San Angelo’s International Water Lily Collection

San Angelo, Texas, is proud to own one of about only five certified International Water Lily Collections.  It contains four separate large pools of Water Lily specimens from all over the world.  I hadn’t been down to see them in several months, so Sunday morning I decided it was time to make a visit.  We weren’t disappointed, as even though the temperatures were approaching the 100 mark again, the blossoms looked beautiful.

We had to wait until late morning to see the blossoms.  Most of these blossoms close up at night, so we had to wait until late morning to get these photographs.  By then, the sun was high and bright.  Consequently, I had to adjust the EV quite a bit.  I hope you enjoy the images.  Click on any one of them for an enlargement.

• Canon EOS 7D
• Canon 100-400mm zoom lens
• 1/250 sec. @ f11 – minus 1.3 EV adjustment
• ISO 100
• Lens focal distance – 200mm
• Metering – Partial
• Aperture priority

• Canon EOS 7D
• Canon 100-400mm zoom lens
• 1/800 sec. @ f11 – minus 1.3 EV adjustment
• ISO 100
• Lens focal distance – 190mm
• Metering – partial
• Aperture priority

• Canon EOS 7D
• Canon 100-400mm zoom lens
• 1/800 sec. @ f11 – minus 1.3 EV adjustment
• ISO 100
• Lens focal distance – 340mm
• Metering – Partial
• Aperture priority

• Canon EOS 7D
• Canon 100-400mm zoom lens
• 1/800 sec. @ f11 – minus 1.3 EV adjustment
• ISO 100
• Lens focal distance – 200mm
• Metering – partial
• Aperture priority

Help! I need your votes………..

I am appealing to all my faithful, loyal readers wordwide.  I have entered several photos in the 2011 National Wildlife Federation photo contest.  An additional event this year is a People’s Choice Award.  That means my friends like you, can post your votes for what you think is the best photographs.

I have conveniently made it easy for you to check out my entries and see if they are worthy of such a supreme award.  Just click on this link:  

 http://www.nwf.org/PhotoContest/PhotoContestHome.aspx?perma=bobzeller1@aol.com

I thank you in advance for all of your help.

Tale of The Take – Ruddy Ground Dove

I have had a lot of people ask me all along about how I got some of my photos.  I got to thinking that there is a story behind almost all of my images, so what better than to relate to you, my readers, these tales.  So today I start the series, “The Tale of the Take”.   Catchy name, don’t ya think? 🙂

First up will be my exciting narration of how I was able to obtain this image of a very rare Ruddy Ground Dove.  As with a lot of my photos, a lot of luck was involved.

Ruddy Ground Dove

On Sunday afternoon, February 10, 2009, I got an e-mail forwarded from a local birder.  It was from Don and Linda Burt who live on property at Dove Creek, near here.  They gave a phone number and invited anyone to call or come see a rare Ruddy Ground Dove on their place.

Of course, since I am the consumate “have camera, will travel” guy, I gave them a call.  Sure, they said, c’mon out.  I loaded my equipment into our Mercury mini-van, and Ann and I headed out.

Now, at that time, I was pretty new at this past-time of birding.  I absolutely had no idea what a Ruddy Ground Dove looked like.  I didn’t even have the sense to look for pictures of one.  Fortunately, upon arrival, we found half of the Abilene chapter of the Audubon Society already there looking for it.  They thought they saw it in some trees, but couldn’t say for sure.

This was about 2:30PM or so.  Don Burt called me aside and told me to be patient.  He pointed to a fence gate about 30 yards away.  Just wait, he said, because at about 4:00 a flock of Inca Doves would gather near that fence, and the Ruddy Ground Dove would be among them.

I went ahead and got my Canon 40D, my current camera then, out of the car.  I attached my Canon 500mm super-tele with a 1.4 teleconverter.  I mounted the rig onto my Bogen-Manfrotto tripod with a Wimberley gimbal head.  I got it into position for a possible shot, then sat in the shade and waited.  So did the group from Abilene.

Sure enough, right on time, a bunch of Inca Doves flew in and started feeding near that fence.  The Audubon people pointed out to me the Ruddy Ground Dove.  I sure was happy that I wasn’t alone or I probably wouldn’t have recognized it.  I found it in my viewfinder and was able to get several shots.   Pertinent photo data:  Canon 40D SLR.  Shot at f5.6 for 1/1600 second.  ISO 400 in Aperture Priority.

The Ruddy Ground Dove is very rare in the United States, but sightings are on the increase, as they move up from Mexico.  As you can see, except for the markings, it could have been easily mistaken for a Mourning Dove by a novice like me.

Watch for my next thrilling, exciting, Tale of the Take.

More about X-Bar Ranch Nature Retreat

Sunrise at X-Bar Ranch Nature Retreat

Click here for X-Bar Ranch Nature Retreat information.  Ann and I made a visit last week and spent a few days birding and photographing.   I had told you about it briefly in a post last week.  Here are some photos that I promised you. 

 

We spent most of our time around the lodge area, about 50 feet from the cabin that we stayed in.  It was amazing how many bird species that we saw in that tiny area.  We could have driven around the ranch on our own, but we will do that on another visit, as we were afraid of missing a new bird.

 

We were the only guests there, so we had the entire place to our own.  Stan Meador, the general manager, welcomed us and saw to our needs, then basically just left us alone.  Stan returned on Tuesday morning, and took us in his pickup truck for a tour of the ranch.

 

Besides the birding opportunities, there is hunting, hiking, biking, and camping.  As a matter of fact, Eddie Salter, a national champion turkey hunter and guide from Hunter’s Specialties had just finished filming a hunt to be shown in January 2012 on the Outdoor Channel.

 

At the bottom of this post I have listed the total species that we saw there.  Click on any photograph to see an enlargement.

 

Painted Bunting

Golden-fronted Woodpecker

Northern Mockingbird

Chipping Sparrow

Western Scrub Jay

House Finch in flight

Rufous-crowned Sparrow

Canyon Towhee

Northern Bobwhite

 

 

Happy Birding!!

 

Location:     X-Bar Ranch
Observation date:     4/18/11
Notes:     These are our observations at the Lodge April 18, 19, & 20th.<br>from
the north & south ends of the porch!
Number of species:     37

 

Northern Bobwhite     8

Wild Turkey     4
Turkey Vulture     6
American Kestrel     1
Eurasian Collared-Dove     2
White-winged Dove     6
Mourning Dove     10
Black-chinned Hummingbird     4
Golden-fronted Woodpecker     1
Eastern Phoebe     1
Eastern Kingbird     1
Western Scrub-Jay     7
Barn Swallow     2
Black-crested Titmouse     4
Bewick’s Wren     2
Hermit Thrush     2
Northern Mockingbird     6
Orange-crowned Warbler     2
Nashville Warbler     1
Yellow Warbler     2
Yellow-rumped Warbler     3
Spotted/Eastern Towhee     5
Rufous-crowned Sparrow     2
Canyon Towhee     2
Chipping Sparrow     6
Lark Sparrow     2
Savannah Sparrow     2
White-crowned Sparrow     2
Summer Tanager     3
Northern Cardinal     6
Pyrrhuloxia     1
Blue Grosbeak     1
Painted Bunting     4
Great-tailed Grackle     2
Brown-headed Cowbird     1
Scott’s Oriole     2
House Finch     10
House Sparrow     2

 

 

San Angelo State Park – Update

 I have been under the weather for a few days, but I am getting better.  However, my time in the field has been lacking, so I haven’t done much photography.  So today, I thought I would publish this rerun/update of this post from April of 2010.  I have updated it somewhat, and added a few more photos for your enjoyment.

Horned Toad

Since I do a large percent of my birding and photography at San Angelo State Park, I feel compelled to tell a little bit about it.  I imagine a large percentage of you readers have never heard of it, let alone visit it.

White-tailed Deer

 

It was created in 1952 when O. C. Fisher Dam and Reservoir were completed for flood control.  In 1995 it was officially opened as San Angelo State Park.  It is comprised of 7,677 acres, mostly undeveloped land.  But the developed part is a gem. 

Picnic site

 

There you can find wildlife of all types, white-tailed deer,  rattlesnake, javelina, bobcat, porcupine, jackrabbits, prairie dogs, and many more than I have space to list.  There is a herd of bison, and part of the Official Texas State Longhorn Herd  resides there. 

Painted Bunting

 

Did I mention that there many types of birds in the park.  There are 356 species of birds in the Concho Valley and you can see most of them in the park at various times of the year.

Eastern Bluebird

Also available are many campsites, some dry camps, other full-featured hook-ups.  Picnic tables abound for the day-trippers.  Air-conditioned cabins are for rent for visitors who don’t happen to own an RV or other camping gear.  And lest I forget, there are hiking trails galore.

Air-conditioned Cabin

 

Kurt Kemp and his staff do a wonderful and efficient job of maintaining the numerous areas of the park.  At the South Entrance gate-house you can find maps, souvenirs, and get park information.

Bobcat

Plans for the future include additional bird-blinds for the birding enthusiast and bird photographers.  There is an ongoing project to eradicate the mesquite and salt-cedar to aid in water runoff for the Concho River and O. C. Fisher Lake.  The amphitheater, aptly named “Butterfield Stage”, has been completed and is now serving various functions.

Porcupine

So all in all, I would say that the future of San Angelo State Park looks rosy indeed.  Now if only we could get a little more rain on the North Concho River water-shed, the level of the lake would rise.  Then we could make use of the many boat ramps that are currently hundreds of yards from the shoreline.  At that time, boating can truly be added to the already long list of activities for park visitors.

Great Blue Heron and Roseate Spoonbill

Happy Birding!!

Finally, some Vermilion Flycatcher images

Where did summer go.  Yesterday morning the temperature here in San Angelo got down to 38 degrees.  It was been cold all day.  Had to turn the heat back on.  What the heck is going on?  But, as we say out here in west Texas, just hang around and things will change.  The forecast for the coming weekend is the mid nineties.

The title of this post reflects the frustrations that I have had the past three years in trying to photograph those tiny creatures.  I have seen them before, don’t get me wrong, but I have never been able to get my lens locked on to them for a good picture.  But that changed last week on our trip to the Big Bend National Park.

The two following photos are the results of that endeavor.  The Vermilion Flycatcher (Pyrocephalus rubinus) in the top picture is the male.  The second one is the female.  Both are tiny, shy birds.  They are possibly relatives of the phoebes.  These images were captured at Rio Grande Village Campground in the park.  I mounted my Canon 7D on a tripod with my 500mm and 1.4 teleconverter.  Standing under some trees I had a good view of the birds flitting around.

Vermilion Flycatcher - male

Vermilion Flycatcher - female

In other news, I decided to enter an art show put on by the San Angelo Art Club.  Their club consists mostly of paint artists, but twice a year they have an “Anything Goes, Almost” show and artists of all mediums are invited to enter.  They have a competition and give out cash prizes and ribbons for each medium.  Maybe I can get lucky.  I dropped off two of my latest creations this morning.  If I do win anything, you will be among the first to know.

So, I bid you adios from this post.  Click on the images to see enlargements.

Spring has sprung – or not

I guess spring is finally here, however it is a little cooler here today, but I will ignore that.  Trees are budding out, expecially the mesquites, and that should be a sure sign.  But on the other hand, a niece e-mailed me three days ago that they had gotten 12 inches of snow that morning.  She lives near Traverse City, Michigan.  Thank God for Texas.

We saw our first Ash-throated Flycatcher of the year.  Plus I had a report from friends down in Eldorado that they had seen two Scissor-tailed Flycatchers.  So I guess the migration has started.  I hope you like this photo that I took when I first saw that flycatcher.

Ash-throated Flycatcher

People have asked me how I put that frame and mat around my digital images.  Well, I have a very special friend that wrote me a custom “action” for my Photoshop Elements program.  Pretty neat, huh??

About the Ash-throated Flycatcher (Myiarchus cinerascens).  Breeds in open, dry habitats.  It spends it’s summers in the Southwestern United States.  Click on the image to see an enlargement.

This flycatcher is difficult to discern from a few other species.  To learn more about the identification of all birds, Delbert Tarter, one of the best local experts on the subject, will be presenting a three-week, 12-hour class at the San Angelo, Texas, Nature Center.  Two hours each Tuesday and Thursday nights for the duration.  (Delbert, wasn’t that neat how I worked that plug into this post for you?  You can thank me later.)  🙂   Phone 325-942-0121 for more information.

One more thing, click here to see what  Toby  Shoemaker, of Maine, is saying about me.

Birding Big Bend Again March 2011 – Part II

I thought that for this part I would just show you a bunch of photos from the trip.  No bird photos, but some “touristy” images.

We were staying at The Lajitas House, a bed and breakfast type of house that we rented for our stay.  It is located on a bluff overlooking the Rio Grande River.  This first picture is looking upriver from our patio.  Mexico is on the left, of course.

Rio Grande looking upstream from our patio.

The second image is looking across the river towards a little Mexican village.

Looking south across the Rio Grande River

Number three is looking north from our patio.

Looking north or to our right from our patio.

Our patio, where we sat enjoying the sunsets, sipping margaritas, and just relaxing.

The patio of The Lajitas House

Image number five – it doesn’t get any better than this. 🙂

Another view from the patio.

This view is from high in the southern part of the Chisos Mountains.  The cleft in the distant cliffs is Santa Elena Canyon, about 30 miles away.

Looking south from high in the Chisos Mountains

Next photograph is of a line shack on Homer Wilson’s Blue Creek Ranch.  Behind it is Sentinel Peak.

Homer Wilson's line shack below Sentinel Peak

This tunnel is on the highway that leads to Boquillas Canyon and Rio Grande RV campsite on the east side of Big Bend National Park.

Tunnel east of Panther Junction park headquarters.

About twelve miles north of Lajitas on highway 170 is the ghost town of Terlingua.  Someone had made this junk sculpture and mounted it on a post.  A whimsical replication of a wasp, I would say. 🙂

Junk sculpture at Terlingua ghost town.

How about a beautiful sunset shot from our patio.  As I said before, it doesn’t get any better than this.

Sunset from patio of The Lajitas House

I hope you enjoyed these photos as much as I enjoyed taking them.  Click on any image for an enlargement.

Birding Big Bend Again March 2011 – Part I

Back from our favorite haunts again.  Our stay at the Lajitas House was just great.  Large, spacious, quiet and comfortable.  We sat and watched birds and quail come up on our patio.  At night the stars were so bright it was almost blinding.

Scaled Quail on the patio

The first day, Tuesday, we went into Big Bend NP to check out some birding places.  We stopped at the ruins of Sam Neal’s house that stood over 100 years ago.  The vegetation and trees are all grown up, but there is a little shaded area that is frequented by birds of all types.  Thrashers, thrushers, sparrows, towhees. 

Common Black-hawk

While there we visited with another birder/photographer, Cindy McIntyre,  (http://cindymcintyre.blogspot.com) from Maine.  She is a Big Bend NP ranger.  She had been to Rio Grande Village, an RV camping area on the on eastern side of the park.  She told us about two rare Common Black-hawks that were nesting there.  She said the site was easy to see, as the park service had the area marked with signage, to protect the birds.

Vermilion Flycatcher

So as you would guess, on Wednesday we headed over there.  Sure enough.  We spotted one hawk almost immediately.  It was sitting on a branch in plain sight.  A great photo opportunity, and I took advantage of it.  It was also another lifer for me, number 222.  Previously, I thought I had already reached 222 but found that I had erroneously added a Purple Finch to my list, when I have actually never seen that bird.

In a nearby area, we saw several Vermilion Flycatchers moving around.  They are tiny, flighty, creatures that can’t sit one spot more than a couple of seconds, and also dificult to get close to.  However, I was able to get my 500mm with a tele-converter, mounted on a tripod, about 35 yards away.

Click on any photo so see an enlargement.

Coming soon, Part II.  I will tell you some more about the trip and our experiences.

Off to the Big Bend again

This will probably be my last post for perhaps a week or so.  We are heading to the Big Bend country of west Texas Monday morning.  This time we are renting the Lajitas House at where else, Lajitas, Texas.  Check this link to see what we will be enjoying for three days: http://www.lajitashousebigbend.com/   I am sure we will be sitting on that patio sipping a margarita or two, and aiming my camera at all the great surounding areas.

We will probably check out all of our favorite places in Big Bend National Park;  Santa Elena Canyou where we may see some Peregrine Falcons.  Rio Grande Village camping area is a great birding area, plus we may see a Bobcat or a Coyote.  There is also a great Nature Trail with a board-walk crossing some wetlands.

Floating the Rio Grande - photographed from another raft.

I don’t think we are planning on rafting the Rio Grande this trip but here is a photo of Ann and I preparing to go on a previous trip.  The little half-day float trip that we ususally do is really easy.  Just a few little water rapids splashing over the bow, just enough to make it fun, without worrying about capsizing.

Ann and I preparing to run the rapids of the Rio Grande River

The ruins of the Sam Neil Ranch is a great place to see lots of small birds.  You may also be surprised by a bunch of Collared Peccaries, commonly known as Javelinas.  You may smell them before you see them.  However, they are also quite noisy.

This jacal, or dugout, is on the Old Maverick Road.  It has an interesting history.  It was built by Roberto Luna after his marriage, who lived there until his death in1953 at the age of 103.  He farmed off the land.

Roberto Luna's jacal.

You can’t ignore the Chisos Mountains, the dominant range that is visible from every point in the park.  Elevations around 8,000 feet.  The Basin is an area in the middle of the mountains where the Lodge and camping area are located.  The floor of the Basin is at an elevation of 5,000 feet so you are surrounded by the peaks.  Great birding there, also.

Chisos Mountains

Driving west from Lajitas to Presidio on Hwy 170 is one of most spectacular scenic drives in the country.  At one point, called locally the Big Hill, you are about 450 feet above the Rio Grande River.  This drive is a must if you are in the area.  Here is a photo of Ann standing precariously above the river.  Don’t step back, dear. 🙂

Ann at the Big Hill

So,when we get back, maybe I will have some more interesting images to show you.   By the way, click on any of the above images to see enlargements.

I am still transferring pictures into my iPad.   Holy Moley, Batman, I hadn’t realized how many images I had wanted to move.  I have come across some pictures that I forgot I had.