Perseverance is a trait that is highly prized by successful wildlife photographers, but difficult to master. Defined as “persistence in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success”, this attribute could be the one skill that separates the average photographer from the successful pros that command all of the attention. And rightfully so.
The famous wildlife photographer Tom Mangleson once spent over 40 days in the same place, waiting for the one perfect shot that he wanted! I like to think that I have a better than average amount of patience, but I’m nowhere near that level. But I aspire to be, and that is one area where I am trying to improve. It is with that thought in mind that I found myself watching perseverance in action the other morning.
I was out shooting (early of course) when two immature Hooded Mergansers came by, looking for breakfast. They looked to be about half grown and the Mom was nowhere in sight. They proceeded to work together as a team, methodically searching the shallows right in front of me for something to eat. They were only about 15 yards away from me, so you can see that I am shooting at a slight down angle and my depth of field is very thin!
Two of a kind….
Could use a snorkel!
Things weren’t looking very promising for awhile; neither of them were having any luck. But you knew eventually things had to change for them, and it sure did! All of a sudden this one stuck her head under the water and came up with breakfast!
Not pretty, but effective!
Now that she had it in her mouth, could she swallow it???? This was a large Crayfish for a small mouthed duck like the Merganser. She flipped it around in the air, squishing it as hard as she could with her bill, hoping to make it just a bit smaller.
It’s a really tight fit!!!!
But eventually, she swallowed the whole thing! She looked uncomfortable for a few minutes, but by stretching her neck she was able get it to work down into her stomach. And this wasn’t the only one she caught that morning.
These two ducks aren’t going to win any beauty pageants. They looked very much worse for wear by the time they were done feeding. But give them time to preen and dry off a bit, and they will be back to their beautiful selves!!!
Often, wildlife shows us what real perseverance is. They don’t persevere, they don’t eat. A simple truth for them, but I’m not sure we know what that really means.
Hope you enjoyed the pics! And remember, get out and shoot!
