PHOTOGRAPH

Great Egret (Ardea alba)

Large birds in their own right, the Great Egret is slightly slimmer than the Great Blue Heron. In a similar story to that of the Snowy Egret and many other waterfowl, Great Egrets were hunted nearly to extinction for their plumes in the late 1800’s. However, thanks to longterm conservation efforts, they too are now of low concern for endangerment and thrive throughout North and Central America.

Great Egrets hunt in the classic way that herons hunt, by wading through shallow water, stalking their prey, and striking with lightning speed. As long as there is water nearby, they are happy, which is why they can be found as far inland as North Dakota. These long journeys to and from the north throughout the year are made more relaxing by their cool, calm, and collected mode of travel. At only two flaps per second, they fly very slowly, but their four to five foot wingspan makes the most of each flap, enabling the birds to cruise at 25 miles per hour.

Great Egrets are a good indicator of what’s next from a nature-watching perspective. In breeding colonies, they are typically the first birds to arrive and tend to persuade other birds to nest nearby.

LOCATION

Sanibel Island, FL

Sanibel Island is in southwestern Florida, off the coast of Fort Myers. The island seems to have been created, along with Captiva just north and connected by a short bridge, around 6,000 years ago. The first humans, the Calusa Indian Nation, arrived 3,500 years later.

Sanibel, the city, was formed in 1974. Home to Bailey Tract Wildlife Preserve, The J.N. “Ding” Darling Wildlife Refuge, Bowman’s Beach Park, and Tarpon Bay, all protected areas with abundant wildlife, preserving the natural areas has been a main focus of the city since its founding. Currently, around two-thirds of the island is fully protected from development.

It is also a sanctuary for shellers. Due to its geographic location and the currents that flow around the island, immense numbers of shells wash upon the shores.

Sanibel will always be a special place for me personally. I first visited Sanibel at a mere ten weeks old. From this place, I grew up learning about nature, animals, ecosystems, climate, and our home, planet Earth. When I was a child, we routinely saw Bobcats, 12-16 foot Alligators, and Spoonbill after Spoonbill after Spoonbill. Unfortunately, once abundant wildlife is harder to see unless you know where to look. Some of this change is due to development and the destruction of the habitat, mostly though, its due to our warming climate.

We tend to not think of this in the present moment, but some of these magnificent creatures that I photograph may not be around in another twenty years, much less 100. We must appreciate them while they are still with us.

J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge

The J.N. “Ding” Darling National Wildlife Refuge, established in 1976, and located on the northern side of Sanibel Island, FL, is part of the United States National Wildlife Refuge System. The “Ding” Darling Wildlife Society, a nonprofit organization affiliated with the park, supports an environmental education center onsite. The refuge is 5,200 acres, and is one of the nation’s largest undeveloped mangrove ecosystems. You can drive through the refuge on a paved road, and still be amongst the wildlife. Kayaking the rest of the mangrove forest if by far the best way to explore the area.

I’ve been a frequent visitor to the Refuge since my first days in Sanibel. Over the years, I’ve had too many unique experiences to count: Bottlenose Dolphins and Manatees swimming up to us, only feet away; flocks of Snowy Egrets dancing across the water, catching the first meal of the day; Osprey catching fish from an aerodynamic dive from above; Roseate Spoonbills just standing idly by, seeing them in all their glory has always been special enough.

Ding Darling is a special place to me, personally, and is also a special place on Earth, too. Flocks of migratory birds are never too distant, and there are endless twists and turns through the mangroves to explore on many return visits.

FRAME

Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum)

Bald Cypress, the giant of the swamp, is a stately, slow growing native of the southeastern United States. Very tough, it can adapt to thrive in a wide range of soils, including very briny, salty, and water soaked areas. Able to grow very tall, it has great stability at its base thanks to its “knees.” The tallest known Cypress was about 145 feet tall. All of the Bald Cypress I have used in my frames has come from different parts of Louisiana.

THE ELEMENTS

Fire, Water, Earth, and Air

In the display case in the bottom of the frame, four items are in preserved glass vials. The items represent the elements: fire (wood charcoal), water (mineral oil), earth (soil), and air (a milkweed seed). I include these items in my work as a symbol of the interconnectedness of all life on Earth, and as a reminder that humans must do better.

THE PLAQUE

Magnetic Information Plaque

I engrave a wooden information plaque for each work. The plaque includes what the photograph is of, the location of the photograph, what type of wood the frame is made of, and where I sourced the wood. The plaques also explain why the vials are included in each work. The back of each plaque states the meaning of my logo: “The circle represents our home, Planet Earth. The hourglass represents time. The five horizontal lines in the bottom of the hourglass represent the five mass extinction periods that have occurred in the past. The single line falling through the hourglass represents our current mass extinction period, caused by us.” The plaques are attached magnetically and can be removed to read or to store on the back of each frame if you prefer not to have it displayed on the front.