Cormorants

Mallard Ducks

Great Egret

Great Horned Owl

Black Necked Stilt

American White Pelican & Tule Reeds

Red-tailed Hawk

The Gray Lodge Wildlife Preserve has a wonderful large pond near the parking area and almost every time I have been there, I have seen Double-crested Cormorants perching on this old fallen tree. They like large open bodies of water such as rivers and ponds and will dive for their food.

These commonly seen ducks were having great fun on these partially submerged logs. The male mallard is one of the most beautiful ducks with its dark green head, white neck ring, brown breast and pale body. As is quite typical in the duck world, the female is very ordinary looking to fade into her surroundings and to be able to protect her hidden nest.

One of the most beautiful birds in flight, the Great Egret is a large bird with long wings. It has a very long neck, a long yellow bill and black legs. These black legs and feet distinguish it from the Snowy Egret who has black legs and bright yellow feet, along with a black bill.

The Great Horned Owl is a nocturnal hunter with ear tufts that give him an almost cat-like silhouette. These large owls like to seek shelter and camouflage in trees and can be recognized by their shape … if they can be seen at all.

The black-necked stilt is seen frequently in areas of shallow, still water with muddy bottoms. They look very formal as they walk delicately and search for tidbits of food with their long beaks. They have distinctive long red legs.

The American White Pelican forages in shallow sheltered waters such as these ponds on the Sacramento Wildlife Preserve. They eat small fish, and when in small groups, they cooperatively will “herd” the fish together and then simultaneously plunge their beaks into the captured fish. The Tule reeds behind them are tough grasses that are part of the sedge family. They grow to about 7 or 8 feet in height and may choke out waterways by forming colonies. They provide shelter for many animals.

One of the big challenges with any wildlife photography is to catch the behavior of the critter. So, I was working on catching the action of this Red-tailed Hawk as it flew off a telephone pole. While I was able to capture the drama of the flight, sharpness was still a major issue for me under the circumstances of thick fog and poor light conditions.