{"id":4599,"date":"2012-03-06T08:48:45","date_gmt":"2012-03-06T15:48:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=4599"},"modified":"2025-02-22T08:01:29","modified_gmt":"2025-02-22T14:01:29","slug":"prairie-falcon-the-fun-keeps-going","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2012\/03\/06\/prairie-falcon-the-fun-keeps-going\/","title":{"rendered":"Prairie Falcon ~ The Fun Keeps Going"},"content":{"rendered":"

I have had an amazing time photographing Prairie Falcons since last fall. Since the ducks are no longer near the causeway to Antelope Island<\/span><\/a> I have had a more difficult time locating them because they are now searching for their normal winter diet of Western Meadowlarks and Horned Larks.<\/p>\n

Which are found more “inland” on the island. Yesterday while on the island I spotted this Prairie Falcon perched on a high rock and had to stop to photograph it.<\/p>\n

\"Prairie\u00a0Prairie Falcon lift off #1 – Nikon D300, f6.3, 1\/2000, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

This is a difficult location to photograph from because the angle is steep and below the rocks at the bottom of this frame there is burned vegetation from a fire on that slope last October. Trying to get a clear view is problematic from the shoulder of the road closest to the rocky outcropping.<\/p>\n

I should have tried from the other shoulder of the road to reduce the steep angle even though that means being further away from the bird.<\/p>\n

One of the frustrations of being a bird photographer is knowing what location or position is the best for each opportunity and not being able to get there.<\/p>\n

I barely had time to adjust my exposure compensation as the falcon perched on the rocks before it lifted off. Those white rocks make exposure challenging and then when the bird lifted off I needed to be concerned about the exposure against the blue sky too.<\/p>\n

\"PrairiePrairie Falcon lift off #2 – Nikon D300, f6.3, 1\/2000, ISO 640, +0.3 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 400mm, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

These images are two consecutive frames, by the third frame the falcon had turned and I didn’t get great light in the eyes. Even at 1\/2000 I still have some motion blur but I think that adds to the feeling of movement in both of these images.<\/p>\n

I also wish the sun had not risen as high as it was because it deepened the shadows and it was a bit contrasty.<\/p>\n

Since Prairie Falcons are year round residents on the island I am looking forward to photographing them throughout the spring and summer.<\/p>\n

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

Mia<\/p>\n

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

I have had an amazing time photographing Prairie Falcons (Falco mexicanus) since last fall. Since the ducks are no longer near the causeway to Antelope Island I have had a more difficult time locating them because they are now searching for their normal winter diet of Western Meadowlarks and Horned Larks which are found more “inland” on the island.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":140551,"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":[511,27,1095,26],"tags":[4004,4278,4078,4279,4052,4122,4282,2617,4470],"class_list":["post-4599","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-antelope-island-state-park","category-avian","category-prairie-falcons","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-falco-mexicanus","tag-falcon","tag-falcons","tag-flight","tag-flying","tag-lift-off","tag-prairie-falcon","tag-rocks"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/prairie-falcon-lift-off-mia-mcpherson-6716.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-1cb","jetpack_sharing_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":43364,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2016\/12\/06\/immature-prairie-falcon-at-sunrise-next-to-the-great-salt-lake\/","url_meta":{"origin":4599,"position":0},"title":"Immature Prairie Falcon At Sunrise Next To The Great Salt Lake","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"December 6, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"The bird that started my day was an immature Prairie Falcon at sunrise next to the Great Salt Lake and as the sun started to rise the falcon seemed to glow.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Prairie Falcon at sunrise next to the Great Salt Lake, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/prairie-falcon-sunrise-mia-mcpherson-4550.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/prairie-falcon-sunrise-mia-mcpherson-4550.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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2012","format":false,"excerpt":"One foggy morning last December I spotted this juvenile Prairie Falcon (Falco mexicanus) perched on a frost-covered rock on the causeway to Antelope Island SP with the Great Salt Lake in the background.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Prairie Falcon on a cold Utah morning next to the causeway, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/prairie-falcon-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-7323.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/prairie-falcon-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-7323.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/prairie-falcon-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-7323.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/prairie-falcon-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-7323.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":14926,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2014\/05\/10\/a-first-year-prairie-falcon\/","url_meta":{"origin":4599,"position":3},"title":"First year Prairie Falcon","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"May 10, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"In the fall of 2011 I enjoyed being able to photograph this first year Prairie Falcon several times close to the Great Salt Lake in Utah.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Early morning Prairie Falcon, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/prairie-falcon-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-9910.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/prairie-falcon-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-9910.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/prairie-falcon-juvenile-mia-mcpherson-9910.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":3907,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2011\/12\/28\/more-prairie-falcon-fun-this-time-with-prey\/","url_meta":{"origin":4599,"position":4},"title":"More Prairie Falcon Fun ~ This time with prey","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"December 28, 2011","format":false,"excerpt":"Last week while out photographing I spotted a Prairie Falcon in the midst of a tussle with two Common Ravens in mid air. At times it seemed that the falcon was chasing the ravens and then the tables would turn and it appeared that the ravens were diving at the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Full frame flight image of a Prairie Falcon, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/prairie-falcon-flight-mia-mcpherson-0044.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/prairie-falcon-flight-mia-mcpherson-0044.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/prairie-falcon-flight-mia-mcpherson-0044.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/prairie-falcon-flight-mia-mcpherson-0044.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":6560,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2012\/11\/11\/prairie-falcon-with-a-northern-shoveler-as-prey-graphic\/","url_meta":{"origin":4599,"position":5},"title":"Prairie Falcon with a Northern Shoveler as prey (Graphic)","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"November 11, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"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.","rel":"","context":"In "Antelope Island State Park"","block_context":{"text":"Antelope Island State Park","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/antelope-island-state-park\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Prairie Falcon lifting Northern Shoveler over rocks on the shoreline of the Great Salt Lake, Antelope Island State Park in Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/prairie-falcon-prey-mia-mcpherson-8535.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/prairie-falcon-prey-mia-mcpherson-8535.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/prairie-falcon-prey-mia-mcpherson-8535.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/prairie-falcon-prey-mia-mcpherson-8535.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\/4599","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=4599"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4599\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/140551"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4599"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4599"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4599"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}