For the past several weeks Antelope Island has been awash in the glorious yellows of moth mullein. It doesn’t cover the entire island but there are areas where entire hillsides have been festooned in mullein yellow.
Here the slopes below Buffalo Point are covered with a carpet of mullein.
Every time we pass such an area we drool over the possibility of photographing a bird perched atop mullein as it can make such an attractive setting. But it just doesn’t happen. For some reason the myriad Horned Larks, Western Meadowlarks, Sage Thrashers, Lark Sparrows and several other songbird species seem to avoid mullein as a perch, almost without exception.
But six days ago days ago we were pleasantly surprised when this Male Horned Lark flew up from the edge of the road and landed on mullein. And then it even let us get close and began to sing its soft, melodious tune. I enjoy this elevated perch for a Horned Lark because they’re typically perched on low rocks (or scurrying around in the grass).
True, the mullein blossoms hadn’t completely opened yet so they weren’t in their full glory but at least it was a mullein perch.
The downside of so much mullein this year is that the dried stalks last for many months and they’re so thick that they’ll obstruct most anything we try to photograph on the ground. So I likely won’t be posting many coyote shots for a while…
Ron
Lovely bird, and the mullein ain’t so bad either!
What wonderful shots! Thanks so much for sharing! Beautiful little bird!
That is a captivating landscape shot, Ron. And the horned lark is outstanding. Well, I guess we just got to roll with the mullein.I am sure your creative eye will come up with something special.
Beautiful!
Thanks, Cindy.
Awesome Work Ron. Beautiful portrait ! Bummer about the Mullein hindering future Coyote photos…for now.
Maybe I’ll find a coyote in flight, John. 🙂 Thank you.
That lark photo is certainly outstanding in its timing and sharpness. Good job, Ron.
Additionally, I want to express my appreciation for the landscape shot which added spice to this post. Having never been to Antelope Island, my mental image of it was a flat piece of land like our islands down here. Instead, I see beautiful hills adorned with flowers. No wonder you like it so much.
Thank you, Dwynn. Yes, the island is far from a flat piece of land. There are actually mountains on the central part of the island that are much higher than Buffalo Point – Frary Peak being the highest in elevation.
Beautiful shot of a beautiful bird. Here again, the soft yellow blurs make a nice, soft, unobtrusive addition to the composition.
Thanks, Patty. I like those yellows, too.