Tuesday, 10:33 AM - Monroe, Georgia. - ​“Bill! Come here! Quick!”  I got up from my desk and scooted along in haste from my office at the rear of the Animal Control admin building. “You’ve got a friend under your car.” I slowed my pace in disappointment figuring it was just one of the many stray cats dumped out after hours at our animal shelter. But as I looked, “Now that’s no cat!”  

A gangly raccoon (Procyon lotor) was tip-toeing around the parking lot, sniffing, prowling, scratching the ground. I ran back to my office for my Nikon. As I came out the front door, he hunched up his back and gave me an, “I see you!” look. Of course, not following my own animal control wisdom occasionally dolled out to elementary school children, I approached a wild raccoon that was out-and-about in broad daylight. A site that makes many afraid! 

Despite popular belief, it isn’t necessarily true that any animal seen in daylight has rabies. In the spring and summer months, many species of wildlife, even the nocturnal, are forced into daylight excursions on the hunt for food to feed their recently born offspring. Crepuscular animals may also be seen foraging on overcast days.  But whether rabid or not, they are wild animals, not pets, and trying to pet them is just, well, foolish. 

​I didn’t suspect our parking lot raccoon of rabies. As I approached, he continued his searching and smelling with frequent glances in my direction. Eventually, the closer I got, he casually sauntered back down the willow lined drainage ditch leading to the woods behind the shelter, being more weary and afraid of me than I was of him. 

For many it would have been a fearful encounter with a rabid animal. For me, it was a photo-op and a little bit of joy encountering one of His creatures… even if it was out in the middle of the day!  

My first photo of a House Finch. In my early days of beginning to notice birds, this boy with the reddish head really stood out and amazed me. Why now, simply because they are so common, do I notice them with less enthusiasm? Still wonderful creatures! 

Sunday, February 5, 2012 - An afternoon hike at our local park, Sandy Creek Nature Center. 

​Whether it is for travel photography or nature photography, there is nothing better than making a free weekend in our busy lives in order to get away and enjoy. But since big trips often require a lot of planning, money and leave from our jobs, they don’t come often enough. That is when local destinations come into play. My busy life with work and church activities, kids’ band concerts and soccer games, doesn’t leave much opportunity to get away for my passion of birding and wildlife photography.  That’s why I love my local park: Sandy Creek Park and Nature Center in Athens, Georgia USA.
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Even if I can’t get out of town for an extended trip, I can drive 15 minutes to the north side of town and be instantly transported into the wild. In this relatively small piece of nature, there are beaver diligently working to keep the wetland ecosystem from drying out. The turtles emerge onto the logs for basking on warmer days. Long-legged wading birds pick frogs and insects from the shallow waters with their spear-like beaks. Lizards scurry about the leaves and thickets. And if you’re lucky, a snake may slither across your path! 

​Sandy Creek Park is almost 800 acres and a large body of water, Lake Chapman, sits right in the middle. Miles of trails circle the lake and there are plenty of other recreational opportunities. Adjacent the park, and connected by a wildlife corridor, named Cook’s trail, is the Sandy Creek Nature Center. Multiple hiking trails cross the 225 acre forested property and provide all types of nature and wildlife photography opportunities.
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So perhaps you can’t get away on an extended trip because of work or a busy life. But don’t neglect to look into your local parks and preserves. You may find a veritable wildlife safari tucked away in a small corner of your city that you never knew existed! 

Monday, 10:50 AM – Monroe, GA.  “911 to Animal Control” barked the radio. “Complaint of a large bird trapped in a screened patio.” I grabbed my camera and jumped into the passenger seat of an animal control truck. I was hoping it wasn’t like the “large bird” flying around a living room a few weeks earlier that turned out to be just a small Starling. I was hoping it wasn’t a fisherman’s tale or like the “huge” snake calls we get that turn out to be just small Garter Snakes. I was hoping for some excitement; something to add to the life list photos. 
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As we pulled up, the homeowner was out front. “I think it flew in last night and can’t find its way out.”  I walked in the sunroom patio through the doorway that was missing its door. Quickly scanning the room, my eyes were drawn to a beautiful bird perched stoically on the blade of the ceiling fan, eyes near closed as if in deep meditation.

​It was obviously an Eastern Screech Owl (Megascops asio), being way too small to be any other owl species. I fired a few shots.  “Excuse me, I was sleeping here”, he seemed to state as his eyes opened to slightly larger slits. But these slits quickly widened to full, bright yellow coins as my partner reached up with elk hide handling gloves. He then began quickly flapping back and forth across the room, again searching for the exit that he had failed to find all morning long. I got a few more shots as he perched around the room before he was safely hand caught and released outdoors where he gracefully glided off, not phased by the encounter. 

Walton County, Georgia