My friend, the Eastern Cottontail

The eastern cottontail rabbit is the rabbit most commonly seen in my neighborhood. And why not? It seems like the perfect place for them as they love living on the fringe of open spaces…like our golf course! And they adapt easily to residential yards and gardens. I’ve seen many of them hopping away from me, showing their cotton like tail, for which they are aptly named.
Usually seen at dusk and dawn, I was surprised when I started seeing one appear in my yard during daylight hours. One morning I saw 2 very large rabbits cavorting on the golf course! It wouldn’t be long before there would be baby bunnies, I mused.
I was right! Several weeks later, my landscaper discovered a group of 4 of them in a shallow ground nest, lined with the mother’s own fur, in a front yard flower bed. They were pretty old by then as their eyes were open and they were not happy about being discovered. We covered them up, and I waited for them to leave.
The mother continued to visit my garden during the day. The female eastern cottontail generally only nurses her young at dawn and dusk. But, she is always nearby, and keeps an eye on things. If you find a nest of baby rabbits, don’t assume they are orphans. Chances are, the mom is watching you!
There are typically 3-6 young in each litter. The baby rabbits develop quickly and are weaned and independent at 2-3 weeks of age, if they survive. Nest success is usually low. Only about one half of cottontails will survive long enough to leave the nest. Another half of those that leave the nest will perish before fall. The main causes of nest failure are predation and flooding.
But, the eastern cottontail is a very prolific species. High reproductive effort is needed to offset its low survival rate and low reproductive success. Females will usually mate and become pregnant immediately after giving birth. They may have 3-7 litters in a year. One male and one female eastern cottontail could multiply into 25 rabbits in less than a year! (Info from the VA Department of Game & Inland Fisheries)
After I week, when I didn’t see the female for 2 days, I checked the nest and it was empty. I saw a baby bunny scurry to cover in the shrubs of my next door neighbor’s yard. Good luck, little one, I prayed.
Yet, the rabbit story continues. I am certain that she has another nest close by as she still is visiting my garden and having a daily feast of herbs and flowers. She also enjoys a nice dessert of wild clover, courtesy of the golf course. I can usually count on seeing her everyday and she has given me dozens of photo opportunities and glimpses into her wild life. I will never forget my friend, the eastern cottontail.

The Snow Geese of Pungo

One of my favorite experiences of living in Pungo is the annual appearance of migrating Snow Geese. These beautiful geese are generally visible in February and early March in Pungo farm fields as they make their way back to the Arctic tundra to breed, thus completing a round trip of thousands of miles! This annual migration of Snow Geese has been called one of the greatest wildlife spectacles in North America. And we are so very fortunate to be able to witness a small part of it. With that in mind, when I speak of the Snow Geese that appear here, I am talking about flocks numbering in the hundreds and sometimes thousands. They are very vocal and can often be heard from more than a mile away. You may have actually heard them flying overhead!
The Snow Goose has two color plumage morphs, white (snow) or gray/blue (blue), thus the common description as "snows" and "blues". White-morph birds are white except for black wing tips, and this is what we generally see here. Blue-morph geese have bluish-grey plumage replacing the white except on the head, neck and tail tip. The immature blue phase is drab or slate-gray with little to no white on the head, neck, or belly. Both snow and blue phases have rose-red feet and legs, and pink bills with black tomia ("cutting edges"), giving them a black "grin patch". The colors are not as bright on the feet, legs, and bill of immature birds. The head can be stained rusty-brown from minerals in the soil where they feed.
When the Snow Geese are in Pungo farm fields, they seem to be feeding on left over grain, wheat, or resting in preparation for their long trip back to the Arctic tundra. My experience is that I see them in the daylight hours, as they spend in night floating in water, probably in Back Bay or at Mackay Island National Wildlife Refuge just over the line in North Carolina. If they are threatened by a predator, such as a hawk, Bald Eagle, or coyote, they will immediately take flight, and that is truly an amazing sight as they all take off together, as if on cue. And the sound is not something you will soon forget.
Snow Geese nest and breed in the Arctic tundra in the Spring and it is believed that they mate for life. The females return to the place that they were hatched to breed. She selects the location and builds the nest. Both parents protect the young and they can feed themselves after hatching. But they remain with their family until they are 2 to 3 years old. So, there are usually many family units in our Pungo fields.
I urge you take take a leisurely drive in Pungo next February or March. In the meantime, there are many videos online of the migration. Watch some! You will be amazed!

The Wood Duck

I think the Wood Duck male or “drake” is the most beautiful duck native to Virginia. The drake has a crested, green head, chestnut breast, and other bold markings.  Wood Ducks favor woodland ponds and swamps and I have actually seen them in the ditches of Indian River Road in Virginia Beach! As a wildlife photographer, I am also aware how skittish they can be. Perhaps it is because during the late 19th century, they practically became extinct because of hunting and loss of nesting sites due to logging. The Wood Ducks’ recovery to healthy numbers was an early triumph of wildlife management.
I had seen many at a distance over the last few years and I was aware that many residents of the Kings Grant neighborhood in Virginia Beach had erected nesting boxes for Wood Ducks. I had been fortunate to see some new ducklings in the Kings Grant neighborhood ponds. But, I had never had an opportunity to get close to an adult male, until one day in April, 2017.
I was driving through the neighborhood that April afternoon, noting all the Wood Duck boxes. I stopped at a smaller, neighborhood pond as I saw a subtle movement in the water vegetation. It was a Wood Duck pair, foraging for food. I parked, slowly exited the vehicle, and slid down the side of my SUV to the ground to watch. I was fairly certain that if either one of the pair saw me, the encounter would be over.
They continued to feed, seemingly oblivious to my presence. I continued to sit there. An hour went by. The male finally turned my way and started swimming towards me. He swam at a pretty good clip too, fairly intent on some new vegetation right in front of me, I think. I held my breath and then he just stopped. I started clicking. He started dabbling for food. This photo is when he came up for some air. That part of the experience lasted just 2 minutes, as the female started squealing. I don’t know if she saw me or something else but as I searched for her, he took off and the observation ended.
It was my most productive time with this beautiful species and one I will always treasure. Thank you, Mr. Wood Duck!

The Snowy Owl

If you have ever read the Harry Potter novels or watched the movies, then you know Harry’s faithful companion, Helwig. Well, Helwig is a Snowy Owl. She’s a female but, in the movie, the actors playing her are males. How do I know this? I have actually seen a Snowy Owl right here in Virginia; in Norfolk, actually. And, “my” owl was a male. The male Snowy Owl can be identified by his almost all white plumage. Female Snowy Owls have dark markings and are somewhat larger. Snowy Owls live in the arctic tundra, but occasionally venture very far South when their main food source, a small rodent called a lemming, becomes scarce. They are considered “magical” by many, not just Harry Potter fans. They stand apart for their beauty, intelligence and charm. But, in their bleak Arctic home it is their determination and survival skills that are so enchanting.
January 28, 2016 was my husband Joe’s birthday. We had planned to go out to a nice seafood birthday lunch at a Lynnhaven River restaurant. That changed abruptly when I read on social media that a Snowy Owl had been observed that morning in the Ocean View section of Norfolk. It was perched on the roof of someone's condo!
Fortunately Joe knew of my interest in seeing one. There had been an “irruption” of them before. Irruption is defined in ecology as a sudden increase in an animal population. I really wanted to see one and hopefully be able to be close enough to take some photos. Within about 15 minutes we were in the car and on the way to Ocean View.
My heart was racing and I thought we would never get there! But when we pulled into the condo community,  I saw someone I knew already set up with a tripod and photographing the owl. She pointed to a roof!! There is was!!! The most stunningly beautiful bird that I had ever seen. It was almost pure white. It was unbelievably close! And it was fast asleep! It looked like its eyes were sealed shut! Well, it had traveled from that arctic, a couple thousand miles! I guess it was entitled to a nap. I started shooting: so what if the eyes were closed! It was a Snowy Owl!
More photographers and birders arrived. Word travels fast on social media. Soon there were about 40 people ogling the owl. It continued to nap though. It yawned and stretched. It scratched its head. But, FINALLY it opened its eyes! And I was ready. Of the more than 200 photos I took, I only have about 12 where the eyes are open.
Oh yes, Joe saw it too. He got a Snowy Owl for his birthday. Not many folks can say that. And we did get that seafood lunch at a great place called Captain Groovy’s, not far from where a Snowy Owl caught a nap on a condo rooftop.

The sika elk at Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge

“Watch out!” I shouted to my husband as the deer ran in front of our SUV. Joe slammed on the brakes, as the deer disappeared into the woods. Or so I thought. But wait……it was still there peeking out from behind a tree just across the entrance road to Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge. Joe backed up. The deer raised its pretty head. I could see the spike antlers. I raised my camera. In that split second, I realized that this was not the normal white-tailed deer I was used to seeing. It was mocha colored and appeared smaller. I made a quick adjustment to my camera’s ISO setting to adjust for the darkness of the deer against the shady woods background, and started shooting. The deer lowered its head and started browsing beneath the tree. When Joe turned off the engine, the deer jerked its head up. I snapped another few photos and then, as quickly as it appeared, it vanished into the misty forest.
“I think that was a sika deer!” I exclaimed. “Well, it’s a wildlife refuge,” Joe replied.
I had done a little homework prior to our trip to Virginia’s Eastern Shore. The sika deer is actually a small, brown elk that lives in quiet marshes and forested wetlands. This small elk is a native of eastern Asia and was introduced onto Assateague Island in the mid 1920s. It’s seen quite often on neighboring Chincoteague NWR. I read that they eat the leaves of myrtle bushes, grasses, persimmons, shrubs, and other plants, including poison ivy! I was feeling very lucky to have seen and photographed this elk!
I emailed my photos for confirmation to two biologists at VA Department of Game and Inland Fisheries that I know, and also to Chincoteague NWR. All three verified my sighting.
I am overjoyed that this small young, male elk will adorn my Christmas cards this year!

Hummingbird Migration

Hummingbird migration has begun. In the Hampton Roads area, the Ruby-throated Hummingbird is common. Tiny yet ferocious, the Ruby-throat weighs less than a nickel and can and does, fly nonstop across the Gulf of Mexico. Their wings beat 60 to 80 times a second.
Most of our hummingbirds here in Hampton Roads will be gone by mid October but there are always some stragglers. I leave my feeders up until December. Leaving feeders up will not discourage hummingbirds from migrating, as they migrate in response to daylight and change of seasons, not in response to the availability of feeders. Leaving your feeders up will help these stragglers finish their journey. I use the one part sugar to 4 parts water recipe with no food coloring. You may also see hummers plucking tiny insects from the air or from spider webs. Ruby-throated Hummingbirds sometimes take insects attracted to sap wells or pick small caterpillars and aphids from leaves.
Ruby-throats are frequent victims of collisions with man-made structures such as towers, turbines, and glass windows, particularly during their yearly migrations to and from Central America. Free roaming cats are perhaps their biggest predators. Predators also include other birds, praying mantis, snakes, and bullfrogs. I use decals on my windows and I have humanely trapped free roaming cats. If I come across a praying mantis, I relocate it away from my feeder or flowers.
In spite of their diminutive size, hummingbirds can be very aggressive. I had one “bully bird” here all summer, chasing other hummers away from my feeder and also attacking Crows and Blue Jays.
The Bully is gone now, but new migrants arrive daily.  Please remember to keep your feeders clean and fresh and enjoy the migrants. They have a long trip ahead of them! Godspeed.

Tree Swallows in the Bluebird Box

It was a huge disappointment when the Eastern Bluebirds that had nested in my box the last 5 years did not return there this Spring.  Fortunately, my disappointment was short lived.
When we returned from a short vacation in Georgia, I saw a blue bird fly out of the box. But, it wasn't an Eastern Bluebird. It was a Tree Swallow! I know that they will use nest boxes but I was skeptical that they would stay as the box is right off our neighborhood golf course cart path. So I waited until I saw them both leave the area, then I checked the box. Low and behold, the nest was complete with 2 eggs in it! And it was lined with several feathers; so sweet!

Over the next several days, the adults were busy.

3 more eggs were laid, bringing the total to 5 in the beautiful, feather lined nest. The feathers reminded me of a soft, baby blanket.

After a couple of weeks, were were aware that the eggs had hatched. The parents began bringing small insects into the box and removing fecal sacks (poo).

And we finally were able to see the babes at the box entry hole.

They grew really fast.

And the insects got bigger! Here is a dragonfly for lunch!

Then, they were almost ready to go!

 Shortly after this photo was taken, they all fledged the nest.

A happy occasion for the parents, but we will miss them. Such a joy to watch and learn. Maybe they will return next year!