Kip’s Comments - May 26, 2025 — LadagePhotography.com

A Flash of Blue, A Glimpse of Movement, and a Bit More (Stories from the Day)

Early this morning, as I walked along the shores of the Wapsipinicon River, I caught a flash of blue - actually two flashes of blue - as a male and female eastern bluebird flew past. That was all I needed to know how I was going to spend my next minutes. I picked a couple of spots that I adjusted as the lighting from the rising sun varied the scene. Then, when it was time, I pressed my shutter release button. Following is a sampling of images.

As I was watching the trees I caught a split-second glimpse of movement at a hole in a tree not far from the bluebirds. When I concentrated on monitoring the hole in the tree, whatever I saw went into hiding. Eventually I determined the movement was a young European starling waiting for a meal. By watching the opening I was able to photograph the young and an adult feeding caterpillars to the nestlings. (If my memory is correct, these were my first starling/nest pictures.)

European Starling at Nest - Image 977390

European Starling at Nest - Image 977401

European Starling at Nest - Image 977740

European Starling at Nest - Image 977834

European Starling at Nest - Image 977864

Out on the water there was a female hooded merganser and a lone Canada goose gosling. I wonder if the merganser has a nest nearby and I wonder if the gosling was separated from adult birds by boat traffic on the river this holiday weekend. I did try to catch the gosling but it was smart enough to escape into the woods along the shore.

Gosling on Wapsipinicon River - Image 977959

At least four other bird species were flitting in the trees near me. I was able to photograph three of them, but the American redstart did not approach close enough for photos. Even these photos are not that good, but they do document the avian visitors to my location.