And, while it was a bit late in the season - the Yellow-headed Blackbirds were gone, and the Sandhill Cranes and White-faced Ibis scarce - a bold American Bittern gave us quite a show as it went about its daily duties a mere 25 feet away...
American Bittern, Botaurus lentiginosus, hunting at Marble Hot Springs Road
Bittern sees something...
The freeze - waiting for the perfect moment...
Sploosh!
Bittern spears a metamorphing bullfrog that still has its tail
Now to get the struggling frog off of its bill without losing it...
While also getting rid of the pond weed...
Almost there...
Bye, bye bullfrog
Gulp
Bittern happy face after eating the tasty bullfrog
Uh oh - Bittern sees something else...
Targeting...
A giant water beetle - yum!
And off to the next course...
On the far shore, a well-hidden bystander also watched the Bittern - and us.
Glad JK's sharp eyes spotted it.
Wilson's Snipe, Gallinago delicata, frozen on the opposite bank
Fortunately for the Wilson's, none of us had our snipe huntin' bags. Just cameras.
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References:
- Wikipedia - American Bittern
- Wikipedia - Wilson's Snipe
- Wikipedia - Snipe hunt
Very beautiful pics. What is that predominent water plant surrounding it ? At first glance I was thinking moss, but not in the water.
ReplyDelete.
Wonderful series of shots, beautifully captured! And now I'll know what a snipe looks like next time I'm sent on a hunt. :)
ReplyDeleteOh, MY! I would NOT want to be on the receiving end of that bittern death stare. woah. Amazing shots, SO nice to see the beautiful details in that lovely plumage, and those amazing eyes.
ReplyDeleteAnd nice work on the snipe! So pretty.
I love creatures that kill bullfrogs (in the west, where they aren't native). Yet another reason to break for bitterns. =)
Ha! I was going to drop a post on this guy, but you beat me to it and rightfully so, with a far better sequence of photos!
ReplyDeleteWe were lucky enough to hear a bittern out in the wetlands near our house earlier this summer. (Vermont.) Never heard such a weird plunk noise before. Used my shiny new 99 cent bird app to ID it. Thanks for the close-up treats!
ReplyDeleteThe waterplant is a Brazilian plant, introduced to California, just like the Bullfrog.
ReplyDeleteD
Splendid sequence of a good deed.
ReplyDeleteCodger: I tried mightily to throw rocks at bullfrogs and missed every time. I am working up my aim for next trip.
ReplyDeleteSorry Xian for stealing your thunder. The series was just too blog-easy.
ReplyDeleteYes, along with good birds, the area is chockers with non-native, invasive plants. So, the waterweed is likely a nasty Hydrilla or Egeria, and not a nice native Elodea nuttallii, or like.
As for the non-native bullfrogs - I'm torn. If they weren't there, I don't think a native frog would take their place (any more). So, maybe them being there, and thus being food for all the terrific birds that come through, isn't such a bad thing. But then, they also eat stuff the birds can eat, so who knows?