Tidewater Traveler - November 2011

TV Reality Shows

by

George W. Sellers

I recently Googled the phrase “TV reality shows” to learn that there have actually been seventy-four of those stupid, phony portrayals of real life that have made it to television over the past decade or so. Reality shows in the home; reality shows racing around the world; reality shows in the dorm; reality shows in the kitchen, reality shows on a deserted island – all purported to be reality. Fortunately, the vast majority of such shows never made it past the first few episodes before being canned.
Really now – reality - alone on a deserted island, no electricity, no cell service, at the mercy of wild critters and the elements – duhhh – isn’t there an entire production crew on the reserve side of that camera lens ready with snacks and Band-Aids? The reader might surmise from this opening that I am not a big fan of TV reality shows.
But . . .
On the Eastern Shore of Maryland, in Dorchester County, just a short drive south from Cambridge, lives a family that has allowed unfettered video coverage of every aspect of their daily lives. A camera covers each in-home move that the family makes. Eating behaviors, sleeping habits, family interaction, sibling rivalry, squabbles over food and space, even the arrival of young into the world – every moment is captured for all to see.
The family has no secrets. Anyone can intrude upon this family at will by gawking at a TV-like monitor. In fact some folks make it a vacation destination to drive to Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge to observe the family of bald eagles going about their daily activities.
The family lives in a large nest perched atop a tall utility pole that has been planted in the midst of a tidal marshland – a good location to be left alone. The nest is fashioned of sticks, soft mosses, feathers, grasses, and leaves. It is hard to determine the actual size of this particular nest from the webcam, but nests of bald eagles can be up to nine feet across and three feet deep or high.
The nest of the eagle family at Blackwater has one feature that most eagle homes cannot claim. Rising above the sticks that comprise the nest structure is a long straight stick-like projection, and mounted at the end of it is a camera. The feed from the camera can be observed at monitors inside the Blackwater visitor center.
Large windows on the back side of the visitor center building allow a panoramic view across the classic Dorchester County marshland. Looking out into the marsh several hundred yards away from the visitor center one sees the utility pole with a human-made support structure at the top, and above that, an eagle-made nest. Above the nest, a sharp eye will notice the camera.
In the TV reality shows, there can be no escaping the notion that the human beings know cameras are present and play to them. Do you act differently when you know a video camera is capturing your every move?!? But the bald eagle family seems not to notice the presence of the odd little box and the shiny glass lens, so they do not pose for it; they do not act for it; they do not exaggerate their actions or emotions. They go about their daily activities as they would if they were not being videoed – humans can’t do that! The result – a real reality show!
Admission to the visitor center and connected observation deck is free. Use of the telescopes is free. Also free is a gallery of large glass-enclosed dioramas depicting Eastern Shore wildlife and habitat. Wildlife art is displayed in abundance throughout.
To gain access to the popular wildlife drive and to hiking, cycling and paddling trails there is a modest fee. As a native Eastern Shoreman and Dorchester Countian, it seems really odd to me that someone would actually pay to ride through woodland and marshland. But as I have that thought, I also realize that an Alaskan native probably wonders why millions of dollars are spent each year by folks who want to see a frozen river. And, Arizonans have to marvel at why anyone would pay to enter a national park of Saguaro cactus.
Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge is a part of The Chesapeake Marshlands National Wildlife Refuge Complex located on the Eastern Shore of Maryland and Virginia. The Complex includes the Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge, Eastern Neck National Wildlife Refuge, Martin National Wildlife Refuge and Susquehanna National Wildlife Refuge. Other parts of the Complex are Barren Island, Watts Island, Garrett Island, Bishops Head, and Spring Island Divisions. Blackwater encompasses about twenty-seven thousand acres of woodland, wetland, open fields and water features.
If you think you would enjoy the kind of reality show the bald eagle family offers, but just cannot make it to the marshes of southern Dorchester County, then take a look for them on the Internet. You can search for “Raptor Cams.” If you do take the drive to Blackwater, don’t limit your own eagle-eye to the confines of the preserve. All throughout the area, whether on park service land or private land, one can occasionally catch sight of a bald eagle and many other critters in the wild.
Neighbors of the eagle family have also allowed a camera to invade their personal space. A family of osprey bare their life activities for all to see. In addition to the Raptor Cam sponsored by Friends of Blackwater, many archival videos of the osprey family can be seen on You Tube.
While writing this article I took a moment (actually one moment and three seconds, assuming a moment to be synonymous with a minute) to watch a young osprey stand precariously on the edge of the nest, flapping his fledgling wings. The youngster is on the edge of the nest away from the camera with his back toward the viewer. On the near edge of the nest stands father osprey observing the training mission. Father occasionally glances in the direction of the camera, then back to junior, as if to say, “That’s my boy!” After half a minute or so of flapping, junior’s grip on the sticks of the nest lessens and he find himself pulled about a foot into the air. You can almost detect an expression of amazement and fear on his face. The flapping slows and he descends back to his safe haven.
I’m really not a bird watcher, nor do I like reality TV, but this is a show I can highly recommend.
May all of your travels be happy and safe!

George Sellers is a Certified Travel Counselor and Accredited Cruise Counselor who operates the popular travel website and travel planning service www.SellersTravel.com. His Facebook and e-mail addresses are George@SellersTravel.com.