Tonga's Mate - Port Huron Peregrine Falcon

Tonga's Mate - Port Huron Peregrine Falcon, a photo by JKissnHug on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Tonga's mate, (name unknown) roosts atop a light suspended from the Blue Water Bridge in Port Huron, Michigan.

Peregrine Falcon - Powerful Talons

Peregrine Falcon - Powerful Talons, a photo by JKissnHug on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Tonga, the Peregrine Falcon roosts atop a light on the Blue Water Bridge in Port Huron, Michigan.

Peregrine Falcon - The Great Wanderer

Peregrine Falcon - The Great Wanderer, a photo by JKissnHug on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
Tonga, the female Peregrine Falcon roosts atop a light on the Blue Water Bridge in Port Huron, Michigan.

Snowy Owl - Harrison Twp

Snowy Owl - Harrison Twp, a photo by JKissnHug on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
A birder friend sent me a tweet about a Snowy Owl he spotted on a business along South River Road in Harrison Twp. I sent him a message back and he said there was a possible second owl on a house just down the street. I was extremely excited to hear about a Snowy Owl in the area. This would be a life bird for me. After a short debate with myself, I grabbed my camera gear, binoculars and headed out to Harrison Twp. in hopes of finding at least one of the owls. I got out to the location and immediately found the owl on the top of the business and took several photos from the ground. I watched the bird until it flew to the east and landed on a house across the canal. I then drove east toward the DNR boat launch and spotted a Snowy Owl on the rooftop of a house down the street from the business. I met up with my friend to say thank you and introduce myself in person. We chatted a short bit about birding at Metro Beach and Harrison Twp. He then headed back home and I went back to the S. River Road house to get these shots which were much closer and from a better vantage point. I only saw one owl, but it sure was worth the 90 mile round trip from Commerce Twp.

Getting this bird on my life list makes up for missing the White-winged cross bills and Northern Shrike at Indian Springs Metropark (just a few miles away from my house).

Short-eared Owl

Short-eared Owl, a photo by JKissnHug on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
This owl would be found in the fields and marshes of the countryside. Will hunt during the day by flying low to the ground.

Barred Owl on Bittersweet

Barred Owl on Bittersweet, a photo by JKissnHug on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
A Barred Owl that resides at the Howell Nature Center in Howell, Michigan.

Bald Eagle Over Wildwing Lake

Bald Eagle Over Wildwing Lake, a photo by JKissnHug on Flickr.

Via Flickr:
This evening, I went to meet my friend Debbie Miller, her husband Paul, and sister Mary Jo for a quick photoshoot at Kensington Metropark. Debbie and her husband are in town to attend the Howell Nature Center Birds of Prey nature photography workshop with me tomorrow afternoon. We walked around Kensington Metropark feeding the small songbirds and enjoying a few hours of getting reacquainted. We noticed the sound of a massive hot air balloon heating air that was drifting over Wildwing Lake. We looked again and found several more that were floating over the park at much higher altitudes. We quickly abandoned feeding the birds and nearly ran over to Wildwing to watch the balloon land. We also hoped to see Sandhill Cranes fly in to roost for the night. We watched the hot air balloon for awhile and were soon treated with a dozen or so cranes coming into land at sunset. We shot the sunset and wandered further down the boardwalk and a gentleman said to us - have you seen the Bald Eagle up in the tree? We said no we hadn't, he said it is up there in the trees on the island. I looked in my binoculars and sure enough, I spotted this adult Bald Eagle roosting near an abandoned Great Blue Heron nest in the heron rookery.

The sun had already set and there was almost no available light to get a decent photo. I quickly borrowed Debbie's tripod and took the best photo I could under the terrible lighting conditions. We all quickly took as many photos as we could and watched this magnificent eagle before it got restless and flew away toward the west into taller trees on the other side of the lake.

I was so delighted to see this eagle because I had gone out to Wildwing Lake on several previous occasions when a Bald Eagle was sighted in the area. Each time prior to this, I never got to see an eagle at Kensington Metropark. Today, when we were not even looking for one, we had the great fortune to spot one directly across from us within camera view. With the dwindling light, we were in awe of this magnificent creature that made our outing a very memorable one.