Upland Terrestrial Birds

Families: Cracidae, Odontophoridae, Phasianidae

Upland terrestrial birds in my photo galleries include grouse, pheasants, quail, turkeys, and partridges. Some upland terrestrial birds are native and some are introduced and have naturalized.

Smoke Phase Wild Turkey Hen Photos

By |April 3rd, 2020|Categories: Birds, Stansbury Mountains, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert, Wild Turkeys|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Someone at sometime had tossed a soda can into the junipers and the Wild Turkey hen walked right in front of it during the few seconds she was out in the open.

Smoke Phase Wild Turkey Hen Plus A Displaying Tom

By |April 2nd, 2020|Categories: Birds, Stansbury Mountains, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert, Wild Turkeys|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

If I hadn't have been paying attention yesterday I might have missed out on spotting a flock of turkeys in some junipers and photographing a smoke phase Wild Turkey hen.

Greater-Sage Grouse Leks In March

By |March 8th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Greater Sage-Grouse, Utah, Wayne County|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

March is a time when my mind wanders to windswept, high country sagebrush steppes where Greater-Sage Grouse will dance, fight and court on their leks as they have done for eons.

Wild Turkeys, Hay Bales And The Noisy Diesel Pickup That Chased Them Away

By |February 9th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Etiquette, Utah, Wild Turkeys|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

In about the span of minute all of the Wild Turkeys had flown off of the bales of hay because of that noisy, diesel pickup truck being so close to them.

Small Flock Of Male Wild Turkeys With One Odd, Dark Tom

By |October 20th, 2019|Categories: Birds, Stansbury Mountains, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert, Wild Turkeys|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Two days ago I spotted a Wild Turkey tom crossing a dirt road high up in the Stansbury Mountains and to my delight there were several more males following behind him.

Male California Quail On A Rock At Farmington Bay WMA

By |October 4th, 2019|Categories: Birds, California Quails, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |

I haven't had any California Quail in my viewfinder since last December so a when I had the chance to photograph a male at Farmington Bay WMA nine days ago I was happy.

Fall Colors In The Wasatch Mountains Plus A Male Dusky Grouse

By |September 28th, 2019|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Dusky Grouse, Sky Line Drive, Bountiful Canyon, Trees, Uinta Wasatch Cache National Forest, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

This morning is cloudy and gray but seven years ago today it was bright, the air was crisp and the fall colors of the Front Range of the Wasatch Mountains were in their full glory.

Chipping Sparrows, Wild Turkeys and Broad-tailed Hummingbirds

By |May 15th, 2019|Categories: Birds, Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, Chipping Sparrows, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert, Wild Turkeys|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

The gems of my photographic journey yesterday morning were Broad-tailed Hummingbirds that were hanging around a Wax Currant bush next to the dirt road where the sounds of their wings alerted me to their presence.

Male Ring-necked Pheasant And Midges At Bear River MBR

By |May 13th, 2019|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Ring-necked Pheasants, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I don't know if the Ring-necked Pheasants eat the midges but I know that many of the other birds at the refuge do so I like to think of midges as bird food on the wing.

Dawn’s Golden Light On A Greater Sage-Grouse Lek

By |March 28th, 2019|Categories: Birds, Greater Sage-Grouse, Utah, Wayne County|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

It was 21 degrees and even though my hands became numb because of the biting cold I kept taking image after image of these Greater Sage-Grouse performing their ancient mating ritual, I started well before dawn and didn't stop until the last grouse left the lek.

Birds On The Wing At Farmington Bay

By |February 18th, 2019|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Northern Shovelers, Ring-necked Pheasants, Utah, White-faced Ibises|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Even though my primary focus was on photographing Bald Eagles I wasn't about to pass up the opportunity to take photos of the other birds I saw on the wing at Farmington Bay that morning.

2018 Year In Review For On The Wing Photography

By |December 31st, 2018|Categories: Baltimore Orioles, Birds, Brewer's Blackbirds, California Gulls, Cedar Waxwings, Northern Mockingbirds, Peregrine Falcons, Red-breasted Nuthatches, Say's Phoebes, Tundra Swans, Wild Turkeys, Yellow Warblers, Yellow-bellied Marmots|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

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.

Male California Quail Close Up – Seeing And Appreciating The Fine Feather Details

By |December 18th, 2018|Categories: Birds, California Quails, Davis County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

Four days ago I was able to take close up photos of a handsome male California Quail in beautiful light while he perched on a fence rail as he looked directly towards me.

November California Quail In Northern Utah

By |November 21st, 2018|Categories: Birds, California Quails, Davis County, Upland Terrestrial Birds, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I think that both male and female California Quail are striking birds with their head plumes, facial feather patterns, earth toned plumage and scaled underparts so whenever I see them I want to photograph them.

Photographing Wild Turkeys In The Mountains

By |November 14th, 2018|Categories: Birds, Stansbury Mountains, Tooele County, Upland Terrestrial Birds, Utah, West Desert, Wild Turkeys|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I'm always glad to see and photograph Wild Turkeys and most of the time I see them more than I can photograph them because they are often too far away but some days it does work out that I can have them in my viewfinder and click the shutter release.

More California Quail In My Viewfinder

By |October 27th, 2018|Categories: Birds, California Quails, Davis County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Yesterday I photographed a small covey of California Quail, this the second time this month that I have seen and photographed these small upland game birds that have wiggly, little head plumes.

Immature Female Northern Harrier Harassing A Ring-necked Pheasant Hen

By |October 15th, 2018|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Northern Harriers, Ring-necked Pheasants, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

A few weeks ago I observed and photographed an immature female Northern Harrier repeatedly harassing a Ring-necked Pheasant hen out on the marshes at Farmington Bay.

Let’s Talk Turkey About Wild Turkeys In A West Desert Canyon

By |September 12th, 2018|Categories: Birds, Stansbury Mountains, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert, Wild Turkeys|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |

I photographed a small flock of Wild Turkeys yesterday in the West Desert of Utah, specifically in a canyon of the Stansbury Mountains. I just never know when turkeys will show up and I am glad they did yesterday because I didn't photograph many other birds.

Wild Turkey Tom Strutting and Displaying Plus Memories Turkeys Arouse In Me

By |March 31st, 2018|Categories: Birds, Stansbury Mountains, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert, Wild Turkeys|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Breeding season has begun for Wild Turkeys so when I spotted a flock of them yesterday in the Stansbury Mountains in Tooele County I was hoping to photograph a tom turkey strutting.

Before Dawn Breaks The Courtship Displays Begin On Greater Sage-Grouse Leks

By |March 18th, 2018|Categories: Birds, Greater Sage-Grouse, Utah, Wayne County|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Each year across the western states Greater Sage-Grouse begin to fly into leks on the sagebrush steppe during late winter and early spring to perform their fascinating courtship displays well before the first sign of dawn.

Greater Sage-Grouse on a Lek – Our Public Lands – Our Legacy

By |February 21st, 2018|Categories: Birds, Greater Sage-Grouse, Utah, Wayne County|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

One might ask what do Greater Sage-Grouse have to do with our public lands and the answer would be that more than half of all remaining habit for these large upland game birds is on our public lands in the Western U.S..

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