A Very Fun Thursday!

I absolutely love this time of year! Not just because I was born in the spring, but because there is so much to photograph! Before I share what happened today, I wanted to give an owl update.

The triplets in the rock wall nest are doing well. I think they may start leaving the nest any time now.

   Ms Athena is doing great! She is very active and so fun to watch. Last evening we got quite the show! Just as the light was fading, momma Cher went hunting and came back with a small bunny. Athena went nuts and scarfed it right down! Very cool!

Unfortunately the light was just about gone when Cher appeared with the bunny. She was quite proud and made sure we saw what she caught before feeding Athena. Even though I didn't get any good pics, it was quite the show!

So this morning I was up and out of the house by 6am. No time for sleep when there is so much going on. I was torn about where to start. Prospect park has been quite good for photos but I also love to go to "my favorite spot". So I finally decided to start at my favorite spot and go to Prospect after that. Well, I am so glad I did! I was barely out of the car when I spotted a huge bird in a nearby tree. At first I thought it was a red tailed hawk but soon realized it was an osprey! It seems to be a good year for them. I have seen them all over the front range this year.

So I got some nice shots before he flew across the lake and perched in a tree next to the lake. Oh! I realized if I hustled over to that side of the lake, I may have an opportunity to get pics of him fishing. So I jogged over and found a nice spot to watch him. It only took about 5 minutes of me waiting before the action started! He launched himself off the branch and crashed into the lake! Check out the pics I got!

Holy Sh#t...I quickly checked my LCD monitor to see if the shots were in focus and they were!!! I could not believe my luck! The funny thing is that last evening I was chatting with some fellow photographers at the owl nest. We all shared that we'd love to get some pics of an osprey catching a fish. And then it happens today! Hmmmm  just a coincidence? I think not. Perhaps the Universe heard my wishes and helped me manifest them. Maybe I should ask to win the lottery :)

Finally I recovered from all the excitement and continued around the lake. These yellow rumped warblers are everywhere and so cute. I think this one is a female....

There's now 3 snowy egrets on the lake and this one was nice enough to give me some shots. Those gigantic yellow feet are something,huh?

I was almost around the lake when I spotted a pair of blue winged teals. I have not seen these guys this year,so I was quite excited to enjoy their beauty!

It felt like I was done here, so I jumped in the car and headed over to Prospect park. I went down to check on my new owl friends. Momma was standing guard at the nest. The owlets were mostly sleeping but I managed to catch a glimpse of them. And there are definitely 3! I'm so excited to see them grow up! The light was pretty harsh so no pics of the owls today.

I continued on enjoying the beautiful day. I heard some beautiful singing and it was coming from this goldfinch!

I was watching the greater yellowlegs scurry around the shore when I spotted this little guy. Very cool! This is the lesser yellowlegs.

I was pretty tired but decided to head west on the bike path towards the beaver dam. Again I am so glad I did! There was a black crowned night heron sitting above the creek. I spotted a few others, so there were at least 5-6 of them in this area. I have never seen them at this part of the creek, so it was a nice surprise.

As I was watching the the night herons, a pair of wood ducks showed up. And then another pair showed up. It was raining wood ducks!

One of the pairs decided it was time to make some baby wood ducks.....

After they were done mating, it looked like they were house hunting. So I'll check back to see if nest here and have their young.

What a fantastic day! I hope you enjoy the pics! I sure enjoyed shooting them!