American Oystercatcher In A Tidal Lagoon
I've been working up images for a long post and this American Oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus) image is a clue as to what that post will be about.
I've been working up images for a long post and this American Oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus) image is a clue as to what that post will be about.
I haven't heard a Long-billed Curlew calling for several weeks here in northern Utah and I already miss hearing their calls.
When I photograph Burrowing Owls I can't resist smiling, especially when they are juveniles. Just seeing them makes me grin.
The temps are up all over the U.S. and almost everyone is feeling the heat, I know I am.
As many of my regular viewers know I love Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge in Montana. Just by being there I can feel my blood pressure drop, a sense of peace flows through my body and my mind (and camera) focuses on the wonders and intricacies of nature.
Rough-legged Hawks breed in the Arctic so we don't see them around here in northern Utah during the summer.
Yesterday I photographed a mixture of the birds of Antelope Island State Park and had great fun while doing it.
Here in Utah I am constantly watching the sky for billowing clouds of the smoke of a new fire. We need rain, we need a good soaking.
Recently KSL.com; a Utah news station, had an article about a vole (a small rodent) infestation In Farmington, specifically in the neighborhood of Foxboro Community. While I sympathize with the residents about the damage being done to their yards I am disturbed by the advice many of the people commenting have left on the story.
I don't know if the birds think the water of the Great Salt Lake looks refreshing but on a hot day like today I sure do!
There were hundreds of thousands of Wilson's Phalaropes near the shoreline of the causeway, whirling around in the water and along the marshy areas not far from the park entrance.
I decided to post an image that said... cold, snow and winter. Just looking at it seems to cool me down.
I always look forward to seeing and photographing Eastern Kingbirds (Tyrannus tyrannus) during the warmer months of the year. I was fortunate to see a few yesterday at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge in northern Utah.
Currently I am considering pursuing legal action against a commercial web site in Layton, Utah that has stolen 4 of my copyrighted images and used them on their site. The process of making a legal claim is daunting to me, however; I feel that I have to stand up and fight for what is legally mine AND protected by law.
There are many mammals to see at Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge in Montana, I haven't seen them all yet but I hope to one day. On this last trip I saw Moose, Elk, Skunks, Ground Squirrels, Chipmunks, Foxes, White-tailed and Mule Deer, Yellow-bellied Marmots, and Pronghorns.
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.
I love how peaceful this image is with the Marbled Godwit (Limosa fedoa) paying absolutely no attention to me as I sat very still in the warm waters of a tidal lagoon photographing it.
I've heard people call Willets "Plain Brown Birds". I reckon they may have never seen one looking like this Willet.
The Black Skimmer had a Mangrove seed pod in its bill and it was twirling the seed pod with its bill, at times the seed pod even went over the top of the bill but unfortunately I didn't get any images of that.
Grebe chicks are showing up all over at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge (aka Bear River National Wildlife Refuge) in northern Utah and they are just adorable to see and photograph.
In my two previous posts of a Snowy Egret and a Great Egret I mentioned how the early morning light and a nearby storm gave those images a feeling of drama. These white morph Reddish Egret images were taken that same morning not long after I created the Great Egret photos.
Yesterday I posted a Snowy Egret hunting in early morning light and mentioned that early morning or late afternoon light can add drama to an image, in today's post I will explain a bit more about the dramatic light in the Snowy Egret image and these images of a Great Egret (Ardea alba).
Light plays a huge part in my photography, I try to be at my location just before the sun comes up or goes down to take advantage of the beautiful light that occurs at those times of the day.
While out on Antelope Island State Park the other day I spotted a Mule Deer (Odocoileus hemionus) that was almost hidden by tall grasses and stopped to get some images.
Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge is an excellent location for finding and photographing American White Pelicans who have wing spans of over nine feet.
I believe these to be Mallards but if I am wrong I don't mind being corrected, I do have trouble with female duck ID at times and I appreciate all the help I can get with them.
Recently I spent two days in a row photographing birds at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge (aka Bear River National Wildlife Refuge) and found plenty of birds to aim my lens at.
Burr Trail winds its way through some of Utah's most stunning scenery, from the small town of Boulder to Bullfrog near Lake Powell. Along the way the scenery makes me feel tiny but I also feel very much in touch with the earth and the geology of the area.
This bird is easily identifiable as a juvenile Common Raven because of the short tail, the pink on the gape and the violet-blue eyes.
Two Herring Gulls (Larus argentatus) at different stages of life, one an adult in breeding plumage, the other an immature gull in flight.