Say’s Phoebes And Sagebrush

Adult Say’s Phoebe perched on a fence – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/640, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

Over time I have come to associate Say’s Phoebes with sagebrush because I don’t think I have ever seen or photographed one of these phoebes where there wasn’t sage nearby here in northern Utah.

Yesterday morning while observing and photographing some young Red-tailed Hawk chicks in their nest I also had many opportunities to photograph some adult Say’s Phoebes hunting for prey to feed their young.

My first opportunity with these phoebes was up close when this adult landed on a nearby fence. I was able to take sixteen images of it before it flew off in search of prey.

Say’s Phoebe on a red metal pole – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1250, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

At times the Say’s Phoebes weren’t close but I took images of them because I wanted to be able to show some of the sagebrush habitat in the photos. The clump of sage behind this adult Say’s Phoebe isn’t really easily recognizable if a person hasn’t already seen sagebrush in the field but for those of us who are familiar with sagebrush it is.

Say’s Phoebe perched in sagebrush – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/2000, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

In this photo of one of the adult Say’s Phoebes the sage should be readily recognized though. When I look at this image I can almost smell the aroma of sage wafting through the air. I love the scent of sage.

Adult Say’s Phoebe in sage – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1600, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

The Say’s Phoebe adults were very busy searching for prey. I watched them at times without raising my lens and because of my observations I was able to locate their nest and young higher up the foothills near a cliff face. I wish I’d been able to get a little closer to the nest but it is on private land and I respect those boundaries.

Sagebrush and an adult Say’s Phoebe – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/800, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

I was excited each and every time that the adult Say’s Phoebes flew in close enough for me take images of them perched on sage while they scanned the area for prey to take back to their young.

Say’s Phoebe adult on the hunt – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1250, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

And when the adult phoebes stuck around long enough for me to get a series of images of them in different poses I was delighted.

Say’s Phoebe adult watching for prey from a fence – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1250, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

The foraging Say’s Phoebes weren’t the only birds in the area yesterday morning but today I wanted to share images of them because even though this species is common here during their breeding season I haven’t had as many opportunities to photograph them as I would like.

Say’s Phoebe landing with prey – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1000, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

Watching the adult phoebes hunting for prey was interesting and there were times I was amazed by how many insects I saw flying off when the adults landed on the tops of the sage. When this adult landed on the top of a fence post near me I could see through my viewfinder that it had prey.

Say’s Phoebe with prey – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1000, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

When I viewed this image at full resolution it looked to me as if the Say’s Phoebe had captured a tiny moth but I am not 100% positive on that. Right after I took this image the adult flew up the sagebrush-dotted hill to the cliff face with the prey to feed its young.

These adult Say’s Phoebes kept me busy photographing them yesterday morning and perhaps the next time I am in the area I’ll be able to take images of their freshly fledged young looking for prey in the sage on their own.

Life is good. Stay safe.

Mia

Click here to view more of my Say’s Phoebe photos plus facts and information about this species.