Jays, Crows and Allies

I Am Never NOT Looking For Birds

By |2024-03-16T13:31:50-05:00October 24th, 2020|Categories: American Crows, Birds, Cooper’s Hawks, Morgan County, Salt Lake County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

It does not matter where I am or what I am doing, I am never not looking for birds.

Kinglets And Turkeys Plus One Scrub-Jay

By |2023-01-11T17:41:55-06:00October 9th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Stansbury Mountains, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert, Wild Turkeys, Woodhouse's Scrub-Jays|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

The Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Wild Turkeys and the Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay made the very bumpy and extremely dusty ride into the mountain canyons well worth taking.

Black-billed Magpie Fledgling Perched In A Serviceberry

By |2024-03-02T03:42:25-06:00July 18th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Black-billed Magpies, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I liked this image of one of the fledgling Black-billed Magpies I photographed because of the serviceberry perch, the great eye contact I had with the young bird and its pose.

Mating Bald Eagles At East Canyon Reservoir Plus A Black-billed Magpie

By |2021-03-12T08:01:23-06:00March 17th, 2020|Categories: Bald Eagles, Birds, Black-billed Magpies, East Canyon State Park, Morgan County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I took eighty-four images of the Bald Eagle pair mating on the frozen reservoir and the entire time the magpie stood on the ice close to them.

Ten Years Of Photographing Nesting Black-billed Magpies At The Same Nest

By |2023-04-26T02:52:22-05:00February 28th, 2020|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Black-billed Magpies, Davis County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I am more than thrilled to once again observe and photograph nesting Black-billed Magpies using the same greasewood where I first photographed them almost ten years ago.

Black-billed Magpie Portrait In Whiteout Conditions

By |2021-03-25T06:34:18-05:00January 27th, 2020|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Black-billed Magpies, Davis County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I seem to be on a high key bird photo kick this month so I thought I would add one more of a Black-billed Magpie I photographed in a winter whiteout just a few days shy of four years ago.

My First Birds of 2020 – American Crows In A Grocery Store Parking Lot

By |2024-01-22T09:13:10-06:00January 2nd, 2020|Categories: American Crows, Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I always get excited about what the first bird will be that I see at the beginning of the new year and for two years in a row now my first birds of the year have been American Crows.

Immature Black-billed Magpies Flocking In The Wasatch Mountains

By |2024-03-02T03:29:25-06:00August 9th, 2019|Categories: Birds, Black-billed Magpies, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I was delighted to photograph the few immature Black-billed Magpies that were close to me and to observe those who were further away foraging and chasing each other around in a field dotted with wildflowers, grasses and sage.

Resting Black-billed Magpie Close Up On Antelope Island

By |2021-03-25T06:31:43-05:00March 25th, 2019|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Black-billed Magpies, Davis County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |

So far this year the only photo I've taken of the nest building magpies that I have liked is this close up of a resting Black-billed Magpie who was taking a break from looking for nesting materials.

Common Raven Close Ups On The Shoreline of the Great Salt Lake

By |2023-10-25T06:49:16-05:00March 16th, 2019|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Common Ravens, Davis County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

At first the Common Raven was near the side of the road but it moved down the rocks and got closer to the lake and where it poked around in the rocks.

Woodhouse’s Scrub-Jay Portrait in the Stansbury Mountains

By |2023-01-11T17:43:13-06:00September 13th, 2018|Categories: Birds, Stansbury Mountains, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert, Woodhouse's Scrub-Jays|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |

It isn't often that I am able to get close enough to a Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay that my only option is to take closeup portraits of them yet that is precisely what happened to me two days ago.

Some of the Birds That People Love to Hate

By |2024-04-19T04:49:37-05:00March 11th, 2018|Categories: American Crows, Birds, Black-billed Magpies, Brown-headed Cowbirds, Common Ravens, Double-crested Cormorants, European Starlings, Fish Crows, Florida, House Sparrows, Laughing Gulls, Mallards|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Okay, that is enough for now, there are more birds that people love to hate but I can only deal with so much of it before I feel the need to get out and photograph all the birds I see, even those that other people despise.

Black-billed Magpie On The Wing – Sideways

By |2021-03-25T07:21:15-05:00March 5th, 2018|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Black-billed Magpies, Davis County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , |

This Black-billed Magpie had been perched on the top of a leafless greasewood when it lifted off from it and flew almost directly towards me with its body and wings turned sideways in flight.

American Crows Feeding on Fish at Farmington Bay

By |2024-01-22T09:28:10-06:00March 2nd, 2018|Categories: American Crows, Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , |

Two days ago there were still numerous American Crows feeding on the carcasses of the carp at Farmington Bay and some of the crows were close enough to allow me to take frame filling images of these pure black birds.

American Crows at Farmington Bay WMA

By |2024-01-22T09:39:09-06:00February 12th, 2018|Categories: American Crows, Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Yesterday the American Crows hung around with the Bald Eagles, Herring, California and Ring-billed Gulls to feast on those invasive fish which gave me an opportunity to photograph this one standing on a dead carp.

Black-billed Magpie Juvenile Perched on a Sign on Antelope Island

By |2022-12-05T06:21:57-06:00July 28th, 2017|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Black-billed Magpies, Davis County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , |

There was a tribe of juvenile Black-billed Magpies on Antelope Island State Park yesterday down near White Rock Bay that were wandering around in the area near the Buffalo Point trailhead

American Crow Fledglings Riding The Rails

By |2022-02-17T14:47:53-06:00July 16th, 2017|Categories: American Crows, Birds, Clark County, Idaho|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

There were several fledglings on the rails but I liked how these two young American Crows were relatively close together and both looking the same direction, up the rails and to the north

Burrowing Owl Near Its Burrow Plus A Bonus Common Raven In Flight

By |2023-10-25T11:22:34-05:00March 23rd, 2017|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Burrowing Owls, Common Ravens, Davis County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

The best bird photography opportunity of the day happened when I spotted a Burrowing Owl near its burrow and I took advantage of the nice light to take quite a few images of the owl framed by grasses and blooming Red-stem Filaree.

Black-billed Magpie on the Rocks of Antelope Island

By |2024-01-18T14:24:05-06:00March 7th, 2017|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Black-billed Magpies, Davis County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

When I found a Black-billed Magpie on the rocks close to the road below Frary Peak I was happy to photograph it there.

Looking at 2016 in the Rear View Mirror or My Photographic Year in Review

By |2024-03-27T06:20:55-05:00December 31st, 2016|Categories: American Bitterns, American Pipits, Bald Eagles, Barn Owls, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Beaverhead County, Belted Kingfishers, Birds, Box Elder County, Burrowing Owls, Centennial Valley, Clark County, Davis County, Double-crested Cormorants, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Great Horned Owls, High Uintas, Hybrid Geese, Idaho, Leucistic, Montana, Peregrine Falcons, Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, Red-naped Sapsuckers, Red-tailed Hawks, Salt Lake County, Short-eared Owls, Summit County, Targhee National Forest, Tooele County, Turkey Vultures, Utah, Wayne County, Western Bluebirds, Wilson's Phalaropes, Woodhouse's Scrub-Jays, Yellow-bellied Marmots|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Wow, today is the last day of the year 2016. This is my photographic year in review from Utah, Idaho and Montana!

Common Goldeneyes plus one Common Raven

By |2023-10-25T09:57:18-05:00December 8th, 2016|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Common Goldeneyes, Common Ravens, Davis County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I had fun photographing the Common Raven and the Common Goldeneyes yesterday and even though the cold temps made my fingers numb, these birds were the highlight of my day.

Woodhouse’s Scrub-Jay – A Familiar Bird with a New Name

By |2023-01-12T03:15:40-06:00July 8th, 2016|Categories: Birds, Cascade Springs, Ophir Canyon, Tooele County, Uinta National Forest, Utah, Wasatch County, Woodhouse's Scrub-Jays|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

The long-awaited Scrub-Jay split has officially happened! Western Scrub-Jay can be crossed out in a our fields guides and the two new names California Scrub-Jay and Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay can be penciled in.

An Immature Black-billed Magpie in Flight

By |2021-11-09T05:12:55-06:00March 10th, 2016|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Black-billed Magpies, Davis County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I photographed this immature Black-billed Magpie in flight last September on Antelope Island State Park as it flew over a rabbitbrush that was just about to bloom.

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