Click here for Part II.
As if snow geese and a sunrise weren't enough, I was able to catch some other fine specimens of Hagerman's wonderful wildlife on my visit to the refuge last Thursday.
Ducks regularly confound me. They tend to stay just outside of my shooting range, and if I'm fortunate enough to get close without them noticing they spook and fly at the slightest movement. Somehow, I got close enough for a decent shot of this
mallard drake.
Killdeer are another story. I have much better luck with them.
Another duck that didn't take off as soon as I got within a hundred yards -- a
northern pintail.
This
turkey vulture kept a wary eye on me, but didn't mind me approaching close enough for this shot.
This
great egret was too busy hunting to pay much attention to me. I'm sure the fact that I was across the water helped.
The warm weather last week must have gotten this fellow up and about. I'm not sure what his plans were, but he seemed to be trying to cross Wildlife Drive. He was close enough to the side of the road that I didn't feel the need to move him.
Another bird that tends to generally not want me to get too close. But like the egret, this
great blue heron was a little more focused on finding something to eat.
The area right around the visitor center is always a good place to spot
meadowlarks.
Last bird of the day -- a
lesser yellowlegs looking for food in what was really more of a large puddle than a small pond.
I spent about six hours on the refuge, which is probably the longest visit I've ever had there. The extra time gave me a tremendous number of opportunities to see and shoot many beautiful things, which was the whole point of going!
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