Friday, May 23, 2014

Prothonotary Parents

After visiting Jefferson Island last Saturday we made time to go kayaking at Lake Martin. There was still enough light to bird when we were finished paddling. Upon entering the boardwalk a young woman was standing on the middle slat of the boardwalk fence, leaning against a tree for support, pointing her camera down toward the water. Four prothonotary warbler chicks were sitting in a rotted cypress tree that was jutting about 3' out of the water. The parents were returning to the nest every few minutes with caterpillars and all sorts of insects. It was really neat to watch.
Here you can see a hungry baby in the lower left of the frame. Baby bokeh!

Look how wide the babies' mouths get! Dang, that's a hungry young'un.


I think this might be Dad since he is a brighter yellow

This is probably Mom with her darker yellow feathers. She and her mate never stopped feeding.

Dad again! I was impressed with their devotion to their chicks. Oh how I wish the light had been better that day!

I included this photo because I learned how to use the Radial Filter in Lightroom 5.
There is a great tutorial here if you have LR5. Basically you select an area in the image
that you want lightened or darkened for subject enhancement. It's really an easy process!
Cheers to the weekend! I hope it's as beautiful in your area as it is here. We found out where the yellow-breasted chats are, so Double D and I plan to scope out the area on Saturday.

49 comments:

  1. Oh Gail, these are gorgeous captures! Devoted parents indeed, with four huge mouths to feed.

    Oh no, I'm channeling Pat Hatt again! LOL

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  2. Love this series Gail. They're beautiful birds I might add...as are your photos

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  3. What an amazing set of photos Gail! And that baby looks super hungry lol. That mother has her work cut out for her L:)

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  4. Oh Gail I love that you and DD are loving life and getting out there doing what you love it shows in your photos. HUG HUG have a nice weekend. B

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  5. They are beautiful birds. I'm looking forward to seeing the yellow-breasted chats. They are a favorite of mine.

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  6. Great series and beautifully enhanced in the last shot.

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  7. Great job, Gail! I know that was so much fun. Isn't it rewarding to photograph something beautiful?!

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  8. The light looks fine to me. Colors are often more saturated in overcast conditions.

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  9. So glad you were there to capture the scene.... That baby sure was hungry and yes, what a mouth!!
    I simply love all these precious happenings that you run across! Signs of a great photographer!!!
    Enjoy your outing on Sat and have a safe and relaxing weekend..
    Shug

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  10. Fantastic shots - you have certainly captured the mood - such gorgeous plumage colours - Jane Uk

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  11. Beautiful pictures of the parents who feed their young.
    They have very busy with, they are always hungry.
    Greetings Irma

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  12. Us humans can learn from birds, can't we?! Dads are very important!

    More awesomeness, Gail. Nice work w/LR5.

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  13. gorgeous birds and gorgeous shots! sure hope the babies can get clear of the water when they fledge! :)

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  14. Delightful shots of this busy little family Gail! Beautiful clarity and colour!

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  15. What gorgeous photos of birds !

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  16. It is wonderful and magical photos. Parents take care of all ...

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  17. Awesome and fortuitous shots. Now I must learn how to pronounce Protonotary.

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  18. Baby bokeh! Love it, Gail! Enjoy the weekend!

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  19. Fantastic Gail, you are seeing some wondrous sights when kayaking. I have never heard of this prothonotary warbler before. It's a sweet little thing and so are those chicks. Your photos are breathtaking.

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  20. Wow Wow; I've enjoyed all the great pictures of the parents love for the baby bird(^_^)v How fantastically photographed☆☆☆
    When I read the title, I wondered the word 'prothonotary' p;)

    Thank you very much for sharing wonderful series of sweet pictures. Great Morning feeling of love I had♡♡♡

    Sending you Lots of Love and Hugs from Japan, xoxo Miyako*


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  21. Orchid again;
    The Radial Filter thing seems so interesting; I'll watch the video again when finding time. I know this thing must be beyond me, though :)
    Love, Miyako*

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  22. Great shots! They have such beautiful yellow plumage!

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  23. Once again you have captured these birds so well. I have bookmarked that tutorial and will check it out later.I'm always willing to learn more.

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  24. These photos are amazing my friend. Thanks so much for sharing them with us..

    I do hope you have a great weekend.

    Hugs~

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  25. These are just wonderful in every way. Love the color of these birds and the fact you capture the hungry little baby bird, that is totally awesome.

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  26. Marvelous shots! What pretty birds!

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  27. What beautiful moments, Gail, and such gorgeous captures of these lovely birds! Thank you so much for sharing.

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  28. these. are. gorgeous.

    absolutely stunning....their plumage is so bright and beautiful!!

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  29. hi dear friend! Nice to see your photos of the parents taking care of their young. awh, precious. You have the best hobby ever. I just get high an a great deals and blog about it where you share nature at it's finest.

    And just to clarify ---

    I am not half way yet. I have had 2 chemos and need 4 more. I am so anxious to get #3 behind me, then I will be half way.(June 6th if white count is good) This one has been weird but I think much better than the first one. But my issues this time has been more emotional because I am completely bald now. See Monday's post......eeeeeeek.
    Ps. I don't like my wig.
    ♥, Renae

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  30. I don't think I've ever heard of prothonotories before, and now I've read two posts about them this morning! I hope that's a sign that I'll see some. Great captures, here, Gail. Baby bokeh!! I love that radial filter effect. Maybe it's time to upgrade my Lightroom!

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  31. What beautiful captures of these colorful little birds. How cool to see the babies in the nest!

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  32. Precious captures! The hungry chicks are so cute.

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  33. Your flowers are always beautiful.

    As beautiful as the mushrooms.

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  34. How exciting to have gotten in so close to the warblers!

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  35. Your photos are amazing. How wonderful that you were there during dinnertime!

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  36. Enjoy the weekend and hope the holiday weekend brongs more wonderul photo adventures for you as it always seems to do.

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  37. Fantastic shots! So beautiful captures!

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  38. Aw what sweet and devoted parents.

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  39. A beautiful bird with its bright yellow color.
    Also beautiful drawing. Very well done!

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  40. He's a beautiful little thing. And your images, as always, are amazing.

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  41. What a lovely bird. Such nice educational shots. Thanks for sharing.

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  42. What gorgeous shots of this pretty bird!

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  43. Gorgeous pictures of this warbler. I wish I could take such good bird photos like you! Splendid!

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  44. What a fantastic series, Gail, and what an opportunity you had to photograph the family. I love this bird. I hardly can believe it flies around in the wild. Greetings from the Netherlands, Joke

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  45. In-spite of low light, you have got some wonderful pictures.
    Yes the devotion of the birds to bring up the young ones is remarkable.

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  46. Oh boy, that is Hunger with a capital H. What an amazing series of photos of these dedicated parents.

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