Ring-necked Pheasant Hen In Snow
I have been noticing more Ring-necked Pheasants than usual of late but that it mostly because the birds don't blend well into the snow and we have had plenty of the white stuff fall the past few weeks.
American Barn Owls and Harsh Winters
American Barn Owls are typically strictly nocturnal but during harsh winters with lots of snow they do hunt during the day here in Utah.
A Golden Eagle that was TOO close
Early yesterday morning Antelope Island State Park did not have the best conditions for bird photography, there were clouds, a bit of lake fog and low light so when I spotted this Golden Eagle perched on a sagebrush in those conditions I was dismayed.
Great Blue Heron Winter Delight
I spotted this Great Blue Heron yesterday at Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area and loved the setting with the fresh snow blanketing the steep creek bank.
Chukars on a cold winter morning
It is almost hard to believe that in just two months these Chukars will be fighting for territories as they begin the mating season while there is over 9 inches of fresh snow on the ground where I live this morning.
Changes to On The Wing Photography
Because of image theft I have made some changes to my blog, one of the first that will be noticed by people who have subscribed to my blog is that I will only be using a summary for my published posts from now on.
The ID of the female duck is…
The answer to the ID quiz is a female Green-winged Teal! Out of 49 people taking the quiz there were 6 votes for Mallard, 8 votes for Blue-winged Teal, 9 votes for Gadwall and 26 votes for Green-winged Teal.
Female Duck ID Quiz
I photographed this female duck yesterday morning at Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area in northern Utah, she was on ice that was covered by frost flowers and was moving towards a group of males that were in open water.
Juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron – A Winter Treat
I've mentioned before that Great Blue Herons stay in the Salt Lake Valley over winter even though the temperatures get very cold and so do some of the Black-crowned Night Herons.
Winter Inversion Along With -10 Degrees Fahrenheit
A few of my non-Utahn friends have asked me what an inversion is after I have mentioned it, this image might help to show what an inversion can look like.
American Coots on a cold winter day
Looking at the huge lobed feet of American Coots is enough to make me laugh. Yesterday I just could not resist these birds.
Coyote on a snowy morning
The weather forecast for yesterday was "mostly sunny" and once again the weather forecasters were wrong, at least for the period of time I was out photographing on Antelope Island State Park.
Goodbye 2012 – Hello 2013
2012 was a fantastic year for me as a photographer and I am looking forward to the joys that 2013 will bring. Happy New Year to all.
Chukar images – 4 hits – 1 miss
Yesterday I spotted a covey of Chukars on Antelope Island foraging in the snow, this Chukar was pulling guard duty and standing on top of a snow covered rock and for a bit it was calling.
600th post – An Antelope Island Snow Day
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.
Common Raven in the snow – An exposure problem
Photographing dark birds such as this Common Raven is a challenge and knowing how to expose properly as well as getting the right angle of light is critical in producing a quality image.
Chukar in fresh fallen snow
Fresh snow fell on Antelope Island last night and it made for wonderful settings for the subjects I photographed this morning like this Chukar. I haven't been seeing the Chukars regularly lately so I was very pleased to see them again.
Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge – Christmas Day 2012
Christmas Day of 2012 turned out to be as beautiful as I hoped at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge because of bright skies, snow on the ground, birds and the expansive views.
Images of Christmas Past – Happy Holidays
Yesterday I took a stroll down memory lane, actually I looked for images I have taken either on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day in my files but in a way that is taking a stroll down memory lane.
Juvenile White-crowned Sparrow in a snow storm
The White-crowned Sparrow in this image is small in the frame, the bird isn't super sharp and there isn't a lot of contrast or color to the photo either yet the image speaks to me.
More on Escaped Falconry Birds
Throughout these three experiences in finding escaped falconry birds what I have learned is that falconry is for experts not for people who just think it is cool to have a pet raptor.
Red-tailed Hawk fly by
I photographed this juvenile Red-tailed Hawk flying by last month at Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area in Davis County.
Fledgling Burrowing Owl
This fledgling Burrowing Owl was just learning to fly at the time and wasn't always great at landing. When I took this image it had made a soft crash landing into the Rabbitbrush and it was trying to get its balance back.
Western Meadowlark lift off
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.
What is wrong with this Coyote picture?
That is dog food on a road on Antelope Island State Park. Someone threw it onto the road it didn't just fall from the sky.
Male American Kestrel lifting off
There is something about American Kestrels that speaks to me. They might be our smallest falcon in North America but they have big attitudes, fierce characters and are terrific hunters.
Male Ring-necked Pheasant in marsh habitat
Ring-necked Pheasants are colorful upland game birds that are native to Asia and were introduced into North America for recreational hunting purposes and now occur widespread across southern Canada and in many areas of the U.S. except for some of the southern states.
Female Northern Harrier in flight
Typically I see far more Northern Harriers in the winter here in Utah than I do during the breeding season which might be partly due to the harriers preferring to nest within marshy wetland areas which are in abundance around the Great Salt Lake.
Hatch year Red-tailed Hawk
I recall that when I first started photographing the juvenile Red-tailed Hawks in this area back in August that they missed their prey more times than they would capture it and now they seem to have gone the other way, they are catching the prey more than they are missing it.
Black-billed Magpie stretching
There was a bit of sun yesterday between snow falls and we headed out to Antelope Island hoping there would be light and birds. There was light and a few birds, this Black-billed Magpie was one of them.