This site is dedicated to wildlife and landscape photography.
This site is dedicated to wildlife and landscape photography.
This killdeer had just pulled an earthworm out of the ground and was looking for its next meal when I photographed it. Killdeer are members of the plover family and get their name from their “killdee” call.
A bobcat takes a rest in a field. I’ve been seeing a lot of bobcats and coyotes at Point Reyes lately. I saw a bobcat and three coyotes last Friday. I saw this guy the previous visit. Don’t recall what else I saw that day, but I have photos of a coyote from then. I often see things, but don’t get a chance to photograph the animal so what I’ve photographed isn’t a good record of what I saw on any given day. When I started going out to Point Reyes somewhat regularly beginning last summer I didn’t see as many bobcats or coyotes as I’m seeing now. I don’t know if it’s luck lately or that I’m getting better at spotting them. Probably both, but with emphasis on the luck side of the equation.
A female or, possibly juvenile, harrier stands on a fence post. Harriers (AKA marsh hawks) seem to live close to ground level. When I see them they are flying just above the ground or they are perched on something low, like a post, or standing on the ground. They even nest on the ground. Note the owl-like facial disc. Like owls, they use hearing as well as sight to help in locating prey. Another trait they share with owls is soft feathers which makes them quieter in flight.
A long-tailed weasel looks for its next meal on the Tomales Peninsula. Long-tailed weasels have a high metabolism and eat up to 40% of their body weight in food every day. They are nocturnal. Their diet consists mainly of rodents which they pursue into and through their burrows. In the northern portion of their range they molt to white in winter, but the tip of the tail remains black.
The Park Service also lists the short-tailed weasel as an inhabitant of Point Reyes. They are about 1/2 the size of a long-tail, have shorter tails in relation to their body length, and have white bellies. They can also molt to white with black tail tip. It is the short-tail weasel that is also known as ermine.
Here is another look at our energetic hunter as it emerges from a rodent hole. These animals do not stand still for long.
This is one of the coyotes I’ve seen recently out at Point Reyes. Note the numerous gopher holes.
Point Reyes seems to have a healthy population of coyotes and bobcats. The same can be said throughout Marin County thanks to the efforts of Camilla Fox. In the late 1990s Camilla, with the help of other concerned citizens, convinced the County of Marin to stop the indiscriminate trapping and poisoning of coyotes to protect sheep. Not only was the trapping and poisoning inhumane, but it killed more badgers, bobcats and foxes than it did the highly intelligent coyotes. Now the County has a non-lethal coyote control program that relies on guard dogs, llamas and electrified fencing to protect sheep. The program has been an unqualified success. Camilla now heads up an organization called Project Coyote which fights the senseless trapping and poisoning of coyotes throughout the United States and Canada as well as other inhumane practices like coyote and fox penning where a coyote or fox is locked in an escape-proof enclosure and then dogs are released to kill it. It seems a bit like dog fighting to me with one side not having a fair chance. Some people actually enjoy doing this. To learn more about Project Coyote click here.
A red-tailed hawk perches on a piling. You might wonder why most of my photos of raptors at Point Reyes are on posts. The reason is that much of Point Reyes is open dairy or ranch land. In the farming/ranching area there are few trees or, better yet for the birds, snags (dead trees with no leaves and therefore unlimited visibility). There are also power poles that they roost on, but I don’t normally photograph birds on them for several reasons (too high, too far, unaesthetic structures and poor (sky) backgrounds).
A cow elk gazes off into the distance. Pardon the anthropomorphism, but she looks like she is smiling. This photo was taken at the Tule Elk Refuge on Tomales Point.
