There are always trade offs in wildlife photography. Things are rarely perfect.
A nice young Spoonbill, ever present mud.
If the mud leaves then the water is probably covering it. And, it’s too deep to fish.
Spoony, Some Rain, Mud
Category Archives: Spoonbill
Feeding In A Marsh
This year between the heat and pandemic limitations my trips to the further marshes has been limited. When I did get out the larger flocks and feedings just were not around.
I’ll stop complaining… for now.
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Wood Storks and Roseate Spoonbills working a marsh together.
Spoonbill, Wildlife Area
Taken in a wildlife management area, ACE Basin. This land has been a plantation, hunting preserve, and now managed by South Carolina Dept. Natural Resources.
Some of the largest tracts of land here, tens of thousands of acres, were once owned by wealthy business men and used as hunting preserves.
Ownership was passed to South Carolina, with provisions, starting about 100 years ago. The WMA’s are still growing today using the same agreements.
A large land tract with plants known only to grow on a specific island was donated by Tom Yawkee, owner of baseballs Boston Red Sox. Ted Turner, of CNN and Turner Broadcasting, added a barrier island that is a pristine ecosystem (Ellen and I were among the first allowed on the island to photograph).
This system of wild land donations works well here. Not so much in other places in the US.
These Spoonbill, and other rare critters, thrive and survive here due to all that hard work.
Taken at Donnelley Wildlife Management Area.
Spoonbill, ACE Basin
Roseate Spoonbill, ACE Basin, South Carolina.
Spoonbill Sighting
This was what prompted me to head down one of the dikes. Not a great day, wet and dark, but a Roseate Spoonbill was heading off from there so of course I followed.
No big flocks lately but there were a few around.
ACE Basin, South Carolina.
Did Not Cooperate
I followed A Spoonbill and Glossy Ibis as best I could, without climbing down into the marsh muck.
They walked the same speed as me, keeping the same distance.
I wanted the Glossy to walk along side the Spoonbill. I got just the opposite, he hid behind him.
At least I shot some mediocre Spoonbill shots.
Spoonbill In A Shallow Marsh
While not great for photographs a low water depth is exactly what a Spoonbill wants.
When the Florida Everglades had some areas revert back to their original deeper Spoonbill disappeared, they did however show up inland where they had never been seen. They followed the water levels.
A Two’fer, Glossy Ibis And Roseate Spoonbill
This doesn’t happen every day. Both in the same photograph.
ACE Basin, South Carolina.