Little momma is on the nest

[Steven R]

Late last week I came across the nest of one of the many Sandhill Cranes that live in our neighborhood. If all goes well, by the end of February we should have a couple of new chicks added to our local population.

E-3, 200mm, f6.3, 1/500 ISO100, uncropped.

[James Emory]

Nice shot. Obviously they don't spook easily when sitting on eggs.

[Steven R]

Originally Posted by James Emory

Nice shot. Obviously they don't spook easily when sitting on eggs.

Thanks James. Our local Sandhill Cranes are pretty used to people. In fact, they will stroll out and cross the streets expecting the cars to stop for them. And of course we all do. They remind me of the ducks you sometimes see crossing a road and all the cars have stoppped for them.

[James Emory]

We have a large pond nearby and in the spring through fall months there are quite a few white herons that go fishing there but they are very spooky. As soon as you stop the car their necks stretch out and eyeball you and before you can get your camera out they take off. I would need a pretty long lens to get decent pictures of them. There are a few people around here that have outside Koi ponds and if the ponds are not protected somehow their fish/Koi slowly disappear. And some of the Koi they keep are rather expensive.

[tkurkowski]

Originally Posted by James Emory

Nice shot. Obviously they don't spook easily when sitting on eggs.

Well at 400mm (equivalent) he was able to stay some distance away.

Great shot, Steven!

[tkurkowski]

Originally Posted by James Emory

There are a few people around here that have outside Koi ponds and if the ponds are not protected somehow their fish/Koi slowly disappear. And some of the Koi they keep are rather expensive.

When I lived in northern Arizona the folks across the street from me put in a koi pond and then mentioned to me that the fish were disappearing. They were thinking raccoons but on day I looked out of one of my front windows and saw a large heron standing on his roof. I had no idea they lived there - very startling in a desert climate.

Ted

[Steven R]

Thanks Ted. The 50-200mm mounted on an E-3 is a super combination.

Originally Posted by James Emory

We have a large pond nearby and in the spring through fall months there are quite a few white herons that go fishing there but they are very spooky. As soon as you stop the car their necks stretch out and eyeball you and before you can get your camera out they take off. I would need a pretty long lens to get decent pictures of them. There are a few people around here that have outside Koi ponds and if the ponds are not protected somehow their fish/Koi slowly disappear. And some of the Koi they keep are rather expensive.

Interesting James. Koi is definitely an expensive fish. I don't know anyone around here who has any, as the local wetlands are full of herons, egrets, and ospreys. All of whom would consider Koi a nice appetizer.

[Steven R]

Originally Posted by tkurkowski

When I lived in northern Arizona the folks across the street from me put in a koi pond and then mentioned to me that the fish were disappearing. They were thinking raccoons but on day I looked out of one of my front windows and saw a large heron standing on his roof. I had no idea they lived there - very startling in a desert climate.

Ted

Wow. I didn't realize that Arizona had herons. That is interesting information. Were you near a large river or lake??

[tkurkowski]

Originally Posted by Steven R

Interesting James. Koi is definitely an expensive fish. I don't know anyone around here who has any, as the local wetlands are full of herons, egrets, and ospreys. All of whom would consider Koi a nice appetizer.

You can put an open mesh over the pond but it's kinda ugly.

[Steven R]

Originally Posted by tkurkowski

You can put an open mesh over the pond but it's kinda ugly.

LOL. Have to share a funny story. When I lived outside of Atlanta, in my back yard I put a small fountain and a little pond with some goldfish. In the fall I put such an open mesh net over it, just to keep the falling leaves out of the water. I traveled a lot back then, and one day I got a panic phone call from my wife. A large hawk had gotten tangled in the net when he had gone after a fish. She had to call the animal control folks out to capture it and take it to a park where they released it back into the wild. I had put up the net just for leaves, it had not crossed my mind that we even had hawks.