I saw a Facebook post last month with some great photos from the UTSWMC Rookery, and knew it was time for another visit of my own. I always build it up in my head as this long excursion for which I need to plan diligently. This morning around 11:00 I decided today was the day, and I was there before noon. So, not much planning required -- diligent or otherwise.
Great Egrets are a given whenever I've gone to the rookery. There were fewer of them than I've seen in the past, and not many babies. But there were a number of fledglings like this older one ...
... and this younger one.
When you watch a single animal for a while, you have an opportunity to catch behavior. In this case, it was a scratch that looks like a friendly wave.
A yawn -- at least, it looked like a yawn to me -- and my friend finally flew off.
I was really into trying to get pictures of the birds in context today. Not having my subject fill the frame so much, but still be the obvious focal point. I like this effort with the young fledging egret.
There were more Anhinga than I had ever seen before. And most of them kept to the tops of the trees and were difficult to get a clear view of. Then I caught a glimpse of these babies, and after watching them for a while Mom showed up. And I got a better shot for it. :)
I don't know how young animals put up with extreme heat. Or any animals, really. But the young ones with nests in full sun really confound and concern me. Much gular fluttering.
These two were among the youngest specimens I saw. So if you want to see baby birds, clearly you should get to the rookery before late June.
The high sun made the lighting trickier than I'd expected. I did get a nice silhouette of sorts on this youngster as a result.
A good visit, with a tolerable stench given the heat. And I got my bird photographing fix in for the time being!
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