Fall is Beautiful!

I have been making sure to get out and take photos this fall, and mostly because I was trying to capture the Ruby-crowned Kinglet bird who I saw at one of my favorite locations during a field trip. Although I was not finding this little bird, I was basking in the beauty of fall. The colors, the reflections and the migrating bird presence was always delight. And luckily for my birthday, I was surrounded by little kinglets as well.

Whale Hugs!

A whale hug from San Juan Island!

A pod of orcas swim together.

Beginning of an orca breach.

The fall of an orca breach.

Splash from an orca breach.

Can you see all three orcas? What!?

Tail slapping- a fishing technique.

A female orca passing. You can see her saddle patch below her dorsal fin to ID her.

Two males swimming. Males have larger and taller dorsal fins as they get older.

Anatidae. More specifically - Geese!

Last year in my biology class, we had to do a report on a family of our choosing. I decided on Anatidae, a family of birds which include ducks, geese and swans. Oddly, this was my choice since I had so many of my own photos I could use and I loved the idea of making a power point presentation and see my pics on the screen. I found out a lot about these birds and they are still a favorite to photograph. This post, it is all about Canadian geese!

Wildlife Rehabilitation

I am so privilege since I have the opportunity to volunteer at a local wildlife rehabilitation facility. Springtime is baby bird season (and a few mammals). It is both a fun and sad season since animals really do have the best possibility of survival with their parents. If you do see a baby bird on the ground, it is best to either place the baby back in her/his nest, or in a cardboard box in a tree as close to the test as possible. The same is true for mammals, except you will not want to handle them with your bare hands. Birds can't smell (except turkey vultures) but mammals can.

A baby barn owl demands food.

A recently hatched bird, opens his mouth wide, awaiting food.

Baby brush bunnies were a delight to feed.

Just out of the shell nest of baby birds whose mother had died.

You know this is a baby crow due to his blue eye color.

A baby killdeer is just the cutest thing on earth.

A baby hummingbird is fed special nectar. You can see how small she is compared to the person's finger.

A young swift clings to a towel, since they cling rather than perch. He is waiting patiently for worms, since swifts are insect eaters. Usually when I see babies in the care center, it means the annual month-long event of the swifts entering a local school chimney (quite the sight!) is happening soon.

Two western screech owls look at my with annoyance.

Using a stuffed animal as a surrogate fooled this cute little finch. She begs it for food and even though we are the ones feeding her, she still doesn't associate humans with feeding her.

An older fledgling cedar waxwing helps out by feeding a younger one. This was precious to witness but we had to make sure the older one fed herself enough as well.

By the end of duckling season, the volunteers are not so excited by the cuteness. Mostly they can just think about the messy clean up involved in their care. At a pond, they are still super cute!

Office Fun with a 35mm Lens

A co-worker of mine got a fancy new camera with a 35mm lens and let me play with it. I am so envious of the camera and how smoothly it snaps shots and focuses with such precision. Here are a few pictures I took around the office. You can tell I am really into the cute animal figures.