Phil Lanoue Photography

White Pelicans At Sunset

There was a small group of white pelicans hanging around in the marsh pond this afternoon doing their usual thing. I stayed to watch them until just prior to sunset, when these three came floating close to me lit by the warm setting sunlight.

Mister Hoodie

This male hooded merganser was among the group that had to scramble to get out of the way of the incoming white pelican earlier this week.

It seems like the whole experience might have got this fellow a bit flustered…but it’s always hard to tell with hoodies because they are wacky little ducks and at times quite comical!

Job Well Done

Yesterday afternoon my attention was momentarily diverted from watching the white pelicans and hoodies when I saw this bald eagle come gliding in from the salt marsh. The eagle did a wide circle around while keeping those sharp eyes open for what might be available down below to potentially snatch.

He then swooped down low over the marsh pond sending a large group of ducks scattering in a full blown panic. But rather then attempt to grab one of the ducks, the eagle landed on a post at the edge of the pond and screeched at the ducks as they flew away. Once that was taken care of he stood there with a look of great satisfaction on his face for that accomplishment!

“Move Over Gang, I’m Coming In!”

This afternoon I was amused by this white pelican who decided he needed to come swooping in right among a group of hooded merganser ducks. The poor little ducks were forced to scatter as the huge pelican came in for a landing.

Note how the male hoodies in the lower foreground excitedly get their head crests all pointy as they quickly get out of the way!

No Escargot Today…Thanks

Two days ago I was watching this white ibis feeding in the salt marsh during low tide. At one point he pulled out a snail but apparently was not in the mood for an escargot appetizer because he promptly dropped the unwanted mollusk right back into the water. I guess it must have needed garlic!

Small Bird…Small Fish

This morning we were watching this little tricolored heron fishing in the marsh pond. He did a lot of stalking, but not much catching, and when he finally did catch something it was just this tiny minnow. But he looked good doing it! Plus, right before he took off, the little tri came over nearby to where I was, took one last look around, then struck a very nice pose. The tricolored heron is a pretty bird and this one was particularly good looking!

“Get Out And Stay Out!”

Whenever there is more then one snowy egret feeding in the salt marsh, it is inevitable that a squabble will break out concerning ‘ownership’ of that particular fishing spot.

Here, one gets chased away but that won’t end up solving the problem…another snowy will soon show up and the action will be repeated over and over. But so it goes with snowys… a significant portion of their life is spent arguing with one another.

White Pelicans Stop In For A Visit

This afternoon we had a small group of white pelicans visit the marsh pond. These large birds are always fun to watch as they float back and forth across the water in search of fish. At one point some of them went to the far back corner of the pond where they joined a huge group of various ducks that were also working the pond.