Last week while out photographing I spotted a Prairie Falcon in the midst of a tussle with two Common Ravens in mid air. At times it seemed that the falcon was chasing the ravens and then the tables would turn and it appeared that the ravens were diving at the falcon.
During the summer months I don't often see Bald Eagles unless I go up into the high country or travel north of Utah to Idaho, Wyoming or Montana but in the Salt Lake Valley many Bald Eagles come in to spend the winter.
I am not sure why but it seems that many bird photographers avoid taking images of gulls, most of the time when I've asked them why they don't take more photos of gulls I hear "I just don't like gulls".
I can relate to the hawk in a way, just like it doesn't always get the prey it is intent on, I don't always get the shots I want.
I have been very pleased to add so many images of Rough-legged Hawks to my portfolio in just the past week and hopefully these Roughies will stick around until late February of next year so there will be many more opportunities.
Ferruginous Hawks are the largest hawks found in North America, the "regalis" in the latin name means "kingly" or "regal" and I have to agree with those descriptions.
Ravens hold a special place in my heart because they are smart (actually brilliant for birds), collectors of things shiny and/or odd, they let you know about their presence with hoarse croaking sounds and they are very amusing to observe and photograph.
I can't acquire focus on the Lunatic Sage Thrashers because they don't ever stay still long enough, they race around willy-nilly until dizziness forces me to stop watching them. Think Ricochet Rabbit.
I could always tell when a flock of Black Skimmers were flying in to Fort De Soto's north beach when I was photographing there because I could usually hear their soft, nasal barking yips or yeps before I saw them.
It didn't take long for me to check my ISO, my aperture and other techs as I dropped onto my knees before laying flat on my belly to photograph the flock of 20 or so Whimbrels.
I often forget that by backing up my zoom, swapping my long lens for a wide angle lens or backing up physically I can get the "whole picture".
Yesterday I observed an adult Willet defending its young from a group of Black-billed Magpies that were near the Willet's chicks.
The juvenile Long-billed Curlew was foraging and preening in the vegetation on the ground below the adult perched on the boulder
Soon after that I saw the shape of a larger bird near where the Coyote had gone into the sagebrush which turned out to be an adult Short-eared Owl.
The grasses are beginning to turn golden with the summer heat, the Moth Mulleins are starting to bloom and the Great Salt Lake level is still rising from spring run off.
I will soon be on the road back to Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge in southern Montana, another one of my favorite locations on this planet.
For days it has been raining (sometimes hailing), cloudy and a miserable gray here in the Salt Lake Valley though it seems like two weeks to this bird photographer.
I don't mind the motion blur in these images and because northern harriers hunt by looking down at the ground for their prey I was very happy to get eye contact in both frames.
Tt was the first time that I have ever seen a Northern Harrier building a nest. It more than made my day!
I had a delightful experience this past week in northern Utah with a Barn Owl (Tyto alba) that was flying along side the road that we were traveling on.
Yesterday a friend of mine sent me a link to an Eagle nest cam in Decorah, Iowa that I have been having fun watching so I thought I'd share it.
What made me sick was that there were three of those people tromping around the owl's burrow. I mean RIGHT up on it. They had no need to be that close but they were.
Brown Pelicans feed by diving head first into the water to trap fish in the pouches of their bills.
I've found Bald Eagles difficult to approach most of the time which is why a long lens is often needed. But not this one year old bald eagle.
This morning when we had almost reached Antelope Island I spotted a huge flock of Northern Shovelers blasting off from the water
Taking the time to review my "bad images" strengthens me as a photographer.
Great Egret (Ardea alba) in flight, a balance of whites and light
Breeding plumage white morph Reddish Egret while it hunted and danced in the waves on the Gulf coast of Florida.
I will have more opportunities with northern harriers in better light this winter and while I wouldn't consider this image perfect, I am happy with the results I obtained while photographing this "Gray Ghost".
Marbled Godwits are graceful birds while on the ground, feeding and in flight.