female – Mia McPherson's On The Wing Photography

Dark and light morph Red-tailed Hawk Photos

By Mia McPherson|2021-10-09T06:00:23-05:00October 9th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, autumn, birds of prey, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, cliff, cliff face, dark morph, desert, fall, female, flight, flying, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, lichen, lichen covered, lift off, light morph, male, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, resting, take off|

I almost missed finding this adult dark morph Red-tailed Hawk last Sunday because when I first spotted the hawk he was behind a tree in dark shadows but I recognized the shape and form of the raptor.

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Summer Dragonflies And Butterflies At Bear River MBR

By Mia McPherson|2021-09-29T10:46:39-05:00August 26th, 2021|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Blue-eyed Darner Dragonflies, Box Elder County, Clouded Sulphur Butterflies, Purplish Copper Butterflies, Utah|Tags: adult, bloom, blooming, Blue-eyed Darner, butterflies, butterfly, Clouded Sulphur, Colias philodice, Common Sunflower, copper, coppers, copulating, dragonflies, dragonfly, female, Helianthus annuus, Lycaena helloides, male, marsh, mating, nectaring, pair, Purplish Copper, Rhionaeschna multicolor, sky, sulphur, sulphurs, summer, sunflower, sunflowers, wetlands, wildflowers, yellow wildflowers|

Today I am sharing some of the dragonflies and butterflies I've found at Bear River MBR in the summer.

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Female Great Spangled Fritillary Butterfly

By Mia McPherson|2021-07-22T05:10:41-05:00July 22nd, 2021|Categories: Great Spangled Fritillary Butterflies, Morgan County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: adult, Argynnis cybele, Black twinberry honeysuckle, butterflies, butterfly, canyon, Carduus nutans, female, forest, fritillaries, fritillary, Great Spangled Fritillary, honeysuckle, honeysuckles, Lonicera involucrata, mountains, Musk Thistle, nectaring, nonnative, pink wildflowers, summer, thistle, thistles, wildflowers|

This is a female Great Spangled Fritillary, a butterfly species that can be abundant in the Wasatch Mountains at this time of the year.

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Antelope Island Spider Fest 2021

By Mia McPherson|2021-07-11T10:06:02-05:00July 11th, 2021|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah, Western Spotted Orbweaver|Tags: 2021, adult, desert island, female, Neoscona oaxacensis, orbweaver, orbweavers, spider, Spider Fest, Spider Festival, spider web, spiders, summer, Western Spotted Orbweaver|

The Antelope Island Spider Fest starts on August 2, 2021 and continues through August 7, 2021 this year.

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Female Spotted Sandpiper Post-coital Photo

By Mia McPherson|2021-07-02T05:30:41-05:00July 2nd, 2021|Categories: Birds, Spotted Sandpipers, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: Actitis macularia, adult, aerial chase, behavior, breeding behavior, breeding display, canyon, creek, female, ground chase, mating, mating behavior, mountains, one wing up, post copulation, post-coital, postcoital, posture, sandpiper, sandpipers, shore, shorebirds, Spotted Sandpiper, summer, water|

What intrigued me the most was the post-coital posture of the female Spotted Sandpiper where she kept one wing raised for a long period of time.

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Western Kingbird Attempting To Take Over A Bullock’s Oriole Nest

By Mia McPherson|2022-11-14T05:32:15-06:00June 15th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Bullock's Orioles, Utah, Western Kingbirds|Tags: adult, behavior, Bullock's Oriole, Celtis reticulata, desert, down, entering, female, Icterus bullockii, interactions, kingbird, kingbirds, nest, nest take over, Netleaf Hackberry, oriole, orioles, spring, Tyrannus verticalis, tyrant flycatchers, Western Kingbird|

At times I see some odd things in the field and two days ago that was what appeared to be a Western Kingbird attempting to take over a Bullock's Oriole nest.

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Female Brown-headed Cowbird And Willow Catkins

By Mia McPherson|2024-04-19T04:34:03-05:00June 9th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Brown-headed Cowbirds, East Canyon, Morgan County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: adult, brood parasites, Brown-headed Cowbird, canyon, catkins, cowbird, cowbirds, female, interspecific brood parasites, Molothrus ater, mountains, perched, pussywillows, riparian habitat, spring, willow, willows|

Late last month I photographed this female Brown-headed Cowbird surrounded by willow catkins in East Canyon in the Wasatch Mountains.

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Spring Female Black-chinned Hummingbird Photos

By Mia McPherson|2021-06-07T04:58:33-05:00June 7th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Black-chinned Hummingbirds, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: adult, Archilochus alexandri, Black Twin Berry, Black twinberry honeysuckle, Black-chinned Hummingbird, canyon, feeding, female, honeysuckle, honeysuckles, hovering, hummingbird, hummingbirds, Lonicera involucrata, mountains, nectaring, resting, riparian habitat, spring, willows|

I took my first Black-chinned Hummingbird of the year photos in the middle of May but it wasn't until the end of the month that I took some that I liked.

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Female Black-chinned Hummingbird And A Knothole

By Mia McPherson|2021-05-28T05:24:26-05:00May 28th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Black-chinned Hummingbirds, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, Archilochus alexandri, behavior, Black-chinned Hummingbird, canyon, female, flight, flying, forest, hummingbird, knothole, mountains, sky island mountains, spring, tree, trees|

Yesterday while out in the sky island mountains of the West Desert I spotted a female Black-chinned Hummingbird repeatedly checking out a knothole in a tree.

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Violet-green Swallow Photos

By Mia McPherson|2021-05-27T04:56:39-05:00May 27th, 2021|Categories: Uncategorized|Tags: adult, alpine forest, branch, branches, canyon, female, flight, flying, forest, guarding, male, mountains, nesting cavity, scuffling, sky, sky island mountains, spring, swallow, swallows, Tachycineta thalassina, Tooele County, tree, trees, tussling, Utah, Violet-green Swallow, west desert|

Yesterday I was able to take the Violet-green Swallow photos that I have been dreaming of since I first moved to Utah in 2009.

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Spring Female Cassin’s Finch

By Mia McPherson|2021-05-21T06:23:24-05:00May 21st, 2021|Categories: Birds, Cassin's Finches, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, alpine creek, branches, canyon, Cassin's Finch, creek, creekside, female, finch, finches, Haemorhous cassinii, mountains, paying attention, sky island mountains, spring, willows|

When this female Cassin's Finch landed next to a creek two days ago in the West Desert I was happy to take her photo.

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Bluebells, Currants, Warblers And A Duck

By Mia McPherson|2021-05-15T05:59:28-05:00May 15th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Mallards, Morgan County, Shrubs, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains, Wildflowers, Yellow Warblers|Tags: adult, alpine, Anas platyrhynchos, bath, bathing, beaver damage, bloom, blooming, blossoms, blue wildflowers, branch, branches, canyon, creek, creekside, currant, currants, dabbling ducks, drake, duck, ducks, female, flowering, flowers, fork, Golden Currant, male, Mallard, mallards, Mertensia ciliata, Mountain Bluebells, mountains, perched, pink wildflowers, purple wildflowers, Ribes aureum, riparian zone, Setophaga petechia, shrub, singing, spring, stump, tapestry, warbler, warblers, water, water droplets, wildflowers, Yellow Warbler, yellow wildflowers|

I spent my morning up in the Wasatch Mountains yesterday and came home with photos of bluebells, currants, warblers, and a duck.

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Dreaming Of Mountain Bluebirds

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-29T09:15:33-05:00April 24th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Mountain Bluebirds, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: bluebird, bluebirds, canyon, female, male, Mountain Bluebird, mountains, Sialia currucoides, sky, sky island mountains, thrush, thrushes, tree, Utah|

I woke up this morning dreaming of Mountain Bluebirds so I thought I would share two images of them from previous springs.

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Red-naped Sapsucker Photos

By Mia McPherson|2021-04-11T06:10:38-05:00April 11th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Clark County, Idaho, Modoc Creek, Red-naped Sapsuckers, Summit County, Targhee National Forest, Uinta National Forest, Utah|Tags: adult, aspen, begging, calls, chick, drumming, female, fledgling, forest, immature, leaving, male, nest, nesting, nesting cavity, nesting season, nesting tree, Red-naped Sapsucker, sapsucker, sapsuckers, Sphyrapicus nuchalis, woodpecker, woodpeckers, young|

This morning I wanted to share a few Red-naped Sapsucker photos I have taken while in gorgeous alpine forests of Idaho and Utah.

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Female Red-winged Blackbird Munching A Midge

By Mia McPherson|2021-04-07T04:53:23-05:00April 7th, 2021|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Red-winged Blackbirds, Utah|Tags: adult, Agelaius phoeniceus, blackbird, blackbirds, female, marsh, midge, munching, phragmites, phrags, Red-winged Blackbird, spring, wetlands|

What I liked about this photo was that I caught the female Red-winged Blackbird with her bill open while she was munching on a midge.

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Utah’s Ospreys Are Back For Their Nesting Season

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-14T16:28:36-05:00April 1st, 2021|Categories: Birds, Daggett County, Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area, Florida, Honeymoon Island State Park, Ospreys, Pinellas County, Utah|Tags: adult, branch, female, Fish Hawk, Flaming Gorge Reservoir, Florida, male, nest, nesting platform, nesting season, Osprey, ospreys, Pandion haliaetus, perched, raptor, Sea Hawk, watchful|

I was hoping to find my first of the year Swainson's Hawks yesterday but instead I spotted my first of year Ospreys.

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Mated Red-tailed Hawk Pair

By Mia McPherson|2021-03-22T05:33:30-05:00March 22nd, 2021|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, birds of prey, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteo jamaicensis calurus, cliff, cliff face, female, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, light morph, male, mated pair, mates, morning light, nesting material, pair, perched, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk|

Last week I spotted and photographed a mated Red-tailed Hawk pair on the branches of a tree in front of a cliff in early morning light.

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Spring Wild Turkey Tom Displays

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-21T16:09:24-05:00March 17th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert, Wild Turkeys|Tags: breeding display, courtship display, display, displaying, female, grasses, hen, junipers, male, Meleagris gallopavo, mountains, plumage variation, smoke phase, spring, strutting, tom, turkey, turkeys, upland game birds, Wild Turkey|

The last time I was up in the Wasatch Mountains I found a Wild Turkey tom displaying next to some old farm equipment for the nearby hens.

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Female Belted Kingfisher – March Birds I Look For

By Mia McPherson|2021-03-04T06:20:08-06:00March 4th, 2021|Categories: Belted Kingfishers, Birds, Salt Lake County, Utah|Tags: adult, Belted Kingfisher, branch, call, calling, female, kingfisher, kingfishers, Megaceryle alcyon, rattling, sky, tree|

I photographed this female Belted Kingfisher calling from a branch in March of 2017 close to the Jordan River not far from where I live.

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Male, Female, and Immature Horned Lark Photos

By Mia McPherson|2021-04-03T06:06:58-05:00February 5th, 2021|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Davis County, Horned Larks, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, desert, Eremophila alpestris, female, gravel pile, ground, Horned Lark, immature, juvenile, lark, larks, male, morning light, Utah, young|

After photographing this male Horned Lark on Antelope Island three days ago I decided to share a photo of him plus female and immature larks in a single post.

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Winter Female American Kestrel Photos

By Mia McPherson|2021-02-03T11:58:23-06:00February 3rd, 2021|Categories: American Kestrels, Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Davis County, Utah|Tags: adult, American Kestrel, Antelope Island State Park, back view, Davis County, Falco sparverius, falcon, falcons, Falcons of Utah, female, flight, flying, kestrel, kestrels, lift off, lifting off, perched, raptors, resting, rock, rocks, stalk, Utah, winter|

Yesterday morning I was able to take female American Kestrel photos from the causeway to Antelope Island State Park twice.

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Rufous Red-tailed Hawk Female Memories

By Mia McPherson|2021-01-28T06:21:20-06:00January 28th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, birds of prey, Box Elder County, buteo, Buteo jamaicensis, cliff, cliff face, desert, female, flight, flying, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, resting, rufous, shrub, stretch, stretching, Utah|

This morning I wanted to share a few photos of a stunning rufous Red-tailed Hawk female that I photographed over a period of a couple of years.

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Mallard Hen On Slippery Ice

By Mia McPherson|2021-01-20T07:09:36-06:00January 20th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Mallards|Tags: Anas platyrhynchos, dabbling, duck, ducks, female, hen, ice, Mallard, mallards, pond, sliding, winter|

Last week I took a series of photos of a Mallard hen as she landed on slippery ice at a pond close to home in Salt Lake City.

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Winter Common Mergansers

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-13T06:09:45-05:00January 16th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Common Mergansers, Salt Lake County, Utah|Tags: adult, breeding plumage, close up, Common Merganser, Definitive Basic Plumage, diving ducks, drake, drinking, duck, ducks, female, first winter, hen, immature, merganser, mergansers, Mergus merganser, pond, Salt Lake County, swimming, Utah, water, white patches, winter, young|

Yesterday and the day before I was able to observe and photograph winter Common Mergansers at my local pond on both sunny afternoons.

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Photographing Winter Birds

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-13T06:24:03-05:00January 15th, 2021|Categories: American Coots, Bald Eagles, Birds, Black-crowned Night Herons, Canvasbacks, Common Goldeneyes, Common Mergansers, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Great-tailed Grackles, Mallards, Pied-billed Grebes, Redheads, Salt Lake County, Utah|Tags: adult, American Coot, Anas platyrhynchos, Aythya americana, Aythya valisineria, Bald Eagle, birds of prey, Black-crowned Night Heron, breeding plumage, Bucephala clangula, Canvasback, chase, close up, Common Goldeneye, Common Merganser, coot, coots, dabbling ducks, dicks, displaying, diving ducks, drake, duck, ducks, eagle, eagles, female, fight, fighting, first winter, flight, flying, food, frisky, Fulica americana, goldeneye, goldeneyes, grackle, grackles, Great-tailed Grackle, grebe, grebes, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, heron, herons, immature, male, mallards, marsh, merganser, mergansers, Mergus merganser, night heron, night herons, Nycticorax nycticorax, Pied-billed Grebe, Podilymbus podiceps, pond, portrait, prey, Quiscalus mexicanus, raptors, Redhead, redheads, swimming, wading birds, water, waterfowl, weather loach, winter, young|

I spent a couple of hours yesterday photographing winter birds at Farmington Bay WMA and closer to home in the morning and afternoon.

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Pileated Woodpecker – The 2021 ABA Bird of The Year

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-07T13:39:07-06:00January 5th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Hillsborough County, Lettuce Lake Regional Park, Pileated Woodpeckers, Pinellas County|Tags: ABA Bird of the Year, adult, American Birding Association, Australian Pines, branch, Dryocopus pileatus, female, male, perched, Pileated Woodpecker, woodpecker, woodpeckers|

The American Birding Association has selected the Pileated Woodpecker as their Bird of the Year for 2021 and I think it is an excellent choice.

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Young Female Northern Harrier In Flight

By Mia McPherson|2021-04-10T03:46:10-05:00December 29th, 2020|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Northern Harriers, Utah|Tags: Circus hudsonius, female, flight, flying, harrier, harriers, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, immature, marsh, Marsh Hawks, Northern Harrier, Promontory Mountains, raptors, sky, young|

Last week I was able to photograph this young Northern Harrier flying over a marsh on a trip up to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.

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Spring And Summer With A Belted Kingfisher Family

By Mia McPherson|2021-05-10T04:32:52-05:00December 23rd, 2020|Categories: Belted Kingfishers, Birds, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: Actitis macularia, adult, Barn Swallow, Belted Kingfisher, bill defect, canyon, chick, creek, defensive, defensive behavior, defensive posture, female, fish, kingfisher, kingfishers, male, Megaceryle alcyon, mountains, perch, perched, prey, shaking, Spotted Sandpiper, stream, Summit County, swallow, Utah, Wasatch Mountains, wildflowers|

I was totally unaware on that April morning that I would be photographing a Belted Kingfisher family for several months.

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Female American Kestrel With Her Prey

By Mia McPherson|2021-03-10T08:06:38-06:00December 11th, 2020|Categories: American Kestrels, Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: adult, American Kestrel, birds of prey, Falco sparverius, falcon, falcons, Falcons of Utah, female, grasping, kestrel, kestrels, prey, raptors, sign post, talons, vole, winter, wooden post|

Three days ago I had one minute with a beautiful adult female American Kestrel and her partially eaten prey at Farmington Bay WMA.

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Female American Kestrels On The Same Post Ten Years Apart

By Mia McPherson|2022-06-06T03:44:39-05:00December 7th, 2020|Categories: American Kestrels, Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: adult, American Kestrel, Falco sparverius, falcon, falcons, female, fluffed up, kestrel, kestrels, life expectancy, marsh, perched, signpost, territorial site fidelity, winter, wooden post|

I was only going to share this image today but as I processed this photo I thought about all the times I have photographed American Kestrels on this same exact post over the years.

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