Buff-bellied Hummingbird

These pictures were taken on February 5th, 2010 at Estero Llano Grande State Park, Mercedes, Texas. Camera settings are the same as those stated for the Ruby Throated Hummingbird below.

Ruby Throated Hummingbird

These pictures were taken on February 5th, 2010 at Estero Llano Grande State Park, Mercedes, Texas. The first picture is a juvenile male and the other 4 shots are of a female. I was attempting to stop all wing motion. My settings were, f7.1, ISO=800, 400mm lens, 1/8,000th of a second, flash with a better beamer attached. Double click on the 4th image down. Even the wing tips are quite sharp. These setting are fine but there is a bit of a problem with the background which was about 10' away. It's a little underexposed and some pictures are a little grainy. As well, the ISO=800 has a tendency to make it grainy.

Great Egret

This picture was taken on January 31st, 2010 at Estero Llano Grande State Park, Mercedes, Texas. I'm afraid his eyes were bigger than his mouth. He never did manage to swallow it, even though he dipped it in the water a few times to make it slippery.

Black Necked Stilt mating ritual

These pictures were taken on January 31st, 2010 at Estero Llano Grande State Park, Mercedes Texas. This is a mating ritual that seemed to be initiated by the female. The female stands perfectly still, leaning forward and pointing with her beak which sometimes has its tip in the water. The male then goes from side to side dipping his beak in the water on each side and always crossing over behind the female. He does this about 10 to 15 times before mounting the female. When the mating is finished they walk with crossed bills for a couple steps with the males wing draped over her back. This can be seen in the second and third last pictures although her bill isn't visible. This ritual was very beautiful and I think my favourite picture is the last one where they walk away together.