When you start a day with Wood Storks everything just gets a little better.
Even if the rest of the day doesn’t go well I’m OK with that.
Great Way To Start The Day, Wood Stork
Category Archives: Stork
This Is A First, Stork Is The Little Guy
Out of place, maybe for the first time ever.
An adult Wood Stork can usually look a person right in the eyes. They are tall and most times the biggest in a marsh.
The White Pelican is not as tall, but is really big. Probably weighs ten times more than a stork.
Storks mixed with the Pelicans here, but I could see they were watching them closely.
Impossible To Count
Shallow water in a marsh.
It’s feeding time.
This is a small part of the flock, all that fit in my view finder.
Note; click the image to view full size.
Golden Hour
I tend to complain about bad light, so…
Really good light.
Taken in the ACE Basin. Wood Stork and Snowy Egret.
A Unique Bird, Wood Stork
If this was the only animal I was able to find all day, I still would consider it a good day. Wood Storks are very special birds.
How many birds come back from being endangered, moving towards extinction. This bird expanded it’s range.
You can hear the birds beating wings before you see them. The wing span is at least 5 feet (1.5 meters).
I noticed several Storks and passed up close shots of Egrets and Pelicans to catch up with this guy. It was early with light just starting, but I did get close enough for these photographs without scaring him.
A Great Gathering
The Lowcountry is known as one of the biggest and best wild bird areas in the country. Even here though finding a gathering like this is special. Something you see only a few times a year.
These photographs capture a small piece of the different flocks.
When the water levels are just right all the different species come together to feed.
When the water rises, or food is depleted, they will move to other areas around the marshes. Unfortunately for us most of the locations are inaccessible. Of course this is exactly why the animals come here in the first place.
Morning In A Marsh
A scene that greeted me as I approached a marsh.
I was moving around some trees and bushes, going towards an open area with a clear view.
I stopped short of walking out right in front of them. Thought it better to shoot from behind the trees.
Working The Shallow Marsh
This is a magical scene we rarely get to witness, especially close up.
White Pelican are surface feeders, not divers. They also work as a unit if part of a flock. Above they have pulled close together and slowly swim forward, driving the fish ahead.
As the water gets more shallow the fish are trapped and feeding begins.
This marsh has become more of a watering hole. In the photographs above many other birds can be seen in the background. Wood Storks being the most obvious, but there are Egrets, Ibis, Gull and even smaller Avocet.
This time of year, if lucky, we can come across groups like this with hundreds of birds. The jack pot ? Thousands.