{"id":142681,"date":"2025-04-06T02:36:46","date_gmt":"2025-04-06T07:36:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=142681"},"modified":"2025-07-07T12:33:14","modified_gmt":"2025-07-07T17:33:14","slug":"a-puddle-where-there-was-never-a-puddle-before","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2025\/04\/06\/a-puddle-where-there-was-never-a-puddle-before\/","title":{"rendered":"A Puddle Where There Was Never A Puddle Before"},"content":{"rendered":"

Greetings from rain-soaked Arkansas, where even the ducks have started drawing up blueprints for houseboats. After days and days of rain, over seven inches in the gauge and counting, a strange and unexpected sight appeared: a puddle. But not just any puddle. A puddle where there was never a puddle before!<\/p>\n

\"SpringSpring rain puddle<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m not talking about your run-of-the-mill sidewalk splash zone. This one had character. Grasses were poking up through the water like they were surprised, and the reflections of two trees stared back at me like, \u201cWell, this is new.\u201d<\/p>\n

This mystery puddle showed up in a spot that\u2019s never seen standing water, not even during a good soaking. I half expected it to whisper, \u201cDon\u2019t get used to me,\u201d like it was some kind of rogue seasonal pond testing the limits of its career path.<\/p>\n

Since it\u2019s been far too wet to get out and photograph birds or wildlife, I\u2019ve turned my lens toward this puddle and its odd little world. And I have to say, it didn\u2019t disappoint.<\/p>\n

Two trees mirrored in the water looked like they were quietly debating whether to grow gills. The puddle itself had that smug look of something that knew it shouldn\u2019t exist but did anyway.<\/p>\n

No birds, no deer, no squirrels, just me and a reflective, uninvited visitor that turned a soggy week into something unexpectedly amusing.<\/p>\n

Here’s to hoping the rain lets up soon so I can return to photographing birds instead of aquatic landscapes!<\/p>\n

So here\u2019s to the small surprises that pop up when the weather keeps us grounded. May your boots stay dry and your puddles be photogenic.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my miscellaneous images in their gallery.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After days and days of rain\u2014over seven inches in the gauge and counting\u2014a strange and unexpected sight appeared: a puddle.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":142680,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[13950,10893,13951],"tags":[16366,13931,4109,90,156,14923,5112,4501,958,165,16365,13966],"class_list":["post-142681","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arkansas","category-miscellaneous","category-sebastian-county","tag-fnny","tag-garden","tag-grasses","tag-humor-2","tag-low-light-2","tag-pine-straw","tag-puddle","tag-rain","tag-reflections","tag-spring","tag-spring-rain","tag-yard"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/puddle-mia-mcpherson-2076.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-B7j","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":38755,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2016\/04\/25\/a-western-meadowlark-bathing-in-a-puddle\/","url_meta":{"origin":142681,"position":0},"title":"Western Meadowlark Bathing In A Puddle","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"April 25, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday I was able to photograph a Western Meadowlark bathing in a puddle in a gravel road on Antelope Island State Park under mostly sunny skies.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Western Meadowlark about to bathe, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/western-meadowlark-bathing-mia-mcpherson-2882.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/western-meadowlark-bathing-mia-mcpherson-2882.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/western-meadowlark-bathing-mia-mcpherson-2882.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/western-meadowlark-bathing-mia-mcpherson-2882.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":66841,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2020\/03\/12\/western-meadowlark-walking-through-a-puddle\/","url_meta":{"origin":142681,"position":1},"title":"Western Meadowlark Walking Through A Puddle","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 12, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"What I like about this photo was the reflection of the Western Meadowlark, the still water, the one raised foot and the curvy edges of the puddle. I feel drawn into the frame.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Western Meadowlark in a puddle, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/western-meadowlark-puddle-mia-mcpherson-7930.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/western-meadowlark-puddle-mia-mcpherson-7930.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/western-meadowlark-puddle-mia-mcpherson-7930.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/western-meadowlark-puddle-mia-mcpherson-7930.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6056,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2012\/09\/06\/bison-bull-drinking-from-a-puddle\/","url_meta":{"origin":142681,"position":2},"title":"Bison Bull Drinking From A Puddle","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"September 6, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"I photographed this American Bison bull a few days ago on Antelope Island State Park as he was drinking from a freshwater puddle formed by rains over the weekend.","rel":"","context":"In "American Bison"","block_context":{"text":"American Bison","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/wildlife\/bison\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"American Bison drinking water from a puddle, Antelope Island State Park, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/american-bison-drinking-mia-mcpherson-4608.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/american-bison-drinking-mia-mcpherson-4608.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/american-bison-drinking-mia-mcpherson-4608.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":51958,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2018\/05\/04\/barn-swallow-nesting-season-is-happening-now-in-northern-utah\/","url_meta":{"origin":142681,"position":3},"title":"Barn Swallow Nesting Season Is Happening Now In Northern Utah","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 4, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Barn Swallows are like tiny, feathered brick masons. One pellet by itself is nothing but combined pellets form the nests these birds use to raise their young in.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Barn Swallow with a beak full of nesting materials, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/barn-swallow-nesting-material-mia-mcpherson-7177.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/barn-swallow-nesting-material-mia-mcpherson-7177.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/barn-swallow-nesting-material-mia-mcpherson-7177.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, 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