Something Fishy at Rios

I went to Rios Ave Pole Trail again today looking for the Red-breasted Merganser to see if I could get a closer look. I was not successful at getting any close-ups of the merganser but I did spot "something fishy" at Rios. An unusual sighting of a fish attached to the side of a Great Egret.

The tide was quite high and that's the best time to view the Marsh Wrens at the Lagoon. I love watching these cute wrens at the end of the peninsula trail at Rios. Walked to the end and watched the nervous little wrens for a while. Here are a few shots of a fidgety little wren. 

A cute shot of this very territorial Marsh Wren. 

One more pose and he hops into the pickleweed and disappears.

Scanning the area for more bird subjects I see a Great Egret flying towards me.

Clicking away as the Egret approaches.

Something fishy on the side of the Great Egret.

 

Great Egrets are very slow flying birds and are quite easy to photograph.

He is being chased by another Great Egret. Probably a turf dispute.

A closer look at the strange object on his right side.

He flies by. 

A good look at what appears to be a fish attached to the side of this egret.

This is very strange.

He flies by elegantly.

Another look at what appears to be a dead fish stuck to the egrets underside. 

I keep on shooting hoping to study later on the computer.

Closer look at the fish.

 

When his wings are at the drop position, you wouldn't see the strange attachment on his side.

But it is still there. 

A friendly Say's Phoebe lands in front and watches the egret pass by. 

Say's Phoebe, Sayornis saya measures 7.5 inches long with a wingspan of 13 inches.

Close up.

One last look before he flies off after an insect. 

 

As I watch the phoebe hunt for insects, the Great Egret makes another appearance flying by and chased by the older grouchy egret again. 

 

Yup, he still has the fishy thing stuck to his side. 

 

I am wondering why it hasn't fallen off.

He is flying by as fast as he can because the old grouch is coming up fast.

 

This Great Egret is a beauty when you don't see that strange fishy thingy on its side. 

There it is, still hanging.

Now you can see why it's still there. the fish appears to have been rigged with a hook and it is embedded in the egret's side!

A close look at the fish with the hook. You can see the shiny metallic shaft of the hook that goes into the egret's side. 

He flies by.

A slightly different angle that still shows the hook protruding from the fish into the egret.

Closer look.

Hope this beauty will survive the fishy attachment to his side and live a full life.

A elegant beauty.

Here is the old grouchy Great Egret that feels this area of the lagoon is his turf and aggressively chases after the youngster. 

It's time to go look for the Red-breasted Merganser. Walking all the way to the end of the pole road, I spot a female Belted Kingfisher. She is stretching and getting ready to fly. 

There she goes. 

LOL, look at those tiny feet. Reminds me of a hummingbird's feet. Also a nice look at the brown belt pattern across the belly of the Kingfisher. Only the female has this belted marking.

A Great Blue Heron flies off near the trail. 

Spotting some splashing in the tide channel, I see that it is the male Red-breasted Merganser and he has company today. The one on the right front of this photo might be a juvenile.

The two mergansers are hunting. They are excellent diving birds and hunt underwater for fish and other aquatic animals. The merganser on the left in this photo is a male in full breeding plumage. I quickly take a few shots realizing that this is as close as I will get to the mergansers today.

They are quite shy and spook easily. They will take off at any sign of threat! The wing markings on the two mergansers show that they are both males. The white marking go almost to the leading edge of the wing on a male. On females, the white marking on the wing only goes halfway up the wing. Below, the one in front is in full breeding plumage with the beautiful black head and white collar. The one in back is a adult male in non-breeding plumage.

To my frustration, they land even further away. 

 

I stand and watch them hunt for breakfast. They are using a snorkeling method of hunting for fish. Notice the juvenile swimming with only his head in the water looking for fish. 

The adult male spots a fish and dives after it. There is large turbulence in the water. The water churns and the bird swims underwater chasing the fish as fast as a Whippet after a rabbit. 

The adult surfaces with a nice fish. he chomps and swallows as quickly as possible. 

A victory flap!!

All of a sudden, he is joined by two more mergansers who also appear to be juveniles. Well, it's been another great morning at Rios... and now it's time for me to head for home. 

Our resident Osprey flies by. It's always good to see him patrolling his area.

Just before the lookout point at west Rios, I spot this little Hermit Thrush. Lol. you have something stuck to your beak! There is something so sweet about the expression on these birds. They always look "wide-eyed" as they are surprised to see you. 

Have a super week everyone!