I can't begin to convey how much nonstop running it takes after a good rainstorm. Two birders were here this morning and can testify how the pumps, separating lines, in and out of the water, etc. kept me hopping. When I was finally able to take a short break, I decided to go below the big (lower) dam to see if the Lucifer Hummingbird was on his territory. Didn't need my big lens for that, right?
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| Looking south. Oasis barely visible in background |
As soon as I got below the dam (to the right off the above photo) I saw a male Lucifer, but more intriguing, I saw and heard a
Black-capped Vireo singing. First singing one at CMO. It flitted around inside Evergreen Sumac bushes as it foraged. I scrambled back to my pickup for my Canon, chastising myself for never learning to keep it with me at all times. When I got back to the viewing area, I again saw and heard it but it would not land anywhere long enough for me to focus my lens on it. In frustration, figuring it would disappear any second, I just snapped a bunch of frames of the bush is was in, hoping to get something at least diagnostic from the bunch. My philosophy is, no photo, it didn't happen.
As I was doing that, the male Lucifer was suddenly being challenged by another male Lucifer. I shot some of that too, but all this shooting was taking place at quite a distance. Here's through my 400 mm lens uncropped.
And here are a couple of cropped ones.
When I couldn't locate the vireo anymore I went and got the birders and we looked and looked in vain. I lamented to them that I wasn't able to get a photo of it. I totally discounted the rash of bush pics and forgot all about them. So wonder of wonders, when I downloaded my photos one of them has a decent shot of the vireo. I'm sure that's a once in a lifetime occurrence for me.
And I still can't get over the wonder of having plenty of water to lavish on my vegetation going into summer. I've been frugal with it so long I won't know how to act.
At long last, dragonflies are starting to show up. And there was no hail damage.
4 comments:
Wonder-full!!
LOL, it sure is that!
Congrats on seeing the Vireo (your photo is actually quite good!). I've been lucky enough to see 2 of them in Big Bend over the years. But never able to get a photo nearly as good as yours. Will it stick and nest, do you think?
Carla in Rowlett
Thank you, Carla. That is the first photo I've gotten of a breeding plumaged male BCVI. The visitors with me that day are very knowledgeable on that species and said they do sing during their migration, so I think it was just moving through. But I'll keep watching for it just in case. One of my original stated goals of CMO was to attract BCVIs to nest here.
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