Little Blue Herons on the Hunt
These Little Blue Herons on the hunt were both taken at Fort De Soto in two different tidal lagoons.
These Little Blue Herons on the hunt were both taken at Fort De Soto in two different tidal lagoons.
Rough-legged Hawks are known for kiting or hovering nearly motionless in the air while turning their head side to side to look for prey on the ground below them.
I photographed this hovering Northern Harrier several years ago at Farmington Bay Water Fowl Management Area as it scanned the ground below for prey.
One May morning in 2009 I was able to photograph both the dark and white morph Reddish Egret in breeding plumage just minutes and yards apart at Fort De Soto's north beach.
Three days ago I had fun photographing a Northern Harrier searching for prey along the Antelope Island Causeway
I can't help but feel sad that we haven't had and good snow here in the Salt Lake Valley yet this year so I went hunting for a snowy Coyote image.
Tricolored Herons are smaller than Great Blue Herons and larger than Snowy Egrets and all three of these wading birds hunt in many of the same locations along the Gulf Coast.
Being a bird photographer has its rewards beyond the most obvious which for me is being out in nature or better yet being a part of it. It means with patience and plenty of time in the field I do get it right.
Last week I photographed this adult Forster's Tern in flight as it foraged for food above Glover Pond near Farmington Bay WMA.
The Reddish Egret is one of my favorite wading birds. Standing still they are a delight to the eyes and while hunting they can perform amazing turns, twists, gallops and appear to be dancing.
As a bird photographer I feel it is very important to me that my images show my subjects and the settings they are in as accurately as possible.
Tricolored Herons use many foraging behaviors to obtain their prey including walking quickly then crouching before stabbing their prey.
On my last visit to Antelope Island State Park five days ago I noticed that some of the wildflowers have started to bloom including Gray's Biscuitroot and Redstem Filaree.
I saw my first of the year Long-billed Curlews two days ago on Antelope Island State Park flying overhead. They weren't close enough to photograph but I know that soon I will have them in my viewfinder again.
There are times when one subject will make my day in the field worthwhile, yesterday it was a lone Coyote hunting for voles on the shoreline of the Great Salt Lake.
Even though I have been a bird photographer for some time now I still get a thrill when I am eye level with a bird of prey because it feels as if I am more strongly connected to the raptor when they fly in close at eye level.
Just a simple Great Egret hunting in a quiet tidal lagoon today that takes me back to warmer memories spent with good friends on Florida's Gulf Coast.
All of the snow we have now reminded me of being on Antelope Island State Park last January and photographing birds and Coyotes in near whiteout conditions.
Waves, warm sand, a camera in hand and a Tricolored Heron. Such simple things but they bring such great pleasure.
Great Blue Herons are year round residents at Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area here in northern Utah which means they deal with bitter cold, snow covered ground and icy water.
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.
Both the white and dark morphs of Reddish Egrets are great fun to watch as they hunt because they dance, twirl, whirl and stumble along like a "drunken sailor".
Recently I posted images of a Tricolored Heron and a Black-bellied Plover where I wrote that I enjoyed images that include habitat, the same could be said about this photo of a Reddish Egret hunting on the shoreline of the Gulf Coast.
Hovering Kestrel shots aren't easy to capture without baiting or using decoys, part of that is because I can't tell when a kestrel might get it in its mind to hover for prey, the other part is being in the right place at the right time.
This juvenile Red-shouldered Hawk was perched on a metal fence post so I opted to go for a portrait to remove the "hand of man".
Great Blue Herons are year round residents in both Florida and Utah although conditions during the winter months can be starkly different for these large wading birds in the two locations and climates.
I don't know how much snow fell over night here in the Salt Lake Valley because it is still dark outside and while I am truly not "blue" about it I thought some images from warmer times of a blue bird might be in order for a Monday.
These two Reddish Egrets; a dark and a white morph, were photographed on the same day at Fort De Soto's north beach in May of 2009 and both of them were showing signs of being in breeding plumage.
When I photographed this hunting Tricolored Heron I was laying flat on my belly in the shallows where the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico gently lapped the shore.
I photographed this Tricolored Heron (Egretta tricolor) a few years ago when I still lived in Florida.