field notes from 02/08/23

Dry Tortugas seabird island

· Dry Tortugas National Park, Florida · Hot, humid, 84°F, light Caribbean breeze · Fujifilm X-T5, 150-600mm

Took the ferry from Key West. Summer on the Tortugas is all about Sooty Terns and Brown Noddies nesting on Bush Key, just across from Fort Jefferson. The colony was loud and the birds circled in easy photographic range the whole time we were at the dock. Also a couple of Magnificent Frigatebirds patrolling and one Masked Booby on the rocks.

Direct midday sun was hard to work with. The trick is finding a dark wall of the fort for a cleaner background — and then shooting white-belly birds against it.

Sooty tern in flight over colony
A few hundred frames of sooties. One was sharp. Sooty Tern 450mm, 1/2000s, f/6.3, ISO 640
Brown noddy on rock
On the rocks below the fort. Brown Noddy 350mm, 1/1000s, f/8, ISO 1250
Frigatebird gliding overhead
Male with red throat pouch visible. Magnificent Frigatebird 300mm, 1/1600s, f/8, ISO 400
Masked booby on rocks
One bird on a rock at middle distance. Masked Booby 500mm, 1/1250s, f/8, ISO 400
Brown booby in flight
Passed the ferry at the dock. Brown Booby 350mm, 1/1600s, f/8, ISO 1250
Wide view of Fort Jefferson and bird island
Fort on the left, tern colony on the right. Fort Jefferson 23mm, 1/125s, f/8, ISO 160
Roseate tern on piling
At the dock, rose tinge visible. Roseate Tern 150mm, 1/1000s, f/5.6, ISO 800
Laughing gull overhead
Standard laughing gull. Laughing Gull 400mm, 1/1600s, f/7.1, ISO 640
Sooty tern chick on rock
Chick ignored me entirely. Sooty Tern chick 150mm, 1/1250s, f/6.3, ISO 640
Close view of sand and small coral
At my feet between birds. Sand and coral 23mm, 1/800s, f/8, ISO 1600