| Saturday, May 27, 2017 | | May Days | Several folks have asked about the Colington osprey and how they are doing.
Once the Colington marina new nest platform was in place, the osprey pair quickly began building a rudimentary nest and within a few days, the female was sitting on the nest while her mate dutifully brought more sticks and fish. Eggs typically hatch within 6-7 weeks, but as of Memorial Day Saturday, I still could not see any baby in the nest, and an adult was no longer staying on the nest fulltime. Perhaps there is a young chick too small to be seen yet. I won’t know for sure until another couple of weeks goes by. I hope they nested successfully but it may be that their nesting late thwarted their efforts and we will have to wait another year for babies.
Meanwhile, the Kitty Hawk eagles nested again this year and I have had one glimpse of at least one eaglet. The day I was there, I could never get a clear angle for a photograph of the baby but I did witness two crows harassing the parent eagle. The aerial acrobatics were amazing to watch.
In early May Pete and I made a quick day trip over to Washington NC to pick up some pottery for both galleries. A couple of old homesteads on the way caught my attention and I will share one of those below.
I just concluded co-leading a three day photo workshop that was based at the Sanderling Resort in Duck. One benefit of teaching is that I have the chance to be outdoors photographing while instructing my students. The two mornings we got up in the dark in order to be on the beach at first light revealed an entire ghost crab village in front of the resort! I relished the challenge of trying to photograph scurrying crabs in low light; a high ISO helps here. Meanwhile, the ghost crabs would run towards the wave wash, hunker down, and let the water run over them. I saw only one crab act as if it were eating something. At first I worried the waves would overpower them, but I would see their little eye stalks sticking up as they swished and swirled and came to rest in a new spot. It was easy to imagine they were playing in the surf and enjoying it as much as we do.
Both mornings, the sun rose in an essentially clear sky, with little to reflect the color. I taught my students to look down into the wave wash for patterns of texture and color and to find their vibrancy there. Later, fellow instructor Chuck Almarez from VA taught the class how to create mandalas and twirls from their photographs; I will include an example so you can see what I mean. Fun. Workshop coordinator and our third instructor Nancy Sander brought props for the group to practice with; I found her hourglass compelling enough to use for what I hope is an emotional image that tells a different story than The Homestead does about time passing.
After the official workshop concluded those who were staying longer in the area got the treat of a private horse tour with Rick Romano of Corolla Outback Adventures. A Corolla resident, Rick shared his love and knowledge of the herd with us. As we expected, the May flies were out and the horses sought some relief at the water’s edge. More fun to watch than the flies were the dragonflies that came up the beach in huge swarms the second afternoon we were at the Sanderling. I am so glad the students had the chance to experience a Dragonfly Migration Day. I will share some of our horse tour photos and perhaps some additional workshop images in the next blog.
For Memorial Day weekend, as we play in the sun, picnic, go to the pool or beach or lake, or gather with friends and family for a cookout, let us pause and remember those whose sacrifice gives us the opportunity to enjoy such simple pleasures in freedom.
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click for larger image | There seemed to be a dense congregation of ghost crabs right in front of the Sanderling. I imagine eating is as good on the beach here as in the restaurant! |
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click for larger image | ...and they would keep coming back for more. When the sun rose they scurried back to their holes to rest. |
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click for larger image | Here, Henry, the male, brings a fish to his mate Grace. She flew off with it while he settled down in the nest, presumably incubating eggs. |
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click for larger image | The intense, vibrant glow and patterns in the wave wash got my full attention at sunrise. |
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posted by eturek at 1:07 PM |
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