Sturnella neglecta
Western Meadowlarks have yellow chests, long thin bills, brown to buff backs with intricate patterns and a black V on their chests.
I wanted to share some bird lift off images today so I rounded up a few that showed different styles of lift offs.
Fluffy little chicks are adorable, they make people "ohh" and "aww" and those that hit the ground running not long after hatching are especially appealing to some folks. But they need respect and they need space so we don't endanger them.
This Western Meadowlark lifted off from a Sagebrush and I was able to track it and capture this image as soon as it was airborne. I've found it difficult to get images of Western Meadowlarks in flight because they move so quickly.
I wanted to share a sampler of bird images that I have taken over the past week in Davis and Box Elder Counties.
The only native true lark that lives and breeds in North America is the Horned Lark.
Normally we have Western Meadowlarks year round here in the Salt Lake Valley but because this past winter was harsh it seemed that they moved south for a bit. They are back now and singing their songs of spring.
I wanted to share a few images taken two days ago when Antelope Island was covered with a fresh snow fall. The entire island looked glorious and the sunlight caused the snow to sparkle much to my delight.
This Western Meadowlark image was taken last month on Antelope Island State Park. I meant to post it earlier but forgot because I got so busy trying to set up my new computer. Life outside of bird photography does get in the way at times.
This Western Meadowlark was a cooperative subject yesterday morning and allowed a close enough approach to get some frame filling images.
Kind a of a crazy title but it is a mantra that I live by when it comes to my bird and nature photography. It simply means that unless I go out shooting I won't know what I am missing.
This Western Meadowlark was about to take off from the boulder it was on when I photographed it on Wednesday.
During the spring Western Meadowlarks (Sturnella neglecta) can be easy to locate and then approach because they spend so much time singing from the tops of boulders, bushes, posts and other manmade objects.
Had I not seen that moving, tan blob beyond my viewfinder I could have easily missed being able to create these Chukar images. Sure, I have hundreds (if not thousands) of Chukar images but I am always looking for different poses, light conditions and settings to photograph my subjects in and this worked out very well.
It was real slow for bird photography out on Antelope Island this morning but I did get a nice lift off shot from this Western Meadowlark.
I couldn't resist posting another Western Meadowlark image that I created today even though I posted one earlier this morning.
Tis the season of changes, for a bit it acts like winter and soon switches to act like spring. . The flute like call of Western Meadowlarks is a sound I associate with spring and lately I have been hearing them quite often.
This is the third post in my series about Wild and Wonderful Antelope Island State Park, I've saved the best (and longest) for last. The Birds! Okay, maybe they aren't the best thing about Antelope Island State Park, but I am a bird photographer and they are what I am most passionate about!
Horned Larks and Western Meadowlarks are birds that I enjoy photographing all year long in Utah and yesterday they gave me some wonderful opportunities.
Not too long after I had gotten to my location I spotted a Western Meadowlark hunkered down on a rock trying to warm up with the rays of the rising sun.