OBNWR

On this beautiful but cold morning I went back to the refuge, looking for eagles. I found two mature eagles in the trees near the nest by the water. They were partially obscured by branches, and as I walked along the shore to try to find a clear spot, they both flew away. This was the clearest shot I could get, with the one branch in the way.

Bald Eagle

This pair of eagles seems to have reclaimed the nest to get ready for the next breeding season. I walked along the shore and saw two eagles perched near the osprey nest. Again they flew away before I could get good shots of them.

Bald Eagle

As I walked along the shore, I spotted them (or maybe different ones) through the trees a couple of times, again obscured by branches, and again they flew away before I could get close. I also saw a juvenile flying over the woods but was unable to get the camera up in time to shoot it. However, I was able to get the camera up in time to capture this hawk who flew right over me.

Hawk

The other eagle nest was occupied, and both of them flew away before I could get close. Finally this hawk let me walk right below it.

Hawk

I kept waiting for it to fly away, but it seemed content to just stare at me.

So, a disappointing day for eagles. I saw two eagle nests, each with a pair of eagles nearby. I saw an osprey nest with a pair of eagles nearby. I saw an eagle on Conrad Island. I saw eagles in the trees along the shore. But all of them were out of range or obscured, leaving me without any in-flight shots.






New Eagle Nest

On a beautiful cold, clear morning I went to OBNWR again. As usual there was a line of cars waiting for the gate to open at 7AM.

I hustled to the shoreline road and was surprised to see a new bald eagle nest. Well, it's new to me. I've walked by it several times but was unable to see it because of leaves. Now that most of the summer's leaves have dropped, the nest is easily visible. And it had two occupants.

Two Bald Eagles on Nest

I'm guessing that the eagles are beginning to return to nests that have been vacant since the last group of fledglings departed. I had seen eagles in this vicinity several times on previous visits, and now that makes perfect sense. They were near their nest that I just couldn't see.

I wandered my usual route, not seeing much else noteworthy. Eventually I approached the nest I've seen before. It was back-lit, but I was able to get this shot of an eagle on the nest before it flew away.

Bald Eagle on Nest

 Disappointingly, I was unable to get any clear shots of any of the birds I saw today. As I was leaving, I got this shot of the remaining Fall leaves in brilliant sunlight.

Fall Colors at OBNWR

 And I spotted this hawk by the golf course.

Hawk (red shouldered? red-tailed?)

I also spotted some buffleheads on the water, but they were too far away and back-lit to shoot.

So the value of this visit was mainly exercise and nest discovery because the photography didn't yield much. Still, I'm glad I went.

Hawk and Eagles at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge

I finished work early and noticed how nice the weather was this afternoon, so I headed to the refuge. I had the place to myself; no cars in the parking lot.

When I reached the road along the shore, I caught a glimpse of a large, dark bird. I kept flushing it because it flew away from me, along the shore, in the same direction I was walking. It was too small to be an eagle, too big for most anything else. I finally got a shot of it.

Elusive Bird

It flew away again and I thought I'd missed my chance to get a decent shot of it. I rounded a bend in the road and there it was.

Red-Shouldered Hawk

Just my luck, it's in front of an outhouse. It was finally still, with an unobstructed view, and my background is a toilet. It stood there for a while eating something and looking around occasionally. It never did see me while it was on the ground. Finally, it took off, and I was hoping for a shot with a better background. But it simply tried to land on the outhouse, and there was a loud scraping/scratching sound as its talons kept slipping on the plastic.

Hawk Tries to Grip the Outhouse

It circled the area a couple of times, sometimes too close to get the bird in the frame, so I have some unusable shots of part of the bird. But I did get this one.

Hawk in Flight

And one more...

Hawk in Flight

And then it flew into the woods. So I kept walking, and within a minute or so I flushed a juvenile bald eagle that I hadn't even seen in a tree next to the road. Like the hawk before it, the eagle flew along the shore in the same direction I was walking. I wasn't able to photograph it because the view was quickly obstructed by trees, but I was able to observe it fly to and land on a tree that contains a vacant osprey nest. Looking through the lens, here's what I saw.

Adult and Juvenile Bald Eagles

So now I had a chance at some eagles. I hustled along the road, which curves and is surrounded by trees and brush, so I knew I could approach without being seen. So I got into position, and the juvenile just wouldn't cooperate; he/she kept looking away.

Bald Eagles

Soon the adult flew away. The juvenile hung around a little longer.

Juvenile Bald Eagle

And then the juvenile flew away. Both eagles flew away from me so the in-flight shots were unusable.

So I started walking again, looking to see if maybe they had landed somewhere visible, when suddenly this adult flew right past me, approaching me from behind.

Bald Eagle

And that was the end of the bird show.