![]() I’ll describe below the typical events one might witness on jump day, but first a disclaimer: I would not recommend this type of photography unless one is quite knowledgeable about wood duck breeding behavior and the recommended methods of monitoring wood duck nest boxes. By concentrating a great deal of my photographic efforts on wood ducks over the last 11 years, first at a nature reserve where I volunteered to help monitor 33 wood duck nest boxes and then later at my backyard pond and its seven nest boxes, I have been able to witness and photograph 15 jump days. Unburdened by the pressure to produce income from his work, the amateur is free to concentrate his photography on subjects of particular interest and availability. Leonard Rue had several opportunities to photograph “jump day” over 58 years before finally succeeding in 2004, but his efforts were limited by the numerous other projects and subjects that he was actively pursuing as a professional photographer. Rue’s article illustrates one advantage an amateur photographer may have over a professional. to get video footage and photos of a sight I had never seen, that most folks will never see.” Although the online magazine is no longer published, his article is still currently available online here. Rue witnessed the the event in 2004 and published his experience in an article for the online photography magazine Vivid Light entitled “Success at Last”. So his enthusiastic description of “jump day” should not be taken lightly. ![]() He has authored 31 books on nature and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Science by Colorado State University for his works on White-tailed Deer. As a naturalist he is considered an expert on deer, red foxes, beaver and other species. In the heyday of magazine publishing in the 1970s, his images appeared in at least 50 publications a month and he once had cover images on five national magazines in the same month. A full time writer/photographer since 1965, he has over 1800 magazine covers to his credit. Leonard Lee Rue is quite possibly the most accomplished wildlife photographer/naturalist of the last 50 years. Leonard Lee Rue III described the event as “one of my greatest personal moments witnessing nature.” These are not just idle words. I’ve attached natural log fronts to the nest boxes on my pond. It is undoubtedly one of the most exciting and memorable wood duck behaviors to witness. Leaping from the nest entrance with their tiny, ineffectual wings extended, they fall to the water or ground unharmed and begin their life journeys. The ducklings leave the nest the day after hatching. Wood Ducks are one of the few North American ducks that nest in tree cavities or nest boxes.
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