American Coots are plump chicken-like birds with dark to black bodies, red eyes, white bills with a dark ring, and long greenish yellow legs with long toes.
Both American Coots and Western Grebes have fascinating red eyes, interesting bills and black & white plumage.
I headed up to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge yesterday morning and I am very glad I did because of the wonderful birds I saw.
Anyone who has worked on their own web site that allows comments knows that there are times you get a strange comment that make you scratch your head.
Early in January I was able to photograph a few American Coots as they walked on ice at Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management area and marveled again at how big their feet are.
Yes, I am being slightly anthropomorphic but this is one serious looking Coot.
American Coots are common birds and some folks might find them fairly plain but I like them and enjoy photographing them too.
Harlan's Hawks are a subspecies of Red-tailed Hawks that breed in Alaska and northern Canada and spend their winters in the northern Great Plains.
This Terry Tempest Williams quote strikes a chord within me because I feel very connected to nature and wildness and that connection is with me every day of my life.
I believe that even without what some may consider "the perfect head angle" that we can create interesting and compelling avian images.
"Crazy Old Coot" is a term that many of us know and associate with a foolish person, especially an old man.
As Spring Approaches it is a Great Time to be a Bird Photographer in Utah!
Many beginning photographers dream of taking images in far off places of exotic birds and there is nothing wrong with that. But we shouldn’t overlook the advantages of photographing birds close to home.
I wanted to post a funny bird image today because I have the D.W.B. so I selected this American Coot that was scratching in a pond near where I live in Salt Lake County, Utah.
American Coots aren't thought of as "gorgeous" birds but I do find them appealing and a challenge to expose properly because of the high contrast between the very dark feathers and the whiteness of the ivory colored bill.
I haven't had many opportunities to photograph the Harlan's subspecies of the Red-tailed Hawk so I was thrilled yesterday when I spotted a juvenile dark morph Harlan's Hawk feeding on a dead American Coot on the bank of a creek.
Looking at the huge lobed feet of American Coots is enough to make me laugh. Yesterday I just could not resist these birds.
Three years ago today though the ground was covered in drifts of snow, the temps were below freezing, there was ice on the ponds & lakes and there was a sharp briskness to the air that can only be found in winter.
The temps are dropping here in the Salt Lake Valley, two days ago it was below freezing when we went out shooting. Winter brings challenges and birds we don't see during the summer so I am excited about that.
I don't have much time to post today but I wanted to share a few photos taken this week of the mists at the Lower Lake of Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge in Montana. Red Rock Lakes NWR is an incredibly wild and beautiful location that has stolen a piece of my heart.
Some images are simply too funny not to share. Even with those huge feet this American Coot (Fulica americana) couldn't stay in top of the ice at a pond near where I live in Salt Lake County, Utah.
American Coots are the most widely distributed members of the Rail family in North America and are very abundant in habitats with open water.