It is hard to find a reason to leave the house to venture into the depths of a cold, wet, winter. I’m very much like a hobbit that way. Photography is one of the few that calls me away from my books and blankets this time of year.
I used a very large carrot -in the form of a new camera lens- to coax myself out the door at 5:15 A.M. This was the second day of the Reelfoot Lake Eagle Festival, and I signed myself and a friend up for a sunrise eagle tour. I was going on an adventure!
A park ranger loaded eight of us into a passenger van and guided us around several of the eagle hot spots. Rigorous conservation efforts have resulted in a thriving permanent eagle population so the birds can be seen at the lake year-round. Reelfoot Lake has one of the largest populations of wintering eagles in the lower 48. In January and February they’re pretty easy to find. Just ask the hunters, eagles often steal the ducks that have been shot before they can be collected.
As promised, there were plenty of eagles to be seen including a few juveniles. However, they were so far away, even with my mighty “bigma” lens (Sigma 50-500) the photos were underwhelming.
When the two hour tour was over, my friend suggested we explore on our own. As a photographer herself, she hadn’t gotten up at 4 in the morning to go home empty handed. She grew up around the lake. She’d hunted it, explored it, and was quite knowledgeable about all the species of waterfowl in the area.
I had my own personal tour guide for an hour, and she did not disappoint. We came up on flocks of mallards, which are the green headed ducks everyone pictures. She explained these were a kind of “puddle duck” as they enjoy shallow water.
We saw snow geese. Their numbers were almost overwhelming.
We found a flock of seagulls - make a joke here if you’re from the ‘80s. There are three or four species of gull that can be found around Reelfoot. What we saw were Ring-bill gulls.
Great Blue Herons can be found around the lake all year as well and we saw a few. They eat small fish, reptiles and amphibians and occasionally dine on small birds including ducks. Most meals are swallowed whole, so it's not unheard of for herons to choke to death on meals they underestimated.
Overall, the trip was a success. We came away with some decent images, and I learned a few things about the local wildlife.
If you're curious about Reelfoot Lake State Park, their wildlife and events, check out their website.
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