After twelve years of photographing birds and paying particular attention to their behaviors it isn’t every day that I witness a ritualized aggressive behavior that’s new to me. But it happened yesterday at Bear River MBR with a couple of Great Blue Herons, seemingly on steroids.
I don’t post photos of Turkey Vultures often but yesterday, International Vulture Awareness Day, was perfect timing to have an encounter with them.
Western Kingbirds are noted for their persistent belligerent behavior. This is one of nine different aggressive displays bird behaviorists have identified in the species.
I’ve photographed a variety of songbirds, wading birds and raptors throwing pellets but yesterday was the first time I’ve been able to document a wren of any species exhibiting the behavior.
Any bird photographer who thinks they’re skilled at tracking birds in flight should attempt to photograph hummingbird aerial combat. It’s a humbling experience.
I’ve been photographing coyotes on Antelope Island and elsewhere for many years now and this was the most perplexing behavior I’ve ever seen.
Familiarity with bird behaviors gives photographers a much better chance of capturing the shot we’re after.
The red-tail had a dramatic reaction to the brazen attack from the male harrier yesterday morning.
It’s that time of year folks, Sage Grouse are displaying on the lek. But photographers had best be prepared for extreme changes in lighting conditions and action from the displaying and fighting males.
