{"id":43081,"date":"2016-11-12T06:12:04","date_gmt":"2016-11-12T13:12:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=43081"},"modified":"2026-02-02T06:54:51","modified_gmt":"2026-02-02T12:54:51","slug":"late-migrating-american-avocets-in-utah","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2016\/11\/12\/late-migrating-american-avocets-in-utah\/","title":{"rendered":"Late Migrating American Avocets in Utah"},"content":{"rendered":"

Most of the American Avocets have migrated away from northern Utah but most years we can have a few stragglers that haven’t migrated by this time of the year although in past years I have seen some avocets as late as the end of December.<\/p>\n

\"StretchingStretching American Avocet in non-breeding plumage – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1\/1600, ISO 320, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n

I photographed this stretching American Avocet in non-breeding plumage (Definitive Basic Plumage) last week at Farmington Bay WMA and few days ago saw more avocets on the Great Salt Lake from the causeway to Antelope Island.<\/p>\n

I am still seeing a few other shorebirds that haven’t migrated including Greater Yellowlegs and Wilson’s Snipes but for the most part the rest of the shorebirds have gone south.<\/p>\n

I have been seeing two American Avocets regularly at Farmington Bay WMA the past few weeks and I wonder how long they will continue to hang around.<\/p>\n

There might be snow in the Salt Lake Valley next week according to weather forecasts and that might make the remaining avocets here head south.<\/p>\n

Until the American Avocets<\/span><\/a> do finally migrate I will enjoy seeing and photographing these graceful shorebirds.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my American Avocet photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Most of the American Avocets have migrated away from northern Utah but most years we can have a few stragglers that haven’t migrated by this time of the year<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":142963,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[451,27,1022,697,26],"tags":[4004,1634,5828,5350,4642,3946,530,5095,4246,4177,4081,274,3964,3996],"class_list":["post-43081","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-american-avocets","category-avian","category-davis-county-utah","category-farmington-bay-wma","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-american-avocet","tag-avocet","tag-avocets","tag-definitive-basic-plumage","tag-migrating","tag-migration","tag-non-breeding","tag-nonbreeding-plumage","tag-recurvirostra-americana","tag-salt-lake-valley","tag-shorebirds-2","tag-stretching","tag-water"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/american-avocet-nonbreeding-mia-mcpherson-2138.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-bcR","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":113609,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/05\/30\/springtime-adult-american-avocet\/","url_meta":{"origin":43081,"position":0},"title":"Springtime Adult American Avocet","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 30, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"This morning, I wanted to share a photo of an adult American Avocet taken in the wetlands of Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.","rel":"","context":"In "American Avocets"","block_context":{"text":"American Avocets","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/shorebirds\/american-avocets\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"American Avocet walking in shallow water in spring, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-avocet-springtime-mia-mcpherson-2904.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-avocet-springtime-mia-mcpherson-2904.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-avocet-springtime-mia-mcpherson-2904.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/american-avocet-springtime-mia-mcpherson-2904.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":122167,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/02\/28\/flock-of-american-avocets-at-farmington-bay\/","url_meta":{"origin":43081,"position":1},"title":"Flock Of American Avocets At Farmington Bay","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"February 28, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"On my last trip to Farmington Bay WMA, I was delighted to have a resting flock of American Avocets in my viewfinder. Seeing these shorebirds delights me.","rel":"","context":"In "American Avocets"","block_context":{"text":"American Avocets","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/shorebirds\/american-avocets\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"American Avocet flock resting at Farmington Bay WMA, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/american-avocet-flock-resting-mia-mcpherson-9117.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/american-avocet-flock-resting-mia-mcpherson-9117.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/american-avocet-flock-resting-mia-mcpherson-9117.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/american-avocet-flock-resting-mia-mcpherson-9117.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":113164,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/05\/03\/springtime-grebe-and-avocet-portraits\/","url_meta":{"origin":43081,"position":2},"title":"Springtime Grebe And Avocet Portraits","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 3, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"This morning I am sharing two springtime portraits that I took last week at Bear River MBR. The first is a Western Grebe, the second, an American Avocet.","rel":"","context":"In "American Avocets"","block_context":{"text":"American Avocets","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/shorebirds\/american-avocets\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Springtime Western Grebe portrait, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/western-grebe-portrait-bear-river-mbr-mia-mcpherson-2171.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/western-grebe-portrait-bear-river-mbr-mia-mcpherson-2171.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/western-grebe-portrait-bear-river-mbr-mia-mcpherson-2171.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/05\/western-grebe-portrait-bear-river-mbr-mia-mcpherson-2171.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":5956,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2012\/08\/22\/american-avocets-in-breeding-and-nonbreeding-plumage\/","url_meta":{"origin":43081,"position":3},"title":"American Avocets In Breeding And Nonbreeding Plumage","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"August 22, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"I photographed this American Avocet in nonbreeding plumage as it foraged in Glover's Pond at Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area in northern Utah a few years ago in the month of November.","rel":"","context":"In "American Avocets"","block_context":{"text":"American Avocets","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/shorebirds\/american-avocets\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"American Avocet in breeding plumage, Montana","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/american-avocet-breeding-mia-mcpherson-2187.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/american-avocet-breeding-mia-mcpherson-2187.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/american-avocet-breeding-mia-mcpherson-2187.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/american-avocet-breeding-mia-mcpherson-2187.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":111843,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/03\/31\/snow-weary-and-needing-a-bird-fix\/","url_meta":{"origin":43081,"position":4},"title":"Snow Weary And Needing A Bird Fix","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 31, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"More fresh snow on the ground this morning. I am snow weary. What I need is a bird, nature, gone exploring in the wild fix with no real or clear return time.","rel":"","context":"In "American Avocets"","block_context":{"text":"American Avocets","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/shorebirds\/american-avocets\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Spring male Red-winged Blackbird singing, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/red-winged-blackbird-male-spring-marsh-mia-mcpherson-1613.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/red-winged-blackbird-male-spring-marsh-mia-mcpherson-1613.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/red-winged-blackbird-male-spring-marsh-mia-mcpherson-1613.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/red-winged-blackbird-male-spring-marsh-mia-mcpherson-1613.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14550,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2014\/03\/12\/an-adult-american-avocet-in-its-breeding-plumage\/","url_meta":{"origin":43081,"position":5},"title":"An Adult American Avocet In Its Breeding Plumage","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 12, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Three days ago I saw my first of the season American Avocets flying over the causeway to Antelope Island State Park and I let out a gleeful \"whoop\"!","rel":"","context":"In "American Avocets"","block_context":{"text":"American Avocets","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/shorebirds\/american-avocets\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Adult American Avocet in its breeding plumage, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/american-avocet-adult-breeding-mia-mcpherson-5233.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/american-avocet-adult-breeding-mia-mcpherson-5233.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/american-avocet-adult-breeding-mia-mcpherson-5233.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/american-avocet-adult-breeding-mia-mcpherson-5233.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43081","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43081"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43081\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/142963"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43081"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43081"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43081"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}