When I was at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge three days ago I realized that in just a few weeks the Clark's and Western Grebes will be returning to the marshes for their breeding season.
The Great Blue Herons were hunkered down in the rushes with the warmth of the sunlight on them but they still looked cold.
These Great Blue Heron images also help me to "see" what this species would have looked like as they lived their lives in primordial swamps, estuaries and marshes hundreds of thousands of years ago.
After reviewing the images I took of the gull at home on a larger screen I was happy to see that it was a Herring Gull, gulls we only see in the winter here.
These foggy Great Blue Heron photos are probably the foggiest images in my portfolio and despite that I truly like how they turned out.
When I spotted an adult Red-tailed Hawk on one of the pieces of rusty machinery two days ago on my way home from the auto tour route at the refuge I knew I had to get some photos of it.
There were plenty of Great Blue Herons to photograph yesterday morning at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and I was more than happy to take photos of them.
I could wish that there weren't any branches in front of the hawk but honestly it just felt good to not have something happen to ruin my opportunity to photograph this Rough-legged Hawk.
I know some people don't get excited about gulls but I do and I was thrilled two days ago at Bear River MBR when I spotted and photographed my first Herring Gulls of this winter season.
Yesterday morning I spent time focusing on photographing Great Blue Herons on the frozen marshes of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.
While this male American Kestrel struggled to maintain his grip on the thin branches of the Tamarisk I struggled to keep him in my viewfinder.
Knowing what kind of habitat Ferruginous Hawks prefer during all four seasons here in northern Utah can increase the chances of finding them year round.
Wherever you are, whatever holidays you celebrate if you celebrate at all, I wish you joy, peace and hope that you will feel the love of your family and friends today and every day.
Two days ago when I stopped counting Rough-legged Hawks while at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge the number had topped out at fifteen.
Two frames later the immature Northern Harrier tilted its head, looked directly towards my lens, and seemed to eyeball me and my gear.
I need to get to Bear River MBR soon because I have visions of Tundra Swans drifting through my mind and I'd love to see them in person on the marshes of the refuge again.
As I look at this Trumpeter Swan photo and see my Jeep reflected in its eyes I feel a sense of loss. I know that I won't forget the swan that I couldn't rescue.
The thing about this immature Red-tailed Hawk photo is this: I don't like the background color because I see these colors, tones and hues so frequently where I live in northern Utah.
It is currently the time of the year when I start looking for Rough-legged Hawks in northern Utah, the temps have dipped below freezing, there has been frost on the ground and now we've had our first snow.
I photographed Utah's long-staying rare Brown Pelican again yesterday morning at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and as I took photos of it I worried about its future.
Marsh Wrens are year round residents here in northern Utah and this week I've photographed them in the marshes of both Farmington Bay WMA and Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.
I didn't see or photograph as many Rough-legged Hawks last winter as I have in previous years but I did have a close up, extraordinary experience with one who was expelling a pellet on a snowy, foggy day at Bear River MBR.
I was glad to be able to photograph Bank, Barn, Cliff and Tree Swallows perched on top of a stand of phragmites near the auto tour route on the refuge in early morning light.
Two days ago I was able to photograph an immature Swainson's Hawk in golden light perched on a fence post that was surrounded by bright yellow common sunflowers. Yes, I was blissed out.
The Brown Pelican didn't do much while I had it in my viewfinder and I probably took way too many photos of it but I don't care, it was unique to see here in land-locked Utah and the setting of the Bear River was definitely different than the many times I have photographed this species back East.
Whatever this mirage was, it got my attention and I felt I had to stop and take photos of this naturally occurring optical phenomena, I mean I don't see things like this everyday!
In my experience Merlins are already hard to find in the state of Utah but because of our climate crisis they could become even more difficult to locate or they might even disappear from the state altogether.
These two Black-necked Stilt photos were taken 9 days ago at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and I thought they could easily show the difference between the female and male of this species.
I was glad to focus on the Black-crowned Night Herons I saw that morning because of late I have seen fewer of them than I have on past years which has meant fewer opportunities to photograph them.
I spent part of my morning yesterday photographing American Avocet and Black-necked Stilt chicks from the auto tour route at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and it was a blast watching these young shorebirds.