eastern cottontail

Random Photos Volume II

I thought I’d share another batch of photographs here that don’t have enough of a story involved justify their own blog post.

Baby Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus)

baby eastern cottontail sylvilagus floridanus eating hawksbeard stems

Baby Eastern Cottontail (S. floridanus) Eating hawksbeard Flowers (Purchase)

I was testing out a new zoom lens in the backyard and had seen this baby Eastern Cottontail eating Hawkesbeard stems on the lawn. I sat down and waited for it to come back which it did after a few minutes. This was a rather small rabbit – the adults can be approximately 44 cm (17 in) long, but this little one was only about 15 cm (6 in)!

Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) at Blackie Spit Park

Blackie Spit Park (Surrey, BC) is a favourite photography location of mine, and now that I’ll be occasionally photographing more birds I suspect I’ll be there even more. In July I photographed this Heron wading in one of the small canals in the park while searching for small fish and invertebrates. It was looking around a lot, so I was able to make photos of it facing both ways. I also made the photo below with a longer exposure, to try to get it looking both ways at once. I didn’t expect it to work out quite this well, but I like the result. I was also unable to really come to a conclusion as to whether I liked the Heron facing right or left, so I ultimately just published all three photos.

great blue heron foraging in water at blackie spit

Great Blue Heron (A. herodias) foraging at Blackie Spit Park

great blue heron searching for food and looking both ways

Look both ways before you cross the marsh (Purchase)

I also photographed this decorated rock sitting atop a fence post at Blackie Spit. I take it this sort of thing is not rare in the area, but it was the first time I’d seen one. The large yellow flowers next to the post are Fernleaf Yarrow (Achillea filipendulina).

decorated rock sitting on a post at sunset

Decorative Rock on a Crescent Beach Fence Post (Purchase)

Also at Blackie Spit I photographed this Hawksbeard (Crepis sp.) plant with some seed heads on it that were nicely backlit by late day sunlight. I’ve photographed a number of interesting small plant scenes in this particular meadow – which you can find in my Surrey gallery.

hawksbeard plant with seed heads backlit by sunset

Hawksbeard (Crepis sp.) Seeds at Blackie Spit (Purchase)

Water Lily Reflection

I’ve photographed these pond lily (Nymphaeacea) plants in the backyard before, but this time I was attracted to the reflection from this particular flower. I like finding subjects that are only a few steps from the back door!

water lily flower reflection

Water Lily (Nymphaeacea) Flower Reflection (Purchase)

More of my newer images can be found in my New Images Gallery.

Baby Eastern Cottontail Rabbit

A young Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) hiding in the weeds in a Fraser Valley backyard garden.

baby eastern cottontail rabbit hiding in a backyard garden

Baby Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) hiding in the weeds

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   This baby Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) was hiding in the weeds in my backyard this afternoon. The adult rabbits can be approximately 44cm (17 in) long – and a few that forage in my backyard seem even larger than that, but this little one was only about 15cm (6 in). Very small, and hard to see even when you know where it is. I initially came across this baby crouching down on some barkmulch, but when I came back with the camera it was in the weeds. While it is obviously keeping an eye on me, I tried to minimize my impact on it by putting on my longest lens and watching its behaviour for any stress. Other than some nose twitching, I never saw it move much at all. This kind of Rabbit – the Eastern Cottontail is an invasive species here in British Columbia and even so are rather abundant.

For more of my wildlife photography please visit my Animals and Wildlife Gallery.

The North Cascades Book

   I am pleased to have two of my photos in the new book The North Cascades: Finding Beauty and Renewal in the Wild Nearby by William Dietrich. The photograph of the Eastern Cottontail and Mount Pierce in Chilliwack, British Columbia (below) both made it into the book. I haven’t read the book yet, but I was pleased to see one thing when I looked through it (beyond the great photography). The map of the North Cascades did not stop at the US/Canadian border as I often see it shown – but continued on up into British Columbia where the real northern bounds of the North Cascade Range lies.

For more information about The North Cascades: Finding Beauty and Renewal in the Wild Nearby – visit the website https://www.mountaineers.org/.

the north cascades

An Eastern Cottontail and Mount Pierce in the North Cascades of British Columbia

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Cheam Lake Fall Colours

photo of mount archibald and cheam lake fall colours
Cheam Lake Fall Colours
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   Cheam Lake Wetlands Regional Park is one spot in the Fraser Valley where I always go looking for fall colour. An old limestone mine, the park was created in 1990 and now is a great place to photograph not only fall colours, but wildlife – especially birds. Always a bit out of my telephoto range though.

   I visited Cheam Lake twice this fall. Someday I need to explore it further – it is close to so many other locations I like to shoot at that I tend to not have enough time. The first time I was there this year I did not find a lot of color but I did manage to make this photo of a Rabbit. I realize this may not be the most exciting or exotic species, but I’ve always like rabbits.

photo of mount archibald and cheam lake fall colours
Eastern Cottontail
(Sylvilagus floridanus)
-click to enlarge-

   This Eastern Cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus – an introduced species here in British Columbia) allowed me to briefly make some photographs of it. A few more mouthfuls of grass and it took off into the deeper underbrush near the lake. Considering the amount of these I have in my backyard, I am surprised my first photo of one was taken over an hour away from home.