"The Dam Eagles"

After spending a couple of hours Saturday morning in the bush trying to get some good pictures of the abundant spring wildlife populations it only affirmed my concerns of upgrading to a good telephoto lens. I took the above picture at "the dam" of the nesting eagles, and it appears that they were successful again. Cordie and I spotted at least two eaglets in the nest, only after I disturbed the adults and they left the nest for a short minute or two. I was trying to get in for a closer look, and figure out a way to get a good picture. It didn't take long for the female to begin chirping and soon out of nowhere it seemed the male appeared to protect the nest from an apparent intruder. I was trying not to disturb them too much, but I apparently wore out my welcome and quickly returned to the pickup to let them be.

I believe Cordie said this is the sixth year that they have nested here, and this pair of eaglets will bring the total young raised to 12 or 13. They've weathered some pretty good storms incubating their eggs since early March. By the looks of the eaglets they can't be much more than a few days old. Their fuzzy white heads barely peak out over the nest.

We also got some decent pics of the pheasants at the home quarter along with several pairs of ducks including mallards, pintails, green-winged teal, and ring-necked ducks. Once again the upgraded lens would have come in handy here. After belly crawling through the frosty, duck-poo covered grass, I thought I was in perfect position, but the 12-gauge would have been a better tool to take the shot with. It was still fun and exciting and nothing to clean afterwards, definitely a perk.

We spent the afternoon touring Lake Oahe, north of Pierre. The water levels have returned to near normal after several years of drought after being at record lows nearly 30 feet below where they are now. This should create some excellent fishing for future years and make access a lot easier.

About that lens...anybody with any recommendations to pair with my Canon Rebel XS would be greatly appreciated. Anybody??