 William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the wonders of God’s creation. Great are the works of the LORD, studied by all who delight in them. Full of splendor and majesty is his work. Psalms 111:2  Tuesday afternoon, the young Great Blue Heron was fishing on the banks of the main retention pond outside my back door. Great Blue Heron, Walton County, GA Tuesday, October 9, 2018 A slight chance of showers, then a chance of showers and thunderstorms after noon. Cloudy, with a high near 81.  This young Great Blue Heron is quite tolerant of my presence and frequently allows a close approach.  A portrait face shot of a Great Blue Heron, Ardea herodias, showing third eyelid, or nictitating eyelid. A nictitating membrane is a third eyelid that is translucent or clear. It is used as an extra level of safety for the eye and allows the creature that has it to still see while affording its eyes an additional amount of protection. Photographed in Walton County, Georgia, USA. Wednesday, October 10, 2018 Hurricane Michael is coming ashore on the gulf coast of Florida.  Not having seen a Great Egret in over a week, I had assumed it was gone. But there was one back on the upper pond during my lunchtime birding break. Walton County, GA. Thursday, October 11, 2018 Hurricane Michael hit Florida yesterday afternoon and then passed through Georgia last night as a tropical storm. I was awoken several times during the night with hard rains beating against the windows driven by strong winds. Strong wind gusts this morning making waves across the retention pond. The overflow from the main and upper retention ponds is gushing strong and rejuvenating the lower duckweed bog and beaver swamp. Today: Showers and thunderstorms before 1pm, then a slight chance of showers between 1pm and 2pm. Some of the storms could produce heavy rainfall. High near 81. Northwest wind 15 to 20 mph, with gusts as high as 30 mph.  Chipping Sparrow; Walton County, GA.  Small flocks of House Sparrows have been appearing throughout the day eating the spilled cat food in the shelter's parking lot. Walton County, GA. Friday, October 12, 2018 The cold front that was promised has come on the heels of Hurricane Michael. It is a truly beautiful, 50-degree fall morning with a clear blue sky. This is the first morning I've needed a light fleece jacket. The birds were feeling it too as there was quite a bit of avian activity! Today: sunny, with a high near 74. Northwest wind around 5 mph.  Several agitated Titmice were flitting about the duckweed bog in the cool fall morning air. Walton County, GA.  Several agitated Titmice were flitting about the duckweed bog in the cool fall morning air. Walton County, GA.  My first spotting of a fall Yellow-rumped Warbler for this season. Friday afternoon. Walton County, GA.  My first spotting of a fall Yellow-rumped Warbler for this season. Friday afternoon. Walton County, GA.
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 William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the wonders of God’s creation. Romans 14:6 Those who worship the Lord on a special day do it to honor him.  Magnolia Warbler; Walton County, GA. It looks like Monday, October 8 was Magnolia Warbler Day! Well, it was for me, if for nobody else. I spotted one in the afternoon just before leaving my office in Walton County. I then spotted a second Magnolia Warbler in my backyard in Clarke County when I got home from work. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 83. East wind 10 to 15 mph, with gusts as high as 20 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%.  Magnolia Warbler; Clarke County, GA.  William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the wonders of God’s creation. Matthew 10:29 Not even a sparrow, worth only half a penny, can fall to the ground without your Father knowing it.  Sunday, 8:26 AM - Another Sunday morning of relaxed birding from my back patio before church. Still in that “Big Day” mode I was shooting almost every little bird that flew into the yard, although I knew most of the shots would be deleted. But by luck, a poorly backlit photograph turned out to be a life bird. I’m glad I had just been firing away and didn’t delete them all! Clarke County, GA  Swainson's Thrush; Clarke County, GA.  House Finch eye disease infection. This finch came separately from the first group of House finches to the feeder. I first noticed it flying erratically and having a hard time perching. Once landed, I could see that one eye was closed and other barely open.  A tiny Pine Warbler landed just twenty feet from me in the Crepe Myrtle tree next to the patio.  Pine Warbler; Clarke County, GA.  William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the wonders of God’s creation. Psalms 111:4 -- He has made His wonderful works to be remembered; The LORD is gracious and full of compassion.  Eastern Bluebird perched on a Persimmon Tree branch. October Big Day; October 6, 2018. Clarke County, GA. October Big Day is happening now! The October Big Day ran from midnight to midnight on October 6, 2018. Who made up the Big Day team? The entire human race! All birders were encouraged to get out for at least ten minutes and list. Unfortunately I had a very full Saturday; plans that couldn’t be discarded to go birding. But I did start my day listing on my back patio with a cup of coffee and camera (as usual) and birded in a few other places that I had to be that day. It’s a fun personal challenge that I kept to myself. None of my friends and family around me that day knew I was participating in a huge event with millions of other birders around the world!  Blue Jay. October Big Day; October 6, 2018. Clarke County, GA.  Blue Grosbeak at birdbath. October Big Day; October 6, 2018. Clarke County, GA.  Brown-headed Nuthatch at bird feeder. October Big Day; October 6, 2018. Clarke County, GA.  Northern Flicker. October Big Day; October 6, 2018. Clarke County, GA.  William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the wonders of God’s creation. Isaiah 59:5 People hatch evil like eggs from poisonous snakes... they tell lies as they would spin a spider’s web.  Orbweaver spider on large web reflecting over water. Athens, Clarke County, GA. Neoscona crucifera is an orb-weaver spider in the family Araneidae. Spiders produce silk from their spinneret glands located at the tip of their abdomen. In a recent blog, I asked how a wildlife photographer could keep a stock portfolio relevant to upcoming holidays such as Halloween. The answer? Creepy Creatures! There are plenty of scary, macabre and spooky animals related to Halloween that can fill an animal photographer’s portfolio. Take the spider! (Well, no thanks, not me. I won’t take the spider!) Just the thought of those spindly, hairy legs lightly creeping across your skin can make your hair stand up! Halloween aside, I’ve always gotten the heebie jeebies when it comes to arachnids! Perhaps it is that sticky silk woven into webs to trap unsuspecting prey. It may give us the subconscious idea of the curses woven by those Halloween witches. Either way, it is no thrill to walk through a dark wood and be lashed across the face by an unseen web… and wonder if the maker is now in your hair or crawling down your back. And those eyes, hundreds of eyes! One superstition is that the dead could peer upon the living through the eyes of a spider. No wonder these little creepy crawlies and their webs are favorite decorations at Halloween!  October 11, 2018 - Yellow Garden Spider; Walton County, GA  October 11, 2018 - Yellow Garden Spider; Walton County, GA  William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the wonders of God’s creation. Jesus answered, “Where there is a dead body, there the vultures will gather.”  A large black vulture, Coragyps atratus, with beak open sits at the top of a dead tree in Walton County, GA. The black vulture is a scavenger and feeds on carrion, but will also eat eggs or kill newborn animals. Need stock photos? Download from my gallery on www.dreamstime.com. 100% of funds support waltonpets adoption photography. Thursday, 10:06 AM - There are plenty of critters out there in the wild that people have long associated with Halloween. One such creature is the vulture. Why are they thought of as creepy critters fitting for the witching hour? Perhaps it is their creepy bill of fare. There isn’t much that is more gruesome than a gathering of vultures hunched over rotting carrion on the roadside. In fact, a gathering of vultures feeding on a corpse is called a wake… of course referring to the pre-funeral vigil held beside the body of someone who has died. If that isn’t enough, perhaps it is their fitting Halloween attire. Black Vultures (Coragyps atratus) are, of course, all dressed in black. Turkey Vultures are dressed in similar mourning garb, but sport blood-red heads. A suitable spooky ensemble. If all of that wasn’t enough to scare you, their dreadful voice will certainly tip the scale. When vocalizing, the vulture is no Song Sparrow. His voice is a deep, hissing, grating croak which can stop you dead in your tracks and make your skin crawl. Black Vulture (Coragyps atratus)    William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the wonders of God’s creation. With my great power and outstretched arm I made the earth and its people and the animals that are on it, and I give it to anyone I please.” Jeremiah 27:5 Monday, October 1, 2018  Great Blue Heron flight shot. Monday morning, October 1, 2018.  Monday, October 1, 2018. I assumed this was another Chipping Sparrow flitting with the others in Black Locust Tree. But I had "that feeling" and took a shot. A zoomed in view revealed a Palm Warbler! Tuesday, October 2, 2018  A Tuesday morning surprise! An Osprey was soaring in a straight course from north to south over the main shelter pond. My first Osprey for Walton County! Wednesday, October 3, 2018  Wednesday, October 3, 2018. Two Belted Kingfishers have been very active each morning, chasing each other over the several retention ponds.  Wednesday, October 3, 2018. Two Belted Kingfishers have been very active each morning, chasing each other over the several retention ponds.  Wednesday, October 3, 2018. It seems like the Pine Warblers are more abundant... or at least more active. I hear their trilling in the pines each morning this week.  Wednesday, October 3. I skipped my lunchtime run and sat in the shade by the beaver wetlands behind the shelter. Several American Redstarts were stirred up at my presence. My first photo of a pretty male.  Wednesday, October 3. I skipped my lunchtime run and sat in the shade by the beaver wetlands behind the shelter. Several American Redstarts were stirred up at my presence. Thursday, October 4, 2018  An Eastern Wood-Pewee flitted among the dirt mounds behind the public works compound early Thursday morning; October 4, 2018 Friday, October 5  Eastern Gray Squirrel on a rock with a chip of turtle shell in his mouth chewing for calcium. Walton County, Georgia, USA. Need stock photos? Download from my gallery on www.dreamstime.com. Funds support waltonpets adoption photography.  The House Finch count is much higher than it has been in recent days. Perhaps because of fall migration.  A young Red-Tailed Hawk soared overhead mixed with a large group of vultures.  William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the wonders of God’s creation. Psalms 104:24 -- O LORD, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all. The earth is full of Your possessions;  The Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus), also known as the hoot owl, is a large owl native to the Americas. Monday, 7:15 AM - The pre-dawn sky was still a deep magenta as I turned off Highway 78 onto Jim Daws Road. There atop a snag was a huge owl. Even though the bird was mostly a dark silhouette, I just knew it was something larger, something greater… a Great Horned Owl! I couldn’t miss this photo-op. I pulled over just down the road, went around to the passenger side for my camera and headed back to the owl. Just enough light was hitting his amber body to give a bit of a glow and produce a decent photo. As I was shooting the owl, I noticed the podcast I had been listening to (the American Birding Association’s podcast, of course) cut off and the radio flashed, “lost Bluetooth connection.” After a few seconds it dawned on me: MY PHONE! I must have knocked it out of the truck when I got my camera. I sped back… but no phone. It was gone. Thankfully there were several messages at my office from my wife and the gentleman who had found my phone. I gave the guy twenty bucks, a small token for his honesty, and retrieved my cracked up phone. But again, thankfully, it was only the screen protector that was cracked. My phone had survived. I’ll always remember my encounter with this owl and another lesson learned. Great Horned Owl, Bubo virginianus |
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In December 1993 I came to know the Designer and Creator of this wonderful planet and its creatures: Jesus Christ.
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