side by side – Mia McPherson's On The Wing Photography

Barred Owls Side By Side Plus A Short Video Of Them

By Mia McPherson|April 16th, 2024|Categories: Barred Owls, Birds, Oklahoma, Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge, Video|Tags: adult, Barred Owl, birds of prey, bottomland hardwood forests, close up, female, forest, leaves, male, owl, owls, portrait, raptors, side by side, spring, Strix varia|

Three days ago, my friend Steve Creek and I had an amazing experience with a mated pair of Barred Owls next to a road at Sequoyah National Wildlife Refuge.

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Winter California And American Herring Gull Comparison In Utah

By Mia McPherson|November 8th, 2022|Categories: American Herring Gulls, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, California Gulls, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Utah|Tags: adult, American Herring Gull, beach, Bear River, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, breeding plumage, California Gull, coastal, comparison, composite, Definitive Alternate Plumage, Definitive Basic Plumage, floating, Gulf of Mexico, gull, gulls, ice, ID features, identification, Larus californicus, Larus smithsonianus, marsh, nonbreeding plumage, river, sand, side by side, water, wetlands, winter, winter plumage|

Since I frequently get asked which is which I thought this would be a good time to do a winter California and American Herring Gull comparison and ID feature post.

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My First Of Year Uinta Ground Squirrels

By Mia McPherson|April 30th, 2021|Categories: Summit County, Uinta Ground Squirrels, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: adult, canyon, frost, frosted, frosty, grass, grasses, ground squirrel, ground squirrels, morning, mountains, side by side, spring, squirrel, squirrels, standing, Uinta Ground Squirrel, Urocitellus armatus|

Yesterday I spent some time up in the Wasatch Mountains where I found and photographed my first of year Uinta Ground Squirrels with frost on the ground.

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Cozy Red-tailed Hawks And Finches Galore

By Mia McPherson|November 23rd, 2020|Categories: American Goldfinches, Birds, Box Elder County, Pine Siskins, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, American Goldfinch, autumn, birds of prey, Box Elder County, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, Carduelis pinus, desert, fall, female, finch, finches, Fragrant Sumac, freshwater seep, goldfinch, goldfinches, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, leafless, ledge, lichen, male, morning, nonbreeding plumage, perched, Pine Siskin, prched, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, Rhus aromatica, rocky, seep, side by side, siskin, siskins, sky, Spinus tristis, sumac, Utah|

Yesterday morning the first birds I spotted and photographed was a pair of adult Red-tailed Hawks side by side on a rocky ledge in early morning light.

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Immature Turkey Vultures In Northern Utah

By Mia McPherson|September 18th, 2019|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Turkey Vultures, Utah|Tags: Cathartes aura, desert, hatch year, immature, lichen, lichen covered, resting, rocks, side by side, Turkey Vulture, vulture, vultures, walking, young|

I don't have many decent photos of immature Turkey Vultures so when I spotted several of them 11 days ago in northern Utah I was excited but my hopes for good light on the hatch year birds were dashed by clouds.

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Yellow-bellied Marmot Pups Exploring Beyond Their Burrow

By Mia McPherson|April 17th, 2018|Categories: Box Elder County, Utah, Yellow-bellied Marmots|Tags: alert, burrow, cute, cute animals, desert, grasses, lichen, mammals, marmot, Marmota flaviventris, marmots, pup, pups, rocks, siblings, side by side, spring, standing, Yellow-bellied Marmot, young|

The two times I have observed and photographed these Yellow-bellied Marmot pups I have enjoyed watching them explore the area around their burrow, not only are they cute they are also entertaining.

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