Lens-Artists Challenge #50 – Trees

“The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit.”

Nelson Henderson

OH YEAH, SAYS WHO…???

I’m stretching a bit to respond to Ann-Christine’s TREES challenge this week. Having spent some time shooting a copse of trees where a number of beautiful birds have decided to locate their rookery, I’m focused on the birds within the trees rather than the trees themselves. But after all, where would the birds (or for that matter we) be without the trees in the first place?!

BIRD ON A BRANCH

“Trees are the earth’s endless effort to speak to the listening heavens.”

Rabindranath Tagore

Although a good friend and I thoroughly enjoyed our time with the birds, we are hopeful they will move on before they’ve destroyed the lovely trees they inhabit. Their chicks are no longer little – in fact the best way to identify a juvenile is to watch them being fed by their avian parents (see below). They’re testing their wings by flapping and jumping around but are not quite ready to fly. We laughed out loud at some of their antics.

LUNCHTIME IN THE TREES

“We can learn a lot from trees. They’re always grounded but never stop reaching heavenward.”

Everett Mamor

We were impressed by the number of birds and how closely they’d located their nests. Cormorants were next to anhingas, herons were nesting on the same branches as egrets -a truly integrated neighborhood! There was an amazing cacophony of sound as the chicks called to their parents and to each other across the entire rookery.

OUT ON A LIMB

“The story of the tree is written on every leaf.”

Marty Rubin

As we made our way around the rookery we marveled at how clever the birds had been in choosing their location. They’d built their nests deep in the greenery of a set of trees surrounded on one side by water and on the other by an impenetrable growth of bramble bushes. There was no way to capture them other than with a long lens. Even at 200mm, my images this week required cropping to show the details of the rookery’s inhabitants.

AMIDST THE TREES

“There’s nothing more beautiful than watching trees getting dressed up for Spring and Summer.”

Charmaine J Fordy

The rookery is located smack in the middle of an area between the third and fourth holes of one of our local golf courses. Many a ball has been lost to the pond fronting the rookery, which is also a popular areas for juvenile gators and their watchful parents. Needless to say, only a fool would try to retrieve a ball there.

LITTLE BLUE HERON

“Into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul.”

John Muir

We thoroughly enjoyed our morning with the nesting birds and their homes in the greenery.  Let’s hope the area is still green when they decide it’s time to move along to their next location😊. Wherever they end up, we’ll do our best to find them. Their last rookery was only a few blocks away and was equally protected by water and densely stickered bushes – I expect nothing different next year. 

NEST EXPANSION IN PROGRESS

“A forest bird never wants a cage.”

Henrik Ibsen

Hopefully Ann-Christine will forgive my “tweak” of her Trees challenge. How about you? Are you focused on the trees themselves or the wildlife that inhabits them? We look forward to seeing your interpretation whatever way you decided to go. If you’re new to our challenge, click here for instructions on joining the fun – and don’t forget your Lens-Artists tag.  We hope to see you next week when Amy shares her take on the next Lens-Artists challenge.

 

 

 

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• June 15, 2019
• Birds, Kiawah, LENS-ARTISTS, Nature, Photography
• 76 Comments