Yesterday was a pretty good day at Bear River MBR.
1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
One of my first good birds of the morning was this Black-crowned Night Heron but “he” had his challenges. My best look at him was through a narrow tunnel through the vegetation so I had to micro-maneuver my pickup to get a few shots where he didn’t have out-of-focus reeds in front of him. Whenever he moved, even slightly, he was partially blocked by vegetation again.
With my teleconverter attached I was just a little too close to get a composition I prefer in many of my shots. This one is full frame (uncropped) but I think the composition works, in part because of his slightly stooped over pose.
1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
In this shot a more erect posture required a vertical crop so I don’t have quite as much room up top as I’d like but I do enjoy the detail, even on this smooth textured bird.
1/5000, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
While he was turned the other way and had out-of-focus vegetation in front of him he snagged a very small fish. At this rate he’d have to catch dozens of them to keep from starving.
1/2000, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
Just under an hour later this Long-tailed Weasel crossed the road in front of me. It was pretty far away and sidelit but I was able to get a few shots with some light on the face.
When I first looked at this image I was confused for a few moments. Long-tailed Weasels have black-tipped tails but in this specimen the black tip appears to be missing. I’ve heard of a few documented cases where weasels have lost their black tip in fights but I figured that was probably unlikely in this case.
Then I realized that what I was seeing as the “tail” was really a foxtail seed head and the actual tail was mostly out of sight.
1/2000, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
A different pose revealed the black tip of the tail. Silly me.
For some reason none of my weasel shots were quite as sharp as they should have been and that disappointed me. But any day I photograph a weasel is a good one.
Ron
Both are great finds.
What is it with those Heron’s red eyes? Like the Teal hybrid of a couple of days ago. Is there a physiological advantage for these species?
Saw a winter white weasel several years ago while snowshoeing in the mountains. Wish you would have been there to photograph him. A magical moment, as today’s photos are.
Lovely photographs as yoosh! That was a great morning shoot!
Yup, it was. Thanks, Joanne.
Ron, such smooth feathers on that Heron. The weasel looks so cutely innocent but his victims must think otherwise! The foxtail is a cute story. Thank you
Thank you, Alice.
What a lovely Heron! Can’t tell if that’s a loach or not, but perhaps he’s eating them like popcorn.
The urge to bring up “Ron Weasley” was too great. 😉 I’ll show myself out now…
Nope, it isn’t a loach, Marty. It’s almost certainly a young carp.
I had to look up “Ron Weasley”…
He’s one of my favorite HP characters. 😃
A night heron AND a weasel? How wonderful. For you and for us.
Given that you said the weasel was some distance away you need to cut yourself some slack (NOT one of your habits) about the tail confusion).
I do hope that the heron finds sufficient of those tiny morsels (or bigger fare).
EC, I suspect the heron gets fare of about any size it wants. The water is shallow and some of those fish are huge so I’m sure there’s plenty that are “in-betweeners”. Thank you.
I was looking for the black-tip before I read your remarks. 😀 LOL Foxtail on a weasel! 😀 That heron is scrumptious!
Arwen, I was almost embarrassed to admit that I confused that foxtail for his tail for a few minutes…
Trompe l’oeil in nature!
Awesome!
🙂
Marvelous series Ron!
Charlotte
Thanks, Charlotte.
Any time one sees a weasel for more than a moment is wonderful. To capture it is amazing.
The heron pictures are incredibly sharp, and the lighting is quite something. I was wondering if the lighting was supplemented in any way – flash, reflectors, etc? It just so spot-on!
Thanks for appreciating the light, Tony. The photos were taken with natural light only. When I took the heron shots it was not long after sunrise so the light is soft and some light on the bird was reflected off the water.
Just so you know, I have never used any kind of artificial light on any of my nature, bird or wildlife photos, not once in almost 11 years of photography.
Beautiful photographs, Ron!
Shelley, weasels always, and I do mean always, remind me of the farm.
Night herons are nice but weasels are wonderful! The portraits of the night heron are excellent. I love their red eyes. The photos of the weasel, however, are the ones that excite me.
Yup, weasels are special. Thanks, Nancy.
I really like the photographs of the Black-Crowned Night Heron, Ron. It is cool how you can see the bands of reflected light on his body, and of course, those red eyes are great too.
The weasel sighting must have been fun. The few times I have seen them they are so hard to photograph since they never sit still for me 🙂
Thank you, Ed. I agree, usually when I’m lucky enough to see a weasel I only see a flash of fur and then they’re gone.
Beautiful shots of the Night Heron! As I understand it they are pretty illusive and not at all common in this area of MT…… 🙂 Weasel is great any time you can capture them even tho with clucks I certainly don’t want them around…. 😉 “Perspective” 😉 That foxtail sure would have fooled me! Little smoke this morning tho going to be in the mid 80’s – WAY too warm for this time of year…….
Judy, I remember weasels to be one of the few problems we had with wildlife on the farm, largely because of the “clucks” my uncle had.
Wow, you’re warmer up there than we are!
They beautiful sharp and colorful shots of the Night Heron. Love the water and the background. Outstanding. I have never seen a weasel ever. Envious.
Everett Sanborn, Prescott AZ
Thanks, Everett. I don’t see weasels very often either. And it’s even less that I can get my lens on one of them.
Terrific photos of the Heron…they can be so elusive. Great to catch that long plume against the silky feathers. I thought that seed head was the tail tip also…matching color! 😊 Such a cute face for such an aggression little one!
I haven’t seen nearly as many night herons this year as I usually do so having a chance with this one was a treat. Glad to know I’m not the only one to be fooled by that foxtail. Thanks, Kathy.
Sorry, so excited about the weasel I forgot to comment on the excellent heron shots!
Thanks for sharing!
I thought of you while I was preparing this post, knowing how much you’ve wanted me to post weasel shots. Thanks, Dick.
Finally, this shot is Wonderful! Any day I get to see one of your weasel shots is a good day!!
The weasel that took up residence in our shed this winter is gone. Only saw him/her once with a vole in its mouth, but plenty of scat in the shed till recently. Guess it exhausted the food supply and took off for greener pastures.