For a long time we planned to visit Texas in the prime migration time for birds flying in from the Yucatan Peninsula. 

These birds typically take off at dusk and fly all night over the Gulf of Mexico, reaching the Texas and Louisianna coasts in early morning.  When the winds are from the south and/or east, most of the birds keep flying when they hit the coast.  When the winds come from the North and/or West, they drop down to rest, feed and water in the first trees that appear.  This can cause what birders call a “fall out” when thousands of birds can be found in small copses.  Once you have experienced such an event, one is really impressed and want to see it again.

Several places along the Texas coast are famous for fall outs: High Island, north and east of Houston; and South Padre Island, north and east of Brownsville.  We were hoping for a fall out in the latter.  It was not to be.

When we arrived, on Saturday, the 14th, the winds were strong, but from the South and East.  Early on Sunday, we traveled over to South Padre, or SPI, as it is known, to check out the area near the Convention Center.  This area has a nice boardwalk out into the salt marshes and some nice shrubs and trees that under the right conditions are humming with birds.  There were very few birds and almost no visitors.

We ate lunch at Pier 19 and as we drove in to this restaurant, we noticed some Laughing  Gulls on a mud flat adjacent to the road.  One had a rosey breast and belly, which I had never seen before in a Laughing Gull.  After lunch we drove out on this mud flat — that was dry and hard — and I photographed the bird a number of times.  I had not brought my bird book, as I thought I knew all the birds that we were likely to see, but after we got home I determined that this gull was a Franklins, not a Laughing, although it was hanging out with all other Laughers.

After checking in to our motel which we had rented at a whopping $39.95 per night (plus tax) we returned to the Convention Center for the late afternoon light.  There were no migrants present, but we did locate a spectacularly breeding plumaged Tricolor Heron.  I staked out this bird for nearly an hour and worked him as he caught a rather large fish.  As soon as he caught the fish, he rapidly walked ashore, as herons usually do, so that if they drop the fish, it will not escape.  Then a strange thing occurred: a willet walked rapidly towards the heron, hoping, I guess to steal the fish had it dropped.  It didn’t!

Later, we found a spot where apparently fresh water is run into the marsh and many birds use it for drinking and bathing.  There were dozens of Laughing Gulls, Black Skimmers, Black-bellied Whistling Ducks and a few terms using this spot.  Nearby a breeding plumage White Ibis was foraging, which made a great photo op.

Monday morning we drove over to the Convention Center again, but the conditions were unchanged.  We did find a coooperatie Clapper Rail that posed nicely, but my big lens had fogged up as the humidity was very high and the dew point reached during the night.  That was about it at the Convention Center.

So we hopped back in the car and drove twenty miles or so to Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge, a refuge of thousands of acres surrounding the Laguna Madre, a large, very salty lake.  The refuge was bone dry due to the long lasting draught in much of south Texas.

After a quick visit to the Visitors Center, we found the Altamira Oriole next, but the lighting was bad and the oriole just sat in a nearby tree, high up and mostly unphotographable.  So I walked a short distance to the photo blind.

I have been in this blind many times before, and I was not to be disappointed this time.  There were the usual Great-tailed Grackles (everywhere in the Valley), White-tipped Doves, and the signature bird of the Valley, the Green Jay.  There were also Cottontails and Mexican Ground Squirrels.  As I sat there, occasionally making a photo, I noticed movement at the back of the feeding area.  I was surprised to see a huge snake moving quite rapidly towards the blind.  I was able to make only a single image before it disappeared into the brush.  I estimated it was six feet long and thick!  The biggest snake I have ever seen in North America.  The refuge folks confirmed that this was a Texas Indigo Snake.

After this exciting incident we jumped in the car to drive the the fifteen mile wildlife drive.  The wildlife along this drive is severely reduced due to the draught.  Where there used to be large, shallow ponds, there are now dry lake beds.  We did find a lone Osprey perched on the side of the Laguna Madre and it never moved while I made a few images.  Nothing special, however.

A short time later we spotted a Crested Caracara in a palm right on the side of the road.  On the wrong side of the sun.  I did not think there was a chance that we could drive past this bird and get on the up side of the sun, as this bird is usually quite skittish.  But it happened and I was able to make half a dozen images in full frame mode.

We saw almost nothing the rest of the way around the drive, so returned briefly to the blind.  There I made a few images of cottontails and the ground squirrel, one of which was one of the top shots of the week.

On the way back to SPI, we found a coooperative White-tailed Kite sitting on a phone wire alongside the road.  He allowed some pretty close photography, but the light was not very nice and the esthetics of the scene a little short.

By the time we got back to SPI , the storm clouds were gathering to the north.  We quickly checked out the water feature at the Convention Center (nothing) and then went out on the boardwalk.  There we relocted the Tricolor Heron, the bathing Laughers, and a nice White Ibis in breeding plumage.  By the time a Sora Rail came out in the open the light was almost gone.  We started moving rapidly to the car as the rain started. 

Almost as soon as we got inside our motel room, a full blast huge thunder storm arrived.  The wind was so intense we saw garbage cans flying through the parking lot.  The storm dropped a reported two inches of rain on SPI.  When it let up, we headed out to dinner, having to drive through gutters that had 16-18 inches of water!  The rain was needed, but mostly wasted.  In the restaurant we experienced one of the highlights of the trip: a full dark rainbow that lasted many minutes right over the beach!  And yes, there was a second rainbow, weaker, above the first.

Tuesday we were back at the Convention center, expecting lots more birds, and indeed some migrants had come in.  We saw and photographed Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, a brilliant red Summer Tanager, and lots of Orioles, mostly Baltimores, but a few Orchards as well.  There were also a number of birds at the lots along Sheepshead where Chris saw a Blue Grosbeak.  We also saw a Black-throated Green Warbler at this latter location and a Kiskadee, of all things.

We had to change motels Tuesday night to Weslaco, where we had reservations and decided to drive the 55 miles back over to SPI Wednesday morning, hoping for more migrants.  There were more migrants, including at least one Cerulean Warbler, but the sun was intense and unfiltered by any clouds, so the photography very difficult.  My D300s Camera was having trouble with the huge range of exposure between shadows where some birds appeared and the bright sun.

I worked on Warbling Vireo, a Tennessee Warbler, a Black-throated Green and some orioles.  Finally, as I was working that latter, the shutter in my camera locked open and that camera body was done for the trip.  It is now back at Nikon for repair for the third time in seven months.

Fortunately, I had my older D300 along and switched to that body for the remainder of the trip.  After lunch at the Pier 19 on SPI again, we noticed a Red-breasted Merganser drake swimming towards the small boat piers.  I climbed right up on a rock and began preening, allowing for nice photography, albeit in terrible noon light.  As we were watching him, we noticed a nearby Reddish Egret standing on one of the piers.  A Great Blue Heron soon chased him off the piers to a nearby cove and the Reddish then began foraging.  The Reddish uses a method of running around like a crazy bird with its wings stretched out to first scare the small fish and then provide a shadow that the fish interpret to be a safe haven.  It must work well, because all Reddish perform this little dance.

In the afternoon, we drove down to the Sable Palm Sanctuary south of Brownsville, a sanctury owned by Audubon, but leased out to a foundation.  This sanctuary is right along the Rio Grande and indeed the border security fence is just outside the properrty. 

At Sable Palm it was hot and still sunny, but we found a very nice male Hooded Oriole on an orange at the feeding station.  After sitting in the blind and seeing not a whole lot (the sun was also in the wrong position), we returned to the feeding station and spent the rest of the open time working Buff-bellied Hummingbirds.  These colorful hummers can only be found in the US in the Lower Rio Grande Valley.

The following morning we first visited the Frontera Audubon Sanctuary in Weslaco, only a few miles from our motel.  A young Crimson-collared Grosbeak had been reported here a few days before.  We went out on one of the paths and after a perhaps fifteen minutes ran into Marge who was leading a couple of birders looking for the grosbeak.  She had heard it and soon found it a few feet from where I was standing, but up in a tree.  I got a very brief look before it flew away.  Chris never even got this. 

We walked the trails at Frontera, but saw nothing unusual.  The Chachalacas were sounding off, as they usually do in the morning, and came to the feeding station where we were sitting.  Fox Squirrels also appeared, as well as a few Cottontails and some other not-very-exciting birds.  We moved to the water feature for perhaps a half hour, but absolutely nothing showed.

So off we went to Estero Llano Grande State Park.   There was supposed to be a large flock of Fulvous Whistling Ducks here, but they were not in view and probably a long way from the Visitors Center.  The sun was coming directly from across the big lake at the Visitors Center, so no decent photographs could be made.  We walked around this lake by found little to work.  Even the butterflies and the Butterfly Garden were in short supply.  And it remained HOT!

Reports appeared of another large flock of Fulvous at Santa Ana NWR, so we arrived there even before the Visitors Center opened at 8.  We took a trail down to Cattail Lake where we thought the ducks were supposed to be.  Alas, they were not there.  A photo blind and an overlook exist on the edge of this lake and we visited both.  The only bird of interest was a group of six ibis.  I believe these were Glossys, a rare bird in the Valley, rather than White-faced, a common bird. 

In the afternoon we drove on over to Bentsen State Park.  This was once a thriving motor home park that was filled all winter.  Many of the residents were birders or casual birders and large numbers put out oranges and/or sunflower seed.  Birds were everywhere.  I saw my only Blue Bunting here, as well as the only Masked Tityra ever to appear north of the border. 

Some bright person in the Texas government decided to make this into a World Birding Center and the campers are gone.  So are most of the birds.  There is some small amount of feeding during the winter, but even that had ended.  We took a open-sided small “bus” around the old trailer loop, towed by a pickup truck.  We were the only riders.  We saw not a single mammal and just a handful of common birds.  It was essentially dead.

The old gatehouse, where an employee used to check permits and take entrance money, is now the Nature Center.  It was closed.   The exhibition hall has the same attractive displays as three years ago.  The small food deli is now closed.  The gardens had a few butterflys, but the rain was coming so they disappeared.  A nice woman employee told us about the National Butterfly Center, only a mile down the road.  This is a new facility that I have never visited previously.

We drove over to the Center and found a gorgeous new Visitors Center and many gardens with butterfly atracting flowers.  In one of the front gardens there must have been twenty Queens flitting about, a butterfly closely related to the familiar Monarch.  We were looking specifically for the Mexican Bluewing, photos of which I had just seen at Bentsen.  We were told that they were mostly at the back gardens. 

We drove down there and talked to the owner who pointed out the tree that they feed on and where they hang out.  We found a few but they would not spread their wings when they land.  The apparently always land head down, unlike any butterfly I have ever seen.  After awhile the heat was so intense that neither Chris nor I could stand it  and had to quite.  We drove back to Brownsville for our last night.

The forecast said that northwest winds would arrive during the night, perfect for migrants it is assumed.  And indeed the next morning we drove early back out to SPI.  The orioles were in abundance at Sheepshead, but only a few other birds.  Up to the Convention Center we went, but it was not much different there.  Lots and lots of birders and would be nature photographers; a minimum of birds.  The wind was so strong that most of the birds that were present were hunkered down in the bushes.  We did see and photograph a Blackpoll Warbler, a Prothonotary female, a Warbling Vireo, a Tennessee Warbler and a few others.  Before noon, we gave up and drove down to Pier 19 lunch and then on over to the airport for our return to BWI.  We got in at about 11:30, so were not home until after 1.  That about did us in the following day!

We had to visit a woman near Roanoke, VA, who is hosting a foster cat that Chris wants to adopt and decided to make a quick trip down to Cades Cove, Great Smokey Mountains National Park.

We got a late start, but drove about 500 miles down to Sevierville, where we spent the night.  Early the next morning we drove on over to Townsend and up Laurel Creek Road to Cades Cove.

Almost immediately we noticed three tom turkeys foraging and displaying occasionally in an open field.  There were two turkey photographers following them.  I climbed over the fence and joined the hunt.  I was using my 600mm lens, so could stay some distance away.  The other two were using much smaller lenses, so were right on top of the birds, but the turkeys did not seem to mind.

The light was good, as it was early morning and the sun was at my back.  After awhile, a hen briefly appeared and all three turkeys began displaying in a tight group.  I had never seen anything like this as they were touching or almost touching each other.  Made some compelling shots of the three of them. 

As the birds approached the fence and were done displaying, I left the field and we continued on the eleven mile Loop Road.  We saw other turkeys, but surprisingly few other birds.  One Meadowlark, a couple of Bluebirds and a few quick looks at sparrows, but nothing much else.  We did see a few deer, including one small buck that was still sporting one horn.  Very late for this, as most Whitetails drop horns in late January or February.  A few keep them into March, but APRIL?

We made two turns around the Loop, seeing little other than very attractive scenary with oak leaves emerging on big old trees.   We did stop at some of the old structures, like Tipton’s Place, which were fascinating and quite photogenic.  It never ceases to amaze that people could live through a cold winter or a boiling hot summer in these primitive structures. 

One thing that there was plenty of, were visitors, many of them school children.  We learned that nearby Dollywood is closed on Tuesdays and apparently Tenneessee gives Easter break the week AFTER Easter.  This combination resulted in gazillion little rug rats, not very condusive to quiet contemplation or serious photography!

In the afternoon, we went back down Laurel Creek Road, stopping occasionally to make photographs of wildflowers, including Yellow Trilliums, a flower I had never seen before. 

After lunch, we were climbing back up Laurel Creek Road when we saw a crowd of cars.  There is no doubt about what this means: bears.  Sure enough, there was a mother bear and a yearling close to the road.  By the time we got out of our car, the mother had disappeared and there were youngsters in the woods trying to photograph the young bear with tiny cameras.  As I got my big lens set up, and took one bad shot, a ranger arrived and ordered everyone out of the woods (right) and off the road (not necessary) and into their cars.  I was mighty unhappy because the miscreants that chased the bear were treated just like me!

Later, we worked a side road to the East that followed a small stream and found many wildflowers growing close to the road, including more Yellow Trilliums, Sweet White Trilliums, Blue Violets, Wild Blue Phlox, Purple Phacilia,  and others.  It was perfect light for photography of these plants, as the sun was under high clouds.  

We spent the night in a Mom and Pop motel –  the River Breeze — where the Mom took a liking to me for some reason and made us cinnamon buns for the next morning.  That was a first!

We were up early and got up to Cades Cove before the gate was open.  There were already nine cars ahead of us.  The gate opened promptly at sunrise which was 7:09.    Most of the people ahead of us appeared to be in a camera club that was going to work sunrise from a high vantage point.  We were happy to see them stopped here, but alas, there was little to see again.  We did find a single gobbler first in the road, and then just on the other side of the fence.  He posed nicely and was one ugly dude!  A face only a mother could love.

Once again we made two trips around the Loop Road and stopped briefly at the wildflower spot before heading up the road to Abingdon.  Cades Cove is a great place, but really, really crowded much of the time, particularly on weekends.  Still, it is a great place to visit and we will be back…maybe for the rhododendrons.

On the way out to Pigeon Forge, I had to check out a report of a new wildflower called a Cross Vine.   A photographer I had run into the previous day had said he saw this flower blooming along the cliffs that line the sides of Route 321 from Townsend.  Just a mile or so from Pigeon Forge we saw the flowers and I stopped.  They are really beautiful yellow and red and quite numerous on the fines that hang along the cliffs.  Well worth the stop, notwithstanding the heavy traffic and noise that it brings!

I had a mini-reunion of fraternity brothers scheduled for Key West, starting on February 25.  Chris suggested driving down to give us more flexibility, rather than flying.  After some thought, we decided that driving was the best option for transportation.

At the end of the second day of driving, we had covered over one thousand miles, and after checking into our motel, raced over to Green Cay Wetlands to catch the last light.  Green Cay is a water reclamation project of about 100 acres owned and operated by the Palm Beach County Department of Parks and Recreation.  It is a treasure.  Dozens of people use the 1.5 miles of boardwalk for their daily exercise, but the real benefit is to photographers because the wildlife has become so habituated to people that they do not fly or run away immediately when a person appears.

We parked the car and I got out my camera and 400mm lens.  Chris noticed eight or ten people, some with big lens’s standing on the edge of the parking lot looking into the woods.  We wandered over and discovered that there was a mother Bobcat and two half grown youngsters about 30 yards in, well within range of my 600mm lens.

I raced for the car, picked up Big Bertha and my tripod and walked rapidly back to the spot.  But in that period of less than five minutes, eight photographers had crossed the hedges and grasses and approached the cats.  They got their quick shots before the cats were scared off, so there was nothing to shoot when I arrived.  This was strictly illegal behavior on their part and I was really steamed. 

Someone went for the ranger who, when he arrived, caught three people still in the prohibited area.  All he did was tell them to get out.  No ticket was issued, no names taken.  The eight had their photos and got no penalty.  It was inexplicable to me and others.

We spent a few minutes on the boardwalk, finding the “usual suspects” but made few images.  The following morning we returned at first light.  Unfortunately the bobcats made no appearance, but I was able to make some images of Limpkins, Herons and a few other birds. 

We then made a quick trip over to Wakodahatchee Wetlands, a similar, albeit smaller project only a mile away.  Here we found a Snowy Egret in full breeding plumage preening.  I made dozens of images of this lovely bird, all significantly underexposed so as not to burn out the white colors.  There were also nesting Great Blue Herons and some Great Egrets in breeding plumage that were displaying.  None gave us a close look or one from a perch that was unobstructed, but still I made some “record shots.”

From this location, we proceded to Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge a few miles away.  Lox has a new visitors center, that we checked out, and a refurbished short boardwalk.  There are now two screech owl boxes, but no owl was visible in either.  We did not find a whole lot to photograph as the time was late morning.

We did find a pair of Limpkins preening and resting in a bush alongside a lake.  Chris wanted to photograph these birds, while I thought they were too hidden by branches to make a good photo.  So I went back to the car while she worked the birds.  As I was sitting in the car, with the door open, I heard Red-shouldered Hawks called very close and realized that they were in the tree right above the car.  Before I could get my 600 out, one flew to a nearby open tree and then the other.  I quickly got the big lens on the tripod and quickly made several shots.

Probably less than a minute after I began shooting one of the birds took wing.  I snapped the shutter as it was taking off and this resulted in one of the best images of the entire trip.  You can see it on my Facebook page.

From Lox, we set Gertrude, the GPS, for Okeeheelee County Park, where the staff has feeders set up that attract Painted Buntings.  We had visited this park in 2008 and found the buntings feeding at the middle of the day, so did not hesitate to visit again at 2PM. 

We were not disappointed.  While the buntings were there, so were a lot of casual visitors.  There was one other photographer sitting on a lawn chair with his back to the porch wall of the visitors center.   All the talk and movement by the folks on the porch regularly scared the birds, so making decent shots was a challenge. 

Chris was bored by the process, so took a couple of hikes.  On one she found a Gopher Tortoise munching on grass right out on the lawn.  When she told me, I immediately departed the stake out and went out with my 400 to photo the turtle.  When he saw me, he legged it for the shade, which was fine with me, because high sun shots are typically difficult.  I was able to lie down in front of the tortoise and shoot him head on from ten feet.

Another surprise occurred a few minutes later when I was back trying for the buntings.  Chris exclaimed that there was an armadillo rooting around only forty feet away!  and indeed there was.  I jumped up again, put on the 400 mm lens and walked to the spot.  After only one shot, however, the other photographer came over and walked right up to the animal, scaring him away.   I was furious.  How incredibily dumb can one get?  No animal or bird will let you walk rapidly right at him and not flee.  This guy was a total doofus.

After spending the night with friends in Coral Gables, we arose early and headed for the Everglades.  What a disappointment this park has become.  As you have probably read, Burmese Pythons have devastated the animal population in the Glades.  There are practically no animals remaining: rabbits, raccoons, possums, muskrats and even bobcats are largely gone.  The pythons either escaped captivity or more likely were just released by thoughtless owners who no longer wanted to take care of a large snake.

We did make some images of Anhingas, Alligators, Green Herons, cobwebs and one Purple Gallinule, all at Anhinga Trail, there was nothing really unusual to work.  It was a beautiful spring morning, however, and we took in the many sounds that make nature so attractive to all our senses.

We then drove on down 135 miles to Key West over Route 1 through all the islands.  We spent four nights and part of five days at Key West, watching all the nutty scenes and crazy people.  We did take the catamaran out to Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas.  While this is interesting from a historical perspective, the wildlife there was limited.  We did enjoy the Frigitbirds sailing on the wind and occasionally going after each other.

On Leap Year Day, we arose early and headed north to Big Pine Island in hopes of encountering the endangered Key Deer, a sub-species of the common White-tailed Deer.  We found a few, but nothing like our visit in 2009, when we found a herd of fifteen or twenty.   One, however, gave us quite an experience.  We came across a small buck, that had dropped one of its spikes.  As soon as we stopped the car, the buck approached.  We got out and he came right up to us, obviously having been fed by people.  I stuck my finger out and he nibbled on it!  He licked Chris’s finger.  This was a first for both of us.

For numbers, our luck changed after a stop by a local officer for not coming to a complete stop at a stop sign.  I was and am embarrassed that this was true, but the officer took pity on us and did not issue a citation.  Then he advised, after my question, where we were likely to find the deer: on No Name Key across a bridge from Big Pine.   Even though it was getting to be late morning, we must have found a dozen deer right alongside the road on this island.

After exiting the Keys, we headed north to Palm Beach County again and again visited Okeeheelee County Park.  When we arrived, there was no one watching the feeders, so I had an hour or more by myself.  The buntings cooperated and we also saw Mourning and Eurasian Collared Doves, Cardinals and Brown Thrashers at the feeder.  Chris found the Gopher Tortoises again, but no Armadillos. 

After this park, we returned to Green Cay and experienced a near repeat of our Bobcat fiasco of six days previous.  We drove up at about 5 PM and there was a group of photographers on the edge of the parking lot.  Sure enough, they had found a Bobcat again.  Again, I went out with my 600mm, but the cat had moved by the time I got there.  It then appeared very near the visitor center just sitting facing away from us for some minutes.  Turns out this was one of this year’s kittens, although at least half grown.  It had an injured right front paw, so its survival prospects are not good. 

Once again there was jostling for a position to shoot the cat and once again someone moved into the prohibited area and approached the cat.  Three of us spoke sternly to this older man who, for a few moments ignored us, but one photographer pressed, and the miscreant finally backed off.  Once again, the ranger was contacted and the bad guy identified to him.  No name was taken, no ticket issued.  No penalty for an infraction. 

I did make a couple of fair photos of the cat, but the shooting was really challenging, and the animal finally bedded down very close to the sidewalk, but out of view.  After fifteen minutes of waiting we all gave up.

Thursday, March 1, we were back at Green Cay at first light, but no cat appeared.  It was, however, another really lovely morning which we really enjoyed.  I found three Marsh Rabbits on one green dike that were particularly attractive in the early light.  These rabbits  look superficially like Cottontails, but really are quite different.  Large heads, short ears and legs characterize this species.  They are a prime food for Bobcats.

While I was working the Marsh Rabbits, Chris was walking the boardwalk and found a Raccoon climbing down a tree.  She was able to make a few photos before it ambled off.  

I discovered an American Bittern hunkered down in the marsh grass, but it soon stretched out as they do looking almost like a thick reed.  Across the boardwalk in the same area was a Least Bittern, which stayed more hidden, but did permit a few decent photos.  the least is probably only 20% of  the size of the American.

On the way out I suddenly saw a Great Blue Heron that had just captured the Florida sub-species of Ribbon Snake.  It was wrapped completely around his bill.  I made a few photos, but then the heron flew to a spot on the dike even closer than before!  I must have taken over five minutes for the bird to subdue the snake and finally eat it.  I was able to document the entire process in great light.  The first time I have ever seen a Great Blue with a snake.

After this exciting encounter, we hit Route 95 and headed north, staying overnight in Georgia.  The following morning we visited two new National Wildlife Refuges: Harris Neck in Georgia and Savanna in South Carolina.  Although both were attractive and interesting, there was nothing particularly unusual to shoot in either other than some heavy Spanish Moss on Live Oaks.

We completed our journing on Saturday the 3rd, having driven 2761 miles.  We were fortunate in encountering rain for only about two hours in the entire trip.

On February 11, we left early for BWI and a flight to Albuquerque for a week in New Mexico.  After renting a car, we drove about 100 miles south to San Antonio, where we left the interstate and drove seven miles in to Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge.  This refuge is well known for thousands of Greater Sandhill Cranes and also thousands of Snow and Ross’s Geese.

That first evening there were hundreds of the white geese in a shallow pond before entering the refuge itself.  Actually, it is probably in the refuge but before one reaches the visitors center and wildlife drive.  In any case the geese were just standing in the water, some quite close to shore.  None seemed bothered by the twenty of so photographers who were set up on the shore.  I made a few images, but this situation — with many other photographers — is just not my thing, so we moved on into the visitors center for a quick trip.  It was soon getting dark, so we drove back to Socorro and checked into the motel. 

For the next two mornings, we were up at 5, ate a quick breakfast at the motel (they cater to hunters and birders) and checked outselves into the wildlife drive.  They actually allow entrance one hour before sunrise, which is a great boon to photographers. 

The first morning, we saw a single coyote, the only one for the trip, but it was a long ways away.  I did make a few photos, however.  We also saw and photographed lots of ducks and geese and quite a few raptors.  No owls, however, despite reports of Great Horned out during the day.  We encountered a nice Black-necked Pheasant, a sub-species of the familiar Ring-necked, but colors were muted on this cloudy sky. 

We also had good looks and images of a Roadrunner that was working the side of the road.  It had obviously seen more than his share of tourists!

The second morning we “hit the jackpot.”  Shortly after entering, with a heavy frost on the ground, we came across a bobcat loping along perhaps 25 yards from the road.  Quickly he lay down and I was able to make eight rapid images of him, even though I had to lean across the seat where Chris was sitting to shoot out the right side window.  There was no chance that I could get out and use the tripod.  After ten or fifteen seconds, he got up and moved through the brush, but reappeared a few seconds later for two more quick images.  This is the only time in my photographic history that I have had a good opportunity for this cat.  A real treat!

Shortly thereafter, and only a short ways down the road, we came across another cock pheasant, but this time in full sun.  The colors were stunning.  I kept turning the car around so that I could shoot it out my window and successfully made several dozen images.  One was with his bill completely open.  I do not remember him crowing, but perhaps he did.  More likely he was just having a hard time swallowing the grit that he was picking up from the road.

If that wasn’t enough a few more minutes and we came across a small group of perhaps six or eight Mule Deer right adjacent to the road.  We photographed them, including two almost grown twin fawns with frost still on the ground.

Two species of raptors gave us some great looks.  An American Kestrel posed on a dead sapling very close to the road and I was able to get some wonderful images of him, including in the sun.  This bird is usually quite skittish, so it was a welcome change of pace. 

At one point, I was photographing a Raven picking apart the remains of a white goose, when another visitor came by and told us from his car window that across a dike from us was a Northern Harrier doing the same thing.  After thanking him, we moved, we located him  and I got out of the car.  I needed to move to make images that were impossible from the vehicle.  I found a spot where there was an opening through the brush alongside the dike and set up my tripod. 

I had a great look, but the bird also had a great look at me staring at her.  She must have figured that I was after the carcass and she was not going to give it up to a mere human.  She was perched right on top, so I waited for her to continue rippping it apart.  Instead, she froze.  The wind was blowing and I was missing my hat and after over twenty minutes, I was so cold I gave up.  She had not moved a feather in that time!

Later and not far away, we found a male Harrier perched on a fallen snag in great light.  For reasons that I do not understand, one seldom sees male Harriers, even where this species is common.  The bird remained on the snag long enough for me to make some nice images, before it took off on its apppointed rounds. 

The Visitors Center has a feeding area that may be viewed from inside.  It is not ideal photographing through glass, but I did so to capture images of Gambels Quail, Pyrrhuloxia, and Spotted Towee.  The images came out pretty well despite the conditions. 

After lunch we decided to drive on over to Bitter Lake National Wildlife Refuge which turned out to be 150 miles to the east.  It was not a good decision.  I had called the visitors center there a few weeks before and the volunteer I talked with raved about the place.  She assured me that coyotes were a “gimee” and there was lots of other wildlife to photograph.  She must have been smoking something from the garden!

We chatted with another volunteer at the center and he told us that we could sneak up on the birds and other wildlife on the east side of the wildlife loop.  We went there and found…almost nothing.  The part of the refuge where one is allowed to go is nearly devoid of all trees and there are not many bushes either.  Wildlife has almost no place to hide. 

There are thousands of white geese (mostly Ross’s) and Sandhill Cranes that winter on this refuge, but they take off either before or shortly after sunrise and return some ten hours later after sunset.  The rest of the day there is almost nothing to “work.”  The ducks are there, but very skittish, for whatever reason, far more so than at Bosque.  There are almost no passerines and a limited number of raptors. 

Sunrise the next morning was spectacular, but there was no change in the availability of photographic targets after the sun was up.  The lift-off was, however, terrific.  We considered returning to Bosque, but lacked the energy for another 150 miles drive. 

The second morning the sunrise was without clouds, so nowhere near as enthralling as the first morning.  We saw one Desert Cottontail several times that apparently lived under a small bridge, but that was the only mammal that made an appearance until the very end.

At 8 AM we went up to the Visitors Center again, where cracked corn is put out for the birds each day.  Scaled Quail were supposed to feed there, but we had been unsuccesful seeing them previously.  That morning, no one had put out the corn when we arrived and the volunteer was nowhere to be found.  After a few minutes, I went into an open room where I could see a “brown shirt” talking to someone else.  I asked if he could put out the corn, and he graciously accepted.

Within ten minutes a covey of about twelve Scaled Quail arrived at full speed.  Again, I was shooting through glass that had a glare from the morning sun, so conditions were hardly ideal.  At one point a Western Meadowlark came for a quick snack, as did another Cottontail, but the whole scene was over in ten minutes.  Something scared the quail and they all flew away.  It was time for us to go.

We drove through some very unattractive, unproductive land for many miles on our way up to Santa Fe.  The only live thing we saw was a small group of Pronghorns on the wrong side of the road, and a swirling flock of Horned Larks that flew in front of the car.  Even the cattle were few and far between.  This is not fertile country!  Wildlife photography was about over for this trip.

We did spend nearly two days in Santa Fe, enjoying all the art galleries and museums there.  I photographed many works of art some of which can be viewed on my Facebook page.  Of course, my wildlife work is there also.

Our penultimate adventure for New Mexico was taking the long tram ride up to the top of Sandia Peak on Friday afternoon.  Stunning views and a lot of snow, but nary a squirrel and only a few quick looks at a few passerines. 

On our way to the motel we made a brief stop at the Rio Grande Refuge right in the city of Albuquerque.  It is a small property but does have an interesting and well made visitors center and a “blind” wall with holes in it to view the birds on the river.  As we were ready to depart (the gates lock at 5 PM), four cranes that had landed on a dusty bare spot began to “dance.”  It was thrilling to watch them for a few minutes leaping in the air with wings unfolded.  Was this agression or the beginnings of mating season?  Who knows?

The next morning we flew home.

In late December I noticed that an Asian Hooded Crane was being seen in Tennessee.  This bird has never been seen in North America, so I knew I just had to get him. 

When our planned cruise through the Panama Canal fell through, we decided to make the trek south and east.  We took off on January 18 and arrived nearly 600 miles later at the Hiwasse Refuge 30 minutes before sunset.  There were thousands of Sandhill Cranes present, but no Hooded.  During the winter the only place where one can visit this refuge is a platform that overlooks a lake edge and distant corn and grass fields.

The following morning it was 25 degrees when we arrived at the platform at about 8 AM.  There were already nine other intrepid birders present, shivering in the chill.  At 8:55 the Hooded flew across a grassy field, a long way out.  It was in sight for only about twelve seconds and I did not make a single image.  It was so cold that Chris spent most of the day keeping warm in the car and reading her book.  I stayed out almost the entire day, but no one saw the crane again.

At noon we drove into a nearby town by the name of Dayton for lunch.  The fast food restaurants are along a highway east of the town.  Afterwards, Chris suggested that we go into the old town and check things out.   Almost as soon as we got onto Main Street, here was the old Rhea Country Courthouse. There was a sign that announced that this was the location of the notorious Scopes Monkey Trial back in 1925 where Clarence Darrow faced off for seven days with William Jennings Bryan.  I had read about this trial decades before, but never knew exactly where it took place.  An amazing coincidence to find it when we weren’t looking for it!

We decided to spend an additional night in the motel in Cleveland, as I wanted another shot at photographing the crane.  But it was not to be.  He never showed again before we gave up at 10:30 and drove off.  Before leaving, I did make a number of images of  Eastern Bluebirds that had been flitting around during both days, an Eastern Phoebe, and, of course, the Sandhill Cranes, which are, if not rare, photogenic. 

Upon departure, we headed north and east to Townsend and the entrance to Cades Cove in Great Smokey Mountain National Park.  I had visited this popular location twice before, but never in January and did not know what to expect.  The entrance road follows Laurel Creek up a very scenic canyon, which must be spectacular during the spring when the extensive groves of rhododendrun are blooming.

We learned that the black bears were all in hibernation and even though it was quite warm, none ventured out where we could see them.  Maybe they didn’t even venture out!  Almost as soon as we got onto the loop road that goes around the fields and small copses of Cades Cove, we noticed a half dozen or so White-tailed deer munching on grass in the meadow.  Chris noticed that the farthest one was a buck, and a nice one at that.

I drove a bit further until I was opposite the buck and fixed Big Bertha onto the tripod before heading out into the field.  Unfortunately, the buck had had enough to eat for the time and was headed for bed!  On the far side of a barbed wire fence, he encountered two other large bucks.  All three were as big or bigger than any bucks I have seen in Cades Cove.  Two of the three lay down before I could make a single image, while the other wandered off into the brush.  I did make some decent images of the bucks lying down, but they would have been more attractive standing!

After that encounter we continued on the loop road and saw a large flock of wild turkeys out in a field.  Many were large toms with big beards, but they were not displaying and a long ways away, so I did not attempt any photography.  While we enjoyed the scenary, we did not see any more wildlife, so retraced our drive down Laurel Creek Canyon and out of the park.  We drove through the godforsaken Pigeon Forge before getting up to I 40.  Pigeon Forge must be the tackiest place in North America.  It makes Vegas look sophisticated!

We stayed overnight near Bristol and drove home on the 21st through some terrible rain.  Overall, we covered 1358 miles.

We flew to San Francisco, rented a car and immediately headed north.  Our destination was Calusa National Wildlife Refuge, north and west of Sacramento.  Our target here was the Falcated Duck, an East Asian bird that seldom shows up in North America.  It had been at this refuge for over two weeks and seen nearly every day.

The viewing platform was just inside the entrance and it was quite clear that the duck was not being seen, as folks were looking in all directions.  Turns out the duck had not been seen at all that day.  We got out, nonetheless, and made a few photographs of the habituated White-fronted Geese and other waterfowl within close distance to the viewing platform.

With no duck in sight, we decided to take the three mile wildlife drive where one has to stay in the car.  The birds in the ponds here are quite skittish as hunting is permitted in the southern part of the refuge.  We saw nothing in particular new except over thirty Black-crowned Night Herons sleeping in bushes across a canal like body of water.

Returning to the viewing platform, the scene had changed.  Most people were looking in one direction, and there was the Falcated Duck sleeping on a nearby log.  I took some photographs, but the angle was not good and the bird had its head underneath its wing.  So we got in the car, drove adjacent to the log and I photographed out the right window as Chris manipulated the car.  Every few minutes the bird would wake up and look around for a second or two as I snapped away.  Then head back under the wing.  Finally, it awoke, preened, and then jumped in the water and began foraging.

I returned to the viewing platform.  The duck was close and easy to photograph, but the light was bad.  It was dark, so the irridescence on the head of the duck did not appear green.  After a while it became obvious that conditions were not going to change, so we departed.  We were going to drive back down to San Francisco, but both of us were too tired to contemplate this.  We had arisen at 3:50 EST!  We got a motel at nearby Williams for the night.

We were up well before dawn and after a quick breakfast, returned to the refuge.  We did not see the duck, so continued on to the loop.  It was a gorgeous sunrise, so I stopped and took a number of photos with leafless trees in the foreground. 

As we were about to exit the loop, suddenly there was a flock of turkeys in the road.  The trotted off as we approached, but after escorting the hens twenty yards into the brush, the tom turned and ran right at the car.  I thought he was going to jump right into the window, but he went to the front of the car to check things out.  Concluding that we were not rivals, he ambled back off and returned to the hen flock.  Unfortunately, I could not get a good image as he never hestitated and there was insufficient light for a good shot with him moving.

The duck was not present, so we elected to go to the Sacramento property of the wildlife complex.  On the way out, there were Ring-necked pheasant cocks on both sides of the road in sparse vegetation.  They ran quickly to whatever cover was available as we approached, frustrating my attempts for a good photograph. 

At the Sacramento property, there was more territory and birds less skittish.  We added Cinnamon Teal, Ring-necked Duck and Bufflehead, all of which I photographed.  I also got a mellow Red-tailed Hawk right by the side of the road.  These birds were very common in our drive in the Central Valley.  We were running out of time by the time we had completed the loop at Sacramento, but still wanted a final photo opportunity of the duck.  We returned to Calusa, but the duck was sleeping again in its old location, so we headed south to Carmel.

On the way I began to get sick and ended up in the ER in Carmel that evening.  The diagnosis was a bladder infection and the next four days were not at all pleasant. 

Before leaving the Carmel area, we made a brief stop in Pacific Grove to view and photograph the Monarchs that winter there.  Turns out all the Monarchs east of the Rockies winter in the well-publisized mountain area of Mexico.  Those from west of the Rockies winter in several locations along the central CA coast, including Santa Cruz and Pacific Grove.  There were not anywhere near as many butterflies in the latter location as in Mexico, but still interesting to see branches full of the Monarchs, resting in torpur.

On January 2, we drove north to Point Reyes National Seashore.  The Visitors Center there had abundant California Quail scurrying about, as usual and I was able to make some very nice photographs of this stunning bird.  Also, this time I noticed pocket gophers in the median strip between the parking lot and the access road.  They apparently reside there to defend themselves from their predators that are unlikely to attack with all those people around!  This is an odd rodent, what with its very prominent incisors.

After lunch we drove into the reserve itself and headed north to Tomales Point where there is an elk reserve behind a high fence.  In 1978 ten animals were reintroduced here, eight cows and two bulls.  They have prospered.  There are now over 400 in the elk reserve proper and another 100 south of this area that can roam the entire reserve.

We easily located about twenty elk adjacent to the road, but unfortunately the fog was thick, making photography problematic.  I did make a few photographs of cows, but the dominent bull was nowhere to be seen.  We knew he was around this harem somewhere, but apparently bedded down out of sight.  There were young spike bulls, which are tolerated by the prime bull, but these are hardly photographically attractive. 

We drove further north and stopped at the parking lot for McClures Beach.  Here we hiked to the ocean for some good salt air before returning to the car and heading south.  This time the dominent bull elk was present and I made a number of photographs.  However, the fog was still present, so they are not clear shots.

After fifteen minutes or so of working the bull, we drove further along.  This area is dominated by legacy dairy farms and the country is rolling grass covered hills.  At one point, Stephanie, yelled out “look at that.”  There were two holstein cows herding a skunk out of “their” field.  It was about the most amazing and amusing thing I have even seen in the wild.  Once through the barbed wire fence, the skunk continued to forage in the sparse vegetation between the fence and the road.  I jumped out with my 400 and made photographs as best I could, although he was usually partially obscured.

At one point he decided to cross the road.  I blocked his path so I could get some decent images.  He raised his tail and sprayed a very minor shot of musk to let me know I needed to back off!  He then crossed the road, went under the fence and continued to forage in that other field.  I elected not to climb the fence and follow. 

You can see the images from this trip on my Facebook page.

Exactly two weeks after my early December 27 hour trip to Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge, I returned.  I hoped to get another shot at the snazzy Red Fox that I had photographed before. 

How things had changed!  There was not a single colored leaf on any tree; all had dropped.  The Daiseys had disappeared.  The vegetation looked, well, like mid-winter.  Virtually all the teal were gone and numbers of Black Ducks, Gadwall, and Shovelers were greatly reduced.  Canada Geese and Pintails were at about the same level.  Tundra Swans appeared to have tripled in number.

When I drove in on the 15th, the tide was very high.  There were no Snow Geese in any of  the fresh water ponds.  I saw a few Northern Harriers flying over the salt marshes, but none came into range.  There were a few Great Blue Herons, but no Bald Eagles. 

On the way out, the fawn-faced Red Fox appeared at the same exact location of the previous trip.  This trip I got a good deal of time to work him before others arrived and spoiled the shoot.  I was sad to see that he had a bad case of mange, a disease caused by parasitic mites that will probably kill him.  Untreated, animals loose all the hair in the infected area and often succumb to hypothermia when the weather turns cold.

The following morning, I was into the refuge before dawn (about 7, dawn being 7:23).  There were already a few cars present that seemed to be set up to catch the arrival of the Snow Geese from the salt marshes.  Often they first drop into one of the fresh water ponds and drink and bath before heading out for breakfast.  This time they just lifted off, climbed and headed out to the corn fields. 

I noticed a half moon setting in the west and decided to try to catch a string of geese against it.  Geese were flying in strings of fifteen to perhaps fifty, and there was wave after wave arriving.  By adjusting the car as they were coming, I was able to make a few nice shots as intended.  It was very tricky, however.  You can see one on my Facebook page (name: Bob Mumford)

Other than a few shots of fairly close ducks, that was about it for the photography.  I never saw the full Red Fox on this trip, although I did see Fawn Face on Friday morning trotting down the main wildlife drive.  He never paused for anything!

We were planning to visit the Eastern Shore the week of December 5, but looked at the weather forecast on Dec 1 and saw that it was going to rain Monday and Tuesday and snow on Wednesday.  Spontaneously, we just decided to haul out that afternoon for just a short visit.  Chris had to be back Friday night to attend a conference on Saturday morning.

We got off at 1 something and got over to the Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge in Delaware at 3:45, in time for just about an hour of daylight.  We expected to see thousands of Snow Geese, but saw not a single one.  There were thousands of ducks and Canada Geese, however, more of the former than I ever remember seeing there.  We made one loop around the wildlife drive  and made only two routine images. 

On our way out, we suddenly noticed a Red Fox right next to the road.  I had Big Bertha, my 600mm lens on my lap, but the fox was too cloe to shoot.  It had obviously been fed by visitors and habituated.  Before I could change lens, the fox ran out into the field, moved off and I wondered what had alarmed it.  Two people with cameras had left their car and walked right up to the back of ours to photograph the animal.  Inconsiderate?  I guess so.  I let out a few strong words, although they never heard them.  I drove out bummed because I had not made a single decent image.

The following morning we were up early, ate a quick motel breakfast and drove to the refuge, arriving just before sunrise.  Just a mile along the wildlife drive we spotted a Great Blue Heron perched in a leafless tree right against the southeastern sky where the sun soon came over the horizon.  We were able to make some nice images of the bird and the trees silouetted against the dawn sky.

Several thousand Snow Geese had arrived in Raymond Pool and we watched as some more joined them and then about a third of the group burst skywards and departed for their breakfast in corn fields that dominate the DelMarVa Peninsula. 

Further along we spotted seven species of ducks, Tundra Swans and various other birds.  I made a few images of waterfowl, none particularly noteworthy.  Surprisingly, we saw no mammals at all.  In the spring along this same drive, we had seen seven Cottontails on the early morning go around. 

We took a deadend side road and found some interesting dead grass heads and also some very nice frost covered leaves.  Both were the subjects of some fair images. 

We made one last loop before heading back to Dover to check out of our motel.  On the way I mentioned that we had missed the foxes because it was now too late in the morning and they are nocturnal creatures.  I added that now that I had said this, I was going to be proven wrong.  And I was!

Along the beach section of the drive, Chris spotted a beautiful fox right next to the road and I slammed on the brakes.  It just eyed us.  It was obvious that this fox too had become habituated to visitors who had shared lunches with it!  We were so very fortunate that there were few visitors on the refuge, this being Friday.  We got an uninterrupted fifteen or twenty minutes working the animal.  I made fifty images, most of which are very nice.  The light was OK, even though this was nearly midday, because this was December when the light is always low.

We checked out of the motel and returned for one last turn around the wildlife drive, hoping for a Northern Harrier.  This bird is always on the refuge in the winter and almost always seen, usually cruising over the marshes in search of rodents.  This time we spotted one on a snag on the right side of the road.  We parked and I got out of the car and carefully took Big Bertha out ot the car with my big tripod. 

Harriers are normally very skittish and nearly impossible to photograph.  I swear they see a big lens and flee!  On a whim I decided to photograph this bird right through the car.  Chris opened her window and ducked down and indeed I made eight photos this way.  When I subsecquently tried to sneak around the end of the car for more work, the bird immediately flushed and that was that. 

We then departed the refuge and drove home early to avoid the Beltway traffic and night driving.  We had been gone a grand total of 27 hours, but what a great 27 hours.  Beautiful weather, abundant birds, wonderful photo ops and even a comfortable motel and excellent dinner.

I was out and about almost every day in October, working on two projects.  One was the annual competition for the U.S. Capitol Historical Society’s calendar, “We The People.”  I have been successful each year for the past five in placing at least one image in that calendar.  The calendar mostly features images of  Washington’s most beloved monuments and memorials.

This year — it being the 150th anniversary of the Civil War — the editor asked for images commemorating that war.  I made two trips to Antietam National Battlefield near Sharpsburg, MD, and two trips north to Gettysburg National Military Park.

Both these spots were the scenes of horrendous casualties and one cannot help but feel how wasteful and pointless most wars are.  But both spots are also very scenic and peaceful, bucolic spots now.  Antietam is far less “developed” and has far fewer visitors.  I made the mistake of visiting Gettysburg on a Saturday morning at the height of fall color.  The place was “overrun” with tourists, not a situation ammenable to serious photography!

My friend Howard Youth, a naturalist and writer, is putting together a book called  “A Field Guide to the Natural History of  Washington.”   If focuses on twelve parks in the District, including Rock Creek Park and the National Arboretum. 

A long time ago I agreed to provide the photos for this book, and while I had made some images for my book “Spring Comes to Washington” that would also work for Howard’s book, October was when the job came into focus.  I had to make shots before all the leaves dropped and while scenes were at the peak of color.  Accordingly, I made numerous trips into the city to cover each of the twelve spots.  Some, like Glover-Archbold,  were quite difficult, because they were mostly “undeveloped.”  There was just a simple trail through the middle of this park and the lighting was very challenging. 

I am happy to report that that project has been “put to bed.”  I successfully photographed all twelve locations, as well as over twenty species of trees.  Now I can return to my usual focus of working critters and more wild scenes!

On August 30,  I flew down to Quito for my twelth visit to Ecuador in the last four years.  Our first top, with my old guide, Rudy Gelis, was Pululua Crater, about an hour and a half from Quito.  Never been here before.  We did see Scarlet-bellied Mountain Tanagers, but, as usual, they proved difficult to photograph.  Came to the playback, but avoided full exposure!

Next it was back to the Harmony Cabins in Mindo that served as our base for three days.  From there we visited Milpe, Mashpi and Angel Paz’s farm.  The latter was the first person who has “trained” antpittas to come for worms.   This time in addition to the Giant, the Moustached and the Yellow-breasted, he had a lovely little Ochre-breasted. 

I really wanted that bird, but the light was really low in the cloud forest and flash is not permitted.  I did not make a publishable image, unfortunately.

Adjacent to Angel’s farm is a pig farm.  There was an Orange-breasted Fruiteater nesting here a few weeks before, but the young had fledged.  Rudy found the fruiting tree where they were feeding at some distance, and we watched over a long period, as both the male and female fed and flew across the road.  Finally, Rudy saw the male just sitting in a small tree up a steep bank on the opposite side of the road. 

We found an access point and climbed the bank and found the bird sitting next to a recently fledged young.  We waited him out and he finally came into full view and I made some very nice images of this colorful bird.  We had spent 3.5 hours working and waiting this bird!

We visited Milpe Reserve three times.  There was a nice flock of Swallow Tanagers there, working a small fruited tree.  But most of the time they sit high in trees and when they come down, they make it a habit of hiding behind leaves!  I made a few serviceable images.

At PVM, the closest town to Silanche Reserve, we checked into a roadside motel that charged a whopping $7 per night, which included plenty of hot water, a comfortable bed, and a fan.  Best value anytime, anywhere.  The U.S. ought to have such values!

We saw a lot of  birds at Silanche, but most provided only fleeting looks for a photograph.  One excepton was the gorgeous White-tailed Trogan, that posed near the tower.

From there we headed through Quito and out to the east, stopping at Papallacta Springs.  We got nice rooms with individual fireplaces (which were needed!) for a modest price.  In the morning we first worked the birds in the immediate area.  Rudy called in a Buff-breasted Mountain Tanager, and after many tries, he sat in the top of a small tree and vocalized, as if we had posed him.

We then headed up the road into the national park, gaining elevation all the way.  Unfortunately, my lens fogged up in the very chilly morning and I stupidly tried to rid the fog by pointing the lens towards the sun.  That worked, but it fried my D300s camera body.  I had to work with my backup 300 for the rest of the trip.

We saw plenty of birds in mixed flocks up that road, but they were feeding and moving very fast, making the photography a real challenge.  I did make some pretty good images of the Scarlet-bellieds. 

On the way to Yanayacu Research Station, we stopped at Guango, where Rudy found a Grey-breasted Mountain Toucan, a bird that I have never seen before.  Unforunately, he would not come close enough for a decent shot, albeit in the rain!

Two birds at Yanayacu were winners: a Noble Snipe that had recently bred nearby and a gorgeous male Torrant Duck in the Alder River.  Rudy, Jose and I tromped a cow field for a half-hour or more to find the snipe.  Once found, it did not fly far and I was able to make multiple images. 

The Torrant Duck we spotted from a bridge and Rudy went far upstream to guide him back down.  He posed nicely on a rock with white water behind him after he returned to the vicinity of the bridge.

Rudy also found a fruiting tree, after being alerted by Jose, near the road, where Quetzels were feeding.  The following morning, we parked ourselves by the spot as Rudy worked his playback.  Finally, a couple of Crested Quetzels came out to trees close enough for photography.  I had never made a single shot of this spectacular bird, and made a few good ones that morning.

Our last stop was Tena, where two rivers come together to form the Napo, a major tributary of the Amazon.  We were there to look for the Oriole Blackbird, which was located in the riparian area along the Napo.  While we saw several birds, they never got anywhere close enough for photography.

We did visit the home of a friend of Rudy’s, perhaps fifteen miles downstream.  It was pouring as we staked out the backyard where various good birds fed, from a second floor deck.  I was able to make very nice images of  a male Scarlet-crowned Barbet, despite the weather.  Made a passable image of a thoroughly soaked Orange-backed Troupial!