Some images from this season......using a Canon instead of a shotgun.

Keith Mueller

Keith Mueller

Active member
This season was hailed as a banner year by some, and a huge dissapointment by many others. I found myself seeing unbalanced numbers of wildfowl here in New England....from small to non-existent numbers of migrating and wintering (common waterfowl species) such as most dabbling and diving ducks to huge numbers of sea ducks, geese, brant, black ducks, sea birds and shorebirds. I spent most of this past season persuing wildfowl through my cameras lens, and was blessed with some of the best "wildfowling" I have experienced in many years. My mornings began as usual (less my boat); getting set up before dawn, and often with a few decoys set up or out to entice my quarry. Besides waterfowl, I had many great opportunities with shorebirds, and as if I returned to the past, I would set up a few decoys, and now I can see why the practice of shorebird hunting was outlawed......using a few decoys would prove deadly. It was a great experience. I would like to share a few of my images with you from this season. I will say that I am not a photographer, probably better to be described as a "snap shot" picture taker. There are so many fantastic photographers on these forums that create art with their cameras. I shoot primarily for content, using the images for carving and art inspiration. I took a huge amount of images this year! I filled approx. 75-4GB cards, and with anywhere from 600 to 1,000 images per card, that means I have a whole bunch of images. Since I haven't looked through all the cards, I will be spending all year doing that!

THis thread is going to take me some time, as I have a whole bunch of images to post, and a few stories along the way.....I ask for your patience as my computer skills are improving, and my picture attachment skills are also improving thanks to Steve and a few others! I hope you enjoy the images and find inspiration of some sort with them.

Another spectacular dawn; this image from Cape Cod in December. My wife Jen and I travel there often to spend time with my favorite birds: eiders and sea birds. This morning the winds were gale out of the Northeast which are perfect for sea bird viewing. The strong winds off the ocean drive the birds close to shore and are usually seen right along the beaches of the outer Cape.

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And we were rewarded.....my absolute favorite sea bird and second favorite bird species; the gannet. That morning we saw literally thousands as they headed South chasing the herring run. They were diving right along the beach line some barely a few yards from my feet.

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Another image......


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My favorite bird without question is the eider. The wind was blowing so strong I could barely walk against it. The sand was flying like a sand blast machine as I crossed the dunes to get closer to this flock of shorebirds that was standing on the sandbar. It was so cold the wind would take your breath away. As I carefully approached the dunlins, I looked up and quickly managed a dozen or so shots. THis shot remains one of my favorites this year.


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THis image was taken in Rhode Island, I was photographing the waves crashing on the sea wall when a single cormorant attempted to cross the wall and almost got ingulfed in this huge wave.

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Very cool pics Keith. I wouldn't want to be on those waters in a little boat. or any boat for that matter. Nothing wrong with shooting 'em with a camera, it can be just as challenging.

By the way, whats this I hear about a new book?
 
Red breasted mergansers are one of our most populated winter visitor in New England, and another of my favorites. Mergansers are the third most carved species that I carve behind eiders and black ducks. This pair was having fun diving through the crests of the waves with this hen being surrounded with a shroud of sea water.....


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A very regal drake....

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In a small Cape Cod harbor, I was standing on a commercial fishing pier talking with some fisherman. It was too rough to go out and fish, but they were prepping for the next morning. There was a hen white wing scoter hanging out near the docks and it was feeding a short distance away. The hen dove continually......

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This first winter loon was also hanging out. It tried to sneak by.......

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It decided I wasn't any threat, and it posed with this wing stretch excerise.

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This drake eider was feeding along the rack line of the beach, and it learned how to negotiate the little pesky waves......

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I photographed these harlequins in a snow storm. The rest of the flock was sitting outside the breaking waves, and this group swam under me in the quiet water inside the breaking water. They soon climbed up on a rock nearby, and preened the morning away.

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Sea birds are fantastic to see. Often they would decoy to my sea duck rig.....always a joy to watch. This thick billed murre was spending time feeding in a little cove along a small rock jetty on Cape Cod. He approached me quite closely and offered me many good shots.

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Another of my "favorites".....a razorbill. This is a first winter bird, he has a much smaller bill than an adult. This razorbill was in the exact location as the hen w w scoter above was, but the next day. You can see how alcids as most sea birds use their wings to "fly" underwater while they are chasing fish. The harbor was filled with small herring and sandeels offering this bird a bounty of table fare.

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This red necked grebe was photographed in another Cape Cod harbor. The bird is surrounded and framed in the red and blue reflection from the hull of a swordfishing boat.

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Part of a flock of about 1,000 common scoters. A strong Norteast wind drove the birds in close along the shore of Rhode Island. They stayed all morning, and would keep drawing more birds to them. They were mixed with eiders and a small flock of gadwall....thats right gadwall. That was interesting to say the least!!

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I have always been fascinated (artistically speaking) by watching birds bathe. It is amazing to watch them get in all kinds of twisted and contorted postures.

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A mature hen eider basking in the warm afternoon sun.....just spectaular!!

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Keith - Great shots! Post up as many of those Harli posts as you want. I have to carve 4 of them for next season to gun with my friend Gary March. I love that shot, poor hen...

Thanks for sharing your goodness brother! Pat
 
Keith,

Thanks for sharing your photos. Great shots and deffinately memorable outings.

Somehow one of those reminded me of a decoy set up I believe you did a few years ago of some bids sitting on a log. If that was your work would you mind sharing that with us?

Thank you again. Your work is very inspirational to many of us waterfowl junkies.
 
Hello Keith
Thank you so much for taking the time to post those wanderfull shots. So many of those are not on the west coast where I'm at. I loved viewing them and reading your thoughts. It is amazing how much heart, you have when you write about all these little creatures. I feel I was there. I am so thankful you turned the page and came over to this site. You have so much to offer this great group of guys. Hopefully we can return the same favor.

Gary March
 
This gannet was found in a salt marsh just over the dunes on Cape Cod. Because of the four days of continual gale force winds in early December, some migrating seabirds succumb to the elements. This bird was exhausted, and was taking a long and much needed rest. It had flown over the dunes and landed in the quiet marsh seeking refuge from the savage weather. Jen dicovered it, and pointed it out to me. I was able to approach the bird within a few feet. I looked the bird over without disturbing it, and it allowed me to remain only three feet away from it. It stood up at one point, stretched its wings, and went back to sleep. This beautiful gannet trusted me keeping company with it, and I respected its space. I left the bird alone to recover, and when we returned the next day, the bird was gone. I feared that the bird may have fallen prey to a fox, coyote, great horned owl or red tail hawk, but I didn't see any loose feathers about. I was relieved to hear a voice call out; a lady that was walking her dog told me the bird I was looking for had just flown off mere moments before we had gotten there to check on it!

What a beautiful bird!

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If you carve and you like black ducks, here are a few images that may be helpful......

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Keith,

Those are some spectacular shots! I really like those black ducks, I really do wish they populated the west coast. I would love to carve a big rig of those like you have in your book, perhaps some day I will!

Zach
 
Keith,
Great pictures!! I love the Black ducks and Oh look, a Gannet!!....LOL... And to think you told Jen it was a plastic bag....... Thanks for posting the pictures.
 
This is a rare scene in CT.......a flock of ringnecks. These birds were wheeling around the marsh that morning as I was photographing black ducks in the open water areas on a frozen salt pond. Since the weather warmed up, the morning was foggy but you could still make out the birds (not the best day for photography). Just as the fog lifted, this flock of all drake ringnecks (18 in all) came wheeling over my head, and I managed two shots.

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Well, not really the usual subject species, we in CT have a good sustained population of monk parakeets. As many of you know who know me, my second love is tropical bird species, so my introduction is easy.....I just find these birds fascinating. THis flock flew over the marsh later that morning when the fog lifted. It may be considered weird to some to be sitting on the edge of a saltmarsh looking at black ducks (and ringnecks) and a flock of parakeets fly over.

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under closer inspection.....


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Finishing with shorebirds......

I had the best time this year in CT with shorebirds, I photographed a dozen species, and a couple being rare to our area.

Here are a few of my favorite images from this year.......dunlins, sanderlings, purple sandpipers, black bellied plovers, ruddy turnstones, and one stilt sandpiper.

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This flock passing by a flock of eiders......

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they became agitated and nervous (hopefully not from me) and began flying in this knotted flock and wheeled about in dramatic twists and turns....as soon as I figured out what was going on....two peregrines attacked! All the shorebirds escaped, and the falcons flew off. Trouble is. there went my photography for the day!

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Two days later I was back, and I had two decoys with me: a sanderling and a ruddy turnstone. I carved and painted them in the style of Elmer Crowell from Cape Cod The oil paint was still tacky, but I was anxious to " stick 'em" up. I put out the two decoys, and assumed the prone position in the sand about ten feet away. Now I can see whay shorebird numbers were nearly wiped out......I was only using two decoys!!

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Again, more birds......

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I carved this Elmer Crowell influenced stretching whimbrel for a commission, and as usual, I always try and photograph my decoys in a natural setting (as seen in my book). While I was taking pictures of this decoy on the edge of a small marsh, I saw a hudsonian godwit fly over the marsh and land in the nearby field. THis species is quite rare in our state, so I didn't want to miss this opportunity to photograph it. I put the decoy in the field a good distance from the godwit, and hid in the nearby tall marsh grass hoping for a shot or two!! Well, I think you can see what happened.......


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And then a few dunlins joined the party.....

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a portrait of a sleeping semi-palmated plover......

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and some sanderlings......


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I was quite happy with a full flash card of godwit shots. As I headed back to my truck, this snipe flushed from under my feet. I managed a few good shots......

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On a different day, I was also photographing this commissioned Elmer Crowell yellowlegs decoy in a different marsh. I heard that very distinctive call from over the marsh; yellowlegs. I didn't have my boots with me that day, so I was only able to set up the decoy along the edge of the marsh.

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this one bird found my decoy interesting enough to look it over. It passed within three feet of the decoy. I like this shot......

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What says marsh hunting better than a silhouetted decoy as the sun goes down. This is one of my commissioned CT/Shang Wheeler influenced black duck decoys......


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The end of a perfect day and season. Sundown on Cape Cod.

I hope you enjoyed the images!!

Thanks for looking,

Keith


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Love the shorebirds. It's hard enough to take a snipe with a shotgun can't imagine getting one on camera flying.
Maybe those parakeets can spread across the country like the collared doves.

Tim
 
and even neater someone that knows an Alcid from a Alka Seltzer.........neat stuff....

Love that "Quaker" flock....

Tim, you won't have to wait around long for the "NEW" Carolina Parakeet to reach you....there's already a breeding population in Northwood, North Dakota......and in something like 20 other states....estimate is currently "in excess of a quarter million birds" in the U.S......

They're as durable as they are noisy..licing and breeding succesfully in temperatures ranging from -17 to +106.....in outside aviaries in Ca. they have bred as many as (6) times a year with a clutch size of 4 to 6.....

I like em...they are noisy as heck when they are in their colonies, which can be huge and not only disturbingly loud but also pretty nasty when the colonies get big.....

They were already "controlling" them in Florida when the first Collared Doves were still drawing crowds of birders looking to add a bird to their lists....

So keep an eye out...the NEW and IMPROVED CAROLINA PARAKEET is on its way....

Steve
 
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