The memories of photographing this Turkey Vulture that spring morning have made me feel excited because these vultures are heading north now and soon I will have them in my viewfinder again.
Yesterday I was able to photograph a Wild Turkey hen in sage. Not culinary sage but the wild sage we have here in northern Utah.
The comparisons I have made between juvenile, immature and adult Sage Thrashers are basic, there are more ways to determine their age but I wanted to keep the comparisons simple.
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.
I also heard but didn't see my first of year Greater Yellowlegs and although their calls aren't as melodic as those of Savannah Sparrows it was still music to my ears.
I took this photo of an adult male Red-winged Blackbird taking off this morning with the distant snow covered Promontory Mountains in the background.
It is almost time for me to see a seasonal switch of raptors here in northern Utah because the Rough-legged Hawks will leaving and the Swainson's will arrive soon.
I did find a sub-adult Bald Eagle resting on the ice on the last leg of the refuge loop and even though it was at a distance I wanted to photograph it because of the marshy habitat it was in.
I've been busy the past few days and haven't been able to get out into the field but that hasn't stopped me from thinking of spring, green fields, warm sunlight on my skin, and Short-eared Owls.
Yesterday I shared a photo of a Bald Eagle resting on the icy marsh at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and this morning I am sharing a Canada Goose doing exactly the same thing.
Three days ago I photographed an adult Bald Eagle resting on the frost-covered, icy marsh at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge in northern Utah.
No matter how these Golden Eagle photos came to be I am happy to have photographed this magnificent bird on the wing.
When I was at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge three days ago I realized that in just a few weeks the Clark's and Western Grebes will be returning to the marshes for their breeding season.
The Great Blue Herons were hunkered down in the rushes with the warmth of the sunlight on them but they still looked cold.
In about the span of minute all of the Wild Turkeys had flown off of the bales of hay because of that noisy, diesel pickup truck being so close to them.
These Great Blue Heron images also help me to "see" what this species would have looked like as they lived their lives in primordial swamps, estuaries and marshes hundreds of thousands of years ago.
After reviewing the images I took of the gull at home on a larger screen I was happy to see that it was a Herring Gull, gulls we only see in the winter here.
These foggy Great Blue Heron photos are probably the foggiest images in my portfolio and despite that I truly like how they turned out.
I keep wondering if I will see this big, gorgeous, rufous Red-tailed Hawk female in my viewfinder again this year.
When I spotted an adult Red-tailed Hawk on one of the pieces of rusty machinery two days ago on my way home from the auto tour route at the refuge I knew I had to get some photos of it.
There were plenty of Great Blue Herons to photograph yesterday morning at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and I was more than happy to take photos of them.
I could wish that there weren't any branches in front of the hawk but honestly it just felt good to not have something happen to ruin my opportunity to photograph this Rough-legged Hawk.
I know some people don't get excited about gulls but I do and I was thrilled two days ago at Bear River MBR when I spotted and photographed my first Herring Gulls of this winter season.
Yesterday morning I spent time focusing on photographing Great Blue Herons on the frozen marshes of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.
While this male American Kestrel struggled to maintain his grip on the thin branches of the Tamarisk I struggled to keep him in my viewfinder.
Anyone who knows me at all knows that I think about birds a lot. I think about birds in the morning, at noon, before the sun goes down and I even dream about them at night.
Knowing what kind of habitat Ferruginous Hawks prefer during all four seasons here in northern Utah can increase the chances of finding them year round.
Wherever you are, whatever holidays you celebrate if you celebrate at all, I wish you joy, peace and hope that you will feel the love of your family and friends today and every day.
So if you don't enjoy the craziness that can happen at Farmington Bay WMA when the Bald Eagles arrive for the winter just pick an area and go for a relaxed drive to another location.
Two days ago when I stopped counting Rough-legged Hawks while at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge the number had topped out at fifteen.