Birds in Nature - images of wild birds by Richard Ditch

Subject: Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax)
Place: Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, Virginia, USA
Date: October 1983
Equipment: Nikon 8008, Nikkor EDIF 400/5.6, TC14 converter (560/8), tripod
Film: Kodachrome 64
Exposure: aperture priority center-weighted meter
Scan: Minolta Dimage; 75% of frame

Commentary: When I lived on the east coast of the US, I enjoyed spring and fall visits to Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge in Virginia. I liked to drive slowly along the entrance road early in the day and look for birds along the sides of the road before they were disturbed by the noisy visitors looking for the ponies or the beach. On this visit, I was surprised to find a night heron in a tree - not the place I'd come to expect them from years of experience in NJ. I find the pine tree an interesting habitat for this immature bird.