Picture Of The Week 02-12-07

Where: Kiptopeke, VA • Kiptopeke State Park

Notes: On the way home from nearly a full week of of nature photography on the eastern shore's Delmarva peninsula, we could not resist a quick peak at Kiptopeke State Park's bay and boat landing area. Even though we were approaching our deadline for getting back home, we just had to stop for a quick look. We spotted this Common Loon diving near the pier. This water bird efficiently swims underwater to catch fish, propelling itself with its feet which are placed far back on its long body. This two and a half foot long diver quickly swam out into the bay at the first sign of our interest in it. Once out in the bay, about fifty feet or more, it went back to feeding. This is a sign that it is fairly relaxed and not too concerned about us being there. But, it seemed to prefer fishing up close to the concrete pier where the small fish it feeds on are protected from the current. So we put ourselves at a good angle with the sun at our back and faced the area that the Loon seemed to be heading toward at the back side of the pier. With each dive it arose closer and closer to the pier. Soon it was where we hoped he would be and we watched him descend into the deep water many times. I was amazed at how long it could stay underwater and how far it could travel with each dive. It was hard to pull away from such a magnificent creature, but we had to get back on the road. It was the perfect end to a great week of adventure.