Wild Delmarva

Little Blue Herons, Snowy Egrets, Cattle Egrets, Tricolored Herons

Glossy Ibis nest

Great Egret chick

photographs by Jay Fleming

Photograph by Jay Fleming

Wading in the shallows of a salt marsh creek, a Great Blue Heron fishes in the last light yesterday. This is our largest wading bird on Delmarva and is quite common on both fresh and salt water. While they primarily eat fish I’ve watched them catch snakes, shrimp, frogs and recently even a young Clapper Rail.

Photograph by Kevin Fleming

I felt like a surfer early this morning waiting for my wave to break. Recent rain has been welcomed by Delmarva’s farmers but the clouds and dark skies have made wildlife photography difficult over the past two weeks. So, when this morning dawned again with cloudy skies, I headed for the remains of the jetty in Cape Henlopen State Park. A relatively long 8 second exposure creates a ghostly wash of light as the waves break over what’s left of the pier.

Photograph by Kevin Fleming

I usually prefer to photograph birds in action rather than perched but I was able to get very close to this Black Vulture. And the closer I got the more interesting this scavenger’s face became. Black Vultures are common here on Delmarva and we can easily see them and Turkey Vultures soaring high overhead. But rarely do we see them up close. This is a juvenile and its “Mohawk do” will be replaced with wrinkled gray skin with age.

Photograph by Kevin Fleming

A Glossy Ibis and a Cattle Egret fly into the wind as they prepare their footing and speed for touchdown.

photographs by Jay Fleming

Photographs by Jay Fleming

Photograph by Jay Fleming

Covered with tiny specks of pollen, a Hibiscus Bee (which looks very similar to a Bumblebee) works the colorful bloom of a Crimson-eyed Rosemallow this morning. Also know as a Swamp Rose, this perennial Hibiscus with six inch flowers is common on Delmarva’s wetlands.

(Thanks to Matt Sarver for identifying the Hibiscus Bee!)

Photograph by Kevin Fleming

After weeks without rain, shallow ponds are drying out and fishing spots are becoming very valuable for wading birds. And as the smaller fishing areas concentrate fish making fishing easier it also brings Snowy Egrets in much closer contact. Territorial fights between egrets are more common now. The fight usually ends as one retreats.

Photograph by Kevin Fleming