RTY Photography Blog

I live in Toms River and never knew of Marshall’s Pond right in town. Took a short ride because I heard there were some wood ducks there. No wood ducks that day, but I found some Ring-necked Ducks which was a first for me. There were so many other types of water fowl including the mallards and tons of Canada Geese. The Canada Goose gets no respect in the photography world (lol), but they are so active this time of year. I have since found and photographed many Wood Ducks, those photos will follow soon. I’m trying to get caught up on my posts, about a month behind.

Ring-necked Duck

Mallard Disagreement

Always nice to see a Cardinal

You never know what you will find at Island Beach State Park in New Jersey. On this Sunday, I was lucky to see hundreds of Cedar Waxwings. Normally pretty elusive, I found myself surrounded by so many. Several small groups were perched in this tree. Photographing three in one shot was pretty awesome.

I spent a few days shooting some Hooded Mergansers and Buffleheads in mid-February. Several winter on the estuary behind my house in Toms River. Some were also taken near Monmouth University. These ducks are very timid and quite a challenge to photograph.

I visited this mom to be in Pennsylvania. She was sitting on her eggs when her neighbor stopped by to see what all the commotion was about. The squirrel has it’s own hole about 10 feet above the Great Horned Owl’s. Then we took a short ride to see this cute Screech Owl tucked in it’s hole, enjoying the afternoon sun. Thanks to my buddy, Harry Collins, for bringing me to see these amazing owls.

Note: the Great Horned just had her babies … yay!

I took another trip back up to the cliffs along the Palisades to see the peregrine falcons. Arrived just in time to see one having breakfast at sunrise. I also witnessed the peregrine dive towards a bald eagle who was cruising up the Hudson River minding it’s own business. The eagle turned upside down and the falcon just whizzed by. The falcon just wanted to make sure the eagle kept on going.

Early morning I headed up to Hudson County to search for a snowy owl that had been spotted there. It was a bitter cold day. After several hours with no success, I came upon several bird carcasses which I thought were left by the snowy. I decided to hang around and see what happened. Sitting in my car, I happened to look up and this female peregrine falcon was sitting proud on the roof of a warehouse across the street. I realized, this is the falcon’s territory and not the Snowy’s. Not long after, I has the pleasure to witness the hunt. She soared down and snatched a small bird right out of the air.  I was lucky enough to get some shots in flight after she returned and hovered almost directly above. The snowy owls have been elusive this year, but I have had the fortune to see several peregrine falcons.

The last several times I looked for Snowy Owls the foxes have joined me on the walk down the beach. It’s always a pleasure.

High above the Hudson River on the cliffs along the Palisades, lives a pair of Peregrine Falcons. Thanks to a heads up from friend and photographer, Joe Gilozzo, I took a ride and hoped to find the falcons. After scanning the cliffs, there they were in all their glory sitting on a perch several hundred feet above the Hudson River. It was quite a thrill for me to see these beautiful birds close up through my telephoto lens. I spent several hours watching them, but eventually the cold and wind forced me to call it a day. It was a pretty exciting day for this photographer.

The Cliffs of the Palisades

I started the New Year off with a 6-7 mile trek down and back on the beach to see the one Snowy that is at the Jersey Shore. Spent the day shooting with friend and wildlife photographer Harry Collins (Harry Collins Photography). The conditions were not ideal for photos, it was overcast, windy and pretty dreary. But, it’s still always exciting to see a Snowy Owl. We were quite far away and these shots are heavily cropped. Harry and I always respect the Snowy’s space, as most wildlife photographers do. The only thing that disturbed him was a juvenile bald eagle that flew above for a short time. The Snowy hopped off the piece of wood and hid under some branches.

Snowy was quite relaxed until the eagle showed up.

Juvenile Red Tailed Hawk feasting on a Canada Goose

The Snowy Owl has made it’s return to the Jersey Shore.  After the long journey from the Arctic, an adult male has made an appearance on the dunes along the coast. After several gulls continued to harass the Snowy, he decided to find a better spot. On the walk back, there were several Long-tailed Ducks surfing the waves.

Afternoon Moon

Long-tailed Duck