blackbirds

Hatch Year Male Red-winged Blackbird

By |2021-12-03T05:38:44-06:00December 3rd, 2021|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Red-winged Blackbirds, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Two days ago I spent just a few moments focused on a hatch year male Red-winged Blackbird perched in an Russian Olive tree near Glover Pond here in northern Utah.

Changes At Farmington Bay WMA And Glover Pond

By |2023-03-17T07:01:20-05:00October 8th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Brewer's Blackbirds, Conservation, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Every year when I make my first trip to Farmington Bay WMA in the fall I dread the changes that inevitably happen.

Male Yellow-headed Blackbird On A Rock

By |2024-03-22T05:36:22-05:00April 16th, 2021|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Utah, Yellow-headed Blackbirds|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

On Monday while at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge one of the first birds I photographed was a male Yellow-headed Blackbird resting on a rock.

Spring Yellow-headed Blackbird Male Photos

By |2024-03-22T06:00:27-05:00April 6th, 2021|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Utah, Yellow-headed Blackbirds|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I was at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge yesterday morning and came home with some spring Yellow-headed Blackbird photos I am happy with.

Male Red-winged Blackbirds Are Singing

By |2021-02-01T06:51:34-06:00February 1st, 2021|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Red-winged Blackbirds, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I drove to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge yesterday morning where I heard male Red-winged Blackbirds singing in the marsh.

2020 Photographic Year In Review

By |2024-04-04T16:03:29-05:00December 31st, 2020|Categories: Bald Eagles, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, Bushtits, Common Loons, Cooper’s Hawks, Desert Tarantulas, Eastern Kingbirds, Elk, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Ferruginous Hawks, Golden Eagles, Gray Catbirds, Great Blue Herons, Green Herons, Green-tailed Towhees, Merlins, Mountain Bluebirds, Nashville Warblers, Northern Harriers, Pine Siskins, Red Foxes, Red-breasted Nuthatches, Red-tailed Hawks, Ring-billed Gulls, Rusty Blackbirds, Short-eared Owls, Townsend's Solitaires, Uinta Ground Squirrels, Utah, Wasatch Mountains, West Desert, Wild Turkeys, Wildflowers, Yellow Warblers|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

This is my 2020 photographic year in review. I'm selecting some of my favorite photos from 2020 and a few that just make me happy to see them.

Finding Two Uncommon Birds In One Week – Rusty Blackbird And Common Grackle

By |2023-11-30T03:43:46-06:00December 5th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Common Grackles, Davis County, Rusty Blackbirds, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Finding two uncommon birds this week at the same olive tree really has me buzzed and to finally see a Rusty Blackbird has made me feel like jumping over the moon.

Brewer’s Blackbird Males Are Colorful In The Right Light

By |2022-06-18T07:24:31-05:00November 1st, 2020|Categories: Birds, Brewer's Blackbirds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

In the right light Brewer's Blackbird males are very colorful because their feathers glow with blue, green, and purple iridescence.

Male Brewer’s Blackbird And Thoughts On Changes

By |2021-05-10T07:07:38-05:00September 19th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Brewer's Blackbirds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

I look at this seasonal change as a personal challenge to grow, to adapt and to meet my bird photography goals. I'm looking forward to the challenges and changes ahead.

Female Brown-headed Cowbird In A Serviceberry

By |2024-04-19T04:40:33-05:00June 17th, 2020|Categories: Beaverhead County, Birds, Brown-headed Cowbirds, Centennial Valley, Montana, Morgan County, Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, Savannah Sparrows, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Three days ago one of the birds that the Song Sparrows chased off was an adult female Brown-headed Cowbird that landed on a serviceberry in front of me.

Adult Male Red-winged Blackbird Take Off

By |2024-03-01T05:12:50-06:00March 4th, 2020|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Red-winged Blackbirds, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I took this photo of an adult male Red-winged Blackbird taking off this morning with the distant snow covered Promontory Mountains in the background.

Male Red-winged Blackbirds Are Displaying On Territory

By |2024-03-15T05:47:23-05:00February 22nd, 2020|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Red-winged Blackbirds, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Two days ago there were plenty of male Red-winged Blackbirds singing and putting on displays in the marshy areas of Farmington Bay WMA.

Immature Male Red-winged Blackbird

By |2022-02-24T04:52:00-06:00October 22nd, 2019|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Red-winged Blackbirds, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I photographed this young male Red-winged Blackbird singing at the top of a Russian olive tree at Farmington Bay WMA nine days ago.

Male Brewer’s Blackbird Close Up

By |2022-06-18T07:25:32-05:00October 12th, 2019|Categories: Birds, Brewer's Blackbirds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Yesterday morning I was able to take close up images of a male Brewer's Blackbird in the kind of light that showed all of its beautiful iridescent colors with the silky blue water of a pond in the background.

Male Red-winged Blackbird On A Sunflower Perch

By |2021-04-07T04:11:59-05:00October 2nd, 2019|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Red-winged Blackbirds, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |

Autumn is a time when the seeds of many plants that the Red-winged Blackbirds feed upon have ripened and the birds are taking full advantage of the season's bounty and spend a large part of their days foraging.

Five Male Yellow-headed Blackbird Images From The Marsh At Bear River MBR

By |2024-03-22T05:06:15-05:00May 29th, 2019|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Utah, Yellow-headed Blackbirds|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I wanted to share a five image series of a male Yellow-headed Blackbird that I photographed in the marshes of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge this morning that I took the second week of May.

Female Yellow-headed Blackbird Foraging On The Ground At Bear River MBR

By |2024-03-22T06:24:35-05:00May 16th, 2019|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Utah, Yellow-headed Blackbirds|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |

The fore and background of this image may be messy or cluttered looking but I love the way this photo shows the female Yellow-headed Blackbird in the habitat I find them in at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.

Red-winged Blackbird Male Singing In January

By |2021-03-07T04:23:53-06:00January 31st, 2019|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Red-winged Blackbirds, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , |

It has been nearly a year since I posted any photos of Red-winged Blackbirds and since I took photos of a cooperative, sticky male yesterday I thought I should rectify that situation and share two photos here this morning.

Male Brewer’s Blackbird On A Fence Post With Fall Colors

By |2021-05-10T07:14:57-05:00November 1st, 2018|Categories: Birds, Brewer's Blackbirds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Two days ago I had a male Brewer's Blackbird in my viewfinder near Glover Pond in Davis County, I photographed him as he perched on a fence post with fall colors in the background.

Feathers & Fur – Short-eared Owl, Shaking Brewer’s Blackbird and a Curious Long-tailed Weasel

By |2023-10-02T18:26:37-05:00October 25th, 2018|Categories: Birds, Brewer's Blackbirds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Long-tailed Weasels, Short-eared Owls, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

So it wasn't a great morning but it wasn't all that bad either because I was able to focus on a Short-eared Owl, Brewer's Blackbirds and one curious Long-tailed Weasel.

Autumn Male Brewer’s Blackbird shaking after preening

By |2021-05-10T07:20:47-05:00October 18th, 2018|Categories: Birds, Brewer's Blackbirds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

A male Brewer's Blackbird had been preening on a fence post when he started to shake his feathers and that action sure showed his iridescent plumage off nicely.

Male Brewer’s Blackbird Bathing and Splashing Water

By |2022-06-18T06:52:18-05:00October 13th, 2018|Categories: Birds, Brewer's Blackbirds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

The Brewer's Blackbird seemed to be really throwing himself into his bath as he splashed around, dipping his head into the water then shaking his entire body as his head rose above the water.

Male Great-tailed Grackle in Low Light Plus Battery Issues

By |2022-03-15T15:28:09-05:00May 24th, 2018|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Great-tailed Grackles, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Even though the light yesterday morning wasn't optimal for bird photography I took my Mom to the Farmington Bay WMA area to show her around there, we only made it as far as Glover Pond though.

Springtime Yellow-headed Blackbird Male

By |2024-03-22T06:28:20-05:00March 29th, 2018|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Utah, Yellow-headed Blackbirds|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

Yellow-head Blackbirds made their presence known at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge two days ago by displaying and because of their odd mechanical calls that sound like a rusty metal gate opening and closing.

Spread-eagle Red-winged Blackbird at Fort De Soto County Park

By |2023-11-05T04:37:27-06:00February 23rd, 2018|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Pinellas County, Red-winged Blackbirds|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |

In Florida I most often photographed Red-winged Blackbirds at north beach of Fort De Soto County Park where I could reliably find them in the sand dunes, sea oats, spartina and mangroves all year long.

Female Brewer’s Blackbird With Light Colored Eyes?

By |2021-05-10T07:24:00-05:00November 12th, 2017|Categories: Birds, Brewer's Blackbirds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |

Within the flock of blackbirds there was a female Brewer's Blackbird that drew my attention to her because she had light colored eyes and stood out from the other females that were nearby.

Female Red-winged Blackbird Eating Wild Sunflower Seeds In Autumn

By |2021-04-10T03:32:12-05:00November 11th, 2017|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Davis County, Red-winged Blackbirds, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |

Many species of birds on Antelope Island State Park are pigging out on wild sunflower seeds at this time of the year including Red-winged Blackbirds.

Autumn Brewer’s Blackbirds

By |2022-06-18T06:50:44-05:00October 23rd, 2017|Categories: Birds, Brewer's Blackbirds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I always have fun photographing Brewer's Blackbirds even though they are a challenge to expose properly, it is precisely that challenge that keeps me on my toes.

Juvenile Red-winged Blackbird Male Diving Towards The Ground

By |2021-04-10T03:34:10-05:00October 19th, 2017|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Davis County, Red-winged Blackbirds, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

The plumage of male juvenile Red-winged Blackbirds is highly variable during their first year, some of the young blackbirds can look like females and some can look more like adult males.

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