During the breeding season even the inside of the mouths of Double-crested Cormorants show changes, the lining inside their mouths turns into a deep, electric or cobalt blue.
I only had this Spotted Sandpiper in my view for about 24 seconds and I'd say more than half of that was spent flying around so I am glad that I was able to take this photo at all.
Two days ago while near the Weber River up in Summit County I heard a familiar sound and I knew from that sound that a Spotted Sandpiper was nearby.
I haven't seen or photographed White-faced Ibis perched in the nearly ten years that I have lived here so I was thrilled to have my first opportunity to do so yesterday at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.
The day I came home from camping in the West Desert the first bird calls I heard were from several Caspian Terns in flight overhead that were squabbling and diving at each other.
This White-faced Ibis had been feeding in the shallow water and had gotten its head soaking wet right before I photographed it and the ibis was in the process of getting ready to shake the water from its head feathers.
On my visit to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge last week I didn't see large numbers of American White Pelicans but at this time of the year that is understandable because many of them are probably nesting on Gunnison Island right now.
I have plenty of photos of Clark's, Western and Pied-billed Grebes but few of Eared Grebes and I am hoping that this breeding season I will be able to have more of these small grebes in my viewfinder.
The birds we observe, learn from and photograph care naught for the constrictions of our human calendars instead they listen to ancient, instinctual rhythms inside themselves.
This image of a splashing and bathing Royal Tern in a Florida lagoon was taken nearly ten years ago and I'd never processed it until today.
While I had the Sandhill Crane and the Ring-billed Gulls in my view finder I heard a call and it only took a second for my brain to figure out that I was hearing a Franklin's Gull which surprised me because it was at the refuge much earlier than I have ever seen one there before.
During the winter I'm able to see some of the ducks that I don't see during the breeding season here in northern Utah on the Jordan River including Common Goldeneyes.
The birds I photographed the most yesterday were a pair of Hooded Mergansers that were actively foraging for prey most of the time I had them in my viewfinder.
By sharing these photos today my intention is to show that there are times when photographic rules can be broken because the appeal of images or the lack of appeal is all about the individual tastes of the photographer taking the photos and those of the people that view them.
I took this photo two winters ago on the local pond and I liked it because even though the view of the drake Common Merganser was taken of its back the merganser turned his head and gave me a great view of his eye.
In just a few weeks the White-faced Ibis that are in breeding plumage right now will begin to molt into their nonbreeding plumage and I thought this might be a good time to show some of the differences.
Imagine a bird whose bright yellow feathers rival the rays of the sun then add a black forehead, ebony eyes, black and white wings and you have a male American Goldfinch in breeding plumage. Feathered sunshine.
Eight days ago it was sunny and bright and I was out having fun photographing a pair of foraging American Avocets in breeding plumage at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge in northern Utah.
When it comes to small birds like Yellow-rumped Warblers I prefer photographing them in clean habitats over cluttered habitats because the small birds stand out better when the background isn't so messy.
White-faced Ibis are abundant at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge during their breeding season and they can be easily seen from the 12 mile, self-guided auto tour route feeding in the water impoundments or flying in loose flocks overhead.
My best bird photos yesterday were of a stunning Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon's) male in breeding plumage that I photographed as he foraged in tree next to the road.
Two days ago I noticed one Pied-billed Grebe carrying vegetation in its bill which I presume it was gathering to build its floating nest at a small pond at Farmington Bay WMA and later on I heard the call of a Pied-billed Grebe, located the grebe and photographed it as it called.
I've been seeing Redheads at my local pond over the winter but most of the time they have stayed on the other side of the pond so having this one up a bit closer and flapping his wings was a delight.
As much as I like the first photo where the Ring-billed Gull has its wings spread and its feet still in the water I like the second photo even more because of the action and how the bird is suspended over the water.
I like how both these two American Wigeon photos turned out even though they were taken in different lighting conditions, they are both pleasing to my eye.
It is hard to figure out who is the lucky duck here, the Common Goldeneye for catching the crayfish or me for seeing the duck with the crayfish and photographing it.
One of the drake Common Mergansers I saw yesterday flew over the pond and past me close enough for me to take two photos of it up close in the late evening light.
Redhead drakes are more colorful than the hens and I always enjoy having them in my viewfinder because of their cinnamon colored heads, their bright orange eyes and their tri-colored bills.
Immature or adult, dark or white morph, Reddish Egrets are spectacular and fascinating wading birds to see, observe and photograph.
Back in February there was still snow on the ground, ice on the water and Common Mergansers were at Farmington Bay WMA and some were sporting their breeding plumage.