Rough-legged Hawk getting ready to expel a pellet – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/400, ISO 800, +2.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited
My cabin fever got the best of me yesterday morning and despite conflicting weather reports and radar/satellite imagery I headed up to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge because it looked like there might be nice light at some point in time, I wanted to see and hear the Tundra Swans and because I needed the solitude, peace and quiet I find at the refuge. I hit a snow squall in Ogden that limited my visibility and I had some concerns that I wouldn’t find any decent light at the refuge but being the optimist that I am I started to look forward to photographing birds in falling snow and laughed at the fickle weather.
By the time I got to the auto tour route at the refuge I could see blue skies to the north and northwest but on the refuge the light was low because of clouds blocking the sun as well as hanging overhead and there were occasional snowflakes that were falling from those clouds. The conditions for bird photography weren’t great but I had the auto tour route to myself, took my time and soaked in the great feelings I receive from being out on the marsh.
On the north side of the auto tour route I spotted a Rough-legged Hawk perched on one of the signs right next to the road and even though the light was awful I decided to take some photos of it, I knew I’d have to increase my ISO and my exposure and that with clouds in the background the resulting images would look high key but took images of the hawk anyway as I slowly crept forward in my Jeep. I didn’t want to flush the hawk, just take a few images of it and gets past it without it feeling like it needed to fly away. The Rough-legged Hawk was really sticky though and when it started to open its bill I understood why, it was getting ready to expel a pellet.
High key Rough-legged Hawk close up – Nikon D500, f8, 1/320, ISO 1000, +2.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited
I lined up my Jeep for the best angle I could get of the Roughie, turned my engine off and took photos of the hawk while I waited for it to get rid of the pellet. Snow was falling and my hands were freezing but I didn’t want to move forward until after the Rough-legged Hawk expelled the pellet and flew off on his own. I kept hoping that no one else would drive up on me and the hawk and flush the bird, that hope came to fruition.
I actually like this high key look of these photos, the white background puts all my focus on the hawk.
Close up of a Rough-legged Hawk expelling a pellet – Nikon D500, f8, 1/500, ISO 1000, +2.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited
Before long the hawk opened its bill again and his behavior indicated that the pellet would soon be expelled. I had bumped up my ISO to get a little more shutter speed in the low light but I actually could have bumped it up even higher and I wish now that I had because this is the only sharp photo I took that showed both the hawk and the pellet because the hawk was moving as it regurgitated the pellet the other shots I took were soft and out of focus because of my slow shutter speed.
Rough-legged Hawk close up on a cloudy, snowy morning – Nikon D500, f8, 1/400, ISO 1000, +2.0 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited
After the light morph Rough-legged Hawk expelled the pellet he perched calmly for a minute or so giving me more time to take close ups of him with this snow white background. When he finally did lift off he did it with his back to me and I didn’t take a single image of that, I just said thank you to the bird as it flew away.
I’ve never been this close to a Rough-legged Hawk expelling a pellet before and it is likely that I will never be this fortunate again. This Rough-legged Hawk was my best bird for the day and I’m glad I stopped and waited for him to expel the pellet before moving on down the auto tour route.
I didn’t have much luck with birds the rest of the morning and I had to drive through three snow squalls to get home but going to the refuge was worth it for just this one experience with the Rough-legged Hawk.
Life is good.
Mia
Click here to view more of my Rough-legged Hawk photos plus facts and information about this species.
Truly magnificent portraits of the hawk! Just this week I saw a mockingbird gagging and sure enough I caught it disgorging a small object which looked like a seed. It happened so fast that the bird’s bill was closed by the time the object had only dropped about an inch. Not a very dramatic shot for me!
Definitely better out than in! Wonderful shots!
AMAZING !!!
What an absolutely fascinating set of shots! The detail you captured is incredible. Thanks Mia.
Lovely portrait. I love the first one! These are such wonderful birds.
Very nice shot Mia…your diligence and patience paid off…..thank you….
Just a gorgeous hawk! Beautiful close-ups. Many thanks!
Definitely well worth the snow squalls. Fantastic shots.