White-eyed Vireo - Vireo griseus

If you have been following my blogs.  You know, I have been reviewing to old files.  In 2002, I had returned from a great week at the New River Birding and Nature Festival in Fayetteville, West Virginia.  By the way slightly off the subject.  This is a great birding festival to visit.  It is in huge, the people a wonderful and the excellent trips which are will allow you to see and photograph a large number of species, especially warblers.  You can find information at http://www.birding-wv.com/

While at the festival, I was able to photograph a White-eyed Vireo, which was very friendly and I was able to capture the Vireo singing.

White-eyed Vireo singing

The next week, I friend Doug and I went birding in Newport, Rhode Island.  Guess what another friendly white-eyed vireo.  What made this vireo interaction even better, we watched it and I photographed it building its nest.  It came in went bringing material to fit into the nest.  Even though the nest was at eye level, as the leaves grew wild.  It would be hidden from view.  In fact, if it was not far us catching a glimpse of the vireo moving, I doubt we would have found the nest.

The Nest Description is from the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology:  "Nest an open cup suspended by rim from a fork of a small branch in a tree. Made of leaves, bark, plant fibers, rootlets, or bits of paper held together with insect silk and spider webbing and decorated on the outside with lichens, moss, or leaves. Lined with rootlets, fine grass, or hair. Placed low to the ground."

White-eyed Vireo - nest

White-eyed Vireo building its nest

White-eyed Vireo building its nest

White-eyed Vireo building its nest

White-eyed Vireo building its nest

White-eyed Vireo building its nest

More Adventures

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Before I continue with blogs about my Oregon trip, I must describe yesterday and today's events.  Also I have to finish working on the Oregon photos because on Thursday I fly to the Rio Grande Valley of Texas for three days of intensive shooting on a photo ranch.

Saturday, I joined my compadre John Slonina and helped him with his workshop photographing around the Newport, Rhode Island.  We started off at Sachuest National Wildlife Sanctuary in Middletown, Rhode Island, where we describe the natural habitat of the area and what could be found in the various seasons, plus make sure that the participants understand basic exposure and composition along with how to read a histogram and to start thinking out-of-the-box.  What thinking out-of-the-box is is just don't shoot standing up, vary your position settings focal length to give an individual feel to your pictures.

The group down on their knees to photograph in Eastham, cottontail in order to get a better perspective, in their picture

From Sachuest, we traveled in Middletown, Rhode Island to Boyds Wind Grist Mill and the 1875 Historic Paradise School.  There we photographed the windmill and the school with close-ups distance photos and sun flares.

Sun flare and silhouette of the windmill

Group Photographing the Windmill in the Shadow of the Windmill

Sun flare at the schoolhouse

We finished up the afternoon with a sunset on the Causeway to Goat Island, where there is a lighthouse and the Pell Bridge in the background.  Before the sun actually set we had beautiful color, but because of a dense cloud bank actual sunset did not show any colors.  So finished an enjoyable day.

Sunset Looking at the Lighthouse on Goat Island

This morning, Sunday, my great-granddaughter what to do go and photograph the sunrise, so we were up early and out to Gooseberry Neck for the sunrise.  Although the temperature was in the 50s.  There was a brisk wind blowing, and it was somewhat cold.  However, we did get an interesting sunrise with the sun illuminating the edges of the clouds.  After we photographed the sunrise, we went out for a nice breakfast at a reasonable cost at Grimms located on Charlotte White Extension in Westport.  The food is good, and as available at a reasonable cost, cash only.

Sunrise at Gooseberry Neck in Westport

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Newport County, Rhode Island

Today is Thursday and it is my regular day for birding with my good friend Doug.  Today we went down to Newport County, Rhode Island, and first birded St. Mary's pond in Portsmouth.  We then went to Miantonomi Park, Newport, which is a well-known birding area.
At St. Mary's pond, an Osprey flew above us, carrying a fish in its talon. 




Yellow warblers were flitting around and singing as well, as were






house wrens. 




Cedar waxwing's did put in their appearance.  In total, for St. Mary's pond, we ended up with 36 different species of birds.
We then traveled to Miantonomi Park, Newport , where we picked up another 38 different species of birds, of course, there was duplications in the lists.
We were able to observe and photograph a 2nd year male Summer Tanager, and then a little later a Cooper's Hawk's did stay around long enough for me to obtain in its picture.




We observed a white eyed Vireo at a nest, which at first we thought that it was building, but, on further observation the Vireo was returning and taking material from that nest to add to its nest wherever it was hidden.




So ended another good day of birding, we did see some deer, rabbits, and butterflies, but that those pictures will be for later.

Yellow-rumped (Myrtle) Warbler

American Robin

Common Grackle

Northern Cardinal

Northern Paurula

Downy Woodpecker - female

White-breasted Nuthatch upside down on linb

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Moonset, Wing Blurs and Harlequin Ducks

Traveling Saturday down to Rhode Island for birding and photography, we went to an old standby, Sachuest National Wildlife Refuge in Middletown, Rhode Island, and to a new location that was recommended to me as a better location to photograph Harlequin Ducks. More on that location later in this blog.

The day was post be cloudy and then sunny, but, it started out raining and drizzling with a lowlight level. It, however did make for some interesting photographs.

We were in the parking lot at Sachuest, looking around to see if we could see any of the deer that I usually out feeding when, just prior to sunrise. I glanced across the bay at St. George's school and noticed a very bright light in the sky. When I looked with my binoculars, it turned out to be the moon starting to set. Utilizing my 500 mm lens, which had a 1.7 tele-converter on it, the Puffin Pad on my window of the car and I obtained this photograph.

Since there was not much doing around the parking area of Sachuest, we traveled just down the road to the Middletown 3rd Beach, where the Sachuest Salt Marsh is located. Even though I shot at a ISO of 1100, my shutter speed was only one 250th of a sec. This made for some interesting wing blurs. My subjects included an American Black Duck and a Bonaparte's Gull.Bonaparte’s Gull taking off

American Black Duck wing Flap

Bonaparte's Gull

We then went back up to the main refuge and travel down to Island Rocks, where we did view harlequin ducks among the other species that were swimming, but they were really too far away for great photographs. We returned to the visitors center via the Ocean View loop to see if there were any unusual birds present. We saw all of the sea ducks, except for Long-tailed ducks.

We then traveled into Newport, Rhode Island to Ledge Road, which is off of Belleview Avenue, just beyond the sharp right turn before Belleview Avenue turns into Ocean Drive. The very end of Ledge Road is part of The Cliff Walk. The rocks off of the end of the road is where the harlequin ducks hang out, and lower the tide, the closer you can get to the ducks. Drake Harlequin in Flight

Drakes landed in the water chasing the Hens

Drakes on the Rocks

Drake and Hens Preening

A flight of purple sandpipers kept wheeling by the area.