Two Generations Of Coyotes
A few days ago after photographing hummingbirds on Antelope Island I spotted two Coyotes along the causeway, it was obvious from the start that one was an adult and one a young Coyote.
A few days ago after photographing hummingbirds on Antelope Island I spotted two Coyotes along the causeway, it was obvious from the start that one was an adult and one a young Coyote.
Last week I was photographing shorebirds and a Chukar eating Brine flies on the shore of the Great Salt Lake when this European Starling flew in and started to eat them too.
It was a fascinating experience to see and photograph this Coyote locating and eating the egg and I'm tickled to have witnessed the Coyote's egg carrying behavior plus once again I am very glad to have been in the right place at the right time.
Yesterday at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge there were two American White Pelicans that were close enough to photograph as they floated on the Bear River, it was a cloudless morning so the river was a gorgeous blue which always sets off the whites of these big, beautiful birds.
Last week; while fighting off a bloodsucking cloud of no-see-ums, I was able to photograph this male Long-billed Curlew as it flew past me.
The other day I came across that post and felt very embarrassed because on that post I realized I had incorrectly ID'd this bird as a Red-tailed Hawk.
Yesterday while near the marina on Antelope Island State Park I spotted my first of the year Brine Flies warming up on some of the rocks in the water.
Yesterday this Black-billed Magpie turned in flight while I was photographing it which allowed me a great dorsal view that showed the iridescent colors well.
I'm hoping to go on a "Goose Chase" this morning, the sky is supposed to be clear so there should be good light and I would be delighted to see some snow, Snow Geese that is!
I dare news agencies to write factual articles about the inhumane practice of slaughtering Coyotes which has been proven by science to be largely ineffective in controlling their population, to observe the Coyotes being blown up in their dens and to witness the suffering of these animals when they are caught in traps.
I wanted to share a few images taken two days ago when Antelope Island was covered with a fresh snow fall. The entire island looked glorious and the sunlight caused the snow to sparkle much to my delight.
I hope that no one is getting sick of my Coyotes images. I took this Coyote photo two days ago as it walked on a Great Salt Lake beach.
I'm pleased with this bison image because it contains so many icons of the western U.S., the bison grazing on prairie grasses, the Great Salt Lake and a mountain range in the background.
Not long after arriving at Antelope Island yesterday I heard the sound of Coyotes singing, it is a sound that always brings a smile to my lips and delights me.
I was tickled to get these images and the others I created of these two Snow Geese yesterday, especially since they were close.
Earlier this morning I spotted a Prairie Falcon perched on a rock while on the Antelope Island Causeway, before we could get stopped and into position to photograph the falcon it took off over the water and attacked a Northern Shoveler.
We've gotten a lot of snow in the Salt Lake Valley since Friday, I swept at least a foot of snow off my vehicle yesterday and about 3 to 4 inches on Friday, as I write this the snow is still falling.
Yesterday I had an opportunity to photograph this Bison bull grazing on Antelope Island State Park with the mountains of Promontory Point in the background with just a small bit of the Great Salt Lake showing too.
I've wanted to capture images of a Coyote in blowing snow for a while now and I did get the chance yesterday, I really wish the foreground vegetation hadn't been in the way of a clear view of the Coyote.
While my mother was visiting Utah she was able to see how California Gulls chase and feed on Brine Flies, it is fascinating feeding behavior. As my mom watched, I photographed.
I photographed this Bison bull feeding peacefully yesterday out on Antelope Island State Park with the Great Salt Lake in the background.
I'm not exactly sure why this Coyote was wet but it had to have been from the water of the Great Salt Lake because the Coyote was along the causeway to Antelope Island, a couple miles from the park entrance and a couple to the island itself.
This was a life bird for my mother and I am glad she was able to see it strolling among the rocks on the shoreline of the Great Salt Lake while I photographed the curlew last week.
I spot a North American Porcupine (Erethizon dorsatum) and all I have is low light. So what do I do?
I went out to Antelope Island State Park yesterday hoping to put my newly repaired D300 through its paces and although I did get some images of birds and mammals, the light wasn't very good for most of the morning because of storm clouds.
From all appearances it has been a great nesting season for the Loggerhead Shrikes on Antelope Island State Park, it seems everywhere I look there are numerous juvenile Shrikes perched on bushes near rather harried looking adults.
It was the first time I have been able to photograph a California Gull with nesting material so I was quite pleased.
During spring and fall migration there can be so many Eared Grebes (Podiceps nigricollis) on the Great Salt Lake that they are impossible to count.
Had I not seen that moving, tan blob beyond my viewfinder I could have easily missed being able to create these Chukar images. Sure, I have hundreds (if not thousands) of Chukar images but I am always looking for different poses, light conditions and settings to photograph my subjects in and this worked out very well.
Yellow-headed Blackbirds have begun to show up in large numbers in my area of the country. I'm seeing them perched on cattails, phragmites and in flight.