I dare news agencies to write factual articles about the inhumane practice of slaughtering Coyotes which has been proven by science to be largely ineffective in controlling their population, to observe the Coyotes being blown up in their dens and to witness the suffering of these animals when they are caught in traps.
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 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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Song Sparrows are found throughout the U.S. and into Canada, some populations move south during the winter to southern states and northern Mexico. So far 30 subspecies of Song Sparrows have been described.
I hope that no one is getting sick of my Coyotes images. I took this Coyote photo two days ago as it walked on a Great Salt Lake beach.
I mentioned that there had been low light, falling snow and that the weather conditions before photographing the Loggerhead Shrike and Prairie Falcon weren't great.
We've gotten a lot of snow in the Salt Lake Valley since Friday, I swept at least a foot of snow off my vehicle yesterday and about 3 to 4 inches on Friday, as I write this the snow is still falling.
I went out into the west desert of Utah this morning hoping to take images of the raptors I thought I would find there to do a post on but some days though the birds are few and those that you find just aren't cooperative
Yesterday I had an opportunity to photograph this Bison bull grazing on Antelope Island State Park with the mountains of Promontory Point in the background with just a small bit of the Great Salt Lake showing too.
I've wanted to capture images of a Coyote in blowing snow for a while now and I did get the chance yesterday, I really wish the foreground vegetation hadn't been in the way of a clear view of the Coyote.
Yesterday I had a bit of fun photographing this Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis) at Farmington Bay Wildlife Management Area, I love the snowy whites these gulls exhibit in their plumage year round
I photographed this Bison bull feeding peacefully yesterday out on Antelope Island State Park with the Great Salt Lake in the background.
Male Yellow-headed Blackbirds (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus) are flashy birds but I believe the females have a subtle beauty too.
Three days ago things finally fell into place, a bull on a hill top, good light, eye contact and a clouds in the background.
From all appearances the Coyotes (Canis latrans) on Antelope Island State Park are starting to put on their winter coats, they sure are getting fluffy.
I simply could not resist posting this gorgeous Coyote pup that I photographed today even though I posted another one recently. I loved the look the pup was giving me, the warm, beautiful morning light and wonderful prairie setting.
It might have been slow on Antelope Island State Park yesterday as far as birds go but it was a Coyote kind of day with 9 as a total tally for just a few hours spent on the island.
Rocky Mountain Bee Plants (Cleomella serrulata) are one of the wildflowers that are currently in bloom on Antelope Island State Park in some locations, they aren't as widespread as the Moth Mulleins so I treasure finding them.
I went out to Antelope Island State Park yesterday hoping to put my newly repaired D300 through its paces and although I did get some images of birds and mammals, the light wasn't very good for most of the morning because of storm clouds.
Every day that I spend in the field is always marvelous but it seems especially wonderful during the change of seasons because I feel a heightened sense of anticipation for the first of the year birds, the first spotting of wildflowers blooming or the seasonal changes that wildlife exhibits in behavior or appearance.
Last November I spotted this Coyote wandering in some dried vegetation close to a roadside. Although the lighting wasn't optimal; meaning the sun wasn't directly behind me, I wanted to take some photos of the Coyote because I liked the rim lighting on the right side of the Coyote's neck, muzzle and ears.
It tickles me to be able to photograph wild Bison.
After I published my article titled Wild and Wonderful - Antelope Island - The Birds earlier this week I realized I didn't include any images of the doves found on the island so today I thought I would post a Mourning Dove.