Spring Great Blue Heron Photos
The first Great Blue Heron was quietly wading through the water in search of prey and the second heron was looking at something in the distance.
It’s Superb Owl Sunday!
It is Superb Owl Sunday so I wanted to share four of the owls that I see most frequently. Barn, Burrowing, Great Horned and Short-eared Owls are the owls that I photograph most often here in northern Utah.
Adult Killdeer Portrait Plus A View Of Bear River MBR In March
I had my best opportunities to take close up photos of Killdeer that I have ever had and I took full advantage of each chance I had with them.
Swallow Quartet – Bank, Barn, Cliff And Tree Swallows At Bear River MBR
I was glad to be able to photograph Bank, Barn, Cliff and Tree Swallows perched on top of a stand of phragmites near the auto tour route on the refuge in early morning light.
Barn Owl, Immature Bald Eagle, California And Ring-billed Gulls
So, even though I didn't get great photos yesterday I was glad to get out and photograph a Barn Owl, Bald Eagle and these California and Ring-billed Gulls.
Focusing On The Tundra Swans And Wetlands Of Bear River MBR
One year ago today I spent the morning focusing on and photographing the Tundra Swans and wetlands of Bear River MBR and I have to say that those birds and the marshes bring me such joy that I feel like I have to share them over and over.
Snowy Egrets Have Migrated Back To Northern Utah
When I lived in Florida I saw Snowy Egrets year round and that kind of spoiled me but here in Utah they leave for the winter and come back to the marshes and wetlands surrounding the Great Salt Lake for their breeding season.
Photographing the Tundra Swans of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge
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.
Bear River MBR Clouds, Marshes, Sunshine and an Immature Western Grebe
Yesterday morning found me at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, a wild and wonderful place that I am very thankful for because of the birds there, the spectacular scenery and the refuge I find within its boundaries.
Wading Birds At Bear River MBR Yesterday
I had fun photographing the juvenile Great Blue Heron, juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron and the adult Snowy Egret yesterday at Bear River MBR. I especially loved the clearer skies.
Juvenile and Adult Forster’s Terns in Flight at Bear River MBR
Right now these terns at the refuge are busy feeding their young although some of the juvenile Forster's Terns have already learned how to capture prey on their own.
Shorebirds Are On The Move – Fall Migration
Shorebirds begin their fall migration early and for those of us who live in the Great Salt Lake ecosystem that means looking for them in the marshes around the lake and on the lake itself.
Red-winged Blackbird Male on a May Morning
Even though it is late May there are still male Red-winged Blackbirds displaying and singing their little hearts out here in northern Utah and that is what this male blackbird was doing.
Missing the Birds of Bear River MBR & Spring Migration
Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge auto tour route is still closed and many of the birders, bird photographers and nature lovers are itching to know what birds are there because after all spring migration is an exciting time at the refuge.
Sandhill Cranes Plus Views of Flooded Marshes at Bear River MBR
I saw and photographed a mated pair of Sandhill Cranes yesterday morning in the marsh from the auto tour loop and watched them search for food.
Listening for Long-billed Curlews
The first of March always makes me think of and listen for Long-billed Curlews, our largest shorebird of North America.
Birds of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge – Celebrating National Wildlife Refuge Week
This is National Wildlife Refuge Week and in celebration I wanted to do a pictorial essay that includes some of my images of the Birds of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.
Adult and juvenile White-faced Ibis
I thought a comparison of adult and juvenile White-faced Ibis might be interesting for those of you who aren't familiar with this western species of ibis.
Frost Covered Juvenile Northern Harrier at Farmington Bay
It isn't unusual to see birds like this frost covered juvenile Northern Harrier at Farmington Bay WMA, Utah early in the morning before the sun rises and warms them up.
Black-necked Stilt And My Concerns About The Future Of The Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge
If the Bear River is dammed upstream I have to wonder if we will see history repeating itself but made even worse by climate change, reduced snow pack and rising temperatures and how that will impact the refuge.
Killdeer in Flight Over Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge
I have found trying to capture a Killdeer in flight a difficult endeavor because they fly fast and are hard to track but yesterday I did just that.
Greater Yellowlegs at the wrack line
I get excited when spring arrives in Utah and the shorebirds return because they were my spark birds, they are what got me into bird photography
Juvenile Northern Harrier in flight
Northern Harriers are year round residents in Utah and I am encouraged by the numbers of them I have seen lately at Farmington Bay WMA.
Resting Northern Harrier
Farmington Bay Waterfowl Area used to be my "go to" place for photographing Northern Harriers but this winter they are hard to find.
Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge – Christmas Day 2012
Christmas Day of 2012 turned out to be as beautiful as I hoped at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge because of bright skies, snow on the ground, birds and the expansive views.
Sandhill Crane at Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge
So, each time we see or hear Sandhill Cranes we are listening to and looking at a real living fossil.
Tundra Swans in Flight
Tundra Swans (Cygnus columbianus) by the thousands overwinter in the Great Salt Lake area, it is not uncommon to see huge flocks of them at Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area in northern Utah.
Willets – In Utah and Florida
Willets have returned to Utah, on the causeway to Antelope Island hundreds of them can be seen in the shallow water. They seem to spend some time there fattening up after migration before they get down to the serious business of mating and rearing their young.
Clark’s Grebes Nest at Bear River MBR
It won't be long before the high, scratchy kweea kweea calls of Clark's Grebes are heard in Utah's Bear River National Wildlife Refuge if they haven't already arrived.
Yellow-headed Blackbirds – Friday Photos
Yellow-headed Blackbirds have begun to show up in large numbers in my area of the country. I'm seeing them perched on cattails, phragmites and in flight.