hawks – Mia McPherson's On The Wing Photography

On The Lookout For My First Of Season Rough-legged Hawk

By Mia McPherson|2022-04-26T09:25:16-05:00October 13th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Rough-legged Hawks, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, barb wire, birds of prey, Buteo lagopus, Buteos, fence, fence post, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, light morph, male, mountains, perched, raptors, road, rock, rock pile, rocks, Rough-legged Hawk, snow, winter|

I am now on the lookout for my first of season Rough-legged Hawk. I hope to spot one soon.

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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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Red-tailed Hawk Pre-flight Poop Shot

By Mia McPherson|2021-09-25T05:44:58-05:00September 25th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Red-tailed Hawks, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, autumn, birds of prey, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, crapshoot, defecating, desert, fall, fence post, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, perched, poop, pooping, pre-flight, prior, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, take off, wooden post|

When the Red-tailed Hawk took a pre-flight poop I thought I'd get my chance at those lift off and flight photos.

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Immature Light Morph Ferruginous Hawk

By Mia McPherson|2021-09-22T05:19:38-05:00September 22nd, 2021|Categories: Birds, Ferruginous Hawks|Tags: Buteo regalis, Buteos, desert, fence post, Ferruginous Hawk, flight, flying, ground, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, immature, lift off, lifting off, light morph, looking, prey, raptors, summer, sunflowers, take off, taking off, Tooele County, Utah, west desert, wooden post, young|

Yesterday on the last full day of summer I found a couple of hawks in the West Desert including this immature light morph Ferruginous Hawk.

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Immature Light Morph Red-tailed Hawk Plus A Dark Morph Adult

By Mia McPherson|2021-09-19T05:36:07-05:00September 19th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, Artemisia tridentata, Big Sagebrush, birds of prey, Box Elder County, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, cliff, cliff face, dark morph, desert, flight, flying, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, immature, lichen, lichens, light morph, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, rock, rock face, rocks, sage, sagebrush, sky, summer, Utah, young|

When I spotted the light colored breast of this immature light morph Red-tailed Hawk from a distance it seemed to glow in the morning light.

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More West Desert Red-tailed Hawk Images

By Mia McPherson|2022-09-11T04:41:51-05:00September 15th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Red-tailed Hawks, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: Abies concolor, adult, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, canyon, cone, cones, conifer, desert, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, immature, juniper, junipers, Juniperus osteosperma, mountains, perched, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, side lit, sky island mountains, summer, Utah Juniper, White Fir, young|

I went out into the West Desert yesterday and came back with more Red-tailed Hawk images that I was delighted to have taken and that I am happy with.

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Cooperative West Desert Red-tailed Hawk

By Mia McPherson|2022-09-11T04:43:49-05:00September 13th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Red-tailed Hawks, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, calm cooperative, confiding, desert, errant, feather, foothills, habitat, hawk, hawks, haze, head, inset, junipers, Juniperus osteosperma, look, mountains, over the shoulder, perched, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, sky, sky island mountains, smoky, summer, Utah Juniper|

Last week I photographed a very cooperative adult Red-tailed Hawk that was next to a road in the West Desert of Utah on a smoky morning.

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Adult Red-tailed Hawk Lifting Off

By Mia McPherson|2021-09-15T04:47:54-05:00September 11th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Red-tailed Hawks, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, altitude, birds of prey, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, desert, flight, flying, hawk, hawks, haze, juniper, Juniperus osteosperma, perched, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, sky island mountains, smoky, summer, taking off, Utah Juniper|

It didn't take long before the Red-tailed Hawk raised its wings to lift off from the juniper with a smoky blue sky in the background.

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I Spy With My Little Eye Something Beginning With C…

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-16T13:38:15-05:00August 21st, 2021|Categories: Birds, Cooper’s Hawks, Summit County, Utah, Wasatch Mountains|Tags: accipiter, Accipiter cooperii, Accipiters, aspen, aspens, birds of prey, canyon, Cooper’s Hawk, forest, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, I Spy, immature, juvenile, mountains, Populus tremuloides, Quaking Aspen, raptors, young|

Do you remember playing I Spy when you were a child? I do.

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Poppies, Birds, Trees, Butterflies And A Smoky Haze

By Mia McPherson|2023-08-18T12:13:26-05:00August 5th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Flatbud Prickly Poppy, Red-tailed Hawks, Tooele County, Trees, Utah, Weidemeyer's Admiral Butterflies, West Desert, Wildflowers|Tags: Abies concolor, admiral, admirals, adult, Argemone munita, birds of prey, bloom, blooming, branch, Buteo jamaicensis, butterflies, butterfly, cone, cones, creek, dawn, desert, Douglas fir, fir, firs, flowering, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, immature, juvenile, Limenitis weidemeyerii, mountains, native, poppies, poppy, Prickly Poppy, Pseudotsuga menziesii, Pseudotsuga menziesii var. glauca, puddling, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, Rocky Mountain Douglas Fir, sky, sky island mountains, smoky, smoky haze, summer, tree, trees, Weidemeyer's Admiral, White Fir, white wildflowers, wildflowers, young|

The first time I raised my lens yesterday morning it was for blooming Prickly Poppies that were along the shoulder of the bumpy gravel road.

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The Price I Paid For These Red-tailed Hawk Chick Photos

By Mia McPherson|2022-11-14T05:40:29-06:00June 14th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: birds of prey, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, chicks, cliff, cliff face, desert, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, immature, juvenile, nest, nestlings, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, spring, young|

Yesterday I went up to northern Utah hoping to take photos of some Red-tailed Hawk chicks that I know will soon be leaving their nest and I found them.

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Recent Birds I’ve Found In The West Desert

By Mia McPherson|2024-02-26T10:14:55-06:00May 31st, 2021|Categories: Birds, House Wrens, Lazuli Buntings, Red-tailed Hawks, Tooele County, Utah, Warbling Vireos, West Desert, Western Kingbirds|Tags: adult, barbed wire, basking, branch, bunting, buntings, Buteos, canyon, fence, fence post, foothills, foraging, forest, hawk, hawks, House Wren, juniper, junipers, Juniperus osteosperma, kingbird, kingbirds, Lazuli Bunting, male, mixed deciduous conifer forest, morning, mountains, Passerina amoena, perched, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, sky, sky island mountains, spring, sun, Troglodytes aedon, Tyrannus verticalis, tyrant flycatchers, Utah Juniper, vireo, Vireo gilvus, vireos, Warbling Vireo, warmth, Western Kingbird, wild rose, wooden post, wren, wrens|

Last week I made two trips out to the West Desert and today I am sharing a medley of recent birds that I found while I was out there.

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Defecating Red-tailed Hawk For A Crappy Day

By Mia McPherson|2022-05-27T06:23:49-05:00April 26th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, birds of prey, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, crappy, defecating, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, perched, pooping, post, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, weather, wooden post|

It just seemed appropriate to share a defecating Red-tailed Hawk on day three of crappy weather here in northern Utah.

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Spring Swainson’s Hawk In Sage

By Mia McPherson|2021-04-19T05:49:53-05:00April 19th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Swainson's Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, birds of prey, Buteo swainsoni, Buteos, desert, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, hillside, intermediate morph, nestled, raptors, sage, sagebrush, sky, snuggled, Swainson's Hawk|

The Swainson's Hawk that I spent the most time photographing was snuggled into the top of a sage and he was very calm and confiding.

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Dark Morph Swainson’s Hawk Portrait

By Mia McPherson|2021-04-15T05:15:03-05:00April 15th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Swainson's Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, Buteo swainsoni, Buteos, close up, dark moprh, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, migration, portrait, raptors, spring, Swainson's Hawk|

I have shared photos of this gorgeous dark morph Swainson's Hawk before and since today is the four year anniversary of me finding it I thought I would share one more.

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Swainson’s Hawk On A Gnarly Fence Post

By Mia McPherson|2021-03-31T05:09:19-05:00March 31st, 2021|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Swainson's Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, birds of prey, Buteo swainsoni, Buteos, early morning light, fence post, gnarly, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, light morph, raptors, spring, Swainson's Hawk|

I haven't found my first of season Swainson's Hawk yet but I expect that to change any day now as spring migration is almost in full swing.

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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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It Is Red-tailed Hawk Nesting Season

By Mia McPherson|2022-04-27T07:40:31-05:00March 15th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Box Elder County, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, birds of prey, Box Elder County, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, cliff, cliff face, desert, flight, flying, hawk, hawks, juniper, nest, nesting, nesting season, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, spring, Utah|

Red-tailed Hawk nesting season has started in northern Utah and I found a few pairs yesterday morning that have already gotten busy with nest building.

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West Desert Male Rough-legged Hawk

By Mia McPherson|2022-04-20T21:21:32-05:00March 3rd, 2021|Categories: Birds, Rough-legged Hawks, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, alert, birds of prey, boulder, Buteo lagopus, Buteos, fence post, flight, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, lichen, lift off, lifting off, male, perched, raptors, Rough-legged Hawk, take off, wooden post|

Yesterday morning was clear, bright, chilly, and I spent ten minutes photographing an adult male Rough-legged Hawk that I found in the West Desert.

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Male Rough-legged Hawk Photos

By Mia McPherson|2022-04-20T21:21:48-05:00February 26th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Ferruginous Hawks, Rough-legged Hawks, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, background, birds of prey, blue sky, Buteo lagopus, Buteo regalis, Buteos, Ferruginous Hawk, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, light morph, male, mountains, raptors, rock, rocks, Rough-legged Hawk, shadows, sky, snow, snow covered, snowy|

Earlier this week I photographed a light morph, adult male Rough-legged Hawk in the West Desert of Utah with three different backgrounds.

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Ferruginous And Rough-legged Hawk Lift Off Photos

By Mia McPherson|2022-04-20T21:22:12-05:00February 22nd, 2021|Categories: Birds, Ferruginous Hawks, Rough-legged Hawks, Tooele County, Utah, West Desert|Tags: adult, birds of prey, Buteo lagopus, Buteo regalis, Buteos, feathered legs, feathered tarsi, feet, Ferruginous Hawk, first winter, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, immature, legs, lift off, lifting off, light morph, male, power pole, raptors, rock, rocks, Rough-legged Hawk, sky, take off, taking off, young|

Yesterday morning I was able to take Ferruginous and Rough-legged Hawk lift off photos where both of the raptors still had their feet on their perches.

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High Key Immature Red-tailed Hawk Photos

By Mia McPherson|2021-02-19T06:22:17-06:00February 19th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: birds of prey, branches, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, Chinese Sumac, clouds, cloudy, first winter, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, high key, immature, low light, marsh, perched, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, tree, winter, young|

Today I am sharing two high key type images of an immature Red-tailed Hawk I photographed at Farmington Bay WMA.

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Immature Male Northern Harrier Flying Over A Wintry Marsh

By Mia McPherson|2021-02-14T06:17:39-06:00February 14th, 2021|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Northern Harriers, Utah|Tags: birds of prey, Circus hudsonius, flight, flying, harrier, harriers, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, ice, immature, male, marsh, Northern Harrier, raptors, small in frame, snow, water, winter, wintry, young|

This immature male Northern Harrier photo shows the hawk small in the frame with wintry marsh habitat behind and below it.

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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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My First Rough-legged Hawk of 2021

By Mia McPherson|2024-01-06T02:13:12-06:00January 8th, 2021|Categories: Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, East Canyon, Rough-legged Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, birds of prey, Buteo lagopus, Buteos, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, male, raptors, Rough-legged Hawk, sky, winter|

Two days ago I photographed my first Rough-legged Hawk of 2021 at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge. Or was it two?

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First Winter Red-tailed Hawk Lift Off Photos

By Mia McPherson|2021-05-03T03:23:12-05:00January 4th, 2021|Categories: Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: bird of prey, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, first, flight, flying, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, immature, juvenile, lift off, lifting off, marsh, metal post, raptors, red tail, Red-tailed Hawk, take off, taking off, Utah, winter, young|

Last month I spent twenty-eight lovely minutes photographing this first winter Red-tailed Hawk in the marsh at Farmington Bay WMA.

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2020 Photographic Year In Review

By Mia McPherson|2024-04-04T16:03:29-05:00December 31st, 2020|Categories: Bald Eagles, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, Bushtits, Common Loons, Cooper’s Hawks, Desert Tarantulas, Eastern Kingbirds, Elk, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Ferruginous Hawks, Golden Eagles, Gray Catbirds, Great Blue Herons, Green Herons, Green-tailed Towhees, Merlins, Mountain Bluebirds, Nashville Warblers, Northern Harriers, Pine Siskins, Red Foxes, Red-breasted Nuthatches, Red-tailed Hawks, Ring-billed Gulls, Rusty Blackbirds, Short-eared Owls, Townsend's Solitaires, Uinta Ground Squirrels, Utah, Wasatch Mountains, West Desert, Wild Turkeys, Wildflowers, Yellow Warblers|Tags: 5.7 earthquake, blackbirds, bluebirds, catbirds, coronavirus, eagles, Elk, fox, ground squirrels, gulls, harriers, hawks, herons, hummingbirds, kingbirds, loons, Merlin, owls, rare birds, red tailed hawks, siskins, tarantula, towhees, turkeys, uncommon, wablers, year in review|

This is my 2020 photographic year in review. I'm selecting some of my favorite photos from 2020 and a few that just make me happy to see them.

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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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Five Bird Photos From Christmas Day 2020

By Mia McPherson|2020-12-26T07:05:35-06:00December 26th, 2020|Categories: American Kestrels, Bald Eagles, Birds, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Great Blue Herons, Red-tailed Hawks, Utah|Tags: adult, American Kestrel, Ardea herodias, Bald Eagle, birds of prey, branches, Buteo jamaicensis, Buteos, Christmas Day, close up, eagle, eales, Falco sparverius, falcon, falcons, Falcons of Utah, field, first winter, Great Blue Heron, Haliaeetus leucocephalus, hawk, hawks, Hawks of Utah, heron, herons, immature, lift off, lifting off, male, marsh, mountains, perched, pole, portrait, raptors, Red-tailed Hawk, sky, take off, taking off, tree, wading birds, wooden post, young|

Much to my delight I was able to photograph some birds on Christmas Day at Farmington Bay WMA yesterday morning.

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Christmas Day Bird Photos Thru The Years

By Mia McPherson|2024-03-05T14:21:20-06:00December 25th, 2020|Categories: Bald Eagles, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Birds, Box Elder County, Common Goldeneyes, Davis County, Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area, Florida, Fort De Soto County Park, Golden Eagles, Long-eared Owls, Pied-billed Grebes, Pinellas County, Red-tailed Hawks, Roseate Spoonbills, Salt Lake County, Utah|Tags: adult, Bald Eagle, Christmas Day, close up, Common Merganser, crayfish, eagle, eagles, first year, foggy, Golden Eagle, grebes, haek, hawks, immature, landing Bear River, Long-eared Owl, oel, owls, Pied-billed Grebe, portrait, Red-tailed Hawk, Roseate Spoonbill, snow, snow storm, snowy, spoonbill, wading birds, winter, young|

Today I wanted to share some of the Christmas Day bird photos I have taken through the years out in the field and close to home.

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