B and I had big plans EARLY Saturday morning in June to bird with a group on Myles Road in Donaldsonville, LA. We were pumped since the area is known as Bunting City. Buntings! As in Painteds and Indigos! Lots of them!!
We met at 6:30AM(!) in order to get to the destination by 8AM (!). After a few wrong turns, due to faulty GPS coordinates, we finally made it to the long and winding gravel road. By hour two I had sweated through my clothing, including my capris. I was praying people would understand that it was perspiration in the crotch/thigh area. I was completely potty trained over 50 years ago. :)
We saw the Painted and Indigo Buntings all right, but not how we'd imagined. They were few and far between, high up in the canopies or perched high on electrical wires. Out of a couple hundred photos I managed to salvage these seven.
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| Curly Clematis |
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| The orange color of these poles stood out to me. |
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| Yellow-crowned Night Heron |
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| An Indigo Bunting flying away. |
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| A Painted Bunting up high and far, far away. Typical of the day. |
Our fearless leader noted over 41 species that day, including a Meadowlark, White-eyed Vireo, and Belted Kingfisher. I must've missed those during my heat stroke. For a birder it was a great day; for a photographer, not so much.
45 comments:
You got some great shots! The heron is beautiful! Have a great week, phyllis
Sometimes, the best laid photographic plans don't work out so well, but 7 good shots are a decent haul. Love the heron and the clematis.
ha ha
I understand the heat stroke. About died yesterday myself
Beautiful pictures Gail.
I love the heron.
Have a nice new week.
Best regards, Irma
Beautiful pictures, dear Gail. The photo of the bird taking off in flight is wonderful.
Have a blessed week! Hugs!
You made the most of the photos you did get.
"Don't be bitter...reconsider" You were able to go there and try and not everybody can do even that. All of your posted pictures are good examples of your efforts. I have never seen a Curly Clematis!
Love the shot of the heron, and that's an amazing shot of that beautiful indigo bunting! They are such gorgeous little birds. We had one flitting through our front yard a few days ago, but haven't seen him since. They're such a treat.
I love the orange pole fencing shots. They are wonderfully shot. Lovely bird images along with the scenic and flower shots.
I too love the orange pole among the green! It's the kind of image that I love to find. Sorry about the absent buntings..and about the sweat. :-) You did end up with some great images, even if they aren't really what you were going for!
I had to laugh out loud at your post. The heat would have been plenty to do me in! The photos you did get were great. I'm still smiling at the one where you're pointing out the bunting far away in the canopy.
I used to be happy if I saw birds! Now I am not thrilled unless I get a picture. I try to remember that old feeling but it's hard! A beautiful area though.
awwww, you really made me laugh out loud, I can so relate!! You will have to settle for those images in your head and hope that your guide didn't lie ;)
The heron is a beauty! And I love the indigo bunting in flight! Wonderful photos!
love the fence shots, of course. :) and the black-crowned!
oops. meant yellow-crowned.
You got some great shots, but I can imagine how disappointed you were. This is a typical day at my house - they are always flying away or perched high up beyond my zoom len's reach!
While I know that you are disappointed with the number of indigo buntings that you were able to photo, I'm certainly happy to see the picture of the one you captured....flying away! so very pretty! I sure had to laugh at the "Word Picture" that you painted for us, concerning your sweat! LOL... It is so difficult to concentrate when heat is taking you over! Glad you captured the curly clematis...I've not seen one before! Beautiful outing!!
Telling me about the heat almost ruined this post for me. :) I was feeling a little soggy just reading about it. I could NOT live in Louisiana unless I stayed in air conditioning all summer. I admire your perseverance, and it paid off with some lovely shots. I especially like the one of the heron. Very nice.
You still managed to capture some great shots, Gail! LOL about sweating through your clothes!
The photos you did get were lovely and I love your sense of humor.
Wonderful shots!
Photography is always "iffy" when it comes to days out, birding. But I must admit....that one of the I. Bunting with full wings exposed is awesome Gail.
And I too sweat like a horse in this awful humidity!!! Seems it's only me too, no one else is wet. LOLOLOL
Yes I am a big back of the thigh sweater. So I can sympathize. Nice pics!
So always swap the role between a birder and a photographer.
You will get maximum satisfaction.
That sounds like my kind of luck! You still got some great shots.
Great pics. I liked the orange posts too. Thanks for sharing and coming by to visit. Have a great week.
I couldn't have stood that heat. I do love the shot of the Heron.
Hello, I enjoyed this post on your birding outing. You are brave to put up with the heat and probably bugs too. I love the Night Heron and Bunting in flight. Sorry the Painting Buntings were not down lower. Great captures, enjoy your day!
I really like your fence photos. Some days birds can be extremely elusive, can;t they?!
Sorry the day was a "bunting bust" but you did get some great photos!
You all really earned those shots battling the elements. I am thinking you almost have to bring multiple sets of clothes to be comfortable at all in your heat and humidity.
Love the Indigo Bunting in flight!
Your heron looks terrific!
Too bad you didn't manage to get closer photos of the birds, Gail. But your story and series are great and tells a lot about your trip. I also have visited a bird area with a birder. When they see a little dot in the distance through their spotting scope they are happy. But for a photographer it's nothing. I don't do it again or without my camera. It's too much a disappointment. Greetings, Joke
The Indigo Bunting in flight is gorgeous! So is the Yellow-Crowned Night Heron. And I love the orange fence posts - I would have taken pictures of them as well!
Love the orange fence post with barb wire!
Great photo of the Heron, too!
That's a bummer about the heat. You did make me laugh with the "potty training" comment though. I enjoyed your photos. The one with the barbed wire wraped around the post was stunning as was the shot of the Heron and the Bunting flying away.
I know how disappointing it is to come home with few good shots. You worked hard to get them, too. I'm hoping for a cool down here so I'll want to venture outdoors again.
You caught the Bunting mid flight :-}}}}
The fence poles are eye catching!!
I thought I had already left a comment on this post. Perhaps it is in the ether!! Anyway, i love the first shots wiht the bell like flower and the lovely view with the reflection as well as the stately Heron.
The Heron saved the day, didn't it? :)
I love that fence post with the wire wound around it though I don't understand how something as that spiky wire may look so fragile... Great image, Gail.
I have only seen a painted bunting once...I will never forget it. Last year we had many indigo buntings here and that started my desire to own a better telephoto lens. I haven't bought one...yet!
Love the photos you shared here--beautiful. Unfortunately stalking birds for me often results in captures like your last one! It's so neat to see lovely birds, but so frustrating when they're so far away that my 50x zoom won't give me a close-up.
I've only seen one painted bunting in the wild and was it ever a thrill. Sounds like you had quite a nice bird day.
All these images stood out to me!
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