can weigh over 75 pounds. Females will lay eggs as late as November with the babies overwintering in the nest. They will lay up to 80 eggs' Most will never make it. I've seen many nests that have been dug up by raccoons, skunks, mink, foxes, herons and a whole list of predators. The ones that make i...t out of the nest, are also eaten by the same predators. Many of us have rescued turtles crossing the road by moving them to safety on the side of the road they are heading towards. Even holding them by their carapace, a big turtle can bite you by stretching his neck, If you pick them up do it by grasping their "shell" above their rear legs. Don't drag them across the pavement. It can severely scratch them and cause wounds that get infected and can become fatal. I coax it onto the floor mat of my trunk and drag the mat. You don't want to get bit, although the rumor that they can bite off your finger is not true. Their bight force is roughly half of a humans. https://www.etsy.com/shop/WildSidePhotoArt

This is a Winter Wren. While not too uncommon, they are difficult to find and even tougher to photograph. They like to remain hidden in thickets or brush piles. I photographed this one this morning at a nearby preserve.

Winter on the Niagara always has avian surprises for birders that brave the cold. This is a Harlequin Duck, probably tied with the King Eider as the best duck species to find on the river. this year there are at least two, one female near the mouth of the river at Lake Erie and a male in the rapids just above the Falls. They are a fast water bird. They will probably spend the winter. https://www.etsy.com/shop/WildSidePhotoArt

A recent shot of one our prettier ducks heading South for the winter. This is a drake Green-winged Teal.

This is one of the smallest Kingfishers in the world. It's a Malachite Kingfisher from South Africa.

Hopefully, we're back running with Facebook. I'm lucky to have my stepson Scott who is our family computer whiz. This is from a couple of days ago. Is it a bird image or a fall landscape? I call these birdscapes.

A drake Mallard from a few days ago. This is one of the most common ducks and it is found just about everywhere in the world. Sometimes we get used to a species and lose sight of the fact that is truly a beautiful bird.

Facebook is still not cooperating so here are a bunch of new images. This is a female Northern Harrier. It is usually not a bird that likes its picture taken. I had 3 different birds in one day and I managed to get a couple of decent images. Harriers usually fly very low over the fields looking for prey.

Wood Ducks are arguably the most beautiful duck in the US. I always enjoy photographing them. The males are getting there colorful plumage again. I photographed this one at The Batavia Wastewater Treatment Plant, about an hour from here. There are huge ponds that attract large numbers of ducks for the winter, as they remain ice free. Until we can travel again, we have to change our "play areas". Actually these treatment areas are popular all over the world for birders and bird photographers. I've done them all over the world.

Last week we took a drive down to Elk County, Pennsylvania to photograph Elk. The 150 mile ride to Benezette, PA was quite beautiful with the changing leaves. There are about 1400 Elk in the area. I thought that the reintroduction was recent but it turns out it was done in 1913. The native subspecies was hunted to extinction during the 1800's. the new herd came from Yellowstone. While the reintroduction was to build up a herd to hunt, 1000's of people visit the area to s...ee and listen to the bugling of the big bulls at this time of year. A lottery system is used to determine who gets to shoot them. Only about two hundred will get permits. Most tags are for antlerless animals only (females and young males). We saw quite a few animals and did get a few decent shots but there were way too many people and the animals were too tame for our tastes. Did I mention there were WAY TOO MANY PEOPLE?

Juvenile Beaver - Allegany State Park.

We spent some time in Allegany State Park. Usually there is quite a bit of wildlife but it was pretty slow this year. I spent about 90 minutes one evening watching a Beaver pond. It paid off. Right after sunset this mother appeared with her kit. While mom was out tending to the various dams,, junior spent the time eating fresh shoots that Mom brought.

Blue Jay with a side order of Autumn. We're still a week or two from peak color here in Western NY, We took a drive yesterday in the hill country south of us and they should be peaking this weekend. We've got a couple of short trips planned for both mammals and birds.