Burrowing Owl juvenile taking a dive
When I looked at this Burrowing Owl image on my monitor I had to chuckle because in a strange way it reminded me of myself when I first dove off of a 10 meter platform and how my toes were the last to let go.
When I looked at this Burrowing Owl image on my monitor I had to chuckle because in a strange way it reminded me of myself when I first dove off of a 10 meter platform and how my toes were the last to let go.
I thought I would share some images I have taken of Western Burrowing Owls that I took over several days spent with them in Box Elder County, Utah.
The heat of summer has turned the green grasses brown on Antelope Island State Park so I thought I'd share some of the "brown birds" I photographed there yesterday.
I spent yesterday morning photographing Burrowing Owls in northern Utah again and while most of it was fun there was something I found that broke my heart.
Last week I posted an image of Burrowing Owl siblings that I found in northern Utah and today I am posting images of that burrow after spending yesterday morning being delighted by them once more.
Yesterday while wandering around in northern Utah I spotted an adult and then 5 sibling Burrowing Owls also showed up to perch on an old fence line.
When I spotted this Mourning Dove perched on an old fence post in the morning light I couldn't resist photographing it.
My only wish for this image is that the butterfly had been as sharply in focus as the Short-eared Owl was but with bird photography you never know what might show up in the frame.
We could have spent more time with this Barred Owl and it may have eventually moved to a better location for us to get photos but because of one person ticking off the owl we didn't get that chance.
I'm not saying that the Burrowing Owl I photographed yesterday was grumpy, just that it looked that way.
Burrowing Owls are arriving - Caution, Extreme Cuteness Ahead! Burrowing Owls are enchanting, entertaining and so cute they are irresistible. Everyone seems to love them.
This morning winter is trying to creep back into northern Utah but I am thinking of warmer weather, Montana and Great Horned Owls.
The first year I after I moved to Utah was great for photographing Burrowing Owls and their young both on Antelope Island State Park and the causeway to it.
I hope that you all have a wonderful Christmas Eve with your family, friends and loved ones.
Still waiting for snow here in the Salt Lake Valley so I am posting another snowy image of a Barn Owl taken in December of 2013.
Barn Owls are gorgeous with their dark as ebony eyes, beautiful plumage and graceful flight so I find it difficult to suppress my delight when I see them on the wing.
I often see this phrase "species in decline due to habitat destruction or fragmentation" or something similar and the frequency of seeing that phrase is most likely to become higher.
These words are as powerful and thought provoking today as they were 46 years ago.
Today I am focusing on older posts that have owls in them starting with Great Horned Owls.
Burrowing Owls have become harder to find on Antelope Island State Park than they have been in the past so I was happy to spot this one three days ago.
The nicknames for Short-eared Owls are many and include Evening Owl, Mouse-hawk, Marsh Owl, Bog Owl and Flat-faced Owl but I just call them Shorties in the field.
Western Kingbird After several days of not being able to photograph birds because of bad weather I was pleasantly surprised to have a medley of birds to photograph on Antelope Island Monday.
There are times in my life when I feel speechless in the face of the natural world.
Most of the time the birds and animals I photograph look majestic, elegant or their poses convey action but some times they look just plain goofy.
The past few years I have missed seeing and photographing young Burrowing Owls on Antelope Island State Park for numerous reasons.
What can I say about this image of an adult Great Horned Owl feeding its young that is strongly back lit by the setting sun on Honeymoon Island State Park in Florida?
I especially like the combination of old wood and owls, in this photo a juvenile Great Horned Owl is perched on an external structural beam of an old granary in Glacier County, Montana.
One year ago today the sky was cloudy, the fog was thick and the snow was blowing in northern Utah. I couldn't see the tops of the mountains or across the Great Salt Lake but I did spot this Short-eared Owl perched on a snow-covered bush on the causeway my way to Antelope Island.
Both images are appealing to me because I enjoy the foggy softness of the female Short-eared Owl image and the warm, golden tones of the male Short-eared Owl photo.
As I photographed them I saw both Great Horned Owls turn their alert eyes to the sky and although I remember looking up into the sky myself I recall I didn't see anything but the much keener eyes of the owls probably did.