Today I am keeping it short and sweet and sharing one photo of a male American Goldfinch perched on a dried Musk Thistle blossom plus a short video clip I took of him as he lifted off and flew away.
Back in March of this year I started watching and photographing a pair of Red-tailed Hawks in the process of building their nest on the face of a high cliff, these two juveniles are the results of the hard work of that pair of hawks.
I have been trying to photograph this rufous morph Red-tailed Hawk in good light since the first time I spotted her on the 24th of March in northern Utah, yesterday I finally accomplished that goal.
The bird that was the most cooperative yesterday morning was a female American Kestrel that I spotted eating her prey on a lichen encrusted rock
I get absolutely tired of the frustrations I have had trying to photograph Golden Eagles, it seems that something or someone always messes with my chances of getting the images I want of them.
I spend a lot of time in the field looking for, observing and photographing owls and obtaining photos of them in flight can often be frustrating when I have the opportunity but very fulfilling when I accomplish my goal.
As I photographed this pair of Tundra Swans in flight I could hear the whir of their wings and the calls of the other swans that were still on the water and also getting ready to lift off.
The Rough-legged Hawk's wings were fully extended above its body while its feet were still firmly planted on the ground and with one downward swoop of its long wings it was airborne right after this was photo was created.
I had a blast photographing the Tundra Swans at the refuge yesterday and for the first time in a while I forgot about practically everything but the birds in front of me and the peace I find at the refuge.
One good bird can make my day... Yesterday that bird was an immature Red-tailed Hawk at Farmington Bay WMA that lifted off from a metal post and flew over the marsh.
I've found American Kestrels to be "stickier" in cold weather and it wasn't much above 20°F when I photographed him as he consumed the vole bit by bit.
I'm over the moon that I was able to photograph these Common Mergansers landing and lifting off from the pond yesterday and I am pleased with the photos I took.
Yesterday morning I was able to photograph an immature Rough-legged Hawk lifting off, landing and lunching at Farmington Bay WMA in northern Utah.
North America has two hawk (buteos) species that have feathered tarsi, or legs, those two species are Ferruginous Hawks and Rough-legged Hawks.
It was a real treat for me yesterday morning to photograph another Sagebrush Sparrow on Antelope Island State Park when I spotted it pop up on a clump of greasewood.
Yesterday I saw so many Ruby-crowned Kinglets in northern Utah that it was impossible for me to keep up with them, I am certain I missed some excellent images because of that.
I have had fun photographing Forster's Terns the last few times I have gone to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, they are graceful, beautiful terns and they challenge my skills.
Yesterday I was able to photograph the largest buteo in North America, a gorgeous Ferruginous Hawk that was on top of a hill with the Stansbury Mountains of the West Desert in the background.
There have been a few Short-eared Owls that I keep seeing in the same locations over a period of about a month and yesterday I believe that I saw and photographed a male Short-eared Owl hunting for prey for his chicks.
It wasn't "partly sunny" as predicted but I enjoyed myself while photographing the Turkey Vulture and Red-tailed Hawks on a foggy morning even though it tested my skills and techniques.
Two days ago this Golden Eagle was perched on a rocky outcrop but because of a blind spot I didn't see it quite soon enough but at least I was able to get a few decent images of it.
Yesterday morning at my local pond I took a series of images of a Canada Goose lifting off plus more photos of the Canada x Snow Goose hybrid I found there.
I had fun photographing a male Belted Kingfisher at Farmington Bay as he caught prey and ate it on a post near a little creek.
I wasn't expecting to see a handsome male Belted Kingfisher at Farmington Bay WMA yesterday but that is exactly what happened and I was able to get some nice photos of him too.
I was able to fire a burst of shots showing the juvenile Red-tailed Hawk taking off from a conifer and liked the second and third shots in the series the most.
I miss these young Short-eared Owls but I hope they are doing well and will return next year to breed and have young of their own.
Yesterday morning I spent fifteen minutes with sibling Burrowing Owl juveniles in northern Utah not long after the sun came up and while there was still golden light.
I saw plenty of birds yesterday including juvenile Black-crowned Night Herons at Bear River MBR every where I looked.
This time of the year I see plenty of molting Red-tailed Hawks and they can look pretty tattered, worn and shabby.
I was photographing this adult hoping to get it on lift off and in flight but looked away from my viewfinder to check my exposure exactly at the time it did lift off so I missed the shots.