Month: September 2012

Porcupine On The Antelope Island Causeway

On Wednesday morning of this week I had quite the surprise as I drove out to Antelope Island at dawn.  Between the island and the last bridge going west – a Porcupine!   The bristly critter was in the shade of the elevated road but I couldn’t resist taking a few photos anyway.  I got pretty close to take these images but it didn’t seem very concerned about it – with their prickly defense there’s few predators that will regularly mess with them other than the Fisher, and there’s not many of them on the island…  Most predators (and even many non-predators) know, instinctively or from experience, that bothering a Porcupine simply is not worth the risk (see my recent post of a Moose that fell victim to a Porcupine).     Porcupines are not uncommon on the island but in my experience it’s unusual to see them up close.  Typically they’re in the Russian Olives a fair distance from the road and in an area which can’t legally be hiked. It was fun to get such a good look at this one but I was concerned that it would become road-kill on the causeway.   All morning, while I was on the island, I was fearful that I’d find it dead on the road as I drove out.  Thankfully I didn’t. I hope it made its way safely back to the island. Ron

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Juvenile Willets In Montana’s Centennial Valley

On my mid-July trip to the Centennial Valley I spent several days with an adult Willet and two juveniles.   I reliably found them foraging for insects where a dirt road met Lower Red Rock Lake.  Most of the shore birds and wading birds in this area are truly wild and difficult to approach but these three birds were the exception as they repeatedly let me get close as they fed and preened.    1/2500, f/7.1, ISO 400, 500 f/4  This was the most perfectly coiffed of the two juveniles, as the other youngster had a patch of unruly feathers on the back of its head and upper neck.       1/2500, f/7.1, ISO 500, 500 f/4 This particular site provided a bountiful Arthropod smorgasbord for the willets, both in the water and on the shoreline.  The birds would feed on aquatic insects and crustaceans in the shallow water for a while and then get a little variety in their diet by coming up onto the shore and gobbling down hordes of terrestrial insects.  Here, the more unkempt juvie (notice the fluff of feathers on the back of the head) feeds on a variety of dipterans that it flushes from the vegetation.  I’ve cropped this image unconventionally to show more of the “bugs” in the air.  I didn’t get a catch light in this shot but this image showed the insects best.       1/2000, f/7.1, ISO 400, 500 f/4. 1.4 tc  At times some of the insects almost seemed to dare the Willets to pluck them out of…

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Goofy Red-tailed Hawk

When I first encountered this juvenile Red-tailed Hawk in Beaverhead County three weeks ago it was eating a vole on top of this fence post.  Soon after it finished the rodent it began to act a little strange.    1/2000, f/6.3, ISO 640, 500 f/4 In these first few shots it may look like the hawk is simply shaking or “ruffling” its feathers but I’m convinced that wasn’t the case.  I’ve seen many birds perform that feather maintenance activity but what was happening here looked quite different.  I remember telling Mia while it was occurring that it looked like the bird was “dancing” on top of the post.       1/2000, f/6.3, ISO 640, 500 f/4 The hawk went through some strange gyrations and postures that were different from what you see with a simple “shake” and they lasted an unusually long time (I have many shots of the behavior).  This tail-up posture, for example, is reminiscent of defecation but the bird didn’t defecate and the wing position isn’t what you would normally see during defecation anyway.       1/2000, f/6.3, ISO 640, 500 f/4 The bird wasn’t shaking to get these unusual feather positions either – instead it seemed to be deliberately and relatively slowly (compared to shaking) erecting its feathers.  I have 8 – 10 shots that are very similar to this one and they’re not all in sequence.       1/1600, f/6.3, ISO 640, 500 f/4  Then the bird decided to take off from the post…       1/2000, f/6.3, ISO 640, 500 f/4  but…

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Male Northern Harrier Almost Blown Off His Perch

I don’t often get close to perched male harriers but on Antelope Island a couple of months ago this one made an exception for me.    1/3200, f/5.6, ISO 640, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc As I watched him through my lens a sudden wind gust almost blew him off of this pointed and precarious post perch and I liked some of the poses that resulted.  It’s times like this that I appreciate the relatively fast burst rate of the Canon 7D. I didn’t get a great look at the eye in this first shot but I liked the tail, wing and left foot positions that show his obvious attempt to recover stability on the perch.      1/3200, f/5.6, ISO 640, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc  A better look at the eye and a higher wing position in this image…      1/3200, f/5.6, ISO 640, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc  and in the very next frame he extends his left wing far out in front.      1/3200, f/5.6, ISO 640, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc  Still recovering.  Notice the bloody feet in these shots, most likely from his last vole meal.      1/3200, f/5.6, ISO 640, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc  Finally, he’s recovered enough to give me direct eye contact.      1/2500, f/5.6, ISO 640, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc A little ruffled by the experience but in the end, all’s well. This series is an example of why, after I’ve taken a few static shots of the bird, I like to bump my settings to give me enough shutter speed…

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