By Mia McPherson, on May 13th, 2012%  Male Brewer's Blackbird displaying - Nikon D200, f6.3, 1/1250, ISO 500, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light While out on Antelope Island State Park on Friday I spotted a male Brewer’s Blackbird (Euphagus cyanocephalus) on top of a bush, the light was just great for viewing and photographing the iridescent teals, blues, greens and purples that can show up on these “black” birds. I was even more tickled when the blackbird started to display because that really made the iridescence even more delightful. I have a lovely series of photos of this male now.
I can’t say that the call of the male while displaying is enchanting or melodious but I am almost certain the female Brewer’s Blackbirds must think so.
 Female Brewer's Blackbird with nesting material - Nikon D200, f6.3, 1/1000, ISO 500, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light This female Brewer’s Blackbird is the mate of the male above, she flew up from the other side of the road with nesting material in her bill and perched for a few moments before flying into another bush with the twig. When the female left the male followed her across the road, she went down onto the ground and he perched high watching over her and when she flew back to the nest with more nesting material he followed her and stayed close. That behavior happened several times. I wish the female had perched a bit closer with her nesting material than she did. but I am still pleased to get a series of images of her with this twig.
Mia
More Brewer’s Blackbird images
By Mia McPherson, on May 11th, 2012% While looking through my archives a few days ago I came across two images, one of sand dunes at Fort De Soto County Park in Florida and the other of sand dunes on Antelope Island State Park in Utah. I remember that I took both images because I loved the sky, the vegetation on the dunes and how they both make me feel so connected to these two locations that I am deeply attached to.
 Sand Dune at Fort De Soto in early morning light - Nikon D70, handheld, f6.3, 1/160, ISO 200, Nikkor 70-300mm VR at 70mm I created the image above while walking Fort De Soto’s north beach early in the morning of July 20, 2007, the sun had crested the horizon and had just begun to light up the dunes. Although Fort De Soto has many dunes covered with beautiful Sea Oats, in this image I liked how the Sea Purslane hugged the dune and how the tips of the plants seemed to glow with the early morning light. The sunlight had not yet lit up the surface of the Gulf of Mexico but had started to light up the tops of the storm clouds hanging in a bank off of the coast.
When I look at this image I can smell the salty air, the sand under my feet, the breeze ruffling my hair and the warmth of the sun’s rays warming my back.
Fort De Soto County Park is one of my favorite locations to photograph birds, scenery and clouds. More of my thoughts about Fort De Soto can be read here ”My Love Affair with Fort De Soto“.
 Sand Dunes on Antelope Island State Park, Utah - Nikon D200, handheld, f11, 1/500, ISO 400, Nikkor 18-200mm VR at 18mm I was camping on Antelope Island State Park when I photographed the image above the evening of March 30, 2011. I thought the sky was captivating with the swirly, layered clouds against the warm tones of the sand and the yet to green up Sagebrush and Rabbitbrush that grow on the oolitic sand dunes there. So very different from the dunes at Fort De Soto but they are equally appealing to me.
Antelope Island State Park is another of my favorite locations to go to photograph, it seems I always find something to catch my eye and tug at my heart there. I recently did a three-part series of articles I titled “Wild and Wonderful – Antelope Island State Park” on the scenery, the wildlife and the birds. I could not fit it all into one article.
Just two simple images from two different locations that whisper “home” to me.
Mia
By Mia McPherson, on May 6th, 2012% A few weeks ago I was able to photograph a Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus) near the marina on Antelope Island State Park, Utah. It was an interesting experience for several reasons.
 Loggerhead Shrike with its bill open - Nikon D300, f7.1, 1/1600, ISO 800, +0.7 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 357mm, natural light When I first spotted the Shrike it was perched on top of a Rabbitbrush and I was able to get several images of the bird before it dove into the base of another nearby bush. I thought it was going to expel a pellet when I took this frame, but it didn’t.
 Loggerhead Shrike side view - Nikon D300, f7.1, 1/1600, ISO 800, +0.7 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 357mm, natural light After a few moments the Shrike appeared on top of another Rabbitbrush adjacent to the one it had dived underneath. I wanted to get clear images of the bird’s tail without the foreground obstructions so I hoped it would move to another location.
 Loggerhead Shrike preening - Nikon D300, f9, 1/800, ISO 800, +0.7 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 357mm, natural light The Loggerhead preened for a bit, it looks like it also needed to clean the blood from a recent meal from its bill too.
 Loggerhead Shrike hunched down with an eye on the sky - Nikon D300, f8, 1/1000, ISO 800, +0.7 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 321mm, natural light As I photographed the Shrike it suddenly hunched down, getting close to the bush it was perched on and I could tell that it was looking at something above and behind me but the roof of the “mobile blind” was in the way so I wasn’t sure what it was.
 Loggerhead Shrike watching a Common Raven fly by - Nikon D300, f8, 1/1000, ISO 800, +0.7 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 321mm, natural light By the time I created this frame I could tell that the Shrike was watching a Common Raven fly by, I’m fairly certain that Ravens do not prey on adult Loggerhead Shrikes but they may prey on their young. I have seen this hunkering down behavior in Loggerhead Shrikes before.
 Loggerhead Shrike with prey in its bill - Nikon D300, f8, 1/1250, ISO 800, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light, not baited Within just a few moments after the Raven flew out of range the Shrike dove into the base of the same Rabbitbrush it had been underneath before, at first I thought it went into the bush for safety reasons but I was soon to find out why it had been returning to that bush. When the Loggerhead flew out of the bush I could tell it had something in its bill, I quickly zoomed all the way out, locked on focus and was able to fire off four images as the Shrike perched briefly on a dried out Sunflower stalk. A pretty messy environment but I felt the image was interesting because of the prey in the bill.
The bird flew off and out of sight so I got out of the mobile blind and went over to the bush the Shrike had gone into both times with one of my backup D200′s that has my Nikkor 18-200mm VR lens attached to it.
 The Loggerhead Shrike's impaled prey - Nikon D200, handheld, f11, 1/45, ISO 250, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 18-200mm VR at 200mm, natural light I was tickled to find the Shrike’s prey impaled on the bush, they cache prey that way. Think of it as a Shrike’s pantry, they know just where to go when they get hungry again.
The day was partly overcast which is why I used a high ISO for the Shrike images to get the shutter speeds I thought I might need and also why I was using positive exposure compensation.
It pays to observe your subject, to learn their behaviors and to not start up the engine to pull away too quick or I would have missed the shot of the Shrike with the prey in the bill. Having patience is a MUST in bird photography.
Mia
More Loggerhead Shrike images
By Mia McPherson, on May 5th, 2012%  Female Coyote - Nikon D300, f8, 1/640, ISO 400, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 314mm, not baited or called in, natural light I look at this image and I see intelligence in the Coyote’s eyes. I see a warm-blooded creature who is doing what it needs to do to survive. I see a female who is nursing pups. I see beauty.
Photographed on Antelope Island State Park.
Mia
By Mia McPherson, on May 3rd, 2012% Willets (Tringa semipalmata) 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.
 Willet calling on a Rabbitbrush - Nikon D300, f6.3, 1/640, ISO 640, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 350mm, natural light In Utah I see Willets in much different habitats than I saw them in Florida, here they stand on rocks, perch precariously on shrubs and forage in grasslands. This Willet was perched on a Rabbitbrush as the breeze made the bird and the bush dance on Antelope Island State Park this week.
 Willet in sea-foam on the Gulf of Mexico - Nikon D200, handheld, f6.3, 1/1000, ISO 200, Nikkor 70-300mm VR at 300mm, natural light In Florida I would see Willets on sandy beaches, foraging in tidal lagoons, in Spartina marshes and in the waves of the Gulf of Mexico. This Willet was in sea-foam with gorgeous turquoise water in the background on Fort De Soto’s north beach.
 Willet stretching on a rock - Nikon D200, f5.6, 1/1000, ISO 400, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light Willets do call in Florida but not as frequently as they do here in Utah. This Willet was perched on a rock among the grasses on a hillside on Antelope Island State Park and stretched its wings.
 Willet in early morning light at Fort De Soto - Nikon D200, handheld, 5.6, 1/800, ISO 320, Nikkor 80-400mm VR at 400mm, natural light I enjoy seeing and photographing Willets where ever I find them, they are beautiful shorebirds.
Mia
More Willet images
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Photographing a Tricolored Heron from a tidal lagoon
Focusing on Wildlife Contributor
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