An Eagle In Oklahoma

It had been a long trip - we were on the road for 40 days. We’d gone through western New York, Pennsylvania, Washington DC, Virginia and Tennessee. After visiting a friend in Arkansas, we were travelling through Oklahoma. Before we ever drive the first mile, though, my wife and I research and plan for overnight stops every 200-300 miles.

I’ve been photographing wildlife for over 20 years. One of my wife’s research discoveries was Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge, near Sallisaw, Oklahoma. We chose it for one of our stops. When we made up the trip plan, I'd penciled in shooting there after dinner that Friday or the next morning. Now that we were in the area, we still had some time that afternoon after checking into our RV park site. So we went to find the refuge.

A wet day at Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge

After exiting the interstate, we followed the little brown signs to the visitors center. Turns out they close at 3:30pm on Fridays instead of their usual 4pm, and it was around 3:47pm. Of course, it was a Friday…

Fortunately, there were paper maps of the refuge at a nearby kiosk. Armed with a map, we drove off to have a look. We drove south on N 4250 Rd, then turned west (right) on E 1090 Rd.

Robert S. Kerr Reservoir

Just Pretty Landscapes?

The NWR is on a couple big thumbs of bottom land surrounded by the Robert S. Kerr Reservoir on 3 sides. The roads take you through a thick green forest - it must rain a lot, as it had been doing that day. At first, we stopped a few times just to look at the lush marshes near the road. There were lily pads, big leaves and white flowers everywhere. But we didn't see any wildlife, so we kept slowly driving on to see more sights.

Crimsoneyed rosemallow - a pretty white flower in the rain

Buttonbush balls

Yes Wildlife!

At one of our stops, I spotted a dragonfly perched on a reed. He held still for me while I circled to shoot at different vantage points - at least those I could get to. Dragonflies are usually very cooperative if you don’t get too close - they’re the predators of the insect world, so they seem to have a lower fear level. I got my pictures. Then I hopped back in. (I found out later it was a blue dasher.)

Blue dasher dragonfly

Next up were a pair of red winged blackbirds, female and male. These birds are common marsh residents, with the male’s distinctive oh-weeeeeeee-oh calls. I don't know if these two were a mated pair, but even this late in the season, they could have been.

Male red-winged blackbird in mid-squawk

Female red-winged blackbird

As we were driving, my wife spotted a bald eagle perched high in a cottonwood. You’ll usually find balds near large bodies of water with fish, their favorite food. (Sometimes you’ll find them nesting a ways away, but there’s always a freshwater lake within flight range.) We stopped, and I aimed my long lens through the open window, watching him preen. One of my favorite shots shows him throwing his wings around him like a fluttering magician’s cloak.

Bald eagle

As we were heading towards the refuge exit, my wife spotted a small box turtle trying to cross the road. I photographed him from different angles, at a far enough distance to keep him calm. (He had red eyes, which only males have.) After photographing, I picked him up and carried him to the far side of the road, the direction he was facing and presumably trying to get to. He pulled in head, tail, arms and legs as I picked him up and carried him. I hope he does well.

Male box turtle

Shot Notes

Wildlife photography was only a small part of this trip, so I left my bigger and heavier Canon gear at home. Instead, I carried a smaller, lighter and new to me Lumix Leica DG Vario-Elmar 100-400mm f/4-6.3, sometimes on a (hard-to-find) Lumix 1.4X teleconverter, both mounted on an OM System OM-1 camera. I used the teleconverter for the eagle shots because of the longer shooting distance.

Using a vehicle as a mobile blind as I did for the eagle can work very well. Many animals are very comfortable with you shooting from an open car window. But the minute the door opens and your foot hits the ground, they see you as a threat and leave.

More Information

Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation (nd), Wildlife Management Area Map. Retrieved from https://odwc.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=e00cf4a26b8542ceba9858c28b3acbb6&extent=-10581062.9545919%2C4219622.1298393%2C-10569979.5854905%2C4227265.83266781%2C102100

U.S. Fish And Wildlife Service (nd), Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge. Retrieved from https://www.fws.gov/refuge/sequoyah/visit-us

U.S. Fish And Wildlife Service (nd), Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge - species. Retrieved from https://www.fws.gov/refuge/sequoyah/species