Friday, January 13, 2017

As the fog lifts

We have had several foggy mornings here in south Florida. High humidity coupled with lower temperatures and calm winds create a layer of cooler air which settles over the ground. Under these conditions before sunrise the air may cool to the dew point (this morning in the low 60's F), causing moisture in the air to condense into tiny droplets-- a blanket of fog.

As the sun warms the ground, the droplets evaporate and give the appearance of "lifting" like a translucent ceiling above our heads as we walk out into the wetlands:

Fog Lifting HDR 20160304

Fog imparts beauty to the wet prairie, defaced by abandoned utility poles and scarred by "wreckreational" off-road vehicles:

Foggy wet prairie 20170106

The diffuse light isolates subjects and creates interesting photo opportunities. A Great Egret reflects in the lake:

Great Egret 02-20170102

A Great Blue Heron accents the landscape as fog lingers along the far shore:

  Great Blue landscape 20170105

Not accustomed to the human presence, the heron squawks its disapproval:

Great Blue Heron before sunrise 2-20170105

A Great Egret comes to rest on a small island:

Great Egret 20170103

Great Egret 2-20170103

The sky brightens as the fog layer continues to melt. The lack of shadows softens the images of a Little Blue Heron:

Little Blue Heron 2-20170105

Little Blue Heron 20170105

Little Blue Heron 3-20170105

On another misty morning before sunrise, the same or another Great Blue Heron shifts from a regal to a contorted posture:

Great Blue Heron before sunrise 2-20170103

Great Blue Heron before sunrise 20170103

Lakeside, a Belted Kingfisher:

Belted Kingfisher 20170105

A Palm Warbler in Brazilian Pepper:

Palm Warbler 20170105

A Turkey Vulture rests on the guard rail fence of the unfinished highway to nowhere:


 Turkey Vulture on fence 20170105

A female Soldier sips nectar from a Bidens alba. These flowers are the richest source of nectar of all Florida's native plants, second only to cultivated citrus:

Soldier female 20170101

= = =  = = =  = = = =  = = = = =

Linking to Misty's  CAMERA CRITTERS,

Linking to Eileen's SATURDAY'S CRITTERS,

Linking to GOOD FENCES by Gosia

Linking to SKYWATCH FRIDAY by Yogi, Sylvia and Sandy

Linking to WEEKEND REFLECTIONS by James

Linking to BirdD'Pot by Anni

Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday by Stewart

Linking to Today's Flowers Friday by Denise

Linking to Wordless Wednesday (on Tuesday) by NC Sue

Linking to ALL SEASONS by Jesh

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Please visit the links to all these memes to see some excellent photos on display

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25 comments:

  1. Wonderful shots. I particularly liked the ambiance and reflection in that first heron shot

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  2. Every photo - of the egrets, herons, kingfisher, warbler and turkey vulture - is beautiful but the last image of the female Soldier on the Bidens Alba is spectacular. Thanks for sharing. Have a great day. Jo (South Africa)

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  3. Gorgeous series, Kenneth, and I love the reflections!

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  4. Absolutely stunning Kenneth, my favourite is Belted Kingfisher, fantastic.

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  5. Your bird shots with their reflections are great, I can never get close to either blue heron or egrets either. They are quite shy.

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  6. What a fabulous series of photos.

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  7. amazing series of photographs. I love the egret coming in for a landing.

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  8. The misty morning did not stop ou taking superb photos Kenneth. Loved all the different reflections. Have a wonderful weekend.

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  9. Always stunning photos. Love the reflections of the herons and egrets. I know it takes a lot of shots to get the perfect one. Nice one of the warbler and the berries.

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  10. Love, love, LOVE the egret image of the early morning light [the pink hues] and its reflection.

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    1. I'm here to send my thanks again, for you contributing this blog for all the birders at I'd Rather B Birdin' this weekend!

      Enjoy the bird life around you!!

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  11. Fog makes for terrific photos and you captured the scenes beautifully.

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  12. I loved taking this foggy morning walk with you. It does make wonderful photos (the strange light and the amazingly talented photographer too of course). I see Bidens alba everywhere but didn't know what it was called or that it was such a great source of nectar . Thanks for that information.

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  13. Hello, the foggy shots are pretty. I love the all the herons and egrets, the kingfisher is awesome too. Great birds and photos. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Enjoy your day and the new week ahead.

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  14. Beautiful series of birds. Love the kingfisher!

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  15. Beautiful captures of the fog, and the birds and butterfly! Your skill ti catch the birds at the right moment is amazing!
    Fog is often not that pleasant, but gives beautiful photos. Here in the mountains it often stays the whole day, and we had several days of that when it rained. Thank you for sharing your experience with the big palm leaves. Many only know the nice view of palms (like I did:):) )!

    By the way, I go by Jesh.

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  16. Wow Kenneth, these photos are beautiful!

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  17. These photos a magickal! I totally enjoyed visiting your page :)

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  18. Beautiful! Wonderful!
    Great photo of the Kingfisher! And I love all the reflections in the water

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  19. Your photographs are always so stunning! I mean, breath-taking! Seeing your blog posts is liking finding a great photography book on a bookstore shelf and leafing through...one delight after another!

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  20. Marvelous, I would never be able to choose one, or even two, or three favorites. Wonderful post~

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