Western Meadowlark Take Off Photo
Yesterday I found this Western Meadowlark take off photo that I took last year on Antelope Island State Park.
Yesterday I found this Western Meadowlark take off photo that I took last year on Antelope Island State Park.
Last year in mid August I photographed a very cooperative juvenile Barn Swallow at Bear River MBR and realized I hadn't posted any images of the bird or written about my encounter with it.
Turkey Vultures are Nature's clean up crew. They consume road kill and other dead animals and and in doing so they clean up the messy stuff.
I photographed this immature Black-billed Magpie in flight last September on Antelope Island State Park as it flew over a rabbitbrush that was just about to bloom.
I feel fortunate that I am able to see and photograph both the Western and Eastern Kingbird juveniles here in northern Utah.
These two Loggerhead Shrike juveniles on a log were photographed last August on Antelope Island and were probably from a second brood.
I was photographing a pair of cranes foraging on the ground when a pair of Sandhill Cranes calling in flight flew over and I took a series of images of them.
I didn't get to see Greater Sage Grouse on my recent trip to southern Utah but I did get a few brief looks at another sagebrush obligate when a single Sage Thrasher popped up into view.
I was able to get a few images of a Golden Eagle yesterday morning as it perched on some huge, ancient boulders in early morning light.
My life is great whenever I can photograph a pair of Sandhill Cranes wherever I find them and yesterday I had these beauties in my viewfinder.
This pose made me think "The Long-billed Curlew Scores" but he was really just exhibiting a territorial response to another curlew that was nearby
A short trip to look for Greater Sage-Grouse, White-tailed Prairie Dogs and the other birds and animals that call the sagebrush steppe their home.
It has been a while since I photographed this Short-eared Owl in Tooele County at the James W. Fitzgerald WMA
Both of these Loggerhead Shrikes were photographed on Antelope Island State Park, both of them are adults, both were photographed when the sky was clear and both were perched on a dead twig of a greasewood but they were also photographed with different backgrounds, different times of the morning and different light.
The males will start singing before too long and the Marsh Wren nesting season in Utah will begin.
Watching and photographing the Tundra Swans lifting off from Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge yesterday was slightly bittersweet for me because I know they will soon be heading north to mate.
There were a number of yearlings in the herd including this Mule Deer yearling that was on a slight ridge who appeared to be looking right at me.
Seeing these uncommon Western Bluebirds in Tooele County in the Stansbury Mountain Range yesterday is part of why I love bird photography so much.
Yesterday I had my first opportunity to photograph a nearby female Belted Kingfisher in Salt Lake County, Utah and I had fun getting to know her.
I was able to take this male Brewer's Blackbird portrait as it perched next to the road that shows the iridescent colors in his plumage quite nicely.
I know I am looking forward to photographing and watching the Black-billed Magpie nest building ballet that occurs each spring.
I ended up capturing an image of a juvenile White-crowned Sparrow photobombing the adult just a few frames later.
Yesterday I took a few images of a Horned Lark male singing on Antelope Island State Park and it reminded me that I hadn't posted this image of a female Horned Lark that I photographed last year.
Last August I was able to spend time observing and photographing this juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron stalking prey at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.
At the end of January there was a nice, clear morning at Farmington Bay WMA and I spotted a juvenile female Northern Harrier in a field of snow next to the road who was a cooperative subject.
I thought a comparison of adult and juvenile White-faced Ibis might be interesting for those of you who aren't familiar with this western species of ibis.
The Snowy Egrets of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge never fail to delight me with their bright white plumage, golden feet, bright yellow lores and feathery plumes.
I went looking for a Snowy Owl and got Barn Owls in flight instead at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.
There isn't much open water right now but in a few places where it is open it attracts waterfowl including this bathing Common Merganser male in breeding plumage.
I am always grateful to see Barn Owls in winter and to be able to photograph them in sweet light is a delight.