This is the time of year everyone is looking back at the past year. Time to take a break from the pie fights and look back at my year in photography.
January
January is time for the photography contest at the Rosamond Gifford Zoo in Syracuse, NY. Free admission for one adult with a camera. What could be better. (It could be better if it was above freezing...)
I could take pictures of the Patas Monkeys and Red Pandas all day…
February
In February I heard that there were Redpolls at Beaver Lake Nature Center in Baldwinsville, NY. So on Valentines Day I went to get some pictures. Thankfully Beaver Lake has a nice indoor viewing area…
All the other winter feeder birds were there too...
I had to take a walk through Hemlock Hollow and down the Bog Trail to try to find the Saw-whet Owl. Dipped on the Owl…
March
In early March the rivers were still frozen over. So the ducks were all concentrated in the few areas of open water. Very high mortality rate, especially for the fish eaters.
In late March I got my new Pentax K-3 (replacing a Pentax K-5).
April
April is time for a first trip of the year to Montezuma NWR.
Taking photos on the section of Rt 31 that runs through the Savannah mucks is a challenge. The shoulder is about 6 inches wide and the locals drive like 70 mph.
There was still snow in the woods at Beaver Lake well into April. The nuthatches were busy caching sunflower seeds from the feeders.
By the second week of April the ice was finally gone from the main pool at Montezuma, and the male Purple Martins were picking out nest boxes.
Sterling Nature Center in northern Cayuga County is home to a Great Blue Heron rookery. In April they were just starting to get the nests ready.
May
May is the best time of the year in CNY.