Some Rewarding Urban Birding

Earlier this year, I learned of an urban watering hole, at which various species of birds could be found.

During my first visit to this watering hole, I saw the potential, and decided that it would be a good location to visit at another time and photograph the bird life there.

Recently, after an afternoon thunderstorm, I thought that it might be a great opportunity to visit the watering hole and see if any birds were active.

The time before and after a storm can produce some amazing light, so I reached for my longest lens and headed to the watering hole, where I found two little black cormorants and an intermediate egret.

The watering hole contains a large, dead tree with a photogenic branch which allows birds to perch, and which is set against distant trees along a creek in the background.  Additionally, the vantage point faces east, which means that warm afternoon light illuminates the subject and the background.

On this particular visit, I was fortunate to find a little black cormorant drying his wings in the sunshine.

Drying My Wings

Photographing birds can be quite challenging, but photographing birds doing something interesting is even more challenging.

I was fortunate to capture this image of the cormorant with his wings spread out, drying after the deluge.

Here is another image of the cormorant, this time resting on the branch in the warmth of the afternoon sun.

Little Black Cormorant

Visiting the watering hole was worthwhile, and there are definitely more opportunities awaiting me on future visits.

Published on Sunday, 5 December, 2021.