Day 193: Hummingbirds, Hummingbirds, Hummingbirds

All winter long in northern Minnesota we dream of summer and wild flowers. For most of you in North America, wild flowers bloom much earlier than August, but here in Minnesota we are finally experiencing the burst of colors! The end result is nectar becomes easily available for ruby-throated hummingbirds, and those same birds become much easier for we photographers to find! For the third day in a row … hummingbirds (different location every day)

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Day 192: Observe Your Surroundings While Birding!

Early this morning I set out to photograph either … A) a kingfisher, or B) a hummingbird.

While the kingfisher family was a no show, my travels pointed out the importance of looking around oneself when focusing upon a particular kind of photograph. If I had ignored my surroundings I would never have seen … within 30 yards or less of me … a beaver, an 8 point buck, or a dragonfly on a flower!

I ultimately got some neat hummingbird photos, but they were almost an afterthought to the day!

Ruby-Throated Hummingbird Studies! 

Arrival
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Inspection
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Deep Drink #1
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Deep Drink #2
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Departure
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8 Point Buck
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Return of the Beaver (see movie #1)
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Video

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Dragonfly
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Days 187 to 191: Biker Birds

I love to bicycle, and I also love to photograph birds. This past week I co-led a bike tour through the BWCA (boundary waters canoe area) of northern Minnesota, and the north shore of Lake Superior. My boyhood friend, Jim, runs a bike touring company … Bike Tour Vacations, and I often work as his second in command tour guide.

While the combination of cycling and birding is fun, leading a tour is a bit difficult when combined with birding and photography. I often cannot afford to stop and take the time to capture the desired photos. However, if one uses one “bird smarts”, the results are fun!

Day 187: Wounded Eagle (neat war memorial in the small town of Virginia, Mn.)
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Day 188: Sleepy Time for Mallards
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Day 189: White Throated Sparrow
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Day 190: Peregrine Falcon at Palisade Head (a lifer for me!)
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Day 191: Motel Ruby-Throated Hummingbird
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