drought – Mia McPherson's On The Wing Photography

Drought-stricken Douglas Firs – How It Is Affecting The Birds That Eat The Seeds

By Mia McPherson|November 7th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Red-breasted Nuthatches, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, alpine, branch, canyons, cone, cones, Douglas fir, drought, drought conditions, fir, fir tree, fir trees, firs, mature, mountains, nuthatch, nuthatches, Pseudotsuga menziesii, Pseudotsuga menziesii var. glauca, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Rocky Mountain Douglas Fir, seed production, Sitta canadensis, sky island mountains|

When I was out in the sky island mountains of the West Desert of Utah a few days ago I was again met with virtual silence in and around the Douglas Firs that are there.

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Thoughts on Our Drought, Douglas Firs, And Birds

By Mia McPherson|September 27th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Red-breasted Nuthatches, Tooele County, Trees, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, autumn, branch, canyons, cone, cones, desert, desert mountains, Douglas fir, drought, drought stressed, exceptional drought, fall, firs, mountains, nuthatch, nuthatches, Pseudotsuga menziesii, Pseudotsuga menziesii var. glauca, Red-breasted Nuthatch, Rocky Mountain Douglas Fir, Sitta canadensis, sky island mountains, tree|

Drought stressed Douglas Fir trees will produce what is called a "stress crop" of cones which is what I believe is happening to the firs in this location.

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Blooming Blue Elderberry

By Mia McPherson|July 17th, 2021|Categories: Blue Elderberry, Summit County, Trees, Shrubs and Flowers, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: blooming, blossoms, Blue Elderberry, canyon, drought, drought conditions, elderberries, elderberry, flowering, flowering shrub, flowering tree, mountains, Sambucus cerulea, Sambucus nigra ssp. caerulea, summer, white wildflowers|

Blue Elderberry shrubs are blooming right now high in the Wasatch Mountains. Two days ago I took a few photos of the elderberry blossoms.

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Blooming Lewis’s Flax

By Mia McPherson|June 6th, 2021|Categories: Tooele County, Utah, West Desert, Wildflowers|Tags: bee, beetle, blooming, blooms, blue wildflowers, desert, drought, flax, flowering, Lewis's flax, Linum lewisii, mountains, prolonged drought conditions, sky island mountains, wildflowers|

I wanted to follow my post about a blue bird with blue wildflowers so here are some photos I took last week of Lewis’s Flax which are also known as Wild Blue Flax.

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Male Red-winged Blackbirds Are Singing

By Mia McPherson|February 1st, 2021|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Red-winged Blackbirds, Utah|Tags: adult, Agelaius phoeniceus, blackbird, blackbirds, changing seasons, displaying, drought, male, marsh, mating season, Red-winged Blackbird, seaons, snow, spring, winter|

I drove to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge yesterday morning where I heard male Red-winged Blackbirds singing in the marsh.

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The Great Salt Lake is D(r)ying and Utah’s Water Crisis

By Mia McPherson|April 26th, 2015|Categories: American White Pelicans, Antelope Island State Park, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Black-necked Stilts, Box Elder County, Brine Flies, Conservation, Davis County, Eared Grebes, Environment, Franklin's Gulls, Northern Shovelers, Utah, Wilson's Phalaropes|Tags: American White Pelican, bird photography, birds, Black-necked Stilt, brine fly, brine shrimp, climate change, climate crisis, drought, drying, duck, ducks, dying, Eared Grebe, Great Basin hub, Great Salt Lake, grebe, grebes, habitat, hyper saline, hypersaline, migration, Northern Shoveler, Pacific Flyway, pelican, pelicans, phalarope, phalaropes, record low, shoveler, shovelers, water crisis, Wilson's Phalarope|

One thing I know for certain is that we can't drink dust.

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