Waterfall at Baines Dam on Newfound Creek

Whenever there's significant rainfall in Gardendale, Alabama, the lagoon that forms atop Baines Dam, coagulating the waters of Newfound Creek, begins to overflow. And when there's a whole lot of rainfall, that overflow spill over the face of the stairstep dam as a lovely waterfall. I early August we had several days of thunderstorms, and enough water to cause this waterfall.

Waterfall at Baines Dam on Newfound Creek, Gardendale, Alabama

In order to achieve the long exposure and milky tones that I was hoping for, I placed a piece of welding glass in front of the lens as a neutral density filter, allowing on 15 second exposure on what was a pretty bright, slightly overcast day. This technique is described elsewhere on the blog and has been used with varying levels of success.

Yellow Crowned Night Heron, Fishing for Crawdads

Yellow Crowned Night Heron fishing for Crawdad at Black Creek Park

This juvenile Yellow Crowned Night Heron spent much of his morning flitting from one part to another of Black Creek at Black Creek Park in Fultondale, Alabama.

   After a while I had begun to think this heron's meanderings were almost entirely purposeless, but I was wrong. He was in search of a good fishing hole. Upon spying one, he got very still, and suddenly struck, quick as lightning, and successfully surfaced with a plump crawdad.

Yellow Crowned Night Heron, Taking Flight

Juvenile Yellow Crowned Night Heron Taking Flight
Black Creek Park, Fultondale, Alabama

This juvenile Yellow Crowned Night Heron spent much of his morning stalking the shallow waters of Black Creek at Black Creek Park in Fultondale, Alabama. And I spent a good part of my morning stalking him and his kin.

He spent much time wondering from place to place on the creek, with seemingly no purpose at all, and apparently indifferent to my clambering around shrubs and low tree limbs in order to photograph him.

With my Tamron AF 70-300mm f/4.0-5.6 Di LD lens zoomed to its fullest (which can be a bear on only a monopod since the lens lacks Image Stabilization), I stayed as far away as possible so as not to disturb the young fellow. And as an aside, this focal range will probably be my next upgrade in lenses. The limitations of this model (while counterbalanced by its affordability) rear their ugly head too often for my taste.

More photographs of this and other herons, some of which will subsequently be found on the blog, can be seen at my Fauna Gallery.

Summer Morning Hike on Smythe Trail at Red Mountain Park, Birmingham

Mushrooms decorating the Smythe Trail at Red Mountain Park, Birmingham, Alabama

Along the Smythe Trail at Red Mountain Park, wildflowers dot the otherwise brown-and-green canvas like so many flecks of brightly-colored paint. The forest floor is decorated with mushrooms of every sort, reminiscent of Easter eggs and loaves of bread. Amidst this and the chirping birds are occasional cables and rusted metal that serve as reminders of the industrial past that adorns Red Mountain, and is a significant staple of the unique nature of this park.

Blue Spiderwort (Commelina coelestis) at Red Mountain Park, Birmingham, Alabama

A Field of Black-Eyed Susans, Red Mountain Park

Imagine that we still live in a world with league-upon-league of wide-open prairies still in their native state. While your initial mental image may include tall prairies grasses, don't discount the possibility that those seemingly endless plains could be inhabited by Black-Eyed Susans. Tranquil. Breezy. Grasshoppers. Jackrabbits. Antelope.It's easy to get lost in this daydream. And if you enjoyed that short trip in time to an existence 150-years past, you have Red Mountain Park to thank. It's there that you can find this small field of Black-Eyed Susans.

Black-Eyed Susans at Red Mountain Park, Birmingham, Alabama :: Canon Rebel T2i, EF 24-105 f/4 L

Purple Passion Flower at Red Mountain Park

The Purple Passion Flower (Passiflora incarnata) is a vine that can grow to as long as twenty feet, and can become an invasive species. In addition to its bizarre-looking petals and sepals, the reproductive organs that arise from the flower give it a rather exotic appearance. The Purple Passion Flower blooms from June to September, and produces edible fruit from July through October.

In addition to its exotic beauty, the Passion Flower has had many uses. The roots can be used to make a tea or treat boils, earaches, and liver problems. The leaves can be cooked with other greens. The fruit can be eaten raw or made into a syrup. But perhaps most interestingly, the plant can be used as a sedative to treat hysteria and other nervous conditions.

UPDATE: Fred Spicer, the Executive Director of the Birmingham Botanical Gardens, recently stopped by the blog, and offered some encouragement and further information, for which I am grateful. Here's what he had to say: "Enjoyed your photos, very beautiful. However, most ecologists reserve the word 'invasive' to describe organisms that act to decrease overall biodiversity in ecosystems other than those they evolved in. So native organisms, like that Passiflora, cannot be invasive. No doubt, that plant can be obnoxious, aggressive and unwanted in certain situations, but it will never be kudzu or Chinese privet or cogon grass, or dozens of other, truly heinous plants that are ecological and economic distasters. 'Opportunistic' is the preferred term for native organisms that can proliferate alarmingly, and, yes, sometimes in ecologically-altering ways. Nevertheless, that is extremely rare, and typically comes following human-caused disturbance which upsets otherwise natural controls on populations. Sorry if this seems pedantic! You do nice work."

Purple Passion Flower at Red Mountain Park, Birmingham, Alabama :: Canon Rebel T2i, EF 24-105 f/4 L

Thanks goes to the United States Department of Agriculture for the information they have made available on their website, regarding the Purple Passion Flower.

Darby Sprinting Like an Olympian

Darby in Top Gear near Newfound Creek, Gardendale

If, over the last couple of weeks, you watched any of the Olympic track-and-field events, you likely noticed that when the sprinters are running at top-speed in the 100m and 200m, their faces jounce from one place to another and get all distorted and weird.

I offer this photo of Darby, near the banks of Newfound Creek below Baines Dam in Gardendale, as proof that this distortion phenomenon is not unique to humans. Notice the pinned-back ears, lolling tongue, and smushed cheeks - I have not doubt she could easily beat Tyson Gay and would give Usain Bolt a closer race than he'd care for.