grasses – Mia McPherson's On The Wing Photography

Late Winter Savannah Sparrow Photos

By Mia McPherson|2022-03-15T05:45:55-05:00March 15th, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Savannah Sparrows, Utah|Tags: adult, barb wire, ditch, fence, fence post, foraging, grass, grasses, metal post, Passerculus sandwichensis, perched, ranchlands, Savannah Sparrow, sparrow, sparrows, winter|

Yesterday morning I was delighted to find a late winter Savannah Sparrow out in the open to photograph next to the road.

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Northern Utah Winter Waterfowl Photo

By Mia McPherson|2023-02-27T15:13:50-06:00February 27th, 2022|Categories: American Wigeons, Birds, Canada Geese, Great Blue Herons, Mallards|Tags: American Wigeon, Anas platyrhynchos, Ardea herodias, Branta canadensis, Canada Goose, dabbling ducks, desert, duck, ducks, fog, frost, geese, goose, grasses, Great Blue Heron, heron, herons, hoar frost, Mallard, mallards, Mareca americana, mist, pond, ranchlands, snow, steam fog, water, waterfowl, wigeon, wigeons, winter|

The photo I liked the most from yesterday was of winter waterfowl on a small pond with mist rising from the water and hoar frost covering the vegetation.

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Groundhog Day 2022 – What It Means To Me In Utah

By Mia McPherson|2022-02-02T05:38:53-06:00February 2nd, 2022|Categories: Box Elder County, Utah, Yellow-bellied Marmots|Tags: adult, burrow, desert, female, forecast, grass, grasses, male, marmot, Marmota flaviventris, marmots, rocks, snow, snow pack, spring, winter, Yellow-bellied Marmot|

Groundhog Day is simply another day where I grow even more concerned about life giving water here in Utah. I'm not superstitious. I rely on facts.

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Three California Gull Photos

By Mia McPherson|2022-01-28T02:47:56-06:00January 19th, 2022|Categories: Antelope Island State Park, Birds, California Gulls, Davis County, Salt Lake County, Utah|Tags: adult, breeding plumage, California Gull, close up, Definitive Alternate Plumage, desert island, Erodium cicutarium, gape, grass, grasses, gull, gulls, Larus californicus, near breeding plumage, orbital ring, portrait, Redstem Filaree, resting, urban, wildflowers, winter|

While taking a short break yesterday morning I went down to my local pond for a few minutes and took a few California Gull photos while I was there.

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Focusing On American Coot Photos At Farmington Bay

By Mia McPherson|2022-01-11T04:54:43-06:00January 11th, 2022|Categories: American Coots, Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: adult, American Coot, big, checking, coot, coots, Davis County, droplets, eating, fall, Farmington Bay WMA, feeding, feet, foot, forating, frost, frosty, Fulica americana, grass, grasses, green, ice, lifted, marsh, out, rest, sip, thin, Utah, vegetation, water, wetland, winter|

Yesterday morning I spent part of my time focusing on taking American Coot photos in the marshes and wetlands of Farmington Bay WMA. I adore these goofy birds.

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Riverbank Red-tailed Hawk Dining Al Fresco

By Mia McPherson|2024-01-08T03:21:56-06:00January 9th, 2022|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: al fresco, bank, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, close up, dining, eating, first winter, grass, grasses, Great Blue Heron, hawk, hawks, ice, immature, portrait, prey, raptors, river, river bank, riverbank, Utah, wetlands, winter, young|

Yesterday morning I photographed an immature Red-tailed Hawk dining al fresco on the bank of the Bear River on my way back to I-15 to head home.

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Bald Eagle Photos On A Leaning Wooden Post Thru The Years

By Mia McPherson|2023-12-04T05:38:19-06:00January 4th, 2022|Categories: Bald Eagles, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Utah|Tags: adult, Bald Eagle, birds of prey, eagle, eagles, grasses, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, heat wave distortion, ice, leaning, marsh, morning, mountains, post, raptors, river, sunrise, water, wetlands, winter, wooden post|

If you go to Bear River MBR during the winter chances are that you have or will see a Bald Eagle perched on this large wooden post at one time or another.

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Dark Morph Red-tailed Hawk Lifting Off With Prey

By Mia McPherson|2023-05-05T10:06:04-05:00November 22nd, 2021|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, autumn, birds of prey, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, dark morph, desert, fall, flight, flying, grass, grasses, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, lift off, lifting off, mammal, prey, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, rocks, sky, take off, taking off|

Yesterday morning I spotted this dark morph Red-tailed Hawk high on a cliff and I was able to photograph him as he lifted off with prey in his talons.

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Three Canada Geese On An Autumn Morning

By Mia McPherson|2021-11-04T05:48:15-05:00November 4th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Canada Geese, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Utah|Tags: adult, autumn, Branta canadensis, Canada Goose, fall, flight, flying, geese, Glover Pond, goose, grass, grasses, lift off, lifting off, pond, take off, taking off, teasels, water, waterfowl, wetlands|

Last week I photographed three Canada Geese lifting off from Glover Pond at Farmington Bay and it brought memories from November of 2008.

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Colorful Twilight Sky

By Mia McPherson|2021-09-12T05:45:49-05:00September 12th, 2021|Categories: Beaverhead County, Centennial Valley, Montana, Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge|Tags: beauty, clouds, colorful, evening, fence, grasses, lake, light, marsh, mountains, pastels, peaceful, relaxed, sky, summer, sunset, twilight, valley, vivid, wetlands|

I don't have much to say today and all I really wanted to do was share this photo of a colorful twilight I took at Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge about 6 years ago.

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Small Herd Of Mule Deer On A Smoky Morning

By Mia McPherson|2023-11-01T03:19:32-05:00September 10th, 2021|Categories: Mule Deer, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: deer, doe, grasses, haze, herd, juniper, Juniperus osteosperma, morning, mountains, Mule Deer, Odocoileus hemionus, sky island mountains, smoke, smoky, Utah Juniper, wildfire, young|

Yesterday morning I photographed a small herd of Mule Deer in a smoky haze while I was looking for birds in the West Desert.

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Great Blue Heron In The High Country

By Mia McPherson|2021-08-19T05:57:19-05:00August 19th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Great Blue Herons, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: adult, air quality, Ardea herodias, canyon, creek, fire, grasses, Great Blue Heron, heron, herons, mountains, rain, smoke, stream, summer, wading birds, water, wind|

It has been a week now since I photographed this Great Blue Heron and have been able to get out into the field because of smoke, wind, fire, and rain.

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Remembering Smokeless Days

By Mia McPherson|2021-08-09T05:55:21-05:00August 9th, 2021|Categories: Tooele County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: canyon, clouds, conifers, desert, grasses, juniper, junipers, Juniperus osteosperma, mountains, sage, sagebrush, shadows, sky, sky island mountains, spring, Stansbury Mountains, Utah Juniper|

The photo I shared today isn't of anything special. It is a West Desert mountain range view. That smokeless blue sky though? I'd give so much to see that again here today.

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Young Red Fox In A Meadow

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-13T13:44:19-05:00August 3rd, 2021|Categories: Morgan County, Red Foxes, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: alpine meadow, canyon, close up, forest edge, fox, foxes, grasses, immature, meadow, mountains, portrait, Red Fox, summer, Vulpes vulpes, young|

One year ago this morning I had a relaxing experience photographing a young Red Fox in an alpine meadow high in the Wasatch Mountains.

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Male Lazuli Bunting Plus American Mink Family Photos

By Mia McPherson|2021-07-16T06:40:27-05:00July 16th, 2021|Categories: American Mink, Birds, Lazuli Buntings, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: adult, American Mink, break, bunting, buntings, canyon, creek, creek bank., diving, foraging, grasses, hidden, Lazuli Bunting, male, mink, minks, mountains, mustelids, Neovison vison, Passerina amoena, perched, riparian habitat, running, summer, water|

I started my morning off yesterday in the Wasatch Mountains photographing an American Mink family that appeared on the bank of a creek.

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What Do These Grasses Going To Seed Have To Do With A Lazuli Bunting?

By Mia McPherson|2021-06-19T06:16:18-05:00June 19th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Lazuli Buntings, Morgan County, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: adult, bunting, buntings, canyon, close up, creek, creek side, creekside, eating, going to seed, grass, grass seed, grasses, Lazuli Bunting, male, mountains, Passerina amoena, riparian habitat, seed|

Yesterday while I was up in the Wasatch Mountains looking for birds I also noticed some grasses going to seed and took photos of them.

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Baby Uinta Ground Squirrel Photos

By Mia McPherson|2021-06-17T05:04:23-05:00June 17th, 2021|Categories: Summit County, Uinta Ground Squirrels, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: alert, baby, canyon, curious, eating, grass, grasses, ground squirrel, ground squirrels, immature, mountains, spring, squirrel, squirrels, standing, Summit County, Uinta Ground Squirrel, Urocitellus armatus, Utah, Wasatch Mountains, young|

Last week I was able to take a nice long series of baby Uinta Ground Squirrel photos high in the Wasatch Mountains.

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Song Sparrow Eating A Snail

By Mia McPherson|2021-06-12T05:45:38-05:00June 12th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Morgan County, Song Sparrows, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: adult, bill, canyon, creek, eating, Escargot, foraging, grasses, insert, Melospiza melodia, mountains, riparian habitat, snail, Song Sparrow, sparrow, sparrows, spring, stones, water|

Photographing a Song Sparrow eating a snail yesterday morning as it foraged in a creek in the Wasatch Mountains was a unique experience for me.

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Lark Sparrow In Golden Morning Light

By Mia McPherson|2021-06-04T05:29:30-05:00June 4th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Lark Sparrows, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, Chondestes grammacus, clouds, fence, fence post, fence posts, foothills, golden light, grasses, juniper, junipers, Juniperus osteosperma, Lark Sparrow, mountains, perched, sky, sky island mountains, sparrow, sparrows, spring, Utah Juniper|

Two days ago I photographed this adult Lark Sparrow that I found perched on an old fence post in golden light in the West Desert of Tooele County.

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Great Blue Heron and Mountain Goldenbanner

By Mia McPherson|2021-06-02T04:50:47-05:00June 2nd, 2021|Categories: Birds, Great Blue Herons, Morgan County, Small in the frame, Utah, Wasatch Mountains, Wildflowers|Tags: adult, Ardea herodias, blooming, blooms, canyon, Filamentous algae, flowering, grasses, Great Blue Heron, heron, herons, Mountain Goldenbanner, mountain meadow, Mountain Thermopsis, mountains, pond, spring, Thermopsis montana, wading birds, water, wildflowers, willows, yellow wildflowers|

Yesterday I wrote about a Golden Eagle in the Wasatch Mountains. Today I am writing about "golden" again. Blooming Mountain Goldenbanner and a Great Blue Heron.

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Nesting Lark Sparrow Photos

By Mia McPherson|2021-05-22T04:54:46-05:00May 22nd, 2021|Categories: Birds, Lark Sparrows, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, Artemisia tridentata, barbed wire, Big Sagebrush, bill, Chondestes grammacus, desert, fence, foothills, gathering, grass, grasses, Lark Sparrow, mountains, nesting material, nesting materials, sage, sagebrush, sparrow, sparrows|

One of the first birds I heard singing three days ago in the West Desert of Tooele County was a Lark Sparrow perched on top of a sagebrush.

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Singing Rock Wren In The West Desert

By Mia McPherson|2023-03-31T15:45:16-05:00May 20th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Rock Wrens, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, back view, clod, desert, dirt, end, foothills, grass, grasses, juniper, junipers, Juniperus osteosperma, perched, rock, Rock Wren, rocks, Salpinctes obsoletus, singing, sky island mountains, spring, tail, Tooele County, Utah, Utah Juniper, west desert, wren, wrens|

Yesterday when I spotted a Rock Wren singing from the top of a juniper in Utah's West Desert I hoped to take a few decent photos of it before it flew away.

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Uinta Ground Squirrel And An Ant

By Mia McPherson|2021-05-18T05:12:22-05:00May 18th, 2021|Categories: Summit County, Uinta Ground Squirrels, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: adult, ant, eating, grass, grasses, ground squirrel, ground squirrels, insect, spring, squirrel, squirrels, Uinta Ground Squirrel, Urocitellus armatus|

Last week while up in the Wasatch Mountains I took a series of close up images of this Uinta Ground Squirrel plus an ant on its right front leg.

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Springtime Vesper Sparrow Images

By Mia McPherson|2023-03-07T10:34:39-06:00May 13th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Summit County, Utah, Vesper Sparrows, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: adult, back view, canyon, close up, grass, grasses, leaning, metal post, mountains, perched, Poocetes gramineus, post, rock, sage, sagebrush, shoulder, singing, sparrow, sparrows, spring, Summit County, Utah, Vesper Sparrow, Wasatch Mountains|

Yesterday morning I heard my first Vesper Sparrow of spring singing high in the Wasatch Mountains. I was enchanted and thrilled at the same time.

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Coyote Stalking Adult Sandhill Cranes

By Mia McPherson|2021-05-12T05:52:46-05:00May 12th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Coyotes, Sandhill Cranes, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: adult, Antigone canadensis, Canis latrans, canyon, Coyote, coyotes, crane, cranes, flight, flying, grasses, lifted off, mountains, sagebrush, Sandhill Cranes, stalking, took flight, walking, willows|

Yesterday morning while up in the Wasatch Mountains I heard Sandhill Cranes calling repeatedly and when I spotted them I also found a Coyote near the cranes.

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My First Of Year Uinta Ground Squirrels

By Mia McPherson|2021-04-30T10:18:41-05:00April 30th, 2021|Categories: Summit County, Uinta Ground Squirrels, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: adult, canyon, frost, frosted, frosty, grass, grasses, ground squirrel, ground squirrels, morning, mountains, side by side, spring, squirrel, squirrels, standing, Uinta Ground Squirrel, Urocitellus armatus|

Yesterday I spent some time up in the Wasatch Mountains where I found and photographed my first of year Uinta Ground Squirrels with frost on the ground.

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Pronghorn Buck And West Desert Sky Island Mountains

By Mia McPherson|2021-03-19T05:50:38-05:00March 19th, 2021|Categories: Juab County, Pronghorn, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert, Wildlife|Tags: adult, Antilocapra americana, buck, clouds, desert, flats, grasses, male, mountains, Pronghorn, pronghorns, sky, sky island mountains, small in frame, spring|

I found and photographed this Pronghorn buck in Utah's West Desert after photographing birds at Fish Springs National Wildlife Refuge in April of 2019.

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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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Long-Billed Curlews – Spring Birds I look Forward To

By Mia McPherson|2021-03-14T06:12:00-05:00March 14th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Long-billed Curlews|Tags: adult, breeding grounds, curlew, curlews, displaying, fighting, grasses, Long-billed Curlew, male, mating season, Numenius americanus, shorebirds, sparring, spring, territorial behavior|

Spring birds I look forward to seeing and hearing include Long-billed Curlews which should be arriving in northern Utah any day now.

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Golden Eagle Flying Over A Hill On Antelope Island

By Mia McPherson|2023-11-12T09:36:18-06:00February 9th, 2021|Categories: American Bison, Antelope Island State Park, Birds, Davis County, Golden Eagles, Utah|Tags: adult, American Bison, Aquila chrysaetos, birds of prey, Bison, Bison bison, buffalo, bull, close up, clouds, eagle, eagles, flight, flying, Golden Eagle, grass, grasses, Great Salt Lake, hill, lake, male, portrait, raptors, sky, water, winter|

It has been a couple of years since I have found a Golden Eagle on Antelope Island so when I spotted an adult on a grassy hill yesterday I was excited.

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