Mourning Dove in the Stansbury Mountains and a few bonus Short-Eared Owls
When I spotted this Mourning Dove perched on an old fence post in the morning light I couldn't resist photographing it.
When I spotted this Mourning Dove perched on an old fence post in the morning light I couldn't resist photographing it.
My only wish for this image is that the butterfly had been as sharply in focus as the Short-eared Owl was but with bird photography you never know what might show up in the frame.
We could have spent more time with this Barred Owl and it may have eventually moved to a better location for us to get photos but because of one person ticking off the owl we didn't get that chance.
Three days ago I felt fortunate to come across a mated pair of Swainson's Hawks in Beaverhead County, Montana, the male was an intermediate morph and the female was a light morph.
Last week I saw my first of the season Swainson's Hawk not too far from the visitor's center at Bear River National Wildlife Refuge and that got me excited.
In January of 2009 I went to Myakka River State Park with three of my bird photography friends and the raptor highlight of the day was this Red-shouldered Hawk.
I'm not saying that the Burrowing Owl I photographed yesterday was grumpy, just that it looked that way.
But... things seem to be leveling out now much like this female Northern Harrier in flight that I photographed along the causeway to Antelope Island State Park in northern Utah in mid January.
Burrowing Owls are arriving - Caution, Extreme Cuteness Ahead! Burrowing Owls are enchanting, entertaining and so cute they are irresistible. Everyone seems to love them.
This morning winter is trying to creep back into northern Utah but I am thinking of warmer weather, Montana and Great Horned Owls.
Three years ago on a very gray morning I photographed this male Northern Harrier; the Gray Ghost, in flight along the causeway to Antelope Island State Park.
Male Northern Harriers, also called Gray Ghosts, are especially delightful to my eye when their plumage contrasts with soft bluebird skies that have just a touch of habitat in them
This could be the seventh record of a Gyrfalcon in Utah, we will have to wait and see if it accepted. I hope the bird sticks around so that other people can see it.
This Red-shouldered Hawk was just a few feet away from a tidal lagoon and just yards away from the Gulf when I photographed it in November of 2008.
On the way out of the refuge in an area I have heard called Curlew Flats I spotted this juvenile Northern Harrier on the ground and was able to take a few images of it before it lifted off with prey in its talons.
I wonder if this juvenile Swainson's made the long migration to South America and if I will see it again in the Centennial Valley of Montana this spring.
The first year I after I moved to Utah was great for photographing Burrowing Owls and their young both on Antelope Island State Park and the causeway to it.
As 2014 comes to an end I know I have tons to be grateful for in my personal life, my ever growing passion for bird and nature photography and life in general.
Yesterday morning found me on Antelope Island in low light and falling snow with a pair of Golden Eagles wishing for better light and clear skies.
This beautiful rufous Red-tailed Hawk has been hanging around Farmington Bay for a couple of months now much to the delight of many photographers and myself.
I'm glad the hawk wasn't any closer or I would have missed out on exactly this image that I will always remember was created on this Christmas Day.
I love to photograph birds in flight and it doesn't matter which species it is. But I do thoroughly enjoy photographing raptors like this Northern Harrier as they fly by.
The day in 2011 when I photographed this Rough-legged Hawk was gray but it didn't really bother me to capture this handsome bird in low light.
So I missed out on seeing the Northern Harriers, Bald Eagles and American Kestrels at Farmington Bay WMA this morning but decided to post an older image of an immature Northern Harrier on the wing.
Barn Owls are gorgeous with their dark as ebony eyes, beautiful plumage and graceful flight so I find it difficult to suppress my delight when I see them on the wing.
In February of 2011 there was a first year Bald Eagle at Farmington Bay WMA that seemed totally unafraid and unconcerned about the people near it.
This year has been zipping by so quickly and it is hard to believe that Thanksgiving is already here and I really have so much to be grateful for.
I have started seeing Rough-legged Hawks again in northern Utah and that has me excited. I have seen them in Utah County and Davis County but I haven't gotten any quality photos of them yet
I could not resist photographing the young Red-tailed Hawk though as it lifted off and flew in front of me after prey even though conditions were not ideal.
Northern Harriers are year round residents in Utah and I am encouraged by the numbers of them I have seen lately at Farmington Bay WMA.