I like to take photos of the little birds. I think the big birds (hawks, eagles, etc) get too much press. It’s easier to get close to a lot of small birds (but not all) and they don’t ask for royalties like some of their more famous kin. These were at the Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge outside Olympia, WA.
The Nisqually Delta is outside of Olympia, WA and is home of the Nisqually – Billy Frank, Jr. National Wildlife Reserve. It had been diked, drained and converted to farmland back 100 years ago or so, but the dike was intentionally breached and the interior is now salt marsh and provides home to young salmon. They built a wonderful walkway that runs most of a mile out for viewing birds and other critters. I took this image across to Luhr Beach (the buildings on the water) and the boat ramp. I didn’t notice the mountains visible in the cloud gaps until recently. They are the southeast corner of the Olympic Mountains from about Mount Ellinor to The Brothers.
One of my favorite birds is the cinnamon teal. I really like the rusty coloration. You can’t see it very well in these images, but their eyes are bright red. (the image bellow shows it some)
This goose parent was nervous at my presence. I was nervous about it being nervous, since geese can be aggressive. Luckily, I just walked away without an attack.
Late fall is an excellent time for cat-tail and cat-tail photos. These are very useful plants. The stalks were gathered by the Pacific Northwest native peoples and used extensively, including for weaving into mattresses.
