Nature Blog

Henry's Lake is mostly clear of ice except along our south shore. We the days reaching in the mid-50's this should melt in the next few days.

Looking along the south shore of Henry's Lake there is still quite a lot of snow on the bank and lots of ice blown up on this side of the lake. This photo shows that the boat launch is still in quite a bit of snow, only 6 days from the opening of fishing season here.

The past couple days have been cloudy and not great for photography. But today started out with some mixed sun and clouds so I decided to see what birds were hanging out at Henry's Lake (south side). It's my last Sunday with the birds before the fishermen get here. Mind you, the birds will still be here, but there are more opportunities now when boats and cars are not as likely to disturb them.

Juvenile Bald Eagle was sitting on the fence at the edge of Henry's Lake, presumbably looking for fish.

Here's a nice closeup of the juvenile Bald Eagle that is living on the south shore at the moment.

My first sighting of a bird this morning was the juvenile Bald Eagle. He was sitting on a fence by the edge of the lake. Just on the other side of the fence were several of the American White Pelicans. I suspect they were looking for fish here. I've often seen many fish in this area at this time of year. Once I got close enough the pelicans and the eagle took to the air. The eagle merely flew to a fence above the lake, not far from where he was sitting. I got a nice closeup of him flying.

Trumpeter Swan was hanging out at the Hope Creek entrance to the lake. This area was clear of ice.

The Trumpeter Swan lands on open water in Henry's Lake.

Because the ice was pushed up against the shore, most of the birds were far out, probably close to 1/4 of a mile or more from the shore. There was a group of White Pelicans at the water/ice edge, just as there was on my last visit a couple days ago. I walked along the road following the shore until I got to the west end of the lake. The Trumpeter Swan was in the corner, where Hope Creek enters the lake. Again, he was alone. I spent quite a lot of time inching up closer until he decided I was a threat and flew off. He flew over the ice and landed where several other water fowl were at the ice's edge.

These two bald eagles are probably a mated pair. The one on the right appears to be the larger female. They were sitting on a fence next to the south shore of Henry's Lake in Idaho.

Bald Eagle flying at Henry's Lake.

Not too far away, there were two adult Bald Eagles sitting on a fence post. This is a favorite place for them to rest because I've seen at least one here quite often over the years. I don't know if this was a mated pair, but most likely they were. Eagles exhibit size dimorphism (meaning size differences) such that females on the average are about 1/3 larger than males. Soon the male took flight and I was able to photograph him leaving.

Two Gadwalls (Anas strepera) were dabbing at the Hope Creek entrance to Henry's Lake.

Turning back to the lake, I noticed a couple ducks in the area that the Trumpeter Swan had been. They were brownish and due to the distance from me, they were hard to identify. After looking at the photo on the monitor I've identified these guys as a pair of Gadwalls. This common dabbling duck is migratory, and winters farther south than here in its breeding range. I suspect that they are new arrivals to Henry's Lake.

Several species of waterfowl could be seen far out in the lake on the western shore, including the Trumpeter Swan, Mallards, Lesser Scaup, Ring-necked duck, and American Widgeon. They are hard to distinquish due to the distance from me and my limited telphoto lens (400mm).

Several Barrow's Goldeneye Ducks (Bucephala islandica) were swimming at the edge of the ice out in Henry's Lake.

Looking further out into the lake, at the ice's edge I noticed that the Trumpeter Swan was surrounded by several waterfowl. Among them I noticed the Lesser Scaup, a common resident here, the American Widgeon, Mallards, and Ring-necked Ducks. Turning north, I noticed a large number of Barrow's Goldeneye Ducks at the ice's edge. Unfortunately, their distance prevented a sharp photo but I took one anyway! I put a blurry closeup in the image so you can get an idea of what they look like. They are an attractive bird and I hope I can photograph one closer later in the season.

Yellow-head blackbirds (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus) were pecking at the ice.

Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)flying over Henry's Lake. This is a medium-sized gull. This bird tends to be faithful to its nesting site, if not its mate, from year to year. He is a migratory bird and moves south after the breeding season.

Not too far from me, on the ice, I barely noticed several Yellow-headed black birds pecking at the ice. I have no idea what they are finding but they were very intent on doing what they were doing! Suddenly a white gull flew in front of me quickly. I took his photograph and identified him as a Ring-billed Gull. Last time, I saw the Franklin Gull whose head is all black compared to the white head of this medium-sized gull.

Canada Goose charging interlopers.

Canada Goose takes to flight to ward off two other Canada Geese wanting to join them (at Henry's Lake).

Suddenly I heard a commotion in front of me. It was 3 Canada Geese, not too far from me, on the ice. I looked in the distance to see two more Geese waddling their way across the ice towards us. They were at least 1000 feet away. It took them a good 8 minutes to reach us, all 5 geese honking. Once the two outliers reached the area of the closer 3 geese, a display of hostility began. Two of the three geese near shore started for the two interlopers with an aggressive display. They soon attacked in flight and the other two retreated. It was fun to watch, especially since several times one or the other of the geese would fall through the ice and struggle to get back on it.

Swainson's Hawk (Buteo swainsoni) sitting on a fence post along the south shore of Henry's Lake.

As I turned to go back to RedRock RV Park, I noticed my first sighting of the season of the Swainson's Hawk. These guys fly from South America to be with us in the Spring and Summer. Immature Swainson's hawks winter on the pampas of South America in Argentina, Uruguay, and southern Brazil. It is not known with certainty where most of the adults spend the winter.

I hope you enjoyed my morning walk. Please consider coming to visit RedRock RV Park. We are near Yellowstone National Park and Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. Being next to Henry's Lake we experience a lot of nature ourselves. Come see for yourselves.

2011 - Nature Blog
Birds at Henry's Lake	May 22 , 2011
By James "Newt" Perdue photographer for RedRock RV Park (unless otherwise noted, all the photos were taken on the date of the blog by Newt. Click on an image to get an expanded view.)

Henry's Lake is mostly clear of ice except along our south shore. We the days reaching in the mid-50's this should melt in the next few days. Looking along the south shore of Henry's Lake there is still quite a lot of snow on the bank and lots of ice blown up on this side of the lake. This photo shows that the boat launch is still in quite a bit of snow, only 6 days from the opening of fishing season here. The past couple days have been cloudy and not great for photography. But today started out with some mixed sun and clouds so I decided to see what birds were hanging out at Henry's Lake (south side). It's my last Sunday with the birds before the fishermen get here. Mind you, the birds will still be here, but there are more opportunities now when boats and cars are not as likely to disturb them. Juvenile Bald Eagle was sitting on the fence at the edge of Henry's Lake, presumbably looking for fish. Here's a nice closeup of the juvenile Bald Eagle that is living on the south shore at the moment. My first sighting of a bird this morning was the juvenile Bald Eagle. He was sitting on a fence by the edge of the lake. Just on the other side of the fence were several of the American White Pelicans. I suspect they were looking for fish here. I've often seen many fish in this area at this time of year. Once I got close enough the pelicans and the eagle took to the air. The eagle merely flew to a fence above the lake, not far from where he was sitting. I got a nice closeup of him flying. Trumpeter Swan was hanging out at the Hope Creek entrance to the lake. This area was clear of ice. The Trumpeter Swan lands on open water in Henry's Lake. Because the ice was pushed up against the shore, most of the birds were far out, probably close to 1/4 of a mile or more from the shore. There was a group of White Pelicans at the water/ice edge, just as there was on my last visit a couple days ago. I walked along the road following the shore until I got to the west end of the lake. The Trumpeter Swan was in the corner, where Hope Creek enters the lake. Again, he was alone. I spent quite a lot of time inching up closer until he decided I was a threat and flew off. He flew over the ice and landed where several other water fowl were at the ice's edge. These two bald eagles are probably a mated pair. The one on the right appears to be the larger female. They were sitting on a fence next to the south shore of Henry's Lake in Idaho. Bald Eagle flying at Henry's Lake. Not too far away, there were two adult Bald Eagles sitting on a fence post. This is a favorite place for them to rest because I've seen at least one here quite often over the years. I don't know if this was a mated pair, but most likely they were. Eagles exhibit size dimorphism (meaning size differences) such that females on the average are about 1/3 larger than males. Soon the male took flight and I was able to photograph him leaving. Two Gadwalls (Anas strepera) were dabbing at the Hope Creek entrance to Henry's Lake. Two Gadwalls (Anas strepera) were dabbing at the Hope Creek entrance to Henry's Lake. Turning back to the lake, I noticed a couple ducks in the area that the Trumpeter Swan had been. They were brownish and due to the distance from me, they were hard to identify. After looking at the photo on the monitor I've identified these guys as a pair of Gadwalls. This common dabbling duck is migratory, and winters farther south than here in its breeding range. I suspect that they are new arrivals to Henry's Lake. Several species of waterfowl could be seen far out in the lake on the western shore, including the Trumpeter Swan, Mallards, Lesser Scaup, Ring-necked duck, and American Widgeon. They are hard to distinquish due to the distance from me and my limited telphoto lens (400mm). Several Barrow's Goldeneye Ducks (Bucephala islandica) were swimming at the edge of the ice out in Henry's Lake. Looking further out into the lake, at the ice's edge I noticed that the Trumpeter Swan was surrounded by several waterfowl. Among them I noticed the Lesser Scaup, a common resident here, the American Widgeon, Mallards, and Ring-necked Ducks. Turning north, I noticed a large number of Barrow's Goldeneye Ducks at the ice's edge. Unfortunately, their distance prevented a sharp photo but I took one anyway! I put a blurry closeup in the image so you can get an idea of what they look like. They are an attractive bird and I hope I can photograph one closer later in the season. Yellow-head blackbirds (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus) were pecking at the ice. Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)flying over Henry's Lake. This is a medium-sized gull. This bird tends to be faithful to its nesting site, if not its mate, from year to year. He is a migratory bird and moves south after the breeding season. Not too far from me, on the ice, I barely noticed several Yellow-headed black birds pecking at the ice. I have no idea what they are finding but they were very intent on doing what they were doing! Suddenly a white gull flew in front of me quickly. I took his photograph and identified him as a Ring-billed Gull. Last time, I saw the Franklin Gull whose head is all black compared to the white head of this medium-sized gull. Canada Goose charging interlopers. Canada Goose takes to flight to ward off two other Canada Geese wanting to join them (at Henry's Lake). Suddenly I heard a commotion in front of me. It was 3 Canada Geese, not too far from me, on the ice. I looked in the distance to see two more Geese waddling their way across the ice towards us. They were at least 1000 feet away. It took them a good 8 minutes to reach us, all 5 geese honking. Once the two outliers reached the area of the closer 3 geese, a display of hostility began. Two of the three geese near shore started for the two interlopers with an aggressive display. They soon attacked in flight and the other two retreated. It was fun to watch, especially since several times one or the other of the geese would fall through the ice and struggle to get back on it. Swainson's Hawk (Buteo swainsoni) sitting on a fence post along the south shore of Henry's Lake. As I turned to go back to RedRock RV Park, I noticed my first sighting of the season of the Swainson's Hawk. These guys fly from South America to be with us in the Spring and Summer. Immature Swainson's hawks winter on the pampas of South America in Argentina, Uruguay, and southern Brazil. It is not known with certainty where most of the adults spend the winter. I hope you enjoyed my morning walk. Please consider coming to visit RedRock RV Park. We are near Yellowstone National Park and Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. Being next to Henry's Lake we experience a lot of nature ourselves. Come see for yourselves.