I saw a low of 15°F yesterday morning up in the East Canyon of the Wasatch Mountains and I also saw plenty of Red-tailed Hawk adults perched in trees and flying along the way.

Autumn adult Red-tailed Hawk perched in an aspen, Wasatch Mountains, East Canyon, Morgan County, UtahAutumn adult Red-tailed Hawk perched in an aspen – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/2000, ISO 800, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited

I struggled with heat wave distortion a lot yesterday morning and I was disappointed in the quality of many of the photos I took because of that. These two photos of adult Red-tailed Hawks in the East Canyon were fine and didn’t seem affected by the heat wave distortion.

In the immediate area where this adult Red-tailed Hawk was perched in an Aspen I could see six other red tails hanging around in the trees and hillsides. I love the view of the red tail of this hawk but I am not so sure about the cluttered setting.

East Canyon Red-tailed Hawk adult, Wasatch Mountains, Morgan County, UtahEast Canyon Red-tailed Hawk adult – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/2500, ISO 800, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited

I like the setting and clean background of this Red-tailed Hawk image more than I do the previous photo but I wish the red tail was more visible. The background is distant mountains with some Gambel’s Oaks that have changed colors because of the cooler temps.

I did see some snow up close in the mountains. The weather is changing quickly here and I actually had to wear my fleece under layers to stay warm.

Life is good.

Mia

Click here to see more of my Red-tailed Hawk photos plus facts and information about this species.