Mallard Ducks

All posts tagged Mallard Ducks

Wednesday ~ March 03, 2021

Posted by Dave Updegraff on March 3, 2021
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , .

Happy Wednesday!

I have talked about the 16th Street Basin many times on this blog.  It used to be one of my favorite places to photograph wildlife.  But then the powers to be cut down most of the trees and put up a sun farm and a lot of wildlife never came back.

Yesterday I drove past the basin and was happy to see several species of wildlife there. Nothing like it used to be but there were mallard ducks, Canada geese, ring-billed gulls, and even a couple of eagles, who remained pretty far out in the middle, so it was very difficult to get a good image of them.

So, today is all about the mallard ducks. They were close enough to the short to get some images of them. This particular image is funny because I noticed a male and female (I am allowed to say that anymore?) swimming in circles. When I focused on them with the long lens I notice that the male had a fish he was trying to eat and the female was trying to get it away from him.
He finally got it down, so she got nothing.
Enjoy your day.

 

 

Monday ~ February 01, 2021

Posted by Dave Updegraff on February 1, 2021
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , .

Happy Monday!

I only have about 10,000 images of Canada Geese many of which I have posted over the last 10 years of writing this blog.  So I wasn’t anxious to add more geese to my inventory.  But after wandering through the country side for two days and finding nothing that inspired me to push the shutter I decided to got to one of my favorite places in Dubuque.

I had to do a fair bit of walking to get to them but found a group of Canada Geese and some Mallard Ducks enjoying the open water and sunshine.

I walked past these geese in their sleeping position.  They paid me no notice other than one raised its head just to make sure I wasn’t going to get too close to the group.

The wind was blowing pretty hard and that made the wind sting my face.  I hadn’t put on a heavy coat and didn’t anticipate being out very long so I was really cold when I got back to the truck.

Enjoy your day and be careful.

Thursday ~ December 17, 2020

Posted by Dave Updegraff on December 17, 2020
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , , .

Happy Thursday!

I decided to drive down to the river yesterday hoping to see some eagles flying.  I drove into A. Y. McDonald park and sure enough there was a bald eagle floating around the river just a few hundred feet away.  By the time I got my camera set up and ready to photograph I couldn’t find him anywhere. 

So I drove down to the river’s edge and found some Mallard ducks swimming near the boat ramp.  Not wanting to go home with an empty card I photographed the female as she was swimming near the ramp.

Then this male duck started coming towards me (I was in my vehicle) and perhaps he thought I was going to throw some food to him.  Many people do that.  They drive down to the ramp and throw out bread crumbs and other food for the various wildlife that congregate there.

He finally came up close to my truck and looked at me like (Where’s the food?)  Well I didn’t have anything with me so he was disappointed and went back to the water.

Enjoy your day and be careful.

Monday ~ April 02, 2018

Posted by Dave Updegraff on April 2, 2018
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , , , .

Happy Monday!

I hope you had a wonderful Easter celebration.

After church I drove down to the river to see if there was anything going on.  It is said that one definition of insanity is, doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.  I’ll explain…

I have three images for today.  One of my favorite places to photograph wildlife in the area has been the 16th Street Basin for a variety of reasons.  It has offered an abundance of geese, ducks, herons, egrets, eagles, and various other species including pelicans.  I could always count on finding something to photograph at the Basin, no matter what time of year it was.

The Basin was close, only a few miles from home, so it was easy to get to no matter what the weather was doing.  There was a lot of distraction (buildings and power lines) to inhibit photographing wildlife in flight but it could be done.

It had a lot of fish in it so it attracted lots of fish-eating birds.  Two years ago they chopped down all the trees around the Basin.  Trees that provided cover and a resting area for the wildlife.  They put in a large solar farm adjacent to the basin, hence the removal of threes.  😦

I keep going back to the basin in hopes of finding something to photograph thus the definition of insanity, because for the last two years there has been nothing to photograph.

Imagine my surprise when I went to my favorite spot of years gone by and found a half-dozen Blue Herons resting.  I was excited to say the least.  However a sad things is there is no one is taking care of the Basin any more and so I spent a lot of time on each of the photos I’m showing today cloning out all the junk and debris that have built around the banks of the Basin, with Photoshop.  😦

There were some geese and this pair of Mallards swimming near the herons.  I couldn’t pass them up.

That’s it for today.

Enjoy your day and be careful.

Wednesday ~ June 07, 2017

Posted by Dave Updegraff on June 6, 2017
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , , , .

Happy Wednesday!

Off at Zero Dark Thirty Hours this morning for a full day of benefit meetings.  Two long days but it’s good to see all the folks at our different banks.  I have some more images from my Green Island session.

I found this guy crossing the road on my way into the preserve.  I stopped the car and approached him on foot.  He withdrew into his shell so I had to wait for him to come of his shell for this image.  🙂

Just a reminder you can click on any image and reveal a larger more detailed version of the image.

I saw some movement behind the over growth on one of the canals.  I followed it for awhile and then this little Mallard Duck emerged.  He was having a little turf battle with a Red-Winged Black Bird.  I love photographing Mallards.

This is not the image I wanted to capture.  The auto focus system caught the branch that was closest to the camera, which left the Egret a little softer than I like.  When I was photographing this magnificent creature I didn’t realize the AF was on the branch and not the bird so I just kept shooting.  Still it’s a nice shot so I present it today for your enjoyment.

Enjoy your day and be careful.

Friday ~ March 11, 2016

Posted by Dave Updegraff on March 11, 2016
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , , .

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Happy Friday!

I have some random wildlife images for you today and none of them are eagles.  🙂

Busy work week didn’t leave anytime for photography.  I hope to correct that today as I get out and see what there is to make images of.

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I made these images last Monday at Mud Lake Park, North of Dubuque.  I saw this little squirrel scurrying about but didn’t realize he had a nut in his mouth until I got the second image of him when he climbed a tree.  The first shot is of him playing hide and seek with me, hoping that I had gone away.  🙂

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“Any port in a storm.” Gulls rest and sleep on a thin piece of ice floating in the back waters of the Mississippi.

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I can never pass up a chance to photograph Mallard Ducks.  They are such a vibrant, beautiful, and colorful bird.

That’s it for today.  Hope you enjoy your day and as always be careful.

Tuesday ~ January 26, 2016

Posted by Dave Updegraff on January 26, 2016
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , .

January-25-2016

Happy Tuesday!

Yes I know it’s a common Mallard Duck.  I think they are a wonderful looking bird and I enjoy photographing them.  I found these guys at the Bee Branch Project, enjoying the open water and each others company.  I actually think I can see this guy’s eye looking back at me as he slowly swims away.

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As I approached (even though I tried to be stealthy) they all started swimming away from me.  Not fast just a slow, “lets act nonchalant” type of swim.  🙂

There were probably 50 or more ducks in the creek where I was.

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I just stood motionless for a few minutes and they slowly started coming back to where they had been, which let me get up close and personal with a couple of them.  After a while they didn’t seem to mind me being there.

That’s it for today.  Probably no blog tomorrow as I have a late evening meeting and a busy day so no time for photography.  😦

Thanks for stopping by the blog.  Enjoy your day and be careful.

Friday ~ October 23, 2015

Posted by Dave Updegraff on October 23, 2015
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , , .

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Happy Friday!

As they use to say on the Monty Python show, “and now for something completely different.”

I made these images last week while visiting the Mississippi River.  I can never pass up an opportunity to photograph a sail boat especially on a bright sunny day that make the muddy Mississippi look all blue and pretty.

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This pair of Mallard Ducks were just riding the waves watching the world go by.  Didn’t seem to be the least bit bothered by my picture-taking.

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Lock & Dam #11.  Part of the Lock and Dam series of flood control up and down the Mississippi River.

Nothing much else to report.  Having coffee with an old friend this morning and then trying to finish up some projects I have promised to other friends.

Thanks for stopping by the blog.  Enjoy your day, cooler and rainy here today.  Be careful.

Wednesday ~ May 13, 2015

Posted by Dave Updegraff on May 13, 2015
Posted in: General Posts. Tagged: , , , , , , .

April-11-2015-2A

Happy Hump Day Wednesday!

I never tire of photographing wildlife.  Be it the ubiquitous Mallard Duck or any other common critter.  I enjoy watching them interact with their environment an each other.  Of course what I really enjoy is photographing them.

The Ducks and Geese in this post were all photographed at the 16th Street Basin.  It has not been replete with wildlife this season as it was last year.  But occasionally like this past Monday there will be a few water fowl there.

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I caught these ducks napping in what little sun there was Monday  It was overcast most of the day, cool and windy.  I guess they had nothing better to do then nap.

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I have never seen a pose like this.  He was rubbing his neck on his back and scratching his underside with his foot at the same time.  Sort of like rubbing a circle on chest while patting your stomach.  🙂

That’s it for today.  Thanks for stopping by the blog.  Enjoy your day and be careful.

Monday ~ March 09, 2015

Posted by Dave Updegraff on March 9, 2015
Posted in: Daily Posts. Tagged: , , , , .

Mallard Ducks

Happy Monday!

It’s been a while since my last post.  I would say that part of that was because of a busy work schedule but part of that was just being lazy as well.  I hate to admit it but I let a couple of good photography days slip away in favor of rest and relaxation.  😦

Yesterday Jeanne and I went out looking for some wildlife photos.  First of course we went to our favorite places and there was nothing.  On the way back from the river we spotted these Mallard ducks swimming in some little pools of water from the melting snow.  Any port in a storm I guess.

Canadian Geese

Then we tried a couple of other places that didn’t yield any luck when we happened by these Canadian geese gathered on a frozen body of water.  There must have been fifty or sixty just congregated for whatever reason.  There was no open water for them to swim in nor any discernible food source so I’m not sure what the big attraction was but there they were none-the-less.

I noticed in post production that the one on the left has a metal band on its leg.

Flying Canadian Geese

Finally we went on the Wisconsin side of the lock and dam to check things out.  We heard these geese honking and I was lucky enough to capture them as they flew over.

So not exactly what I had in mind when we set out but I’m happy anytime to photograph ducks and geese so it was a good afternoon.

That’s it for today.  Thanks for stopping by the blog.  Enjoy your day and be careful.