Phil Lanoue Photography
I previously worked as a news and sports photographer. Recently I have been enjoying wildlife photography. My approach toward bird photos is similar to sports photography. I attempt to capture mostly action and hopefully a unique perspective.
Tweener Hard At Work
Early this morning we had a ‘tweener’ out grabbing some breakfast in the marsh.
The ‘tweener’ is one of my all time favorite bird phases. This is a little blue heron that is transitioning from an all white juvenile to a mostly all blue (with a touch of maroon) adult.
These birds are always fun with their varied, almost checkerboard sections of blue and grey randomly placed throughout their body.
This little guy caught himself a little snack after a very stealthy approach with an impressive technique. He must have been paying attention when his mom was teaching minnow snatching. 🙂
Sleeping? Or Just Resting?
On an early morning one day last week I saw our good buddy casually resting his chin on the pathway. I wasn’t sure if he was napping or just resting up for a big journey.
Well, it turned out he was indeed planning on a trip, albeit a short one. This paved path separates the marsh pond from the swamp and our boy was indeed headed for the swamp, no doubt to locate a nap spot. I know napping had to be part of his plan. 🙂
Footprints In The Sand…
Early this morning we spotted signs that at some point in the night a momma loggerhead sea turtle had come out from the ocean and walked across the sand to make a nest and lay her eggs in the dunes.
As summer approached, many signs of sea turtle nests have been spotted by individuals and various volunteer groups that monitor the situation along the coast.
If all goes well, in about two months we may be seeing sights such as this baby seen in the last two photos which were taken in August of last year in the same general area here at the beach.
When looking at these tiny creatures it’s amazing that even one could survive it’s journey to the gulf stream, but indeed many will. Hopefully 35 years from now this baby, if it’s a female, will return to it’s original nesting site to also lay eggs and complete the cycle.
Well At Least He Got One!
Early yesterday morning we had a Least Bittern fishing in the swamp. This variety of bittern is fairly rare for our area and is generally a very secretive bird so we were thrilled to see this colorful, active guy in action.
Normally we might see the American Bittern which are cool birds but it was a real treat seeing the Least!
Such A Nice Neat Boy
This tricolored heron looked all nice and well behaved as he sat surveying the scene in the marsh on a recent morning.
He remained alert however and despite his polite appearance, soon the bird would be on his way to terrorizing the area fish population!
Not Much To Show For All The Effort
This alligator was fishing in among the dried reeds of the salt marsh when he suddenly lunged out at something.
After a huge ferocious bite, the gator bared down hard and came up with… a mouthful of muddy water.
Oh well, it was not just a good attempt, but a good looking attempt. 🙂
Quick Early Breakfast Snack
Yesterday morning this egret was doing some early morning fishing in the marsh. Nice quick grab for the bird, bad news once again however, for the fish.
Quick Spiff Up
An egret was preening in the salt marsh earlier this week, no doubt getting himself looking all slick for his lady friend.
The green lores around the bird’s eyes indicate this guy is in breeding condition.
I thought he looked pretty snazzy. 🙂
Phil Lanoue Photography 