My alarm clock rang early this morning because I wanted to visit a couple of wildlife refugees in Delaware.  My first stop was at Prime Hook NWR to see the hundreds of Snow Geese that have arrived from the Canadian Arctic to winter here in the Mid-Atlantic.  They took flight from the water soon after sunrise and flew inland.  As I drove to my next destination, I encountered the Snow Geese circling over open farmland, it was fascinating to watch them as they filled the sky.

My next stop was Bombay Hook NWR, about 41 miles north of Prime Hook. Bombay Hook is also a stop for thousands of migratory birds on the east coast.  An 8.5 mile loop allows you to drive through the refuge presenting many opportunities to see a variety of ducks, geese, hawks and bald eagles. The tidal salt marsh here is vital habitat for wildlife.  The backlighting on these marsh plants below made a nice composition.

Driving your car around the refuge provides a great blind to photograph from.  I was able to get very close to a number of birds just by staying inside my car and shooting out the side window.  The hawk below was sitting in a tree almost directly above my car.

This Snow Goose (a common dark morph, known as a ‘Blue Goose’) was feeding on some grass near the road and paid no attention to my car.

I was able to sit and watch this Great Blue Heron hunt for food for a fairly long time.  The car was a perfect ‘vehicle’ for observing the wildlife throughout the day at the refuge.