Our winter weather has been a bit unpleasant of late. The big storm that we had a couple of weeks ago left a nasty mess at my house because of the timing of the different types of precipitation. The heavy snow was preceded by even heavier rain, which resulted in a thick layer of wet slush that was too heavy for the snowblower.
Temperatures then dropped and I’ve had ice ever since.
I don’t mind snow in the winter, but ice is another thing altogether. Ice takes most of the fun out of winter walks in the woods because there just aren’t many tracks to see and the ones that are there are old. Further compounding the un-fun is the looming threat of a dangerous slip and fall with every step you take. So, with these conditions in the field, I have found myself trapped inside a bit too much and have fallen into ill humor.
My birthday was this past weekend and to combat my crabby disposition, I decided to give myself permission to write a column about anything I felt like. I sat down at my computer with a cup of coffee and started looking through the archives to see what sort of photos I might have taken on my actual birthday in past years. There were some nice ones in there, but I really struck gold when I went back to 2011.
On Feb. 22, 2011, I woke up in my stateroom on a cruise ship in the waters of the Bahamas and I was tremendously excited about the day’s excursion to a tiny coral island called Great Stirrup Cay. This was my first opportunity to step foot on land south of Florida since my honeymoon and I was primed for some photography.
The water was that deep tropical blue that makes you utter an involuntary, “ooooo” whenever you see it. The air was warm, humid and salty and as I stepped ashore I felt a definite spring in my step. This was exciting and my wife, Susan, had a smile on her face that was pure joy. We made our way to the beach, selected our lounge chairs for the day’s fun and simultaneously exhaled in sublime contentment.
What a day.
The water was deliciously warm and there was a cookout with hamburgers and hot dogs. A comfortable chair, good food, outstanding swimming; what more could you want? Well, it was just then that the camera gods (fictitious, Nikonus and Iso) decided to present me with a birthday gift. Of course, all such gifts are actually tests and Nikonus made sure the test was a doozy.
Would I immerse myself so much in comfort that I failed to remain alert? Nikonus tested this by throwing a stupendous bird at me just when I might have been rendered somewhat incoherent with the lusciousness of my surroundings. I am proud to say that I was prepared for such an eventuality and I was rewarded accordingly.
Constantly scanning the sky for anything of interest, I hadn’t seen anything but gulls for the entire time. Then, coming straight at me from the southwest, I saw a bird that was definitely not a gull. At first, I had no idea what I was looking at, but I locked my eyes on it and gave another involuntary, “oooo” when I recognized it as a female magnificent frigatebird (Fregata magnificens).
No need to explain that scientific name.
My camera was firing as fast as it could and I tracked the bird as evenly as possible. Iso must have ensured the camera settings were just right because when I looked at the photos I had this one big, beautiful portrait of the bird as she sailed overhead. A male would have had a bright red throat patch instead of the white feathers of a female, but it’s my birthday column and I really don’t feel like getting into all of that right now.
The following day, we enjoyed an excursion in Nassau, on New Providence Island and saw many more wonderful sights, but the frigate-bird sticks in my head as the best thing I saw and the best photo I took on that entire trip. I had specifically selected a destination and travel method that I thought might provide some amazing photo opportunities and it all worked out. Who says you can’t have fun while you’re working?
Bill Danielson has been a professional writer and nature photographer for 22 years. He has worked for the National Park Service, the US Forest Service and the Massachusetts State Parks and currently teaches high school biology and physics. Visit www.speakingofnature.com for more information, or go to Speaking of Nature on Facebook