“New Egret Family”
16” x 24” Archival Ink on Canvas Mounted Print
By: Lynn David Cole – Phone: 281-890-3200
Art@LynnDavidCole.com
Description:
Photograph of two Great Egrets nesting on a platform built by the Houston Audubon Society during the 2011 drought and after hurricane Ike.
Location:
Rookery at Clay Bottom Pond in Smith Oaks, at High Island, Texas
Story Behind the Photo:
The land where the Smith Oaks rookery is located was donated to the Houston Audubon Society in 1994. Clay Bottom Pond has a rich history that dates back to 1936 when it was created when clay was removed to build a railroad bridge over the Intracoastal Waterway and the resulting pond was used to supplement High Island water supply. When it was enlarged in 1964 to supply additional water for industrial processes, by chance for some reason an island was left just off the new shore of the pond which later became the prime part of the new rookery.
Eventually many water birds started nesting on the newly created island. About 50 nests were discovered in 1995, possibly as a result of the new no hunting policy implemented when Houston Audubon took over the land. Over the recent years the rookery has grown well over a thousand pairs of birds.
Hurricane Ike wiped out most of the large trees where the water birds nested. During the drought of 2010 the pond was largely dry which made the island and other parts of the pond easily accessible to Houston Audubon volunteers who used the opportunity to build nesting platforms and make other improvements to the rookery. As a result many water birds returned to the rookery to nest in the spring of 2012.
This photograph was captured on April 5, 2012 by Lynn David Cole and was possible because of the diligent work of the Houston Audubon Society volunteers and others who generously donated money and resources that went into creating the beautiful water bird habitat.
If you go to the location today and speak to bird photographers there, they often say that this is one of the best locations in the United States to photograph water birds.
Limited Edition (print 2 of 15) $1500
This photograph is a limited edition run of 15 prints.