Tag Archives: mnwr

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Wildlife

Quintet of Cranes

January 30, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Five sandhill cranes in San Joaquin pasture land on a foggy winter day

Many years ago in college I read a book that mentioned the sandhill cranes and which spoke of them almost reverentially. At that time I was largely uninterested in things like birds (with the possible exception of egrets) and even less interested in flatland things — my interests were in the mountains and the higher the better. But somehow the existence of these birds stuck in my mind, even though I really had no idea what they were. Then, not all that many years ago, when chance led me to go see the migratory birds of California’s Central Valley, it was the cranes that were my object — a friend had told me about a crane refuge, and that was the sum total of my knowledge of the birds, so that’s where I went. The cranes were, in a sense, my gateway drug to developing a serious interest in all of the birds that show up in California in the winter.

In the last few years I have photographed the birds extensively, and I’m becoming more fond of the cranes with their unusual and striking call (often heard while the birds are unseen), their low and level flight, propelled by slowing flapping wings, the striking difference between their beautifully graceful forms in flight and their rather ungainly appearance on the ground. This winter there have been a larger number of cranes at the location where I often photograph, and on this visit the numbers were quite impressive. As I came around the far end of the place, there were several small groups of them right on the gravel road I was traveling on. I slowed, got my camera ready, and knew that they would soon take off, probably providing an opportunity to photograph them in flight. They did fly, but not far, and I stopped and photographed this group against the green of the pasture, and the slightly fog muted light on the trees of this flat landscape.

Text, photographs, and other media are © Copyright G Dan Mitchell (or others when indicated) and are not in the public domain and may not be used on websites, blogs, or in other media without advance permission from G Dan Mitchell.

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Flight, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Wildlife

The Landing

January 29, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A large flock of Ross’s geese lands following a mass take-off.

The day followed a familiar pattern, starting with a long, pre-dawn drive to a favorite location in the San Joaquin Valley, where we arrived in thick fog to meet friends. We began photographing before sunrise — though you would hardly know there was a sunrise in the thick fog — and continued to work the foggy landscape for several hours. A first pass through the area gave us a better idea of what we might see later. By late morning the light was becoming more flat, and we decided to take a side trip to a different spot, returning to where we had begun after lunch.

The locations and activities of the birds continued to evolve as the day wore on. By afternoon we had figured out where the many cranes and even more geese were congregating, and it was looking like a big group might turn up in a pasture where we often are able to photograph them. One more pass through the area brought a few of us to this pasture and, sure enough, a couple of very large flocks were beginning to assemble here. A couple of us settled in along the edge of this meadow, trying to find positions that would include an interesting backdrop of trees and the setting sun. As the geese moved, we moved, too, mostly backing up to the east as they moved the same direction. Periodically something would set them off and huge groups of thousands of them would take to the air at once, in a maelstrom of wings and calls. After circling for a few minutes, in groups that became more widely distributed, things would calm down and they would return to the pasture, picking some spot where hundreds would begin to land at once.

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California

Geese, Winter Dusk Sky

January 28, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

Geese fly above California’s San Joaquin Valley in dusk light at the end of a winter day

Out here in the San Joaquin Valley winter wetland landscape, I never know for certain what the end of the day will bring. Will it be an evening when tens of thousands of birds — cranes and geese and others — are everywhere, periodically erupting into noisy flight? Or will it be a quiet evening with only a few birds? It is often foggy out here in the winter, and that fog might clear and bring evening colors or it might stick around so that the gray simply becomes darker. If the fog does clear, will it reveal a perfect blue sky or a sky with clouds from a passing weather front?

There were plenty of surprises on the late-January evening. One pleasant surprise was that a number of friends/photographers also showed up, and we often photographed together though the day and on into the evening. And in a season when it has sometimes seemed like the geese had gone elsewhere, there were huge flocks of them everywhere, and larger than usual groups of sandhill cranes joined in the party. The fog did clear, and at dusk the sun lit high clouds above the remaining valley haze. And as the day ended flocks of birds became very active, suddenly taking to the air and forming giant clouds of noisy birds that swirled in circles. This was nearly my final photograph of the day, made as some of those groups flew above the pastureland in front of rows of trees in the fading light.

Photographs: Central California, Photographs: Nature, Photographs: Northern California, Photographs: Wildlife

Dancing Cranes

January 20, 2015 G Dan Mitchell Leave a comment

A group of sandhill cranes perform a courtship “dance.”

The sandhill cranes hold a special place for me in the list of San Joaquin Valley birds. Many years ago, I recall reading the work of the great American conservationist Aldo Leopold in a college class. As a young “Sierra Guy” I registered that this was supposed to be important, but my passions were with Muir and the Sierra and I was skeptical that some guy writing about some birds I had never seen could have much of interest to say about such things. To be honest, most of it didn’t sink in at the time — but as so often happens with college experiences, the seed was planted and it finally took root and grew much later. A second story: I was not at all interested in photographing birds until a chance encounter with a colleague while waiting in the espresso stand line one morning at the college. While we were standing there chatting, my friend Pauline mentioned her passion for birding and described a place further north in the Central Valley. I was going to photograph that weekend but didn’t have specific plans, so I more or less figured, “what the heck, might as well go check out this bird place.” The embarrassing fact is that I had lived decades in California with (almost) no idea of the astonishing numbers of migratory birds that make their homes here. One visit to this place my friend mentioned and I was hooked.

While the geese are my primary excuse to go photograph birds, over time I’ve become more and more fascinated by the cranes. There is nothing like arriving before dawn where they hang out and hearing their haunting cry carrying over the wetlands, unless it is the sight of a nearly perfect line of them, wings moving slowly, as they follow their level trajectories above the landscape, especially when it is a bit foggy. During the day they often seem to collect in groups, quietly feeding on pasture land. In the evening (and occasionally during the day) vast numbers of them coast in to land. And then there is “the dance.” Among a seemingly quiet group of cranes, mayhem erupts as small groups collect together and take turns jumping into the air in what I understand to be a courtship ritual.

G Dan Mitchell Photography

Tag Archives: mnwr

Quintet of Cranes

Like this:

The Landing

Like this:

Geese, Winter Dusk Sky

Like this:

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.

Share this page:

Like this:

Share this page:

Like this:

Share this page:

Like this:

Share this page:

Like this:

Photographer and visual opportunist. Daily photos since 2005, plus articles, reviews, news, and ideas.