A young Laughing Gull.

Possibly Forster's Tern perched on a piling.

Possibly an immature Forster's Tern.

A Laughing Gull.

Turkey Vultures and Black Vultures taking a break from searching for carrion on a Patuxent River fence.

A Great Egret along the bank of the Patuxent River.

Great Blue Heron nesting area, or as it is called, a heronry.

Great Blue Heron nesting area, or as it is called, a heronry. Yes, that is a person's head peering out from the tree. Why he was there is unknown.

A Great Blue Heron on the banks of the Patuxent River.

A Great Blue Heron trying valiantly to swallow a large fish. He finally had to give up.

Resident Canada Geese - the ones who "forget" to fly home for the summer. Resident Canada Geese put additional stress on the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem.

A flock of young mallards.

Sea gulls on a Patuxent River beach.

Gulls on a pier at sunset.

Gulls on a pier at sunset.

Sea gulls on a Patuxent River beach.

Sea gulls on a Patuxent River beach.

Green algae growing on a rock in the shallows of the Patuxent River.

Sea squirts washing ashore.

Sea squirts.

Young snapping turtles being released into the wild. The one on the left is underwater.

Crayfish found in a salt water pond near the Patuxent River.

Crayfish found in a salt water pond near the Patuxent River.

Crayfish found in a salt water pond near the Patuxent River.

Crayfish found in a salt water pond near the Patuxent River.

Crayfish found in a salt water pond near the Patuxent River.

Sea gulls on a deserted osprey nest.

Crow footprints in the sand.

Sea bird hovering overhead.

Sea bird hovering overhead.

Tundra swans near the mouth of the Patuxent River. These swans can be distinguished from mute swans by their black bills. Tundra swans are native to the Chesapeake Bay region.

Tundra swans near the mouth of the Patuxent River. These swans can be distinguished from mute swans by their black bills. Tundra swans are native to the Chesapeake Bay region.

Deer tracks on the beach.

Footprints in the mud of a Patuxent River marsh, possibly muskrat.

Closeup of an osprey nest built amid pound net posts.

Closeup of an osprey nest built amid pound net posts.

Pound net posts are taken over by osprey, who built their home there.

Bird nest, possibly built by a marsh wren, attached to marsh grass.

Osprey on pier piling.

Mute swans in flight. Mute swans are an agressive invasive species. There are now over 3,000 mute swans in the Maryland portion of the Chesapeake Bay. They are easily distinguished from the tundra swan by their orange beaks.

Pelicans on a post.

Oystercatchers.

A Northern Gannet, somewhat north of its normal range, tangled in fishing line and drowned.

A Northern Gannet, somewhat north of its normal range, tangled in fishing line and drowned.

A Northern Gannet, somewhat north of its normal range, tangled in fishing line and drowned.

A snowy winter day in the marsh.

A snowy winter day in the marsh.

Snow in the marsh.

Snow in the marsh.

Winter and ice along the Patuxent River.