birds – Mia McPherson's On The Wing Photography

Yesterday was a delight in the West Desert because there were plentiful birds to photograph including this male Spotted Towhee singing on its territory.

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Western Grebe Weed Ceremony Behavior

By Mia McPherson|2021-08-19T16:37:37-05:00April 18th, 2015|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Utah, Western Grebes|Tags: Aechmophorus occidentalis, birds, courting, courtship behavior, courtship display, grebe, grebes, marsh, Rushing Ceremony, spring, water, Weed Ceremony, Weed Dancing, weeds, Western Grebe, wetlands|

Western and Clark's Grebes at Bear River National Wildlife Refuge have returned and I have been hoping to photograph some of their mating behaviors again.

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Marbled Godwit feeding on the shore of the Gulf

By Mia McPherson|2016-12-07T12:07:58-06:00April 15th, 2015|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Marbled Godwits|Tags: bird photography, birds, Coquina, feeding, Limosa fedoa, Marbled Godwit, Pinellas County, Sand Crab, sandpiper, shorebird, shorebirds|

Marbled Godwits are migrating through Utah on their way to their breeding grounds right now so I thought I'd feature this one on my post today.

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Hoping for Curlews

By Mia McPherson|2016-12-07T12:08:09-06:00March 15th, 2015|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Long-billed Curlews|Tags: bird photography, birds, Long-billed Curlew, Numenius americanus, Pinellas County, sandy beach, shorebird, shorebirds|

Two days ago I saw my first of the year Sage Thrasher and now I am hoping to see and hear my first of the year Long-billed Curlews as well.

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Common Tern and friends

By Mia McPherson|2016-12-07T12:08:10-06:00March 13th, 2015|Categories: Birds, Common Terns, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park|Tags: adult, bird photography, birds, Common Tern, nonbreeding plumage, Pinellas County, Sterna hirundo, tern, terns|

One July morning at 2008 I came across quite a few Common Terns at Fort De Soto County Park's north beach.

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Double-crested Cormorant coming in for a landing

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-27T05:41:38-05:00March 9th, 2015|Categories: Birds, Double-crested Cormorants, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park|Tags: birds, coast, coastal, cormorant, cormorants, Double-crested Cormorant, flight, flying, Gulf of Mexico, landing, landing pose, molt, molting, Nannopterum auritus, Pinellas County, sky|

I'm glad the Double-crested Cormorant didn't decide to relive itself as it came in to land or I might have been wearing white-wash!

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Western Tanager in the Targhee National Forest

By Mia McPherson|2021-05-29T05:47:03-05:00March 4th, 2015|Categories: Birds, Clark County, Idaho, Targhee National Forest, Western Tanagers|Tags: adult, bird photography, bird watching, birds, branch, forest, Lewis and Clark Expedition, male, mountains, perched, Piranga ludoviciana, tanager, tanagers, Western Tanager|

The bright yellow and red of this male Western Tanager caught my eye last May while on a dirt road in the Targhee National Forest in Idaho just south of the Montana state line.

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The Burrowing Owls are arriving – Caution, Extreme Cuteness Ahead!

By Mia McPherson|2021-12-20T09:00:58-06:00March 3rd, 2015|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Burrowing Owls, Davis County, Nesting Birds, Utah, Wildlife Ethics|Tags: adult, Athene cunicularia, bird photography, birds, birds of prey, Burrowing Owl, chicks, Davis County, juveniles, nesting, nesting ethics, owl, owls, Western Burrowing Owl|

Burrowing Owls are arriving - Caution, Extreme Cuteness Ahead! Burrowing Owls are enchanting, entertaining and so cute they are irresistible. Everyone seems to love them.

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Great Horned Owl fledgling and an old granary

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-04T16:56:13-06:00March 2nd, 2015|Categories: Birds, Glacier County, Great Horned Owls, Montana|Tags: bird photography, birds, birds of prey, Bubo virginianus, chick, farmland, fledgling, granary, Great Horned Owl, immature, juvenile, old building, owl, owlet, owls, summer, wood, young|

This morning winter is trying to creep back into northern Utah but I am thinking of warmer weather, Montana and Great Horned Owls.

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Juvenile Western Kingbird at Farmington Bay

By Mia McPherson|2021-05-31T13:24:23-05:00February 28th, 2015|Categories: Birds, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah, Western Kingbirds|Tags: bird photography, birds, bush, Davis County, flycatcher, flycatchers, immature, juvenile, kingbird, kingbirds, Tyrannus verticalis, Western Kingbird, young|

This morning I was looking through some images that I had taken in August of 2014 and came across this juvenile Western Kingbird photo that I hadn't touched at all.

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Addressing A Strange Comment

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-27T05:34:20-05:00February 18th, 2015|Categories: American Coots, Anclote Key, Birds, Double-crested Cormorants, Florida, Salt Lake County, Utah|Tags: American Coot, bird photography, birds, blog comments, Double-crested Cormorant, Fulica americana, Nannopterum auritus, Nature Guy, nature photography, NatureGuy, NatureGuy@gmail.com, Pinellas County, strange comment, wildlife photography|

Anyone who has worked on their own web site that allows comments knows that there are times you get a strange comment that make you scratch your head.

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Clark’s Nutcracker in the High Uintas

By Mia McPherson|2021-10-02T10:29:15-05:00February 6th, 2015|Categories: Birds, Clark's Nutcrackers, High Uintas, Summit County, Uinta National Forest, Utah|Tags: adult, bird photography, birds, Clark's Nutcracker, corvids, forest, lakeside, mountains, Nucifraga columbiana, nutcracker, nutcrackers, perched, summer, Uinta Mountains|

So, a quick post this morning of a Clark's Nutcracker that I photographed in July of 2008 on my first trip to Utah to photograph birds prior to moving here in 2009.

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Great Egrets – Big White Wading Birds

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-21T04:25:58-05:00January 18th, 2015|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Great Egrets|Tags: adult, Ardea alba, bird photography, birds, close up, egret, egrets, fish, flight, Great Egret, Gulf of Mexico, lagoon, Mullet, Pinellas County, portrait, prey, wading birds|

After posting Great Blue Heron images yesterday I decided to post images of Great Egrets which are also a large wading bird species this morning.

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Western Meadowlark and Kingfisher catching some sunshine

By Mia McPherson|2021-02-21T17:51:22-06:00January 16th, 2015|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Belted Kingfishers, Birds, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah, Western Meadowlarks|Tags: Belted Kingfisher, bird photography, birds, Davis County, kingfisher, kingfishers, meadowlark, meadowlarks, Megaceryle alcyon, morning light, perched, post, sage, sagebrush, sky, Sturnella neglecta, Western Meadowlark, wooden post|

It was lovely to see the sunshine yesterday and to have the Western Meadowlark and Belted Kingfisher in my viewfinder.

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Making the most out of low light conditions

By Mia McPherson|2023-11-05T04:44:33-06:00January 15th, 2015|Categories: Belted Kingfishers, Birds, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Loggerhead Shrikes, Red-winged Blackbirds, Utah|Tags: Agelaius phoeniceus, Belted Kingfisher, bird photography, birds, blackbird, blackbirds, Davis County, high key, kingfisher, kingfishers, Lanius ludovicianus, Loggerhead Shrike, low light, Megaceryle alcyon, Red-winged Blackbird, shrike, shrikes|

The last bird I photographed was this male Belted Kingfisher and I was surprised that it stuck around as long as it did.

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Bald Eagle on a lofty perch

By Mia McPherson|2021-02-14T04:19:02-06:00January 11th, 2015|Categories: Bald Eagles, Beaverhead County, Birds, Centennial Valley, Montana|Tags: adult, Bald Eagle, bird photography, birds, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, nature photography, perched|

I can not imagine not being able to raise my lens and see Bald Eagles through my viewfinder as a bird photographer and nature lover.

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Bison, Kestrels and Pintails

By Mia McPherson|2024-01-03T05:09:39-06:00January 3rd, 2015|Categories: American Bison, American Kestrels, Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Northern Pintails, Utah|Tags: American Bison, American Kestrel, Anas acuta, bird photography, birds, Davis County, Falco sparverius, nature photography, Northern Pintail, wildlife, winter|

I spent the yesterday morning photographing with two great friends at Antelope Island State Park and Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area and had a wonderful time.

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Raising my glass to 2015!

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-03T07:06:51-06:00January 1st, 2015|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Beaverhead County, Birds, Black-billed Magpies, Centennial Valley, Clark County, Davis County, House Wrens, Idaho, Montana, Moose, Swainson's Hawks, Targhee National Forest, Utah|Tags: Alces alces, bird photography, birds, Black-billed Magpie, Buteo swainsoni, Buteos, calf, close up, flight, flying, grasses, hawk, hawks, House Wren, immature, juvenile, magpie, magpies, Moose, Pica hudsonia, portrait, raptors, road, running, Swainson's Hawk, Troglodytes aedon, wildlife photography, wren, wrens|

Raising the glass attached to my camera that is! I'm excited about the photographic opportunities that will present themselves in 2015.

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Happy Howlidays

By Mia McPherson|2016-12-07T12:08:33-06:00December 24th, 2014|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Short-eared Owls, Utah|Tags: adult, Asio flammeus, bird photography, birds, Davis County, low light, owl, owls, Short-eared Owl, snow|

I hope that you all have a wonderful Christmas Eve with your family, friends and loved ones.

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Mountain Chickadee Surprise

By Mia McPherson|2021-04-27T16:12:38-05:00December 8th, 2014|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Mountain Chickadees, Utah|Tags: adult, Artemisia tridentata, birds, chickadee, chickadees, Davis County, Mountain Chickadee, perched, Poecile gambeli, sage, sagebrush|

After a long dry spell for birds on Antelope Island today I was surprised to photograph this Mountain Chickadee, a bird I didn't expect to see on the island.

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Happy Thanksgiving

By Mia McPherson|2018-01-07T05:03:36-06:00November 27th, 2014|Categories: Birds, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: bird photography, birds, birds of prey, Davis County, flight, flying, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, raptors, snow|

This year has been zipping by so quickly and it is hard to believe that Thanksgiving is already here and I really have so much to be grateful for.

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Birds on Wires – European Starling

By Mia McPherson|2021-09-26T12:39:46-05:00November 24th, 2014|Categories: Birds, European Starlings, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: barbed wire, birds, Davis County, European Starling, fall, immature, introduced, perched, song bird, starling, starlings, Sturnus vulgaris, wire|

I know a lot of people don't like European Starlings because they are in introduced species that cause lots of problems for native birds.

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Red-tailed Hawk juvenile in flight in low light

By Mia McPherson|2022-10-04T06:24:18-05:00November 21st, 2014|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Hawks, Eagles, Ospreys and Vultures, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: bird photography, birds, birds of prey, Buteo jamaicensis, flight, flying, fog, hawk, hawks, high key, immature, juvenile, low light, Red-tailed Hawk, snow|

I could not resist photographing the young Red-tailed Hawk though as it lifted off and flew in front of me after prey even though conditions were not ideal.

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Winter American Robin – Turdus migratorius

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-10T04:41:19-05:00November 17th, 2014|Categories: American Robins, Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Utah|Tags: adult, American Robin, birds, Carl Linnaeus, dawn song, desert island, Greasewood, perched, robin, robins, song bird, state bird, Turdus migratorius, winter|

Personally, I love to see American Robins any time of the year and to watch them searching for prey. Common? Yes, but delightful too.

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Veterans Day 2014

By Mia McPherson|2018-01-07T05:07:37-06:00November 11th, 2014|Categories: Bald Eagles, Birds, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: adult, bird photography, birds, birds of prey, Davis County, flight, flying, raptors|

Words will never fully be enough when I think about the sacrifices our Veterans have made for our country.

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Sandwich Tern and a pastel sky

By Mia McPherson|2016-12-07T12:08:52-06:00October 11th, 2014|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Sandwich Terns|Tags: adult, bird photography, birds, flight, flying, nature photography, Passerculus sandwichensis, pastel sky, Sandwich Tern|

I have tons of images I haven't processed and last week while searching for a Royal Tern to post I came across this Sandwich Tern I had taken in Florida in 2009.

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A Royal Bath

By Mia McPherson|2016-12-07T12:08:53-06:00October 5th, 2014|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Royal Terns|Tags: adult, bathing, bird photography, birds, breeding plumage, Gulf of Mexico, Royal Tern, splashing, Thalasseus maximus, wildlife photography|

These two bathing Royal Tern images remind me of the warm April morning when I spent time photographing different species splashing around in the Gulf of Mexico.

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