Standing Up For Nature Is Fighting For Our Lives
People who are environmentally conscious and whom respect and love nature already know this, they are my sisters and brothers at arms.
People who are environmentally conscious and whom respect and love nature already know this, they are my sisters and brothers at arms.
I can't be certain this is the same goose that I saw on December 26th but I found an immature Snow Goose feeding with some Canada Geese in the grass across the pond.
Perhaps I am easy to please but I got a real kick out of photographing this American Coot while it bathed, shook and fluffed on the pond close to home.
It is hard to figure out who is the lucky duck here, the Common Goldeneye for catching the crayfish or me for seeing the duck with the crayfish and photographing it.
One of the drake Common Mergansers I saw yesterday flew over the pond and past me close enough for me to take two photos of it up close in the late evening light.
Finding and photographing the surprise Peregrine Falcon with prey was one of the brightest spots of my day.
I've found American Kestrels to be "stickier" in cold weather and it wasn't much above 20°F when I photographed him as he consumed the vole bit by bit.
The last birds I photographed in 2017 were American Coots and some of the first birds I took photos of in 2018 were also coots.
I always feel fortunate when I am able to photograph Chukars in the snow on the island because it helps to make them more visible than they are during other seasons of the year
Photographing the Mallards in flight in golden afternoon light was a terrific way to end my bird photography session for the evening.
I'm over the moon that I was able to photograph these Common Mergansers landing and lifting off from the pond yesterday and I am pleased with the photos I took.
The funniest photo I took yesterday, the one that made me laugh out loud the hardest, was when a crayfish landed on the Pied-billed Grebe's head after the bird shook it hard.
Wherever you are, whatever holiday you celebrate if you celebrate at all, I wish you joy and peace and hope that you will feel the love of your family and friends today and every day.
Four years ago I photographed a American Barn Owl in a winter white out at Farmington Bay WMA and I have to admit that photographing it was tough.
Eight days ago I spent time photographing an immature, light morph Rough-legged Hawk at Farmington Bay WMA in northern Utah.
I opted to leave my teleconverter on while photographing this bathing American Coot
Three afternoons ago I captured images of not just one flying crayfish in the air but two of them because of the Pied-billed Grebes capturing and consuming the freshwater crustaceans.
This aggressive encounter between the two Pied-billed Grebes only lasted a few seconds and if I hadn't been paying attention I would have missed photographing it.
The light wasn't great when I photographed these Ring-billed Gulls flying in a December snow storm but I had a great time with the gulls and the rest of the birds.
The number of birds in a specific location can increase and decrease substantially from one day to the next and that happened with Common Goldeneyes at my local pond in northern Utah when their numbers increased considerably.
I've seen people struggle with seeing the differences between male and female American Kestrels and I hope this simple comparison will help.
The lives of these Great Blue Herons sure are different when you compare December in Utah to December in Florida.
Last week while photographing birds in Ophir Canyon I was able to take a short series of photos of a Mountain Chickadee perched in a juniper right after I photographed some bushtits.
I was able to photograph several California Quail in snow yesterday in Davis County, Utah and I was also able to listen to at least one male calling.
For several weeks now Rough-legged Hawks have been migrating into northern Utah and showing up in locations where I have photographed them for years.
Last week I found a small flock of American Goldfinches foraging on the auto tour route at Bear River MBR and I was able to capture a few images of them before they took off in a rush.
Last December there were several Double-crested Cormorants hanging around my local pond here in northern Utah and I had a great time photographing them.
There are other differences in plumage between Prairie and Peregrine Falcons that show in my photos but by using just their heads it is possible to make a quick ID in the field.
I've been wondering if "my" Canada x Snow Goose hybrid will be back this winter, if it will show up at the same pond and if I will be able to photograph it again.
Redhead drakes are more colorful than the hens and I always enjoy having them in my viewfinder because of their cinnamon colored heads, their bright orange eyes and their tri-colored bills.