Month: April 2026

When I looked up at the Moon the other morning, I realized that Artemis II had just returned from the dark side and was beginning its return journey back to Earth. I like to think that somewhere in this photograph, the Artemis is heading toward me. Artemis will splash down off the California coast this afternoon. I think it is exciting that we are finally returning to the Moon after more than fifty years. The Space Race was such an important part of everyone’s lives in the late 1950’s and throughout the 1960’s with milestones achieved by both the USA and the USSR making household names of astronauts and cosmonauts. Now, after a lengthy hiatus, we are back in the quest for the Moon. The Artemis Astronauts suggested a name for one of the previously unnamed craters, with Canadian Astronaut and mission specialist Jeremy Hansen saying, “It’s a bright spot on the moon … and we would like to call it Carroll,” in honor of the late wife of NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman, commander of the Artemis II mission. I like the idea of having a crater named Carroll.

Most mornings along the Ferrari Pond Trail, I can hear the Marsh Wrens calling. But they are small and they can easily conceal themselves deep in the cattails and reeds. The other morning, this little one was vocalizing right at the edge of the trail and it was surprisingly visible although sometimes a reed covered its face. I thought the cattail seedling that is stuck to its head was quite charming.

There has been excitement and anticipation by the regulars at the Salt Pond this week because we have finally seen a pair of American Avocets there. Last year, the pair (could it be the same pair?) had an exposed nest that was destroyed before they produced a brood. Yesterday morning, three of us witnessed the pair mating. Until then, we’d only seen them separately on the pond and weren’t even sure there was a male and a female. The funny thing is that the female was ready and waiting patiently for the male to do something. She was standing still with her head down while the male seemed clueless at first, standing near her but not doing anything. He finally waded around her and in the first image, seems to be expressing some interest. Then, in the second image, he mounted her and finally, they strolled away, heads together. Ahhh. Avocet amore.

In a couple weeks, I’m heading to Ecuador to photograph hummingbirds. There are at least 132 species of hummingbirds there. I’m looking forward to photographing lots of new species there. In the mean time, I’m practicing. On Easter morning, I went to my friend Truman’s home hoping to photograph Anna’s, Black-chinned, Calliope, and Rufous Hummingbirds, all species he’s spotted at his backyard feeders in the past couple of days. Neither the Black-chinned nor the Calliope showed up while I was there but lots of Anna’s and this male and a female Rufous were there so I was happy. I had a chance to make sure my hummingbird rig was ready for the trip to Ecuador and that everything was working as expected. It does take practice, after all.

A Say’s Phoebe fluffs its feathers in the early morning chill. This Phoebe seems to like the rotting, moss-covered fence post near the Salt Pond as a lookout for flies. I see it there most mornings. I’m assuming it’s the same bird. We seem to have lots of regulars of different species that hang out near the Salt Pond.

Yesterday morning there were more than a dozen adult California Quail on the Ferrari Pond Trail. They were feeding along the edges of the trail, and as I approached, they didn’t fly off but rather moved further down the trail, nibbling as they went. I finally got too close for their comfort and they flew off into the brambles. On my way back, when they were no longer backlit, I captured this male taking one last bite before he flew off.

What’s in a name? This is a California wildflower that is commonly known as Blue Dick. Enough said. It’s also called Wild Hyacinth. I took this the other morning on an outing of the Lincoln Hills Photo Club’s Nikon Users Group to nearby Coyote Pond Park.

A female Snail Kite glides low over Florida’s Lake Kissemmee looking for a perch on which to land and devour the Apple Snail she had just snatched from the shallow water. She’s clutching the snail in one of her talons, hidden by the right wing as she banks to a landing.

The other day I posted a photograph of a male Cinnamon Teal swimming in the Salt Pond surrounded with ripples of water that reflected the colors of the sky and the reeds and grasses nearby, making it look like it was swimming in a psychedelic pool. A pair of Cinnamon Teal has moved to a smaller shallow pond presumably to make a nest and I photographed the male resting in the non-psychedelic pool.