Open water…
One of the most essential of all the environmental elements in the Hudson Valley Ecosystem is open water. While the climate is warming here as it is everywhere else on the planet, we still experience long periods of sub-freezing temperatures leading to ice covered lakes, ponds, and streams. In times gone by, the River itself use to freeze solid enough for people to move their entire belongings from the east shore to the west by sliding it over the frozen surface. With today’s warming climate and the increase in commercial traffic up and down the river, it is rare to find major sections without open water.
Ice Jam along West Point - 2009
I photographed the image above in 2009, the last time I can recall the ice being more or less locked in with ice. Later in the year, an ice breaker actually became stuck in the thick ice and needed assistance from other heavy duty tow boats to extricate their vessel. Fortunately for avian wildlife which depends upon open water in winter for their survival, this is a very rare occurrence in the present day and age.
A mixed flock of Gadwalls and Hooded mergansers take advantage of the ice free pond adjacent to the Hudson.
Due to temperatuers above freezing over the past week, most ponds and streams are in fact ice free today. The weather is forecast to change abruptly in the next 48 hours bringing cold air into the region once again. As the local lake and pond surfaces freeze solid, wildlife like waterfowl and predators praying upon primarily fish will need to find open water…..usually the Hudson. The birds seen in today’s photo above may well have been displaced already from the frigid north country of the Adirondack region and Canada. With no place for them to feed on aquatic vegetation and small fish, they have found refuge here in the warmer Hudson Valley.
This American Bald Eagle has planned ahead and is one of a number of its species which have decided to call this part of the valley home. In the 1970s, there were fewer than a half dozen eagles in the entire state. With stringent environmental protection put into place (primarily the banning of DDT throughout the country), the eagles have made a miraculous comeback. We now have at least 5 active nests within 10 miles of my home here in SE New York State. The nest seen above is a new one for me. I just discovered it today and will be keeping an eye on its residents. Eagles are fish eaters and being located right along the banks of the Hudson have their food supply on their “door step”. Open waters are certainly essential to so many of our feathered friends.
Tech Tip - Both of today’s shots required using a “pin-point” or “Single Point” focus. With a few branches and other elements which were between me and my subjects, the camera was often “confused” and wanted to focus on the intervening vegetation rather than the subject. With Single-point focus, I was able to cut through the clutter and focus just on the desired target. Make sure you learn how to use each of the focus modes found in your camera to the best of its ability. If needed, you can always change over to manual focus and “eye-ball” in the best focus on your subject. Modern day cameras have amazing focussing potential but they are NOT infallible!
