For another change of pace, my friend Nigel and I decided to head over to the Royal Botantical Gardens in Hamilton to do some birding. We decided to hike the trail along Cootes Paradise Marsh. We definitely choose the perfect trail because there were a lot of birds to photograph along here. A few in particular caught our attention. First a Snowy Egret was calming stalking the fish in the shallows of the lake.
Snowy Egret
We also watched a Blue Heron, which was out of range for my lens, catch a few fish as he stood stock still waiting for them to swim by. It was fascinating to watch, I just need a much longer lens to get some better shots. I still took the shots but they just didn’t make the cut.
As we continued along the loop I noticed some fungi growing on a log. After I sat my butt down to get a better shot, Nigel brought to my attention that if I looked past the log I would see something better. As I looked up I saw 3 beautiful white-tailed deer, unperturbed by our presence, munching away on the plants only a few feet away.
White-tailed Deer
I was extremely lucky to get this up close and personal shot of one of the smaller deer. To clarify, he’s not sticking her tongue out at my but rather munching on those greens. I just happened to catch him at the right moment. And, that wasn’t the last surprise this place had for us.
Heron Eyeing Swan
As we neared the end of the trail we went off onto a small side trail where we startled a Blue Heron. It didn’t fly too far away before it settled back in the water. It was then that this large white swan started swimming up to the heron. The heron however, was having none of this, glaring at the swan as it swam closer, and then deciding the swan was too close for comfort, he flew away.
I love watching wildlife interactions and I wish they would happen more often when I’m out shooting. Overall it was a great day out and I came away with some good photos.
