April 02 – My Nature Journal
April 02, 2025 Nature Journal
Osprey
Pandion haliaetus
Photographing wildlife can lead to some exciting surprises.
When this Osprey flew over me, I concentrated on the shot itself; tracking the bird as it winged across the sky and trying to adjust exposure compensation so that the bird didn’t end up just a solid black silhouette against the bright, overcast sky.
But when I got home and could review the image on my computer, I realized the Osprey was carrying a large silver fish and I’d completely missed it in the moment. In my defense, the fish blends nicely into the Osprey’s black and white feathers, and I was looking almost straight up into the sky through a telephoto lens so my eyes were a little dazzled.
But I can’t deny that photographing this bird essentially doubled my pleasure in seeing it in the first place. A wild animal sighting never fails to thrill me, regardless of whether I photograph the animal or not. But photography allows me to revisit the animal over and over again.
And when my camera sees more than my eyes do in the moment? Well, that’s what I call a bonus.
Eastern Gray Squirrel
Sciurus carolinensis
Eastern Gray Squirrels are nearly always on the move during the day.
When they’re not chasing each other around, they’re usually either searching for food or eating it.
This squirrel was foraging for tender leaf buds along thin, flexible twigs high up in a tree. The branches upon which it scurried were very thin and springy but the squirrel balanced with ease. The squirrel used its long, flexible tail to counter the weight of its front quarters as it perched on its hind legs and reached forward with its two front paws for a tender leaf bud.
This squirrel’s impressive balance, dexterity, and agility characterize these familiar rodents and shows why Eastern Gray Squirrels can be absolute menaces to backyard bird feeders everywhere.
Squirrels are simply masters at getting their paws on food, no matter how inaccessible.
Painted Turtle
Chrysemys picta
This Painted Turtle caught my eye because of slight deformity in its shell. The back of its shell was compressed, which makes me wonder if the turtle suffered an injury while it was developing within its egg or as a very young hatchling.
Turtles develop in eggs that are soft and leathery, unlike chicken or other bird eggs that are hard and brittle. While the shells of adult turtles are hard and durable, the shells of embryonic and hatchling turtles are soft and fragile.
If this turtle had been injured after its shell hardened, the shell would have fractured. Instead, this turtle’s shell looked bent rather than cracked, perhaps indicating some kind of unusual pressure against the shell while this turtle was growing inside its egg or in the short period before its shell hardened after it hatched.
Cooter Turtle
Pseudemys sp.
This Cooter Turtle is probably an older adult.
Young Cooter Turtles have bright yellow facial stripes and bright, intricate swirls of pale color on their dark shells. But both their facial stripes and their shells darken as they age. Many species of pond turtles in family Emydidae also darken with age, which makes identifying individual pond turtles to species a challenge after the turtle get to be a certain age.
But I’m pretty sure this is a mature Cooter Turtle because its shell still shows faint swirls of paler color, especially along the lateral scutes.
Song Sparrow
Melospiza melodia
Pied-billed Grebe
Podilymbus podiceps
Today’s Nature Journal Snapshot
|
Time of Day |
Late afternoon |
|
Setting |
Large lake |
|
Temperature |
75° F / 24° C |
|
Weather |
Cloudy |
|
Humidity |
58% |
