So, where have I been? It seems like I’ve been in catch-up mode all summer, and I’ve been doing some volunteer work at a nearby wildlife rehab, the PAWS Animal Wildlife Sanctuary. Really, it’s all volunteer work, as the organization is all-volunteer. Mostly it’s been maintenance work, like pressure washing and clearing vegetation from flight pens and such, but I did have one Suptertastical weekend releasing two owls and two hawks that had gotten all better. There’s some videos on their facebook page.

Anyway, on to the lake. First, let me get this UFO-quality photo out of the way. I was heading up a narrow inlet when a Bald Eagle came down the inlet and flew right past me. I had milliseconds to grab the camera and, well, this was the best I got:

I’d been fooled by these guys before, thinking I was looking at Egrets, but I believe these are Little Blue Herons. They’re all white when they’re young, like the one on the right, and the one on the left I’ll bet is starting to get his adult plumage.

I got some neat shots of this Great Egret (yes, this one really is an Egret). As you can see, there are trees dropping leaves already, probably due to the lack of rain we’ve had for most of August.

“Climb at Egret’s discretion.”


That’s a Killdeer in the background getting lunch. The foreground bird looks like a sandpiper, but I couldn’t really match him up to get a decent ID. Most possibilities have a line across the eye, but this one didn’t have any such marking. Maybe a Solitary Sandpiper?

Two female Mallards. “You watch that way, I’ll watch this way.”

And, of course, the obligatory Great Blue Heron picture: