A green-winged teal sleeps as it floats, its reflection cast in the still water. Canon 800mm f/5.6L IS lens with the EOS-7D. ISO 400. Evaluative metering +1/3 stop: 1/640 sec. at f/5.6
This week’s photo is of a sleeping green-winged teal, as he floated around a local pond along the bay. The green-winged teal is one of the many duck species that winter here, extending the color palette from the ubiquitous mallard. I liked this photo because of its simplicity, and the vivid colors reflected in the water.
Many days I am up at dawn photographing, just for moments like this. Not only is the light warm and slanting in low across the horizon, but water tends to be still and glassy, offering many opportunities for great reflections.
A young american avocet chick wades in shallow water looking for food
I was fortunate this spring to get out and capture a few different species of new hatch-lings. It was wonderful to watch these brand new birds explore around their nests. The image above is an american avocet chick, while the image below is a black-necked stilt chick. While these chicks look very similar within the first few weeks of their lives, they soon begin to develop characteristics of the very different looking adult species.
A black-necked stilt chick is reflected in shallow water, Baylands, Palo Alto, California
While the avocet and stilt chicks tend to stay very close to water, canada goose chicks spend most of their time on land, feeding off of grass. The gosling below was one of five siblings, all feeding amongst short grass, very close to their parents. If anyone approaches too closely, the geese will corral their chicks and surround them, hissing a warning at the offender (which is why I always stayed a good distance away).
A Canada Gossling grazes in the short grass. He stops periodically to peer about.
The last species I covered this spring is the ever-present mallard duckling. I followed a family with four chicks for a few days, watching the mother keep her chicks hidden in the tall grass next to a pond, while the father warded off any other water foul that ventured too close. Here is the mother with one of her chicks, just after preening.
A mallard hen preens with her chick in the grass next to a slough
The flash gallery below features more images of these very cute newborns. Please enjoy them, share it with friends, or click through to the spring babies gallery on my photo site. I hope you enjoy watching as much as I enjoyed capturing them.
A trio of duckling siblings swims quickly across open water to find a protected spot
New life is appearing all over the Bay Area as the winter rains are finally (reluctantly) subsiding. Birds are nesting, flowers are blooming, and we’ll likely get to enjoy the lush green of spring a little longer than normal this year. As captured in the image above, I’ve spent a few days following one of the first mallard families of the spring. Watching mom and dad protect their young hatch-lings from all the dangers of the world (including other ducks), has been a joy to watch. Hopefully I will follow up with some more photos in the coming weeks.
A Mallard watches over his young duckling as he looks for a hiding place amongst the reeds
Below is one of the first lupine blooms of the spring in Edgewood Park and Preserve in San Mateo County. This lupine was photographed at first light on an eastern facing slope.
A purple lupine blooms in early spring, Edgewood Park, San Mateo County, California
I wish you all a happy and safe Valentines Day. May it be a day where you can truly celebrate the relationships in your life, and spend some quality time with loved ones!
