flight

Focusing On A Gray Ghost – AKA Male Northern Harrier

By |2021-04-10T03:51:37-05:00December 9th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Northern Harriers, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Today I am focusing on an adult male Northern Harrier that I had in my viewfinder for a few seconds yesterday that was on the wing over the marsh.

First Winter Common Mergansers In Flight

By |2024-03-13T06:27:38-05:00December 3rd, 2020|Categories: Birds, Common Mergansers, Salt Lake County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Some winters here in the Salt Lake Valley I see quite a lot Common Mergansers while in other years I only see a few. I'm hoping that this winter I will see plenty of these beautiful, sleek diving ducks.

Frosty Female Northern Harrier In Flight

By |2021-04-10T03:57:39-05:00December 1st, 2020|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Northern Harriers, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I saw a few harriers on the wing yesterday at Farmington Bay WMA and I was able to take a few photos of a female Northern Harrier that still had frost on her nape.

Landing Drake Common Goldeneye

By |2022-02-01T05:30:23-06:00November 29th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Common Goldeneyes, Salt Lake County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I'm anxious to start photographing the ducks I see close to home during the winter here in the Salt Lake Valley and from what I understand a few Common Goldeneyes have shown up.

Photographing An Immature Ferruginous Hawk Hunting For Breakfast

By |2024-02-22T06:17:58-06:00November 28th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Ferruginous Hawks, Stansbury Mountains, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Yesterday morning not long after sunrise I spent some time photographing a light morph, immature Ferruginous Hawk hunting for its breakfast.

Focusing On Adult Male Rough-legged Hawks

By |2023-12-19T08:06:38-06:00November 27th, 2020|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Rough-legged Hawks, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Ten days ago I found and photographed this adult male Rough-legged Hawk as it perched on a Russian Olive tree at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge when I was heading home.

Time To Keep An Eye On The Sky For Bald Eagles

By |2022-07-03T12:33:23-05:00November 21st, 2020|Categories: Bald Eagles, Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I could see a Bald Eagle being chased by a gull in the sky and my heart skipped a beat because I know it is time for me to keep an eye on the sky for Bald Eagles again.

Drake Green-winged Teal At Bear River MBR

By |2022-08-17T04:43:20-05:00November 18th, 2020|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Green-winged Teals, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Yesterday morning I was able to take close up photos of a drake Green-winged Teal paddling away from me at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.

You Know You Are A Gull Lover When…

By |2021-01-03T12:59:54-06:00November 17th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Ring-billed Gulls, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

You take photos of ten species of birds and the twelve photos of a Ring-billed Gull in flight are the images you are the most excited to view when you get home.

Looking Back On Photographing A Rare Leucistic Red-tailed Hawk

By |2023-05-05T10:10:15-05:00November 16th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Leucistic, Rarities, Red-tailed Hawks, Tooele County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Even though it is now four years later I still look for this striking leucistic Red-tailed Hawk in Tooele County and hope to find and photograph it again one day.

Great Blue Herons Aren’t Really Blue – So What’s Up With Their Name?

By |2024-04-05T19:13:01-05:00November 10th, 2020|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Great Blue Herons, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

The name "Great Blue Heron" has always seemed off to me because these large herons are much more gray than they are blue.

Winter Has Arrived Along With Many Opportunities To Photograph Birds

By |2024-01-17T09:16:10-06:00November 9th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Common Goldeneyes, Hooded Mergansers, Ring-billed Gulls, Salt Lake County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

When the weather turns colder, the clouds gather, and the snow falls I still have plenty of birds to photograph here in northern Utah.

An Immature Light Morph Ferruginous Hawk In The West Desert

By |2021-09-22T13:31:07-05:00November 4th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Ferruginous Hawks, Stansbury Mountains, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

The highlight of my morning yesterday was when I spotted an immature light morph Ferruginous Hawk perched on a cedar post in the West Desert.

Adult Female Northern Harrier On The Wing Over Farmington Bay WMA

By |2021-04-10T03:48:40-05:00November 3rd, 2020|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Northern Harriers, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

It has been too long since I have had a Northern Harrier in my viewfinder although I'm now excited because I know that fall and winter are great seasons for me to find and photograph them.

Immature Great Blue Heron – With And Without The Hand Of Man

By |2021-04-17T17:51:27-05:00October 22nd, 2020|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Great Blue Herons, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Is one of these immature Great Blue Heron images more visually appealing than the other? That depends on the personal tastes of the person viewing them.

Tundra Swans Are Showing Up In Northern Utah

By |2024-03-20T10:30:01-05:00October 21st, 2020|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Tundra Swans, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I can barely wait to hear and see my first of season Tundra Swans and to see them on the wing over the marshes that surround the Great Salt Lake.

On The Lookout For Rough-Legged Hawks

By |2021-02-24T04:12:39-06:00October 19th, 2020|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Rough-legged Hawks, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I'm hoping that this week I'll be able to spot my first of the season Rough-legged Hawks and that I'll be able to get photos of them too. Fingers are crossed!

Immature Eastern Kingbirds At Bear River MBR

By |2023-03-23T15:21:08-05:00August 19th, 2020|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Eastern Kingbirds, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I only had two minutes with these immature Eastern Kingbirds and I felt I had to make every second I had with them in my viewfinder count. I succeeded.

Adjusting To Life During A Global Pandemic

By |2022-05-27T13:23:37-05:00August 7th, 2020|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Black-necked Stilts, Box Elder County, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I've felt varying degrees of disappointment when comparing "what should have been" with the way we have had to adjust to life and living during a global pandemic as I am sure many of us have this year.

Flocks of Phalaropes In Flight – But Which Species?

By |2023-10-13T06:39:40-05:00July 26th, 2020|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Davis County, Red-necked Phalaropes, Utah, Wilson's Phalaropes|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

It is the season of phalarope migration here in the Great Basin hub of the Pacific Flyway and one of the best places to view these shorebirds is along the causeway to Antelope Island State Park.

Recently Fledged Red-tailed Hawks From Two Nests

By |2022-10-04T04:42:03-05:00July 13th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I had a great time photographing three recently fledged Red-tailed Hawks from two different nests in northern Utah yesterday morning.

Photographing Three Short-eared Owls In Northern Utah

By |2021-03-13T11:14:03-06:00June 14th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Short-eared Owls, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I don't know for sure if I will see another Short-eared Owl to photograph this year but I do know I had fun photographing these three.

Broad-tailed Hummingbird Male Hovering Below Black Twinberry Honeysuckle Flowers

By |2021-05-16T06:08:52-05:00May 21st, 2020|Categories: Birds, Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, Morgan County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains, Wildflowers|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

Of the hundred or so images I took of the male Broad-tailed Hummingbirds in that small and very windy area I only liked this one photo.

Focusing On Belted Kingfishers High In The Wasatch Mountains

By |2021-05-10T05:28:40-05:00April 25th, 2020|Categories: Belted Kingfishers, Birds, Morgan County, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

I spent yesterday morning high up in the Wasatch Mountains where part of the time I focused on photographing the Belted Kingfishers that I found in two counties.

Photographing Nesting Williamson’s Sapsuckers

By |2023-11-02T07:11:29-05:00April 6th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Clark County, Idaho, Targhee National Forest, Williamson's Sapsuckers|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

For one and a half wonderful nesting seasons I was thrilled to photograph a pair of mated Williamson's Sapsuckers excavating a nest and tending to their young.

Red-tailed Hawk Nesting Season Has Begun!

By |2022-10-04T04:41:23-05:00March 28th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

The female Red-tailed Hawk blended into the lichen covered cliff face so well that even with my sharp eyesight I didn't see her until the male landed next to her.

Adult Male Short-eared Owl Flying In Front Of A Stormy Sky

By |2021-04-04T11:28:52-05:00March 24th, 2020|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Short-eared Owls, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

This isn't the kind of Short-eared Owl image you'll see in a bird guide but when you are looking for these owls in the field sometimes a view like this is all you will get.

Female Northern Harrier In Flight Over The Flats At Farmington Bay

By |2021-11-24T03:41:57-06:00March 2nd, 2020|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Northern Harriers, Utah|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

The adult female Northern Harrier was in flight in wonderful, warm morning light and I couldn't resist raising my lens and taking photos of her as she flew past.

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