Date: 1/12/25 3:10 pm From: Bryan Reynolds <nature_photo_man...> Subject: Recent Oklahoma Birds, 2 and 9 Jan 2025
All,
After the success I had with a Bald Eagle on my last trip to the OKC Zoo Lake (19 Dec), I wanted to head back for more. I intently followed the weather forecast, and they said it would be clear on the 2nd with light southerly winds. Well, when I woke up that morning, it was cloudy and because the Zoo Lake is a morning spot (due to the light-angle) I decided to hold off on going there. After a few hours it was starting to clear off, so I decided to hit Lake Hefner at around lunchtime. By the time I arrived, there was a white veil of clouds, but it was still nice and bright. My standard procedure is to drive through Stars and Stripes Park first. Usually, there's not much there except for very common birds and that was the case again. So, I proceeded west and worked areas at Hobbie Point and the Fishing Pier. This paid off because the first birds I saw were a pair of American Kestrels, both a male and a female. They were hunting grasshoppers, and the male grabbed one just outside my passenger window. I was not able to photograph the capture, but I did get some shots of it perched and tearing apart the insect. The female was just as active, but I only got some perched photos and one of her landing on a branch. They were very tolerant of me while I stayed in my vehicle, and I was actually able to reposition to get the female in a better light-angle. I got my best shots to date of this species, but I only wish the sky was blue and not white.
I then worked the Marina and got the obligatory Double-crested Cormorant shots and then finally finished the lake at the inlet and Lakeshore Park. At the north edge of the park, I saw a large flock of Eared Grebes, at least 50 birds, but they were just too far away for photos. However, there was a nice cooperative pair of Gadwalls close to the road and in good light, so I got some shots along with an American Coot that was keeping them company. It was now 1500 and I decided to head over to Lake Overholser and work the western shoreline.
There wasn't a lot happening at Overholser, but I did get a nice Mallard drake with his reflection, and I kicked up a Northern Mockingbird and White-crowned Sparrow and both briefly paused for photos. Then, as I got close to the Fishing Dock, there was a family tossing out bread for the ducks and gulls. I parked to get the best light-angle and practiced some flight photography of Ring-billed Gulls. After that, I drove to the dam area and the only thing I photographed was a male House Sparrow (close head shot).
My next day of fun was during the snowstorm on 9 Jan. I knew the storm was coming, so I prepared the area around my feeders with several perches. I also put a camp chair out located in a spot that I could cover all of the perches. I eagerly woke up the next day, bundled up in my winter gear and headed out to the feeders. There were a lot of birds that flushed when I stepped out, but after I set up my tripod and camera, they quickly came back. Over the next 3.5 hours, I sat very still and photographed Northern Cardinals, Purple Finches (photo-lifer), a White-breasted Nuthatch (my best shots to date), American Goldfinches, a Dark-eyed Junco, a Tufted Titmouse, a House Finch, a Fox Sparrow (doing the two-legged scoot in the snow), White-throated Sparrows, Mourning Doves, a Red-bellied Woodpecker, and a female Red-winged Blackbird. I saw, but was unable to get photos of a Blue Jay, Downy Woodpecker, Carolina Chickadees, American Robin, Eurasian Collared-Dove, and American Crow. The snow really came down and after sitting still for that long, I and my camera were covered with about 3 inches of it. The birds virtually ignored me the whole time. Juncos were foraging under my chair and around my feet, and I had one land on my shoulder and move around for a few minutes. It was a great time and I took a lot of frames.
