Meanwhile, Back at the Ranch

So, a long time since I posted about the local birds but I had to get through the Alaska trip. Now I have to catch up on the local fare. Before we left on the trip I took the rental lens on a tour of Mead Garden and Lake Davis to get a feel for it.

Off to Mead. Near the ampitheatre I could hear come Carolina Wrens darting about and tried to get a shot of one deep in the bushes.



I decided to head down the creek path to see if anything was interesting down there. Not many birds so I focused on some of the flowers. First up was a nice Button Bush, still in bloom.



A little farther up the trail, the Ginger is in full bloom, too.



Up by Pennsylania Avenue, a pair of Wood Ducks swam in the creek.



Back at the pond, another male Wood Duck rested in the shade.



Mead is always a nice stop but time is short and I need to swing by Lake Davis. Sunning along the shore was an Anhinga.



Finally got an OK shot of the Common Moorhen chick before it headed into the reeds.



The Mallards are growing up nicely and the lens does a nice job capturing a pose.



Some of the ducklings are still grabbing at midges from the grasses.



I decided to try out the lens for getting a range of whites and this Great Egret made a good subject.



On the eastern side of the lake, another Anhinga rests on the culvert.



So far, I am impressed with the rental lens. Just getting use to the zooming action but, as seen in all of the trip posts, it works just fine. Wish I could afford to actually own it!