Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge – Mia McPherson's On The Wing Photography

Today Is Utah’s Swan Day For 2024

By Mia McPherson|March 9th, 2024|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Tundra Swans, Utah|Tags: Bear River MBR, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, close up, Cygnus columbianus, ice, marsh, mountains, portrait, resting, small in frame, snow, specular highlights, swan, swans, Tundra Swan, Utah, waterfowl, wetlands, winter|

Today is March 9th, and it is Utah's Swan Day 2024! The Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge auto tour loop is a terrific place to see these lovely white swans.

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Fun Drake Mallard At Bear River MBR

By Mia McPherson|January 4th, 2024|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Mallards, Utah|Tags: adult, Anas platyrhynchos, Bear River MBR, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, breeding plumage, dabbling duck, drake, ducks, flight, flying, ice, lifting off, male, Mallard, mallards, marsh, New Year's Day, taking off, Utah, water, waterfowl, wetlands, winter|

On New Year's Day morning, I had fun photographing a drake Mallard from the auto tour loop of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge as he lifted off from the marsh.

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An Incredible Shelf Cloud Over Bear River MBR

By Mia McPherson|October 24th, 2023|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Miscellaneous, Utah, Weather Phenomena|Tags: Arcus clouds, autumn, Bear River MBR, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, cloud, cloud formations, clouds, composite, Cumulonimbus clouds, fall, flats, morning, panorama, ranchlands, shelf cloud, sky, stormy, tree, unusual, Utah, weather phenomena|

Today, I am sharing a few images of an incredible shelf cloud over Bear River MBR that I was thrilled to see and photograph yesterday morning.

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Ring-billed Gull Feeding Frenzy Excitement

By Mia McPherson|November 16th, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Ring-billed Gulls, Utah|Tags: autumn, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, fall, feeding, flight, flying, frenzy, gull, gulls, Larus delawarensis, marsh, Promontory Mountains, Ring-billed Gull, Utah, video, water, wetlands|

When I was at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge two days ago I witnessed several Ring-billed Gull feeding frenzies out on the marshes of the refuge.

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Winter California And American Herring Gull Comparison In Utah

By Mia McPherson|November 8th, 2022|Categories: American Herring Gulls, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, California Gulls, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Utah|Tags: adult, American Herring Gull, beach, Bear River, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, breeding plumage, California Gull, coastal, comparison, composite, Definitive Alternate Plumage, Definitive Basic Plumage, floating, Gulf of Mexico, gull, gulls, ice, ID features, identification, Larus californicus, Larus smithsonianus, marsh, nonbreeding plumage, river, sand, side by side, water, wetlands, winter, winter plumage|

Since I frequently get asked which is which I thought this would be a good time to do a winter California and American Herring Gull comparison and ID feature post.

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Fall Views At Bear River MBR

By Mia McPherson|November 6th, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Scenics, Utah|Tags: auto tour loop, autumn, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, calm, clouds, fall, fog, grasses, ground fog, marsh, mountains, Promontory Mountains, road, sky, sunrise, trees, Utah, vegetation, water, wetlands|

Yes, I go to Bear River MBR to find and photograph birds, but I also go there to unwind and find comfort in the marsh and the magnificent surroundings.

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Greater Yellowlegs And Pickleweed Photos

By Mia McPherson|September 4th, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Greater Yellowlegs, Utah|Tags: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, glasswort, Greater Yellowlegs, halophyte, herb, herbaceous, marsh, marsh samphire, perennial, picklegrass, Pickleweed, playa, Salicornia, Salicornia rubra, salt tolerant, samphire greens, Sarcocornia utahensis, sea asparagus, sea beans, shorebirds, succulent, summer, swampfire, Tringa melanoleuca, Utah, water, wetlands, yellowlegs|

On my last trip up to Bear River MBR I had a Greater Yellowlegs land close to me in pickleweeds while I was parked on the north side of the auto tour route.

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Young Killdeer At Bear River MBR

By Mia McPherson|August 16th, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Killdeer, Utah|Tags: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Charadrius vociferus, dawn, hatch year, immature, Killdeer, killdeers, marsh, plover, plovers, shorebirds, summer, Utah, water, wetlands, young|

Yesterday morning I drove up to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge where the second bird that I photographed was a young Killdeer in the early light of dawn.

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Fifteen Tundra Swan Photos For Swan Day 2022

By Mia McPherson|March 11th, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Tundra Swans, Utah|Tags: adult, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Cygnus columbianus, ice, ice shelf, marsh, running, swan, swans, Tundra Swan, Utah, water, waterfowl, wetlands, winter|

This past Monday while I was enjoying the peace and solitude of the auto tour route at Bear River MBR I took hundreds of Tundra Swan photos from inside my Jeep.

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Drake Northern Pintail Lift Off Images

By Mia McPherson|March 8th, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Northern Pintails, Utah, Video|Tags: adult, Anas acuta, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, dabbling ducks, drake, ducks, female, flight, flock, flying, hen, lift off, lifting off, male, marsh, mountains, Northern Pintail, pintail, pintails, sky, snow, take off, taking off, Utah, video, water, waterfowl, wetlands, winter|

I drove up to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge yesterday morning and came home with some drake Northern Pintail lift off images that I am pleased with.

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Trumpeter Swan Photos From Bear River MBR

By Mia McPherson|February 21st, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Bird ID, Birds, Box Elder County, Trumpeter Swans, Tundra Swans, Utah|Tags: adult, back view, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, calling, Cygnus buccinator, Cygnus columbianus, ice, lift off, lifting off, marsh, phragmites, phrags, swan, swans, take off, taking off, Trumpeter Swan, Tundra Swan, Utah, vegetation, water, waterfowl, wetlands, winter|

When I was at Bear River MBR two days ago I was excited to be able to take a nice series of Trumpeter Swan photos on the west side of the auto tour loop.

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I Am Going To Miss This Rough-legged Hawk

By Mia McPherson|February 13th, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Rough-legged Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Buteo lagopus, Buteos, hawk, hawks, information sign, light morph, male, marsh, morning, one way sign, parking sign, perched, raptors, refuge, Rough-legged Hawk, sign, Utah, wetlands, winter|

Last week I photographed this male Rough-legged Hawk on Monday and Thursday while at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.

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Four Immature Red-tailed Hawk Portraits

By Mia McPherson|February 12th, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, close up, hawk, hawks, head on, hunting, immature, looking, perched, portrait, prey, ranchlands, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, Utah, wooden post, young|

Two days ago I was able to take a nice series of immature Red-tailed Hawk portraits on my most recent trip up to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.

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Yawning Immature Rough-legged Hawk

By Mia McPherson|February 10th, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Rough-legged Hawks, Utah|Tags: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Buteo lagopus, Buteos, hawk, hawks, immature, light morph, marker, marsh, perched, plastic post, raptors, Rough-legged Hawk, sub-adult, subadult, Utah, wetlands, winter, yawn, yawning, young|

This is the same immature light morph Rough-legged Hawk that I shared portraits of two days ago that were taken at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.

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Light Morph Male Rough-legged Hawk Winter Site Fidelity

By Mia McPherson|February 5th, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Rough-legged Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, birds of prey, Box Elder County, Buteo lagopus, Buteos, close up, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, light morph, male, marsh, one way sign, portrait, raptors, Rough-legged Hawk, sign, site fidelity, territorial site fidelity, Utah, wetlands, winter|

I have been photographing a light morph male Rough-legged Hawk on or near a One Way sign at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge frequently this winter.

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Riverbank Red-tailed Hawk Dining Al Fresco

By Mia McPherson|January 9th, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: al fresco, bank, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, close up, dining, eating, first winter, grass, grasses, Great Blue Heron, hawk, hawks, ice, immature, portrait, prey, raptors, river, river bank, riverbank, Utah, wetlands, winter, young|

Yesterday morning I photographed an immature Red-tailed Hawk dining al fresco on the bank of the Bear River on my way back to I-15 to head home.

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One Very Cooperative Male Rough-legged Hawk

By Mia McPherson|January 3rd, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Rough-legged Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, blue sky, Box Elder County, Buteo lagopus, Buteos, close up, frost, frosted, frosty, hawk, hawks, light morph, male, marsh, perched, plastic marker, portrait, raptors, Rough-legged Hawk, stretching, Tamarisk, tree, Utah, wetlands, wings, winter|

For the second year in a row the first bird I photographed in the New Year was a Rough-legged Hawk and both were photographed at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.

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Great Blue Heron Photos Taken on The Winter Solstice

By Mia McPherson|December 22nd, 2021|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Great Blue Herons, Utah|Tags: adult, Ardea herodias, Bear River, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, chest, driftwood, feathers, Great Blue Heron, heron, herons, icy, landing, perched, river, riverbank, snag, snow, Solstice, Utah, wading birds, wetlands, winter|

To my delight I was able to take Great Blue Heron photos yesterday on the Winter Solstice that I found on the banks of the Bear River at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.

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Adult Rough-legged Hawk Calling Plus Photos Of A Younger Roughie

By Mia McPherson|December 6th, 2021|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Rough-legged Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, autumn, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Buteo lagopus, Buteos, calling, fall, hawk, hawks, immature, light morph, male, marsh, mountains, perched, raptors, Rough-legged Hawk, shrub, Utah, wetlands, young|

Yesterday I heard a male Rough-legged Hawk calling which is highly unusual away from their breeding grounds in the Arctic tundra and taiga of the far north.

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American Pipits In My Viewfinder

By Mia McPherson|December 5th, 2021|Categories: American Pipits, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Utah|Tags: adult, alert, American Pipit, Anthus rubescens, autumn, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, fall, flats, morning, old lake bed, pipit, pipits, playa, relaxed, rock, rocks, Utah|

I've been seeing and hearing American Pipits since the end of September but this was the first time this fall I was able to get close to them.

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Four Long-tailed Weasel Photos

By Mia McPherson|August 22nd, 2021|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Long-tailed Weasels, Utah|Tags: adult, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Long-tailed Weasel, marsh, Mustela frenata, summer, Utah, weasel, weasels, wetlands|

I have shared photos of this Long-tailed Weasel before but I liked these four images that I hadn't edited and wanted to share them today.

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Nesting Western Grebe Plus Good News On The Parleys Canyon Fire

By Mia McPherson|August 18th, 2021|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Utah, Western Grebes|Tags: adult, Aechmophorus occidentalis, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, breeding season, checking, eggs, grebe, grebes, incubate, incubating, marsh, nest, nesting, settling, summer, turn, turning, Utah, water, Western Grebe, wetlands|

One year ago today I found a nesting Western Grebe with two eggs at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and I realized yesterday that I had never shared photos of it.

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Perched Eastern Kingbird

By Mia McPherson|June 21st, 2012|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Eastern Kingbirds, Utah|Tags: adult, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, birds, Eastern Kingbird, fence post, flycatcher, flycatchers, kingbird, kingbirds, perched, ranchlands, summer, Tyrannus tyrannus, tyrant flycatchers, Utah, wooden post|

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.

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Birds of Bear River MBR – American White Pelicans

By Mia McPherson|June 7th, 2012|Categories: American White Pelicans, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Utah|Tags: adult, American White Pelican, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Bear River National Wildlife Refuge, flight, fly by, flying, marsh, Pelecanus erythrorhynchos, pelican, pelicans, sky, spring, wetlands, white pelicans|

Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge is an excellent location for finding and photographing American White Pelicans who have wing spans of over nine feet.

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