ארכיון יומן של פברואר 2022

פברואר 1, 2022

A Tiny Ball of Energy

An excerpt from my 2018 nature journal: Monday, January 8, 2018, 10:53 AM – I was hoping to add some new birds to my photo life list this year; and it has started off well!

Winter Wren
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 25464078 - Winter Wren; Walton County, Georgia. January 8, 2018.

Walking briskly to generate some body heat against the cold, I took a quick walk up to both of the water retention ponds behind my office just before lunch. Both are almost entirely frozen over; the ice being thick enough to withstand the blow of a softball sized rock! That doesn’t happen very often here in Georgia. Although there is small opening of unfrozen water on each, the chances of new ducks arriving are decreased at least for today. For the ducks seek open water to rest during their long winter flights southward.

With nothing to see on the open ponds, and my fingers beginning to freeze, I take just a quick jaunt down by the secluded grasses and brambles along the duckweed bog. I could hear the wrens and sparrows rustling in the grasses. In a tall narrow opening of a tree stump, another wren popped into view. But it wasn’t the typical Carolina Wren I normally see in my birding patch. I fire off a few photographs wondering what I have seen. I have a few suspicions, but head into my warm office for a little confirming research.

Winter Wren
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 25464078 - Winter Wren; Walton County, Georgia. January 8, 2018.

Searching a field guide, and gaining a visual confirmation from the Merlin Bird ID app, a Winter Wren, Troglodytes hiemalis, was added to my list! The Cornell Lab of Ornithology website perfectly and poetically described what I had both seen and heard: "In the tangled understory of eastern forests, a tiny ball of energy lets loose with a rich cascade of bubbly notes. This songster is none other than the Winter Wren, shaking as it sings its astoundingly loud song."


​Walton County, Georgia

  • Cloudy with a high near 41°
  • Sunrise 7:39 AM, Sunset 5:41 PM
  • Day length: 10 hours, 1 minute
הועלה ב-פברואר 1, 2022 05:46 אחה"צ על ידי williamwisephoto williamwisephoto | תצפית 1 | 0 תגובות | הוספת תגובה

פברואר 2, 2022

Vulture Party

Nature journal excerpt from January 14, 2018...

Turkey Vulture
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 66422024 - Turkey Vulture;
Clarke County, Georgia. January 14, 2018.

Sunday, 3:43 PM – I went for a birding walk through the wooded greenspace of my neighborhood between morning and evening church services this bright blue but chilly Sunday afternoon. Not spying too many other birds, it was basically a vulture walk. Standing camouflaged under the tall snags, the vultures would fly in to perch directly above my head; their wings sounding like flapping plastic trash bags as they not-so-gracefully landed.

Every fall a mixed gathering of vultures descends upon our neighborhood. Thankfully they stay off the roofs but choose the several tall dead White Oaks to roost. There are two types of Vultures here in Georgia. The Turkey Vulture and the Black Vulture. If one has a clear eye on their head color, the difference is obvious. In the air when the head color isn’t as discernable, it is a little trickier. But size, color and how they hold their wings are good indicators.

I was happy to get a shot of both species sitting side-by-side for comparison. I had to sneak into my neighbor’s yard to get closer. I could just hear them inside the house, “Honey, our crazy bird loving neighbor is in our yard again looking at vultures!” Oh well.

Turkey Vulture
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 66418836 - Turkey Vulture and Black Vulture; Clarke County, Georgia. January 14, 2018.

The following day (Monday, January 15) I was off from work for MLK Day. I sat alone next to my backyard fire pit watching over 30 vultures in the trees. Again, not a cloud in the clear blue sky. Yesterday’s strong winds have died down a bit and the vultures are soaring in squadrons across the sky. Dozens upon dozens in the trees; groups soaring overhead; loners perching and lifting off from the snags… a true “vulture party”!

Turkey Vulture
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 66421597 - Black Vulture; Clarke County, Georgia. January 14, 2018.

Just after 5 PM the vultures begin leaving the snags one by one in varying intervals. After sitting silent in the setting sun for quite some time, it would then enter in the mind of one vulture, “my turn”, and it would lift off and sail away eastward. As they passed nearly directly over my head, I had plenty of opportunity to practice panning for flight shots.

Just past 5:00 PM the treetops are still glowing orange in the setting sun, but all else has fallen into cool blue shadow. At 5:17 PM the last Black Vulture lifted off, and two minutes later the last Turkey Vulture took to the sky. Sunset is at 5:47 PM, my backyard fire is dying down and approximately 70 blackbirds fly high in the sky overhead from east to west, heading to their homes as I head into mine.

Turkey Vulture
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 66425137 - Vulture roost; Clarke County, Georgia. January 15, 2018.

Athens-Clarke County, Georgia

  • Sunny with a high near 44°
  • Sunrise 7:38 AM, Sunset 5:47 PM
  • Day length: 10 hours, 8 minutes
  • Moon: 2% waning crescent
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Coot Supper

Nature journal entry from February 2, 2018...

American Coot
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 66739581 - American Coot; Walton County, Georgia. February 2, 2018.

I made my morning walk around back to retention pond to count the Redhead Ducks. On the first pass I only saw eight. But on my way back there were 16. Half we’re underwater on my first walk-by!

At the northern point of the main pond, I saw a fast walking “duck” mixed in with the resident Mallards. Something different here… an American Coot! I spent 15 minutes shooting from my truck and filling an SD card. (Filling an SD card is so much better than the high cost days of shooting off several rolls of film!)

American Coot
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 66739581 - American Coot; Walton County, Georgia. February 2, 2018.

Going back out at 10:30 AM, the Coot was right outside the shelter back door tearing up a dead bream fish. This bird must have come from an area where it was accustomed to seeing people. It allowed me to approach so closely; I scooted forward on my butt until I was only 25 - 30 feet away. I fired off another several hundred photos and scored some great shots of the dead fish in its mouth.

Walton County, Georgia

  • Mostly sunny, high 49°
  • Sunrise 7:29 AM, sunset 6:05 PM
  • Day length: 10 hours, 35 minutes
  • Moon: waning gibbous, 95% illumination
הועלה ב-פברואר 2, 2022 09:21 אחה"צ על ידי williamwisephoto williamwisephoto | תצפית 1 | 0 תגובות | הוספת תגובה

פברואר 3, 2022

Phinizy Swamp Gator Close Up

Phinizy Swamp Nature Park, Richmond County, Georgia
Alligator
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 105556971 - American Alligator; Phinizy Swamp Nature Park, Richmond County, Georgia. January 1, 2022.

In the northwestern corner of Phinizy Swamp, across the wooden bridge that crosses the oxbow lake marsh, is the "Equalization Pond". I assume it is a bit deeper water than the wetland cells, and therefore houses a variety of wildlife. There is always a fairly large gator or two out in the open and up close for some good photographs.

A short wooden fence surrounds the pond and can obscure the banks. So you occasionally have to slow down and peer down over the fence along the water’s edge. On my last trip to Phinizy, I nearly passed by one large alligator. It was only several yards from me, but hidden by the fence and bank. Climbing up on the fence a bit, I was able to shoot down and get some great detail photographs of those water-tight crocodilian scales and armor.

Alligator
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 105556971 - American Alligator; Phinizy Swamp Nature Park, Richmond County, Georgia. January 1, 2022.

New Year's Day at Phinizy Swamp Nature Park; Richmond County, Georgia

  • Clouds and sun, with a high near 81; wind gusts as high as 25 mph.
  • Sunrise 7:32 am; Sunset 5:31 pm
  • Daylight Hours: 9 hours, 59 minutes (+31s)
  • Moon: 1.8% Waning Crescent
הועלה ב-פברואר 3, 2022 11:10 אחה"צ על ידי williamwisephoto williamwisephoto | 0 תגובות | הוספת תגובה

פברואר 5, 2022

Focus Stacked Sparrows

House Sparrow
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 74301325 - Focus stacked images of two House Sparrows; Walton County, Georgia. February 4, 2021.

When it comes to photography, there are times when what you see is not what you get. These two sparrows were perched couple of feet apart, one closer to the lens than the other. But as we gaze with our naked eyes, our brain focuses instantly as we look from one to the other and we don’t often perceive any depth issues. But in photography, if the two objects don’t occupy the same plane, one will appear blurry.

To remedy this issue, photographers use a technique call focus stacking. One photo shows one subject clearly, while the other is blurred, and vice versa. This photo is actually two separate photographs "stacked" upon one another. One shot had the House Sparrow closest to my camera in focus, and in the second shot I focused on the bird that was further away. The two images are then blended together to create one photo in which both House Sparrows are in focus. The step-by-step technique is a bit too lengthy to reproduce here. But there are numerous tutorials on the web.

House Sparrow
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 74301325 - House Sparrow; Walton County, Georgia. February 4, 2021.

House Sparrow
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 74301325 - House Sparrow; Walton County, Georgia. February 4, 2021.

Walton County, Georgia. Thursday, February 4, 2021.

  • Mostly cloudy, with a high near 52. South wind around 5 mph.
  • Sunrise 7:29 am; Sunset 6:09 pm
  • Daylight Hours: 10 hours, 40 minutes (+1m 44s)
  • Moon: 49.6% Third Quarter
הועלה ב-פברואר 5, 2022 02:10 אחה"צ על ידי williamwisephoto williamwisephoto | תצפית 1 | תגובה 1 | הוספת תגובה

Your Local Park

Sandy Creek Park & Nature Center, Athens, Georgia USA

Great Blue Heron
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 19763835 - Great Blue Heron; Sandy Creek Nature Center, Athens, Georgia. February 5, 2012.

Whether it is for travel photography or nature photography, there is nothing better than making a free weekend in our busy lives in order to get away and enjoy. But since big trips often require a lot of planning, money and leave from our jobs, they don’t come often enough. That is when local destinations come into play. My busy life with work and church activities, kids’ band concerts and soccer games, doesn’t leave much opportunity to get away for my passion of birding and wildlife photography. That’s why I love my local park: Sandy Creek Park and Nature Center in Athens, Georgia USA.

Even if I can’t get out of town for an extended trip, I can drive 15 minutes to the north side of town and be instantly transported into the wild. Sandy Creek Park is almost 800 acres and a large body of water, Lake Chapman, sits right in the middle. Miles of trails circle the lake and there are plenty of other recreational opportunities. Adjacent the park, and connected by a wildlife corridor, named Cook’s trail, is the Sandy Creek Nature Center. Multiple hiking trails cross the 225 acre forested property and provide all types of nature and wildlife photography opportunities.

In this relatively small piece of nature, there are beaver diligently working to keep the wetland ecosystem from drying out. The turtles emerge onto the logs for basking on warmer days. Long-legged wading birds pick frogs and insects from the shallow waters with their spear-like beaks. Lizards scurry about the leaves and thickets. And if you’re lucky, a snake may slither across your path!

Painted Turtle
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 19763815 - Painted Turtles; Sandy Creek Nature Center, Athens, Georgia. February 5, 2012.

So perhaps you can’t get away on an extended trip because of work or a busy life. But don’t neglect to look into your local parks and preserves. You may find a veritable wildlife safari tucked away in a small corner of your city that you never knew existed!

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פברואר 6, 2022

Pray and Go Birding!

1 Peter 5:7 "Cast all your care upon Him; for He careth for you."

Field Sparrow
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 20361600 - Field Sparrow; Walton County, Georgia. February 6, 2019.

What do you do when life has you down? Pray and go birding! When your job is stretching your stamina to the breaking point? Pray and go birding! When you need to relax and shake off the nerves? Pray and go birding! When the next little thing will tip your headache to a migraine? Pray and go birding!

There is no need for a scientific study to tell me that getting outdoors is a way to reduce stress. There is no need to write a paper about how getting away from a ringing phone will calm my nerves; how unplugging from email and social media will lower my blood pressure; how fresh air will clear my lungs and refresh my mind. I don’t need a scientific study because I know first-hand!

There isn’t a need for the Mayo Clinic to tell me the supernatural benefits of prayer. There is no need for them to post a blog telling me that having a purpose in life reduces depression; that prayer and meditation produces actual physical benefits to my brain; that focusing outside myself can alleviate worry and fear. I don’t need that blog because I know first-hand!

Try it sometime. Stop reading this blog, close your browser, push back the chair and walk out the door. Talk to God; cast your concerns at His feet; enjoy this world that He created. You just might get addicted. I know because I go there every day. So, pray and go birding!

הועלה ב-פברואר 6, 2022 07:13 אחה"צ על ידי williamwisephoto williamwisephoto | תגובה 1 | הוספת תגובה

פברואר 7, 2022

A Gathering of Greats at Phinizy Swamp, Georgia

Great Egret
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 104777646 - Great Egret; Phinizy Swamp Nature Park, Richmond County, Georgia. January 1, 2022.

Phinizy Swamp Nature Park is a great place! Perhaps because I live over an hour away in Athens, I had no idea it even existed. But when I joined iNaturalist, I began seeing all kinds of great photographs being posted from a swamp just outside of Augusta! Living in the Piedmont, I typically had to drive several hours to find some good wetlands habitat. I was happy to find this great place call Phinizy Swamp!

On any visit, the long-legged waders are present. Ibis, herons, egrets and a variety of other waterfowl love the wetland cells. It is some great habitat for them. On my last January visit, it was definitely a gathering of the greats: Great Egrets and Great Blue Herons. There were dozens and dozens of stately white Great Egrets standing in marshes. The Great Blues were a bit more tricky to find, and in less abundance.

Great Egret
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 105836180 - Great Egret; Phinizy Swamp Nature Park, Richmond County, Georgia. January 1, 2022.

The Great Egret, Ardea alba, is found throughout the world in tropical or warm climes. Being all white and standing at 1 meter tall, it often stands out among the green reeds of the wetlands it inhabits. The Great Blue Heron, Ardea herodias, is a bit taller, but its gray and blue coloration make it blend in with its surroundings a bit better. Both wade through the shallow marsh waters with their long legs hunting for a wide variety of food, including fish, snakes, frogs, dragonflies and crustaceans. With plenty of these prey items available as well, Phinizy Swamp is a great place for the gathering of the Greats!


Phinizy Swamp Nature Park; Richmond County, Georgia. January 1, 2022

  • Clouds and sun, high near 81. Southwest wind 11 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 26 mph.
  • Sunrise 7:32 am; Sunset 5:31 pm
  • Daylight Hours: 9 hours, 59 minutes (+31s)
  • Moon: 1.8% Waning Crescent
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פברואר 8, 2022

Handle with Care

Big Brown Bat
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 17865393 - Big Brown Bat; Walton County, Georgia. January 9, 2018.

Working with animal control gives me front row seats to some great critter encounters. On January 8, a resident of Davis Street in Monroe, Georgia called 911 when she found a bat in her bathroom sink. Upon arrival, the officer found the bat just where the caller said. It apparently couldn’t fly and was unsuccessfully trying to climb up the porcelain walls to freedom. Knowing I love this kind of stuff, the officer brought the bat back to the office.

The following day I took this Brown Bat out for a photo shoot. He was quite alert and spunky, constantly baring his teeth and making those high-pitched squeaks typical of bats. He didn’t appear ill, but didn’t try to fly off. Using the 40 MM macro lens, some very sharp teeth were revealed in the photos.

Big Brown Bat
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 17865393 - Big Brown Bat; Walton County, Georgia. January 9, 2018.

הועלה ב-פברואר 8, 2022 07:08 אחה"צ על ידי williamwisephoto williamwisephoto | תצפית 1 | 0 תגובות | הוספת תגובה

פברואר 9, 2022

Climate Change

Nature journal excerpt from February 9, 2020...

Hooded Mergansers
© Photographer: William Wise | iNat Observation: 39748092 - Chipping Sparrows at bird feeder; Athens-Clarke County, Georgia. February 9, 2020.

I don't know about things on a global level, but if you live in Georgia, you certainly know something about climate change. Drastic changes in temperature are quite the norm in the southeast! Only a few days ago we tied a February record at 75 degrees. Then the following day we had tornado watches and warnings. And now today... snow! The morning rain switched to flurries just before noon and left that beautiful blanket of white. We had several seasons within just a few days! As they say, "If you don't like the weather in Georgia, wait a minute."

Athens, Clarke County, Georgia

  • Cloudy, with a high near 42. Snow flurries this morning.
  • Sunrise Today:7:25 am; Sunset Today: 6:10 pm
  • Daylight Hours: 10 hours, 45 minutes (+1m 49s)
  • Moon: 99.6% Full Moon
הועלה ב-פברואר 9, 2022 03:57 אחה"צ על ידי williamwisephoto williamwisephoto | 4 תצפיות | 3 תגובות | הוספת תגובה