Monday, August 10, 2009

A Tall Great Egret

I mentioned something yesterday about seeing some of the big water birds while I was out surveying the storm damage. Today I want to show you the first on I found. This will be the second Great Egret that I have had the privilege of seeing now. You can see the first one here, with some of my best pictures ever.

Yesterday as I made it out of the woods and down to my first destination, which happened to be the fishing platform, I began to check the water level to try and see how bad the flooding had gotten. I looked up and down the lake to see what damage had been caused. But then something caught my eye!

I had no idea why I hadn't seen it right away, but there right in front of me, on the other side of the lake, was this beautiful great egret standing there. I've see it flying before, but only through the trees. I was never in a place to get any good pictures of it before now. This might be my lucky day.

I took over fifty pictures of this magnificent bird. The only problem was that the misty fog was too thick to get many good shots, and I was pushing my camera's zoom to the limit anyway. Under the circumstances I'm surprised the photos came out as good as you see here. I was extremely lucky that day.

It was at that moment that the low battery warning indicator on my camera started flashing. I had just purchased new batteries, and even though I always charge them first, they never last long the first time I use them. I was going to have to use my backups, but I wanted to try to get as many shots of this bird as I could first.

I was in luck because the batteries lasted just long enough for me to get enough shots before this big bird decided it was time to hide from the maniac with the camera. I really wish I could tell you that I got a picture of it in the air, but that's where my luck ran out. I got nothing of the sort.

This picture above is the last shot I got of this bird before it leaped into the air and flew away. Oh, I do have a few very bad shots from afterwards, but I don't think you'll want to see them. They're not only blurry, but they are only flashes of white at the edges of the pictures.

I'd like to say though that I still was able to observe this creature for the first time in all its natural glory, and I got the pictures so I could share a small part of it with you. So this was an exciting adventure for me. I recommend looking for animals right after a storm, and when it's safe. So many come out at those times.

I want to leave you with some blog news. I added a few extra bits in my sidebar at the top. I'm hoping they will improve your experience on this blog. The first is a poll, and it will change once a week or so. The second is my Twitter updates. I'll be using this one to give a few Quick Updates here and there on things that I've done recently. I hope you like them. Tell me what you think. I want the absolute truth, I can take it.

20 comments:

  1. Welcome to Twitter Ratty. I have followed you and left you a message...

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  2. You now have your tricks on bird hunting. I love mist or fog somehow, the place looks mysterous by then.

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  3. I like the foggy look to the pictures! They are very cool.

    As for the sidebar--that's a lot of stuff you've got going on there. But I like how it is organized and is in one scheme--it doesn't overwhelm the eye and detract from your story.

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  4. Nice photos - thanks for sharing your adventures. Will have to check your twitter.

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  5. The photos are great Ratty, even with the mist. I like the one with the reflection in the water. I also joined your followers on Twitter. I am thinking about getting off Twitter though. I don't use it very often. Just have some videos added when I upload to Youtube. But I've been getting people that want to follow me that have close to porn sites. I don't like that. I block them of course. Only click on those tiny url's if you trust the person. Kim Komando had a warning about that in her news letter the other day.

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  6. The Egret is so ellegant and graceful. Good catch Ratty!

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  7. That is so exciting!! The mist did make it tricky for you but wow, to come upon the "big birds" in nature is one of the ultimate thrills!!

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  8. Great shots under those circumstances. We get a lot of cattle egrets here and I wonder if I've seen one or two great egrets among them, as the latter appear like the taller version of the former. =D

    About the side bar, there's lots to see out there.. but yep, everything is well organized and categorized. So it's cool. And I do like the new poll too. =D

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  9. that is a beautiful bird ratty! i like your little add ons. i have followed you in twitter and have voted in your poll. have a great day!

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  10. Wow..You're really lucky to see such a magnificent bird, and took great pictures of it!

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  11. Ratty, your bird pictures are coming along great!!! Love the Great Eget shots!

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  12. coincidentally, i also shoot egrets yesterday :)

    i love the combination of the egret, its reflection and the misty atmosphere. great photos.

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  13. I like these pics – it looks like they are a dream sequence

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  14. Beautiful photos of the Egret, the mist give it a mystical quality. You were in the right place at the perfect time, well done Ratty.

    That little battery indicator always seems to come on at the wrong time but at least it let you get some great shots.

    Welcome to the Twitterverse, it can be a fun place.

    SQ

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  15. hey ratty, followed and polled... nice bird! I have seen a few "experts" remark about the similarity of large crane type birds and pterosaurs, my favorite kind of dinosaur. I remember the first crane I saw I had to take a second look because it was so peculiar in flight. Though you didn't get any good flight pics it sounds like you really saw something special.

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  16. Kruel - Thanks. I'm still trying to figure out how to do some things on twitter.
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    Kirigolpoththa - Thanks! :)
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    Rainfield - I like walking through the mist when the day is dark like it was there.
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    Lin - I like it too, even though it was hard to see anything.

    I always try to keep everything on the sidebar to a minimum, but I also want it to be useful. I'm not quite there yet.
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    Mike - Thanks. My twitter stuff might not be very good yet, because I really don't understand it yet.
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    Ginnymo - The mist made it hard to see, but I worked to get those reflections in the pictures.

    I'm still learning the twitter stuff. I'm using it for mini updates for this site for now. I've been getting those porn site people too. I blocked some and others disappeared.
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    VanillaSeven - Exactly! I love the egrets and the other big birds.
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    WillOaks Studio - Seeing all of those big birds was indeed a huge thrill. There were more that I couldn't get pictures of too.
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    Harumi - Snowy egrets are also similar. It took me awhile to find out which one I had here. I like these birds.

    I hope to make this sidebar useful and fun one day, so it will be a good addition to the main section of the blog.
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    PJ - Thanks for all three. :)
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    Icy - I almost missed it. I was extremely lucky because the mist was making it very hard to see.
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    Dana - Thanks. :)
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    Kim - Your great bird pictures are what has been inspiring me to try to get my own.
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    Betchai - I hope you post your pictures. I'd love to see them.
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    Vagabonde - I didn't think of it that way before, but you are exactly right.
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    SquirrelQueen - I love the mystical quality of fog, but I didn't think of it until it was broght to my attention here. It could have been much more fun if I had then.

    The battery indicator has been a pain recently, but I'm glad it gives me fair warning.
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    Steve - Thanks. I always thought they looked like pterosaurs too. I do have some of them flying, but I'm not sure they're good enough to show.

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  17. The poll is a cute idea, I did it for ya.
    I don't Twitter yet, so I am ok with that on the side, but I guess you have to be into it to get it and enjoy it.
    The EGRET???? OMG, they are beautiful pictures...the mist adds to the drama of the bird. Just loved these and love that darn bird...gotta add it to my my favorite birds list. We dont' see any here though. Wish we did!

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  18. The Retired One - I hope the poll will be fun for everyone. I don't really understand Twitter much yet, so I'm using the Twitter thing for quick updates for the blog here. I've been seeing the egrets all over now.

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