My Daily Story Timeline
Every day, I write about the true stories behind my images and share them on my site. One day, I might write about birds; the next, about an insect; and the following day, I might focus on a specific location. Each of these stories revolves around nature, my connection to it, or my concerns about preserving our natural world. This daily journal primarily serves as a collection of factual accounts from my journeys in the field.
While my primary passion is for birds, since everything in nature is interconnected, I photograph everything and write about it all. My life has always been intertwined with nature, and I hope it always will be.
Best wishes,
Mia
Adult Male Belted Kingfisher With His Freshly Caught Fish
The male Belted Kingfisher had been perched and without warning dove into the water, caught a fish, returned to his perch, and ate it all within close proximity to where I sat in my Jeep.
Cedar Waxwings Plus A Singing Mystery Bird Revealed
As soon as I stopped my Jeep two Cedar Waxwings popped into view. The waxwings were close so I took portraits of them perched among the honeysuckles.
Adult MacGillivray’s Warblers With Food For Their Chicks
My best opportunities photographing the adult MacGillivray's Warblers with food for their young yesterday happened when the female popped into view with prey in her bill.
Yellow Warbler Female With Food For Her Chicks
The female Yellow Warbler often flew in, landed out in the open and then dove down to deliver the prey she had gathered to her chick that was hidden in the willows.
Muskrat In An Alpine Creek – Wildlife In The Wasatch Mountains
This spring I've been able to enjoy photographing a family of muskrats that live in a creek in the Wasatch Mountains and I expect I will also see them at least part way through the summer as well.
Cooler Weather Today In Northern Utah
I woke this morning and opened my living room window to the smell of rain in the air and even in the darkness I could see that the street was wet and I am okay with that, we need the moisture.
Least Chipmunk Eating A Serviceberry
Last week while I was up in the Wasatch Mountains photographing birds I had a Least Chipmunk pop into my view while it ate a serviceberry.
Crouching Sage Thrasher
I hoped the Sage Thrasher would come closer so that I could photograph it and just about the time the Short-eared Owl lifted off the thrasher popped up on a nearby metal post.
Curious Short-eared Owl Fledgling At Bear River MBR
I took quite a few photos of the fledgling Short-eared Owl that I had a clear view of and even though the lighting wasn't the best I was enchanted by the views I had of it.
Photographing Elk In The Wasatch Mountains
I had a spectacular morning yesterday high up in the Wasatch Mountains and among the highlights of the day was a herd of cow Elk moving down a hillside just before 9 o'clock.
Eastern Kingbird Perched On Pickleweed
One of the birds I was excited to see and photograph yesterday morning was an adult Eastern Kingbird perched on a pickleweed next to the road.
Black Henbane – Noxious Weeds In Utah
This plant is Black Henbane (Hyoscyamus niger) and is also known as Henbane, Hog’s-bean, and Stinking Nightshade and is native to the Mediterranean.
Weidemeyer’s Admiral Butterflies In The Wasatch Mountains
Last week I was able to photograph Weidemeyer's Admiral butterflies up in the Wasatch Mountains on two consecutive days and the butterflies had me all aflutter.
Song Sparrow Adult With A Bill Full Of Prey For Its Young
Three days ago I found an adult Song Sparrow to photograph with its bill full of prey that the sparrow had gathered to feed its young.
Female Yellow Warbler Foraging In Sage
I don't see Yellow Warblers foraging in sage very often so I was thrilled to photograph an adult female as she poked around a clump of sagebrush in the Wasatch Mountains yesterday.
In My Viewfinder: Belted Kingfisher Male Up Close
It is always a thrill when birds fly in close to me and that is what happened yesterday with a handsome male Belted Kingfisher.
My First of Year Monarch Butterfly Sighting
I'm always happy to photograph "other things with wings" when I am out in the field so last week when I spotted my first of year Monarch butterfly I had to take a few photos of it.
Female Brown-headed Cowbird In A Serviceberry
Three days ago one of the birds that the Song Sparrows chased off was an adult female Brown-headed Cowbird that landed on a serviceberry in front of me.
Adult Song Sparrow Up Close
There have been a few times that the Song Sparrows have gotten so close to me that I've felt as if I could almost reach out and touch them.
Female Broad-tailed Hummingbird At A Blooming Snowberry
Female Broad-tailed Hummingbirds do all the nest building, incubating, feeding and rearing of their young while they are here during their breeding season.
Photographing Three Short-eared Owls In Northern Utah
I don't know for sure if I will see another Short-eared Owl to photograph this year but I do know I had fun photographing these three.
One Male Lazuli Bunting, Sage And A Wire Fence
When I spotted this sharp-looking, adult male Lazuli Bunting less than 30 feet away from where I sat in a mobile blind on the side of the road I almost jumped with joy.
Say’s Phoebes And Sagebrush
Over time I have come to associate Say's Phoebes with sagebrush because I don't think I have ever seen or photographed one of these phoebes where there wasn't sage nearby here in northern Utah.
Soaking Wet MacGillivray’s Warbler After Leaf-bathing
Yesterday I was allowed a peek into the leaf-bathing behavior of this MacGillivray's Warbler I photographed high in the Wasatch Mountains.
Painted Lady Butterfly And Rocky Mountain Bee Plants
I'd forgotten about this Painted Lady butterfly I photographed in August of 2017 that I found while photographing hummingbirds on Antelope Island State Park.
American Robin Chasing Off A Gray Catbird
I don’t think it was a “King of the castle” kind of behavior going on but what do I know, I am not a bird!
Blooming Chokecherry Trees In Utah’s Wasatch Mountains
I am not just a bird photographer. I am also a student of nature each and every time I venture into the field because being out there teaches me something new on practically every journey.
MacGillivray’s Warblers In The Wasatch Mountains
Despite the difficulties I have finding and photographing MacGillivray's Warblers I will keep trying to take better images of them.
Photographing Gray Catbird Interactions In The Mountains
This morning I'm grateful that I spotted a single Gray Catbird pop up on top of a snowberry bush yesterday morning because if I hadn't none of the following photos would have been possible.
Mallard Ducklings In An Alpine Creek
I know from experience that when I post Mallard photos and write about them here on my site that they don't seem to get as many views as other birds do.