Two years ago, I went down to Lake Washington to watch Seafair. I posted then about an Osprey that was flying along the shoreline while the airshow was underway. This year I went again and, while it wasn’t as frequent a visitor as last time, we did get another osprey checking out our part of the shore once more. We were well away from the display axis so no risk of an osprey checking out a gas turbine. Such a cool looking bird to see. Soon they will be gone for the season.
In a previous post, I had a heron that was being challenged for its meal by an eagle. That was not the only battle underway for food I saw recently. An osprey came flying towards us while carrying a fish. I was disappointed that I hadn’t seen it make the catch, but the bay is large, and it had been off in the distance when it made the take. It was flying at us with the fish hanging down in its talons. We were not the only ones to spot it, though.
A bald eagle also had noticed what it was carrying and started to make a play for the meal. There ensued a bit of aerial jousting as the eagle swooped at the osprey and the smaller bird turned hard to evade its pursuer. It was able to keep away, but it wasn’t ever getting any separation and, I presume, it decided this was going to keep going until it was worn out unless it dropped the fish. The fish fell to the water, and I didn’t see the eagle find it so maybe it sank (unless the fish was still alive, in which case maybe it swam off).
Mum and I took a trip down to Juanita Bay to see what sort of wildlife was out and about. There was plenty of activity with both eagles and ospreys flying over the water looking for their next meal. At one stage, an eagle had caught a small fish and took it to a log in the water to enjoy. It seems that one of the ospreys decided that this could not stand and that the eagle should give up its catch. The osprey swooped down repeatedly at the eagle trying to get it spooked and to maybe leave the fish behind. The eagle was definitely annoyed by the osprey but was not inclined to move. This went on for a while but eventually the osprey realized it was futile and moved on.
Trips to Log Boom Park are usually to see the floatplane activities from Kenmore Air’s base but it also gives the potential for some other airborne photo subjects. On one trip a short while ago, the conditions were a little harsh with strong lighting from overhead, but the local fauna was helping out. Getting eagles there is not too unusual but the warmer weather does mean the possibility of ospreys showing up and they did oblige. No close action as they were fishing but they did get some food from the water and even occasionally managed to fly our way while carrying their successes.
I spent a portion of a Saturday with my buddy Chris as he was passing through town. While I was waiting for him, I headed to Boeing Field and was surprised to see a V-22 Osprey on the ramp across the field. The crew was working around it with some panels on the nacelles open but it became clear that they were buttoning things up for a while. They soon headed off and I did similarly to get Chris from the airport.
When he had made it through immigration, we headed back to Boeing Field and, while walking near the terminal building, the sound of rotors caught our attention. I barely had time to get the camera ready as a V-22 came into view. It was heading to the same area as the other one, so we got some shots of it in the semi-transitioned configuration and then went around to the other side of the field to see the pair of them parked up. I have no idea when they left but at least I got a little activity, even if on a grey and overcast day.
I spent the Friday of Seafair down at the shore of Lake Washington watching the flying demonstrations (and taking the occasional work call). The planes weren’t the only aviators over the lake though. Despite a TFR being in place, a local osprey decided to ignore it and cruise along the shore line. I never saw it actually dive after any prey for the whole time I was there. Instead it would just start towards the south end and gradually drift northwards. After it had completed the leg, it would return to the start and repeat the process.
Fortunately, it was very close to the shore and nowhere near the display box so there was no risk being posed to the performers in the show. However, it was quite a distraction to everyone around where I was and we would turn to watch it rather than the display aircraft each time it came through. Initially it was a little offshore and a bit of a reach with the long lens but it came progressively closer in and was right overhead on a number of occasions.
I have seen plenty of MV-22B Ospreys in service with the Marine Corps but I haven’t see too many CV-22s with the Air Force. One of the early ones was at Hurlburt Field when I visited years ago but we weren’t allowed to photograph it. RIAT provided my first opportunity to shoot one in action. I got some shots of it on arrival day but I was not pleased with the results for a lot of them. I don’t know whether the focus was off or it was my struggles with the low shutter speed but I didn’t do too well.
They did display during the flying program, though, so I had a lot more chances to get some shots. The extra lumps and bumps make this distinctive from the USMC version but it is still a hard thing to photograph if you want to get significant blur on those giant, slow turning props. The different shade of gray they go with seems slightly more interesting than the Marine’s scheme too.
A trip to Log Boom Park in Kenmore is usually because I am after floatplanes. However, it is a great source of wildlife and some of the ospreys in the vicinity were keen to be photographed. You get plenty of ospreys and eagles in the area but they are usually fishing a bit further out into Lake Washington and not so close to the shore. However, a few of them were circling right overhead and even looking at some fishing opportunities in around the jetty. It would be rude to not try and get some shots of them!
Sitting out by Lake Washington watching the boat and floatplane traffic also provided a view of the local residents fishing. These residents aren’t the humans on the pier with fishing poles. These are the ospreys. There are lots of ospreys that are around the north end of the lake at this time of year. They are circling overhead looking for targets and then swooping down to catch them.
It is not usual to get them making their catch close in but sometimes you can see them diving in the grab a fish. However, when they catch something, they do head back passed the shore as they make their way to their nests. A fish tucked under their body and held in a forward alignment to make it easier to fly with is not a rare sight. You also can get them circling overhead as they look for some food but I guess nothing too tasty was near me.
One fun aspect of shooting by San Francisco Bay is that you get a lot of wildlife while you are killing time. Roger and I were sitting by the shore waiting for a few movements when a bird started flying in our direction. We both paid attention when we realized that it was not a gull as is normally the case. Instead, it was an osprey. They are not a rarity but they are still noteworthy. It certainly wasn’t bothered by us as it flew right over us as it headed along the shoreline. Looking up you could stare straight into its eyes as it surveyed the scene looking for its next snack. Sadly, nothing was nearby for it to dive onto and it flew off. Even so, a brief moment like this with such a cool bird made me happy for a long time afterwards. Actually, I am still happy when I think about it.
