Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, June 2018

I've been to Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge three times, and every time I've seen great wildlife and come away with some really satisfying images. This last time I had some consistently overcast and/or rainy conditions and an issue with my lens that kept it from having a depth of field any greater than f5.6 without great difficulty, and still managed to get some solid pictures.  That's when you know you're in a special location.

Rain does result in water droplets, which add a little extra detail to this American Lotus.

I didn't often get good looks at the Glossy Ibis, but this one stepped into full view for me.

I wasn't sure what exactly this bird was when I saw it.  It took some online research to reveal that it's a Little Blue Heron transitioning from the white first-year stage to blue adult plumage, also referred to as a"calico."

When the sun did come out I was further rewarded with a foraging Purple Gallinule and that was quite comfortable coming very close to me.  I was able to get a great view of not just the colorful head but also the iridescent body plumage.

I thought it was very sweet to offer me a flower. :)

Mourning Dove on a fencepost.  Hard to pass up such a simple, classic pose.

Raindrops on a Saltmarsh Morning-Glory.  Given that some photographers use spray bottles to achieve this sort of effect, I was grateful to see it naturally.

The Common Gallinules with young tended to be shy, but this loner was as intent on eating as its purple cousin earlier.

Another classic pose, this time from a Four-spotted Pennant.

I made two laps of the auto tour loop, and towards the very end of my second circuit I came across a Little Blue Heron that had just found some lunch.

Bad news for the frog was good news for the bird and for me.  The more I shoot, the more I see the same wildlife over and over.  What makes an encounter stand out these days is catching some special behavior like feeding.  It also makes for a more unique image.  So my apologies, Mister Frog.  Your sacrifice has at least been forever immortalized by my lens!

Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge: June 2017, Part II

Anahuac NWR combines two wonderful qualities: a tremendous variety of birds in a relatively small area, and outstanding visibility to those birds. As much as I love to hike, I don't mind the opportunity to just shoot from my car once in a while. Anahuac has given me that on both my visits so far.

A fitting depiction of how comfortable the birds are with the presence of people -- this Neotropic Cormorant was perched comfortably atop a road sign.

The Cattle Egrets lining the western edge of the Shoveler Pond Auto-Tour Loop road were a little less accommodating.  They would tease, hanging out in large groups and then lazily flying a little farther down the road as I approached.  I was fortunate to get a clear shot of this one before it did the same.

My longest walk was all of 750 feet down the boardwalk on the loop.  It was relatively quiet until I'd almost gotten back to the car, when I heard this Marsh Wren singing.  I watched him make his way up his stalk with sporadic hops punctuated by bursts of song.

This isolated Common Tern was an unexpected sight, like so many birds at Anahuac just sitting on a rail along the side of the road.

Moving deeper into the refuge Eastern Kingbirds became a common sight on the barbed wire.

They appeared so frequently, I eventually gave up stopping to shoot them.  Once I had an image of each profile, I figured I was covered.

I'd seen plenty of Willets over the course of my time along the coast, but the mirror-like effect from these two passing each other was unique.

Like my visit last year, I saw several Common Nighthawks on fence posts just south of Jackson Woodlot.  As relaxed as they seemed, they were not big fans of me getting out of my car.  So I had to content myself with shots from the roadside.  I find it interesting how much of their bodies and tails hang off the edge when they perch.

I apparently got pretty close to a Killdeer nest at one point, because I was treated to the entire broken-wing display.  As much as I wanted to see baby birds on my trip I didn't hunt for the nest, not wanting to stress out the adult any more than I already had.

And with that, my second trip to the Texas Gulf Coast was done.  Great weather, great wildlife, and some great photos!

Related Links:

• Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge: April 2016
• Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge: June 2017, Part I

Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge: June 2017, Part I

I made the same last stop on my Galveston visit this year as I had last year -- Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge. It gives me something to look forward to when I get up that last morning. And it makes the drive home feel a little shorter.

I started with a walk through the Butterfly and Hummingbird Habitat near the Visitor Center.  Not a lot of activity yet in the relatively cool morning hours, but those cool conditions likely contributed to this Gulf Fritillary sitting nice and still for me.

There were plenty of dragonflies around the pond.  Shooting this one from slightly below gives nice detail on its wings, but the lack of discernible color makes it too hard for me to identify.

All the insects had their hands (wings?) full trying to avoid becoming a meal for the Cliff Swallows nesting in the nearby pavilion.  Cranking my ISO up to 3200 gave me a decent snap of this bird who seemed as curious about me as I was of it.

One of my goals for the trip was to shoot baby birds, and to this point I'd seen very few.  Apparently this is the season for Black-necked Stilt babies, though.  I came across several pairs of adults who were clearly trying to shepherd me away from their young.

The babies, for their part, did a great job scrambling into tall grass when they got uncomfortable.  Probably a good instinct for their long-term chances of survival, but not a behavior that lent itself to great photos.

The other babies I saw consistently were Common Gallinule, mainly along the Shoveler Pond Auto-Tour Loop.  Most of them seemed to know to stay close to Mom.

This baby looks more isolated than it actually was.  The rest of the family were just outside the left edge of the image.  Composition is a powerful tool. :)

I'm getting to be quite a snob about needing catch light on the eye of my wildlife.  When I don't have it, I don't like the shot as much.  Even when the subject is fuzzy and adorable.

Another photographer was kind enough to point out a small alligator fairly well camouflaged by duckweed.  I don't know if the camouflage was intentional, or if it was trying to protect itself from the sun a bit, or if it was just a natural byproduct of swimming in water covered with duckweed.  Whatever the case, it looks cool.  Even without catch light on the eye.

More to come!

Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge: April 2016

Between the Smith Oaks Sanctuary and Rollover Pass, my visit to the Texas Gulf Coast a couple of weeks ago had already been tremendously fruitful by the second afternoon. I decided to press my luck and squeeze in another destination -- the Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge -- to see if there wasn't more still to discover.

Spoiler alert: There was. :)

The specimens I'd yet to encounter began to show themselves right at the Visitor Center, which is apparently a favorite area of some Killdeer.

Next up was the Shoveler Pond loop.  I struggled trying to catch any Purple Gallinules in good light.  But I did see this fellow, who also seemed interested in the Gallinules.

Red-winged Blackbirds were in abundance.  I always struggle to get much detail shooting any bird with black feathers.  This is one of my better efforts.

When I was first going through my images, I got excited that this might be a Seaside Sparrow.  Upon closer examination I believe it's actually a Savannah Sparrow.  Which is still cool.

Common Gallinules -- or Moorhens -- were much more abundant than their Purple cousins.  But they were also somewhat reluctant to stay still and close for pictures.  I was glad to catch one distracted by a bit of a snack.

When are Great Egrets NOT elegant?

A spot right before the bend to the west on Frozen Point Road was a haven for Common Nighthawks.  I saw three just plumped out on fence posts here, and none anywhere else.

I know this shot is barely even Bigfoot quality.  But I was excited to see a White-tailed Kite I'd heard was on the refuge, and wanted to share the flimsy photographic documentation I got of it.  Heavily cropped, obviously.

As I was on my way out, I saw a Black-necked Stilt just off the road.  I pulled over, got out of my car, and managed to snap a few shots of it that unfortunately didn't turn out.  But then I saw this Clapper Rail, and everything went right.

The same spot also yielded some close-up time with this Tricolored Heron, who was quite unperturbed by my presence.

I don't know how close it would have let me get, but I decided that this was plenty close enough.

Roughly 24 hours in the area -- four of which were spent sleeping -- yielded more than 2,000 photos in all.  I'd planned to stay one more night, but the forecast of persistent heavy rain starting that evening and the ridiculous haul of images I already had convinced me that I might as well head back home early.  So I did, and stretched out my processing and sharing of the pictures over 18 days and seven blog posts.

That's how you savor a photo trip!