predators – Mia McPherson's On The Wing Photography

Coyote and Black-billed Magpies Scavenging to Survive

By Mia McPherson|2023-12-29T07:48:09-06:00December 29th, 2015|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Black-billed Magpies, Coyotes, Davis County, Utah|Tags: Black-billed Magpie, Canis latrans, carcass, carrion, Coyote, deer, ecosystem, food, food web, harsh, magpie, magpies, opportunistic, Pica hudsonia, predators, scavenger, scavengers, Scavenging, snow, survive, winter|

One year ago today I found, pointed out and photographed a Coyote and Black-billed Magpies scavenging a deer carcass to survive on Antelope Island State Park.

Ghost Crab at Fort De Soto County Park

By Mia McPherson|2021-06-10T04:16:44-05:00December 6th, 2015|Categories: Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Ghost Crabs, Pinellas County, Wildlife|Tags: beach, burrows, carrion, coast, coastal, crab, crabs, eyes, eyestalks, Ghost Crab, gills, Gulf Coast, Gulf of Mexico, intertidal areas, marine animals, Ocypode quadrata, Ocypodinae, predators, prey, sand, sea life, water, water's edge, waves|

I am not sure why this particular Ghost Crab was out of its burrow during the day but I was happy that I had the opportunity to photograph it.

One Willet’s defense of its young

By Mia McPherson|2021-04-25T10:41:35-05:00July 16th, 2011|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Black-billed Magpies, Davis County, Utah, Willets|Tags: adult, aerial defense, alarmed, Bird behavior, Black-billed Magpie, calling, chicks, defense, defensive, flight, flying, grasses, Great Salt Lake, juveniles, magpie, magpies, perched, Pica hudsonia, prairie grasses, predators, response, sandpipers, shorebirds, threat, Tringa semipalmata, Tringa semipalmata inornata, wildlife, Willet, willets, young|

Yesterday I observed an adult Willet defending its young from a group of Black-billed Magpies that were near the Willet's chicks.