Autumn Say’s Phoebe Photos

Say’s Phoebe perched on a nest box – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/2000, ISO 500, +1.3 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

Last week I was able to take Say’s Phoebe photos at Farmington Bay WMA on two different perches. The first was a nest box, and the second, a tall stick. I first found the phoebe on a nest box, where I was able to get close to the bird.

Autumn Say’s Phoebe at Farmington Bay – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/2000, ISO 500, +1.3 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

I appreciated how beautiful the sky was that morning, though I might have preferred some background clouds to break up the blue sky. In the Salt Lake Valley, that doesn’t happen frequently. For once, there was no smoke and no indication of an inversion.

Inquisitive Say’s Phoebe – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/2000, ISO 500, +1.3 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

The Say’s Phoebe seemed to like perching on top of the nest box, and it may have been curious about my lens because it looked directly at me several times.

Two European Starlings flew in and chased the phoebe off the perch not long after I took this photo.

Say’s Phoebe perched on a stick – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/800, ISO 500, +1.3 EV, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light

The phoebe flew about 75 to 100 feet to the east, so I moved my Jeep to get closer and tried to get a good angle of light. I moved my vehicle forward as far as I dared and took another series of images of the bird on a stick.

The phoebe was chased off the stick by the starlings, who also made sure it didn’t stay there for very long. The starlings were cursed and not under my breath. Despite the starlings harassing the phoebe, I was thrilled to bring home these pictures.

Life is good.

Mia

Click here to view more of my Say’s Phoebe photos plus facts and information about this species.