Wild Delmarva

Finally a clear morning today in Delaware and these two Great Blue Herons were there to watch the sunrise.

Photograph by Kevin Fleming

Did you know Belted Kingfishers nest in the ground? Oddly enough, construction projects like road building that usually dooms wildlife habitat creates nesting sites for Kingfishers. They like to burrow into dirt banks near water. So, when gravel pits are dug for construction projects or dirt is piled in mounds new possible kingfisher nesting sites are created. Their tunnels rise upward from the entrance and may be anywhere from one to eight feet deep.

Photograph by Kevin Fleming

It looks like the Barn Swallow perched on the phragmites is warning the incoming bird to keep away from his spot. But you would have to be a Barn Swallow to know what sort of social or antisocial behavior is happening here. There wasn’t room for both on the delicate perch and neither bird ended up with the spot. Barn Swallows are the most abundant swallows in the world. They breed here on Delmarva and throughout the northern hemisphere and many winter in the southern hemisphere.

Photograph by Kevin Fleming

Using its more than 50 inch wingspan for balance, a Great Egret stands precariously atop a bush in a Delmarva heron rookery. This beautiful bird is the symbol of the National Audubon Society, one of the first environmental organizations in America. In fact, the Audubon Society was founded to help protect birds from being killed for their feathers.

Photograph by Kevin Fleming

A Red-winged Blackbird chases a Great Blue Heron yesterday morning before sunrise. These blackbirds are very protective of their nesting sites and chase away much larger birds like vultures and crows that might eat their eggs or young.

Photograph by Kevin Fleming

After more than a week of cloudy, rainy weather the sun finally rose over the Delmarva Peninsula today. And I was lucky enough to get right in the middle of dozens of Snowy Egrets fishing in a creek. These quirky little egrets are among my favorites to photograph because they are always dashing, darting and flapping around in unpredictable ways and directions. Sometimes you can catch moments like this snowy who suddenly started fishing like a tern. Snowy Egrets are wading birds and they catch fish by wiggling their yellow toes to attract their prey. This one jumped into the air and picked a fish out of the creek more like a tern would do.

Photograph by Kevin Fleming

It is mating season on Delmarva and breeding and nesting is in full swing. Here, two Laughing Gulls breed on the beach.

Photograph by Kevin Fleming

This young Red Fox kit looks like he was posing for a portrait but he was just taking a break from playing near the fox den.

Photograph by Kevin Fleming

Last year Portfolio Books published Kevin Fleming’s book Wild Delaware that focuses on wildlife and wild places in the First State. Wild Delaware is 260 pages and beautifully printed in full color, hard bound and has a French-fold dustjacket. 

There are still some autographed, first edition copies available from the publisher at:

www.WildDelaware.com

Wild Delaware is the state’s #1 bestselling book ever. If you order a copy through the website you will receive four signed lithographs with each book. And shipping is FREE!

A Royal Tern returns to the nesting colony with a fish. Unsettled weather has made photographing these handsome birds a challenge lately.

Photograph by Kevin Fleming