After Earth Fest on Sunday, I decided to walk through the park to get home (some of those photos showed up in yesterday’s blogpost). One the exciting events I witnessed was a fight between two black-bellied whistling ducks – each had his (I can only assume they were males as they are not dimorphic) [...]
Sunday afternoon was a beautiful day to be out, and since the zoo was hosting Earth Fest (although honestly, what’s with “Earth Fest” a full month before Earth Day?), I hauled the camera there. This was a test of my ability to hold the lens steady without a tripod – I figured with a membership [...]
For the second field trip, we went to Barataria Preserve, which I’ve been to before, but again, the trail I normally go on is closed until late April, so it was a completely new area for me. More warbler and woodland birds, and we even spotted a barred owl, which I’d never seen [...]
Continue reading about UNO Beginning Birdwatching Field Trip #2
I’m taking a non-credit weekend course at UNO in beginning birdwatching. There were two classroom sessions and the other four are field trips (immersion learning at it’s best, eh?). The first field trip was March 14th, to Audubon Park. It was quite interesting even though I’ve been to the park many times [...]
Continue reading about UNO Beginning Birdwatching Field Trip #1
Friday I went back to Fontainbleau hoping the owlets were still around, and the eagles. Both were. The owlets have flown and moved into another, less “open” tree and it’s definitely a trick to spot them! They blend right into the Spanish moss and live oak leaves. I got a few decent [...]
The first baby of the year born at Audubon Zoo, born January 8th, is a Giant Anteater. Apparently the baby will cling to mom Anita for nearly a year! The little anteater will not get a name until the zoologists determine its gender (which they should be able to do soon).
Giant Anteater and [...]
I couldn’t resist posting this shot…. watching a swan take off is most intriguing – it really looks like the big, heavy bird will never get in the air, and yet, they always seem to be successful! (click image for full-size)
Swan preparing for takeoff, Audubon Park, New Orleans, LA, 2009-Feb-24
All photos © Amy Friends [...]
The egrets, herons, cormorants and associated brethren are all nesting at Audubon park now. I spent an hour there the other day, watching the egrets build nests, and got a couple of decent photos! the birds were very industrious, and it interesting to see one egret bring a twig back to its nest, where [...]