View allAll Photos Tagged BosquedelApacheNWR
A Sandhill Crane takes flight over Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge in San Antonio, New Mexico. Each year thousands of Sandhill Cranes migrate south to the refuge where thousands of humans also seem to migrate. I sometimes wonder who comes to watch who? I'm looking forward to my visit back to Bosque del Apache in two weeks for the "Festival of the Cranes." I'll be there to sign books also. Can't wait to see and learn all kinds of new and different things!
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"Seats and tray tables to their upright and locked positions please!"
Snow Geese landing at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Reserve.
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We had no plans for Thanksgiving except to stay home in the unseasonable cold so Mrs M took a few personal days off. Armed with reservations via Hotwire (you never know what you're going to get) and a rental car, we set out for a new 6 days, 7 nights adventure.
First stop: Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge. It's an old favorite, especially when the cranes and snow geese are in town. This stop didn't disappoint, there were plenty of birds, and we hit it at the end of the Festival of the Cranes, which we usually seem to miss.
When word gets out where the cranes are flying in for the night, the photographers start showing up in large numbers.
Or: Wherever the fly-in is going on, the drive-in is sure to follow :^)
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A highlight of a winter visit to Socorro is the return of the Sandhill Cranes and Light Geese to the wildlife management areas on the Rio Grande, most notably the Bosque del Apache NWR.
Every evening the birds return from the feeding grounds and flock together in protective manmade ponds. Known as the "fly-in", it's truly a spectacle as the elegant birds drift in in groups of varying numbers.
We try to make it down there at least once a year if we can.
I'm taking a break from posting the summer photos. At the rate I'm going, it's gonna take the rest of the year to get 'em done anyway, so why not take a break and post something timely?
This is a series from a weekend getaway to Socorro.
I said to myself on the way into Bosque del Apache that this time I would LOOK at the birds and NOT take pictures. Yeah, right.
So once again, there are lots of photos to wade through. But modern technology can be wonderful and in this case looking at pictures on flickr is better than sitting through one of your uncle's endless slide shows, you can just skip over the uninteresting bits. Skip away :^)
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December 26, 2012 - Getting away for the holidays, and interrupting the posting of the Thanksgiving photos, which interrupted the posting of the summer photos. It's going to be a long Winter, maybe I'll catch up...
Rufous-necked Wood-rail at Bosque del Apache NWR, Socorro Co., NM, 130707. Aramides axillaris. Gruiformes: Rallidae
Rufous-necked Wood-rail at Bosque del Apache NWR, Socorro Co., NM, 130707. Aramides axillaris. Gruiformes: Rallidae
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Sandhill cranes in flight at Bosque Del Apache NWR in New Mexico. Captured back in 2010 on my second trip there. I will return this fall for a third trip.
I thank you for viewing and especially thank you for any invites, faves, and comments/criticisms.
It seemed like maybe ten minutes but when Mrs M looked at her watch, we'd been there for an hour. There's something timeless about watching these birds fly in, and with the mountains as a backdrop, it's even better. And in the quiet time between groups, there was interaction between the birds to watch, always somebody not getting along with somebody else and showing it in dramatic style.
I shot a lot of clips, and when I went back to weed out the culls, it was harder than I thought. So I'm posting a bunch. Each is a little different. If you could sum all of the video clips into one, it would represent what you'd see as each group flew in, and there were many groups. I hope that makes sense!
I think my favorite is cranes64, though cranes58 has a perfect triple landing and 68 has some nice reflections and 69 has a LOT of birds coming in, that was towards the end and they were really piling in before dark...
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A lot of the photographers we see at Bosque del Apache show up with monster lenses that undoubtedly cost more than our car. They're all trying to get that killer shot, and up until last year, so was I. I finally figured out that I'd never get it with the point-and-shoot camera and no tripod so I started taking fewer photos and enjoying the birds more. I was getting some decent stills but I wasn't bringing the experience home. On this visit, a little light bulb went on in my head - a short video clip might work better. I don't think we've ever seen a video camera in use there, although we've certainly seen video from there on CBS's "Sunday Morning".
Anyway, here are a couple of clips. I think they do a much better job than my stills, and there's SOUND. So important!
Snow Geese blasting off from Bosque Del Apache back in 2010. From my shooting perspective, they are flying laterally, which means the wind is coming from the left at the time. The noise was deafening. Nothing like 15,000 geese flying over your head to make your day. Wow....I've got to go back there this November.
Meanwhile, the Sandhill Cranes are staying put, probably saying to themselves "What the....".
I truly appreciate comments, criticisms, invites and faves. Thanks for viewing and have a wonderful weekend.
With the sun setting, the birds are coming in heavier, meeting up to talk about where the best food is and who's got the best winter plumage.
___________________________________________________________________________
I said to myself on the way into Bosque del Apache that this time I would LOOK at the birds and NOT take pictures.
Yeah, right.
Once the fly-in gets underway the camera comes out and doesn't get put away again until dark.
So once again, there are lots of photos to wade through. But modern technology can be useful and in this case looking at pictures on flickr is better than sitting through one of your uncle's endless slide shows, you can just skip over the uninteresting bits. Skip away :^)
December 26, 2012 - Getting away for the holidays, and interrupting the posting of the Thanksgiving photos, which interrupted the posting of the summer photos. It's going to be a long Winter, maybe I'll catch up...
Rufous-necked Wood-rail at Bosque del Apache NWR, Socorro Co., NM, 130710. Aramides axillaris. Gruiformes: Rallidae
I always thought Merlins hunted from the air but this one flew near me on the ground and disappeared into the grasses. They must go wherever it is easiest for them to find food.
It seemed like maybe ten minutes but when Mrs M looked at her watch, we'd been there for an hour. There's something timeless about watching these birds fly in, and with the mountains as a backdrop, it's even better. And in the quiet time between groups, there was interaction between the birds to watch, always somebody not getting along with somebody else and showing it in dramatic style.
I shot a lot of clips, and when I went back to weed out the culls, it was harder than I thought. So I'm posting a bunch. Each is a little different. If you could sum all of the video clips into one, it would represent what you'd see as each group flew in, and there were many groups. I hope that makes sense!
I think my favorite is cranes64, though cranes58 has a perfect triple landing and 68 has some nice reflections and 69 has a LOT of birds coming in, that was towards the end and they were really piling in before dark. Crank up the sound for this one!
_________________________________________________________________________________
A lot of the photographers we see at Bosque del Apache show up with monster lenses that undoubtedly cost more than our car. They're all trying to get that killer shot, and up until last year, so was I. I finally figured out that I'd never get it with the point-and-shoot camera and no tripod so I started taking fewer photos and enjoying the birds more. I was getting some decent stills but I wasn't bringing the experience home. On this visit, a little light bulb went on in my head - a short video clip might work better. I don't think we've ever seen a video camera in use there, although we've certainly seen video from there on CBS's "Sunday Morning".
Anyway, here are a couple of clips. I think they do a much better job than my stills, and there's SOUND. So important!
All of the Snow geese above that appear mottled in coloration are juveniles. The sole adult in the image is snow white in color. The snow white adults are quite difficult to tell apart but the mottled in appearance juveniles appear to have their own distinct pattern perhaps best seen on the face as their plumage evolves.
Oft times you have to work with the lighting you are given. I was pleased with how this came out despite the back-lit situation.
When not at the Flightdeck for fly-ins and fly-outs, we toured the North and South Loops. When we were there the first week of December 2021, the North Tour Loop Extension was open.