Every summer our yards hosts a number of toads.
Soaking Up The Sun
A great time of day to spot turtles in the river is at dawn.
Since they are cold blooded the turtles need the warm of the sun to really get moving. Rocks in the middle of the river provide a great opportunity to soak up the sun’s energy in a place where they won’t likely be disturbed.
When I found this Eastern River Cooter warming on the rocks the sun’s rays had just made their way over the trees on the river bank.
Double-Crested Cormorant
The James River near Richmond, Virginia is home to a fairly large number of Double-Crested Cormorants. It’s pretty common to spot them sunning on rocks or swimming in the water.
Great Blue In Flight
Great Blue Herons are such a common sight along the banks of the James River in Richmond, Virginia. They really are part of the river itself. In fact when I don’t see any it feels like something is wrong. Continue reading “Great Blue In Flight”
Stalking Dragonflies
Floating past a log in the the middle of the James River, I noticed this immature Green Heron. At first I thought it was funny the heron wasn’t perched on the end of the log waiting for a small fish to swim by.
Green June Beetle
This week’s photo challenge is Ooh, Shiny! The concept is to photograph something that distracts you.
Emerging Dragonfly
Dragonflies spend most of their lives, sometimes years, in the nymph stage. During that time they live in the water and feed on other insects and even small fish and tadpoles.
Waiting To Strike
Great Blue Herons seem to get all the attention. Probably because they are so large and conspicuous. Green Heron’s are not nearly as easy to spot and I would guess most non-birders probably couldn’t identify them on sight.
Heron Feather On Stone
Here’s my submission for this week’s photo challenge: Textures.
Butterfly On The Camera
During my Rivanna River float, earlier this summer, my Pentax went for an unexpected swim. Clearly not what any nature photographer wants to happen but things don’t always go as planned. Thankfully I saw the camera fall into the river and pulled it out before it had time to sink too far below the surface. For the rest of the trip I was left shooting with my iPhone and had the camera out in the sun to dry. Continue reading “Butterfly On The Camera”