I did not do a “Year in Review” in 2023. I had taken on a new part-time job in the fall of 2022, and I just could not find the time to do it. And I still have that job so I’m still awfully busy, but I’m determined. So I have decided to do pairs of photos this time, one per month for each year, 2022 and 2023.

January 29, 2022 – This beautiful Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus) perched on a branch just yards away and posed for me. I was entering Tensas River National Wildlife Refuge to meet a group for a Louisiana Ornithological Society field trip, but I was early. By the time I saw the hawk, it was too late to stop, so I drove on past and pulled over a ways down the road. To my amazement, the hawk flew toward me and perched again. I was able to steady the camera on the roof of my car. What a privilege to photograph a bird at such close distance!

January 20, 2023 – In sharp contrast, these juvenile Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) were high overhead. Indeed, they were really out of reach of my most powerful lens, so the technical quality of the photo is not great. But who can not be excited to see Bald Eagles? There were actually three of them but I was leaning so far back in my kayak to shoot straight up I was a little concerned about capsizing and so took what I could get and quite pressing my luck! My friend Michael Weatherford was nearby in his kayak, so I’d have had help if I needed it, but… it was January! How heartening to know that the we have a growing eagle population at Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge!

I have a feeling birds will show up a lot in this special “two years in review” series. Stay tuned.