Adult Red-tailed Hawk with an Ant
At the time I created this image I didn't realize that when I took this portrait of the adult Red-tailed Hawk that I also photographed an ant. Can you see it?
At the time I created this image I didn't realize that when I took this portrait of the adult Red-tailed Hawk that I also photographed an ant. Can you see it?
Vultures and condors are scavengers and help to clean up the environment by consuming carrion, road kill and gut piles left from the kills of human and non-human hunters.
Last year on September 8th I located an immature Sharp-shinned Hawk in the Centennial Valley of Montana early in the morning as it flew low to the ground looking for small birds to capture and consume.
I spent time in northern Utah yesterday and I was able to photograph a juvenile Golden Eagle, Turkey Vultures plus a covey of Gray Partridges.
So what better image to end my week of published posts with than a Swainson's Hawk pooping while perched on a fence post in northern Utah? I can't think of one.
Temps were probably in the teens when I photographed this juvenile harrier in January of 2010 at Farmington Bay. Ahhh.
I thought the invisible fence made this roadside Swainson's Hawk in rural Montana an interesting subject to share.
These are a few of the Beaverhead County Red-tailed Hawks that I have photographed while on this trip to Montana and Idaho.
This time of the year I see plenty of molting Red-tailed Hawks and they can look pretty tattered, worn and shabby.
The Targhee National Forest is a wonderful place to find and photograph birds and wildlife including this Red-tailed Hawk juvenile in flight.
I was able to create several images of this Ferruginous Hawk in flight with nesting materials over a field of sage and lupines despite the low light.
This image of a Swainson's Hawk in golden light was taken not long after the sun rose and I love how the light seems to make the hawk glow.
While I have been photographing Short-eared Owls in northern Utah I have come across this intriguing and very tame Northern Harrier over and over in the same location.
One thing I know for certain is that when the weather clears I know I am going to head back up there. And I will probably think about the title of this post... Warning - Swainson's Hawks Ahead.
I photographed this rainy day Red-tailed Hawk in Clark County, Idaho last year as it perched on an old pole with glass insulators on it
Five days ago I photographed this male Swainson's Hawk landing with his talons reaching out for the lichen covered rocks he was going to perch on.
I found an exceptionally obliging Turkey Vulture in Box Elder County warming up in the morning sun.
So just as I focus on the on the bird he decides to defecate in flight and my image shows the Northern Harrier in a post-defecation pose.
I am not sure why the Red-tailed Hawk lifted off with nesting material in its bill from the nest, maybe the hawk felt that piece of nesting material wasn't suitable.
Two bald headed birds, but very different in appearance, one is a vulture who cleans up the earth and the other a wading bird with pink and carmine plumage.
This banking Red-tailed Hawk is one of the pair that are busy building their nest and making nearby forays to find nesting materials.
This Swainson's Hawk was right next to the road the entire time I photographed it and I was able to get a series of it it where the hawk nearly filled the frame from top to bottom.
I was able to take quite a few images of a very cooperative first spring Northern Harrier that was perched on an old post next to the road in Box Elder County.
I mentioned in my post about Short-eared Owls yesterday that I saw Burrowing Owls, Turkey Vultures and a third year Bald Eagle juvenile in northern Utah so I thought I would share a few more images form the northern Utah excursion.
Turkey Vultures are Nature's clean up crew. They consume road kill and other dead animals and and in doing so they clean up the messy stuff.
I was able to get a few images of a Golden Eagle yesterday morning as it perched on some huge, ancient boulders in early morning light.
At the end of January there was a nice, clear morning at Farmington Bay WMA and I spotted a juvenile female Northern Harrier in a field of snow next to the road who was a cooperative subject.
It isn't every day that I have the opportunity to photograph an American Kestrel attacking a Red-tailed Hawk in the air, in fact this would have been my best opportunity.
I did spot a juvenile Northern Harrier in the fog resting on a clump of vegetation in the snow covered field on the east side of the road and took a few images of it.
I spent a little bit of time yesterday morning photographing a few birds including this Northern Harrier in flight over Farmington Bay WMA.