Duck, Duck, Goose (and a Grebe)

We took an afternoon drive to Colusa National Wildlife Refuge today. Another opportunity to put our new Canon lens through its paces. We didn't get any spectacular photos, but were able to capture some good reference photos of waterfowl. Most of the birds were a little farther away than optimal (even with the big lens), but it was a lovely, sunny day and we had a nice trip.

Below are some of my favorite photos from today:


The best birds of the day were a pair of Eurasian Wigeon - the two ducks on the left. The female (hen) is the left-most bird, the male (drake) is the one with the rust-colored head. This species is rare to uncommon in the US and this was the best look I had ever gotten of them.


The drake cinnamon teal is a very handsome bird.


Drake and hen Pintails. The drake is the one with the chocolate brown head and grey back. It doesn't show in this photo, but they have a long, thin tail (hence the name "Pintail").


Drake Gadwall and White-Fronted Geese


Pied-Billed Grebe - a common species of diving bird.

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Lizards, Lizard Dogs & Birds

Today was a lovely, sunny day and the lizards knew it too. We have many Western Fence Lizards on our property. I was walking out to the garage early this afternoon and heard the telltale sound of lizards scurrying to hide. I moved a pallet that was leaning against the side of the garage and found a large lizard and a small one. The large one was too fast for me to grab, but the smaller one was colder and slower. I picked it up and set it up on the pallet. When I realized it was pretty comfy in the sun and didn't seem like it wanted to move, I went inside and got my camera. I managed to snap a couple of photos before the lizard warmed enough to move on.




While I was reviewing the lizard photos I was reminded of our dog Patch, who loved to watch lizards. He learned this from our previous dog, Jet, who (being the true border collie that he was) always needed a job. Jet had many jobs, but "Lizard Dog" was his most unique occupation. He would watch my iguana when he was indoors and the fence lizards when he was outdoors. We never thought Patch really "got" what Jet was doing, he'd see Jet staring at the wood pile (aka lizard habitat) and would run over there but quickly lost interest. It wasn't until after Jet had passed away that Patch "got" lizards and assumed the role of Lizard Dog.




To our knowledge, neither Jet nor Patch ever caught a lizard, but they certainly were fascinated by them and we sure enjoyed seeing their enthusiasm. Magpie, our current dog, couldn't care less about lizards - she lives for tennis balls.

Later this afternoon, John and I took a drive to a local park to take photos of the ducks and geese that frequent the pond. Mallards, Canada Geese, domestic geese, a White-Fronted Goose, a Common Goldeneye and an American Widgeon were there for our viewing pleasure.
These are two of my favorite photos from today:

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