Tattered Looking Molting Red-tailed Hawk
This time of the year I see plenty of molting Red-tailed Hawks and they can look pretty tattered, worn and shabby.
This time of the year I see plenty of molting Red-tailed Hawks and they can look pretty tattered, worn and shabby.
I was able to take quite a few images of a very cooperative first spring Northern Harrier that was perched on an old post next to the road in Box Elder County.
Yesterday I spent the morning in Box Elder County driving along the Promontory Mountain Range and Red-tailed Hawks were the most numerous raptors I saw.
Last week I saw my first of the season Swainson's Hawk not too far from the visitor's center at Bear River National Wildlife Refuge and that got me excited.
Harlan's Hawks are a subspecies of Red-tailed Hawks that breed in Alaska and northern Canada and spend their winters in the northern Great Plains.
While in Montana earlier this month I had several opportunities to photograph juvenile Swainson's Hawks that were close and approachable but I didn't always have great light.
Seriously, I wish I understood more about molting with many of the raptors including Swainson's Hawk and perhaps if I ever find some free time I will attempt to study molt patterns more closely.
It won't be long before Swainson's Hawks start to migrate to South America and some may already have started their journey south.
Red-tailed Hawks have the most variable plumages of North American hawks but Swainson's Hawks are also pretty variable, there are light morphs, intermediate morphs and dark morphs.
I've just returned from spending six wonderful days photographing in western Montana, the weather was lovely, the scenery spectacular and the birds; as usual, were awesome including these two Swainson's Hawks.
Wood Storks (Mycetaria americana) are the largest wading bird in North America and the only stork that breeds in the U.S.. Wood Storks are considered endangered primarily due to loss of habitat.
Normally during the month of February Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area has hundreds of Bald Eagles within its boundaries but that was not the case in February 2012.