As the water level in the Salton Sea recedes, previously underwater fish nests like these are becoming exposed. Spawning occurs when the water temperature exceeds 68° F. Males dig large circular nests with their mouths in shallow water over a sandy bottom. The male swims out to a passing female and leads her to the nest where courtship occurs; female lays eggs and immediately takes into mouth after male fertilizes, after which she swims off, possibly to mate with another male. The males continue to guard nests and may spawn again with another female. I believe a combination of algae, bacteria, and possibly minerals are what cause the interesting mix of colors in the water here. To produce this panoramic image, I shot several frames side-by-side and then stitched them together in Lightroom. This was shot around sunset when the shadows and colors are more intense. As always, prints are available on my website: www.KevinKeyPhotography.com
A dead tree with large birds nests stands on the playa on the southeastern shore of the Salton Sea. This is a single frame from one of several time lapse sequences I recently shot around the Salton Sea (video coming soon). While reviewing the frames, I noticed this bird appearing on the tree. It looks like it might be an owl, but I'm not certain. This area was once under water, but the sea is now rapidly drying up due to changes in water apportionments agreed upon for the Colorado River under the Quantification Settlement Agreement (QSA) of 2003. The Salton Sea is a shallow, saline, endorheic rift lake located directly on the San Andreas Fault, predominantly in California's Imperial and Coachella valleys. The lake occupies the lowest elevations of the Salton Sink in the Colorado Desert of Imperial and Riverside Counties in Southern California. Its surface is 236.0 ft (71.9 m) below sea level as of January 2018. The deepest point of the sea is 5 ft (1.5 m) higher than the lowest point of Death Valley. The sea is fed by the New, Whitewater, and Alamo rivers, as well as agricultural runoff, drainage systems, and creeks.
Nighttime scene with a dead tree with large birds nests that still stands on the playa on the southeastern shore of the Salton Sea. Tree and playa illuminated by a nearly full moon and the bright orange floodlights at a nearby geothermal power plant. This area was once under water, but the sea is now rapidly drying up due to changes in water apportionments agreed upon for the Colorado River under the Quantification Settlement Agreement (QSA) of 2003. The Salton Sea is a shallow, saline, endorheic rift lake located directly on the San Andreas Fault, predominantly in California's Imperial and Coachella valleys. The lake occupies the lowest elevations of the Salton Sink in the Colorado Desert of Imperial and Riverside Counties in Southern California. Its surface is 236.0 ft (71.9 m) below sea level as of January 2018. The deepest point of the sea is 5 ft (1.5 m) higher than the lowest point of Death Valley. The sea is fed by the New, Whitewater, and Alamo rivers, as well as agricultural runoff, drainage systems, and creeks.
