New World Sparrows are seed eating passerine birds with conical bills.
I heard the male Green-tailed Towhee before I could see him perched on the weathered post with lichens on the top so a view of him was no surprise for me.
The Song Sparrow didn't let the gray clouds overhead, the moisture in the air or its damp feathers stop it from singing to all the other birds within earshot. I have to admire that.
One year ago today I "whooped" out loud when I spotted my first of the year Green-tailed Towhee singing as he perched in top of a sagebrush.
Yesterday I had a blast photographing a pair of Mountain Bluebirds at a natural nesting cavity at the edge of a forest along with some other woodland birds.
Earlier this month I spotted my first of year Vesper Sparrow way up north in Box Elder County and since then I have been looking for them closer to home in the Wasatch Mountains.
I had nice morning light and angled my Jeep so the distant, snowy Promontory Mountains were in the background when I photographed this Song Sparrow singing.
When I look at this White-crowned Sparrow portrait I can count the orbital feathers of the bottom portion of the bird's eye and the rictal bristles near the bill.
I probably see Song Sparrows more often and in more habitats than any other sparrow species here in Utah. I am delighted by that.
Small birds like these White-crowned Sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos and American Goldfinches need cover that provides safety for them from predators.
I photographed some sparrows, goldfinches, juncos, and this lovely male Spotted Towhee that was eating the fruit of a Fragrant Sumac tree.
As common as Dark-eyed Juncos are I have surprisingly few photos of them in my galleries and that is why I get excited when I can add a new photo of them to my portfolio.
I photographed this adult White-crowned Sparrow about two weeks ago in northern Utah while it perched on a hackberry tree on a hill with blooming rabbitbrush in the background.
Usually when I see and photograph Savannah Sparrows they are on barbed wire, fence posts, railings or on the ground so seeing a Savannah on rocks was a nice change for me.
Even though I came home with very few photos I'm still glad I went wandering. I had great views, sunshine, birds to delight my eyes and ears and I soaked it all up like a thirsty sponge.
When autumn arrives White-crowned Sparrows are one of the sparrow species that I look forward to photographing at Farmington Bay WMA each year as they move down to lower elevations.
Sometimes the colors of in a photo I have taken are what pleases me and draws me in even if my subject is small in the frame, in this case my subject was an adult White-crowned Sparrow.
I was in the high Uinta Mountains near Washington Lake when I spotted this young Dark-eyed Junco and I was able to take a few images of it before it flew away.
I was glad to have so many immature Song Sparrows in my viewfinder that were out in the open on the ground and perched up higher.
The light wasn't great when I took this image of a juvenile Song Sparrow perched in a thicket last year but these little ones don't seem to spend a lot of time in the open right after they fledge so I was happy with the photo.
This was the first immature Green-tailed Towhee I have seen this breeding season and I am hoping that it won't be the last one I photograph this year.
Just a few days ago I was listening to Song Sparrows singing on the East Coast and yesterday I was listening to them singing in a canyon in the Wasatch Mountains of northern Utah.
Just seconds after I took this photo I think the Song Sparrow decided it had had enough of the wind because it took off and left the bouncy serviceberry perch.
I truly wish that I had been able to photograph this adult Green-tailed Towhee in this Golden Currant bush while is was in full bloom because that would have been gorgeous with all the tiny yellow flowers.
Looking beyond the viewfinder paid off for me because if I hadn't done just that I would have missed seeing and photographing this Green-tailed Towhee.
While I know that for some people this Green-tailed Towhee image might be a "little out there" for their tastes and personal preferences I don't photograph birds for them, I photograph birds for me.
May is a time of renewal at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and as the marsh begins to green up the migrant birds return and along with the year round residents their songs and calls can be heard over the wetlands.
The gems of my photographic journey yesterday morning were Broad-tailed Hummingbirds that were hanging around a Wax Currant bush next to the dirt road where the sounds of their wings alerted me to their presence.
To my surprise when the Vesper Sparrow lifted off it flew onto the top of another sagebrush that was even closer to me which was nearly perfect for taking portraits of the sparrow and I took full advantage of the opportunity.
When mom and I found this adult Green-tailed Towhee singing while perched on a blooming Utah Serviceberry of course we had to stop and take its photo!
The first ID features I noticed yesterday with this Vesper Sparrow were the bright, white eyerings and the rufous lesser coverts and I could make my ID from just those two features.