If you have driven over the James Island Connecter just after first light or in the late afternoon, you have likely seen large flocks of gulls, White Ibis, egrets, and other species all heading the same direction. Our birding experience tells us that these birds are heading to their nighttime roosts in the evening as they head northeast across the harbor. In the morning, they are going to their feeding ground. Carl and I have often wished we could grow wings to follow them to know where it is they spend the night. Well, in recent months, as it turns out, there are a couple hundred birds that we can follow on foot as they fly into our neighborhood from seemingly all directions with the majority coming from the direction of the harbor. Our new nightly neighbors -- Snowy Egrets, White Ibis, Tri-colored Herons and Little Blue Herons -- have established a roost on a willow and in the wax myrtle on the pond across the street! It is indeed quite a treat to watch them fly in and bicker over whose limb is whose! Below are some photos taken on a couple of different late afternoon observations in December.
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| The bare tree is the primary roost tree with a few early arrivals -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 18, 2012 |
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| A pair of early arrivals -- Tri-colored Heron and White Ibis -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 18, 2012 |
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| Incoming Snowy Egrets -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 18, 2012 |
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| Arrival at the roost -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 18, 2012 |
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| Snowy Egrets' arrival -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 18, 2012 |
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| Roost tree with a few more birds -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 18, 2012 |
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| Snowy Egrets, Tri-colored Heron, Little Blue Heron, Mallards -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 18, 2012 |
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| White Ibis -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 18, 2012 | | | |
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| More Snowy Egrets coming in -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 18, 2012 |
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| Some of the birds like to hang out on the opposite bank before joining the others in the roost tree -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 18, 2012 |
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| White Ibis -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 26, 2012 |
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| Birds crossing the pond to the roost tree -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 18, 2012 |
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| Some of the birds hang out below the roost tree for awhile before moving into the branches -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 26, 2012 |
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| Another flock of White Ibis flying across -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 26, 2012 |
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| More arrivals to the roost tree -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 18, 2012 |
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| Another visitor to the pond -- A Lesser Scaup -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 26, 2012 |
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| Mallards on the pond -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 26, 2012 |
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| Moonrise over the pond -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 26, 2012 |
One of my most coveted shots would be a flock of birds flying across the moon. It is a difficult shot to achieve in terms of timing, lighting and focus. I have managed to capture this once or twice but unfortunately, the focus was not as sharp as I would have liked. Or the birds, or bird as in the case below, were already passed the moon. I will continue to work this challenge!
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| Late arrival to the roost -- James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 26, 2012 |
Late on Christmas Day, Carl, our friend Chris Snook and I went to the pond and attempted a count: 200 White Ibis, 90 Snowy Egrets; 60 Little Blue Herons and 25 Tri-colored Herons! I believe more may have arrived later as it still was not dark when we left the pond.
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| A two-second time exposed shot of the tree shows more light than was actually there --James Island, in Charleston, SC -- December 26, 2012 -- Photo by Carl Miller |
Finally, in a further attempt to truly capture the moment, I shot some video of the birds' arrival. Enjoy!
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