No really, that mom is NOT eating her chick!

Today I am posting some nesting Brandts cormorants (Phalacrocorax penicillatus) photos. The chicks still have some down but are almost the same size as the adults at this point. Cormorants nest on rocky areas and one really popular one in this region is the Breakwater jetty next to the Monterey Harbor. 


The name of this post is what it is because while the parents are feeding the chicks, it really looks like the parent is eating the baby! (As you will see below). 

Glacier Bay, Alaska: Part 5- The final part

Here are the rest of the photos from my Glacier Bay trip. I have not begun on the rest of my Southeast journey, so this is just the end of the beginning.

I saw this black bear (who is mearly brown in color, NOT a grizzly bear!) at Bartlett Cove on my last day in Glacier Bay.

Ravens chasing a bald eagle

The sun through the clouds while I was waiting for otters to start foraging.

The following photos are from the last day I collected foraging data. I was on Francis island and had the fortune of many close foragers right before Ben and Ken came to pick me up. Although I was standing in the same place and all of these photos were taken within 20 minutes of each other, the color and quality is all over the place because some otters were facing into the sun and others were nicer and went around the corner.

First, A little mom and pup series:

 

 

Mom feeding her pup some urchins.

Female otter eating Mya clams

Mom eating Saxidomus clams (butter clams)

Mom eating Saxidomus clams

Otter eating green urchins

Mom and pup with Modilous mussels (horse mussels). She is banging one on another to get them open.

Glacier Bay, Alaska: Part 4

Today there are a lot of photos. (I spent all night editing last night!) First I will start with an oystercatcher who was trying his best to lead me away from the chicks. This was on an island off Point Carolus at the mouth of Glacier Bay.

 Next, I bring you the cutest part of the trip. Jess and I were cracking up at this little baby porcupine who was trying to climb the tree next to our hotel at the Glacier Bay Lodge. I missed the best part when the baby fell up-side-down and was hanging by his feet because I was setting up my tripod. These photos were taken at 10:30pm- right about sunset time so it was dark in the forest.

I never knew a porcupine could steal my heart.

The baby gave up and went back to the bottom of the tree and waited for its mom.

Mom porcupine.

I am now bouncing back to Point Carolus with a wide array of species.

Pelagic cormorants (Phalacrocorax pelagicus).

A male and female sea otter consorting. The female is resting on an emergent rock. Later in the day, I got foraging on both the female and male. The male mostly stole the female's food.

The female grooming.

A humpback whale very close to shore.

An otter with some common mergansers (Mergus merganser) flying by.

A humpback whale slapping its tail and startling some sea otters.

A red squirrel at Bartlett Cove.

The rest of the photos were all taken in the west arm. We climbed around Reid glacier in the upper arm and stopped at Gloomy Knob which is known for mountain goats and nesting birds.

A bald eagle with its chick.

An old male mountain goat.

Nesting tufted puffins (Fratercula cirrhata).

Nesting tufted puffins.

Nesting tufted puffins.

Reid glacier from Reid inlet.

Under the edge of the glacier.

Glacial ice.

Water dripping off the glacier.

Under the edge of the glacier.

Looking  at Reid inlet from the glacier.

The south side of Reid inlet.

Rocks on the glacier.

Water pouring off the glacier.

The mountains are smooth and bowl-like because the glaciers move through quickly and carve out the land.

The snow-covered peak is Mount Fairweather, the tallest peak in Glacier Bay. It is over 15,000 feet high.