Black Skimmers in flight
I photographed these Black Skimmers in flight at the north beach of Fort De Soto County Park in Florida one cool January morning.
Scruffy sub-adult Swainson’s Hawk
Seriously, I wish I understood more about molting with many of the raptors including Swainson's Hawk and perhaps if I ever find some free time I will attempt to study molt patterns more closely.
Red-tailed Hawk adult at Farmington Bay WMA
I was happy that I found this adult Red-tailed Hawk at Farmington Bay WMA and that it did lift off after a bit because as handsome as they can be perched they are even more beautiful On The Wing.
Adult Red-tailed Hawk and Photoshop
I wouldn't license this Red-tailed Hawk image for print because it has been altered but I like the image without the wires.
Veteran’s Day
My father joined the Army at 17 years of age and was a Korean War Veteran who earned five Bronze Stars for the battles that he fought. Thank you for serving Dad.
Dorsal view of a Rough-legged Hawk in flight
I woke up to a fine layer of snow on the ground this morning and silly as it may sound that gets me excited for the birds that over winter in the Salt Lake Valley such as this Rough-legged Hawk.
Rough-legged Hawk on a foggy winter day
This past Sunday I saw my first of the season Rough-legged Hawks and I was absolutely thrilled. There were definitely five different birds and a possible sixth.
Wishful Thinking
Two years ago I photographed this Rough-legged Hawk with a vole in its talons as it flew along the causeway to Antelope Island State Park with the Great Salt Lake in the background.
Juvenile Brown Pelican In Flight
After posting an image of a American White Pelican lifting off two days ago I thought I should post an photo of a Brown Pelican today for comparison.
American White Pelican lifting off
This American White Pelican was taking off from a pond near where I live in Salt Lake County and I happened to click the shutter when its wings were extended upwards and when its feet had just slapped the water
A dark juvenile Red-tailed Hawk
Quite often I don't have much time at all to get ready to take images because you need to get close to the subject, find a good angle of light and make sure your camera settings will produce the best image for the conditions.
Snowy Egret with muddy legs
This adult Snowy Egret with muddy legs that were so dirty it covered up its "Golden Slippers".
Barn Owl Butt Shots
I know, I don't have eye contact from my subject which is one of the unspoken rules in bird and wildlife photography but I don't mind bending those rules when it comes to images that I find interesting or appealing.
The Eagle Is Landing
It has been quite some time since I posted a Bald Eagle here so today I present this adult in a landing pose that I photographed in February of 2011 at Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area.
Red-tailed Hawk juveniles On the Wing
One of the juvenile Red-tailed Hawks I photographed on Antelope Island last year has "migrated" to Switzerland where my photo of it will be featured on a 5 x 15 meter sign for a yacht company.
Pretty in Pink – Black-chinned Hummingbird
Well, I made it through another week. Bird photography has been slow down here in the valley but there are signs migration is picking up. There was a decided nip to the air yesterday morning and I saw some frost on the ground while heading towards Antelope Island.
The Juvenile Swainson’s Hawk That Saved My Day
Yesterday was frustrating for me near Snowville, Utah because there were raptors all around but not many of them were close enough to photograph and the ones that were close were either vey skittish or wouldn't fly off of the power poles even after long periods of time.
Landing Black Skimmer
Black Skimmers are known by several nicknames which include scissorbills, knifebill and cut-water for how their bills slice through the water when they are hunting and how their bills snap shut on prey.
Female Black-chinned Hummingbird
After looking at these images that I took last Friday I am wondering if this hummingbird that I photographed is a female Broad-tailed Hummingbird.
More Hummingbird images
Yesterday I went back to the island to see if I could photograph more hummingbirds and they did not disappoint so I thought I would share two more images of them.
Calliope Hummingbirds
I believe these are Calliope Hummingbirds but if I am wrong please do not hesitate to correct me, I don't get upset about things like that.
Frustrations in Bird Photography – Dark Morph Ferruginous Hawk
The dark morph Ferruginous Hawk above had just lifted off from a power pole when I photographed it with a partly cloudy sky in the background.
Whooo Loves Owls?
I love the Barn Owl's deep-set, dark and mysterious eyes, the silent way that they glide past, their monkey like face plus their beautiful colors and patterns.
What is the last thing a Jackrabbit might see – A Ferruginous Hawk
Ferruginous Hawks west of the Continental Divide prefer rabbits as prey so what you see here might be the last thing a Cottontail or Jackrabbit might see.
Ragged Red-tailed Hawk In Molt
Many of the adult Red-tailed Hawks that I saw and photographed in southwestern Montana on my last trip had worn feathers and were molting.
Nine Foot Wingspans – American White Pelicans
Yesterday while on the auto tour route of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge the birds that I saw in the highest numbers were American White Pelicans.
Two different Swainson’s Hawks
Red-tailed Hawks have the most variable plumages of North American hawks but Swainson's Hawks are also pretty variable, there are light morphs, intermediate morphs and dark morphs.
Simple Red-tailed Hawk photo from Montana
This adult Red-tailed flew by at close range which gave me a very nice view of the underside of its wing that shows it was also molting though it didn't look as raggedy as some of the other adult Red-tailed Hawks looked.
Swainson’s Hawk in flight over Beaverhead County, Montana
I photographed the adult Swainson's Hawk above after it had lifted off from a power pole in Beaverhead County and loved that I had thin clouds in the background which is far more pleasing to my eye than plain blue sky.
If Only I Could Fly Like This Red-tailed Hawk!
I readily admit that sometimes I daydream about being able to fly like a bird and quite often the bird I wish I were is a Red-tailed Hawk.