Tundra Swans have pure white plumage, black legs and feet and black bills often seen with yellow near the base.
All in all, as 2018 comes to a close I realize how fortunate I am to see all the birds that I do throughout the year as a bird photographer, to be able to do what I love and to love my feathered subjects too.
Some of the Tundra Swan photos I took that day in near white out conditions were flat and unappealing to my eyes but some of them I really liked because of the white bird on white snow.
With cold fronts moving in it is indeed time for me to keep an eye on the sky for flocks of Tundra Swans migrating back into northern Utah
Water levels have been dropped in some units at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge for dike maintenance and this made me think of what might happen in the future due to climate change and if more dams are built on the Bear River and how the reduction of water reaching the refuge might be a huge issue
Sometimes when the summer heat gets to me I look back at images I have taken during the winter and quite often I find those images to be taken at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and the birds that I find there.
Seeing a few flocks of Tundra Swans in flight two days in northern Utah was a reminder that these big, white swans have already begun their migration to their breeding grounds on the tundra of northern Canada and Alaska.
As I photographed this pair of Tundra Swans in flight I could hear the whir of their wings and the calls of the other swans that were still on the water and also getting ready to lift off.
The Tundra Swans are truly at home in the landscape of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and they belong there as much as the mountains, marshes, birds, animals, fish, sky and the clouds overhead do.
I had a blast photographing the Tundra Swans at the refuge yesterday and for the first time in a while I forgot about practically everything but the birds in front of me and the peace I find at the refuge.
Some Tundra Swans migrate from the arctic tundra using the Great Basin hub of the Pacific flyway and huge flocks of them spend the winter here.
I saw and photographed a mated pair of Sandhill Cranes yesterday morning in the marsh from the auto tour loop and watched them search for food.
I am anxious to get out to the Bear River MBR auto tour loop of the refuge to see what migrants have flown in but right now that isn't possible and there isn't any information on when the road will open again
Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge hosts up to 13,000 Tundra Swans during November through December where they utilize the freshwater wetland habitats on the refuge.
This is National Wildlife Refuge Week and in celebration I wanted to do a pictorial essay that includes some of my images of the Birds of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.
Watching and photographing the Tundra Swans lifting off from Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge yesterday was slightly bittersweet for me because I know they will soon be heading north to mate.
We've still been having record breaking high temperatures here in northern Utah but the forecast shows some cooler weather is about to arrive. I'm glad. It is about time.
Last week I posted some Tundra Swan images and mentioned that two of the swans I saw had markers on their necks, these are those swans flying together over the marsh.
I spent part of my morning yesterday being serenaded by the calls of thousands of Tundra Swans at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge in northern Utah.
On the way out of the refuge in an area I have heard called Curlew Flats I spotted this juvenile Northern Harrier on the ground and was able to take a few images of it before it lifted off with prey in its talons.
I wasn't expecting much from the images but to my delight I liked the effect of the white Tundra Swans on the pure white snow.
Some people might not find high key photos to their tastes but I find that I enjoy them because of their simplicity and how the high key background allows my eyes to focus clearly on my subject's form and beauty.
One of my favorite locations to photograph birds in northern Utah is Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge. I've selected some of the birds there that delight and entertain me while I observe and photograph them.
Tundra Swans (Cygnus columbianus) by the thousands overwinter in the Great Salt Lake area, it is not uncommon to see huge flocks of them at Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area in northern Utah.