bear river migratory bird refuge – Page 25

Grebe Chicks Hitchin’ A Ride

There’s just something about back-brooding birds that appeals to the human eye and heart.

Double-Crested Cormorant Flying Among The Clouds

I’m not much of a fan of plain blue sky backgrounds for flight shots and on this morning I was resigned to such an outcome in any flight shots I might get because the sky was virtually cloudless. But just as I snapped the shutter this bird passed by one of the few small clouds to be found anywhere and there was even a tinge of pink provided by the color of the rising sun.

Western Grebes “Rushing”

I’ve found the rushing behavior of Western Grebes to be one of the more difficult bird photography challenges of all. First of all you have to be there when it happens and I’ve only seen it a handful of times.

Extremes In Fish Size White Pelicans Will Attempt To Eat

American White Pelicans eat fish almost exclusively and the size range of fish they’ll attempt to swallow can be extreme. If they show poor judgment they can get into serious trouble.

This Is Why They’re Called “Stilts”

If you thought that stilts have the longest legs relative to body size of all bird species you’d be wrong. But not by much. That distinction belongs to flamingos but stilts come in a close second.

Bird Banding – A Necessary Evil?

For the first six years of my bird photography “career” I rarely encountered banded birds but in the last two years or so I encounter them regularly, some species more than others. Usually when I see a bird with bands or transmitters strapped to their backs I don’t even click the shutter except for documentation purposes.

Western And Clark’s Grebes – A Comparison

Western Grebes and Clark’s Grebes are so similar in plumage patterns and behaviors that until 1985 they were considered to be color phases of the same species – the Western Grebe. In fact they’re similar enough that many observers never even recognize Clark’s Grebes when they see them and assume that they’re the more common Western Grebe.

Great Blue Heron In Flight (and working on prejudices…)

I have a confession to make and it involves a long-held prejudice I’ve had in the past against images of Great Blue Herons.

Western Kingbird With A Serious Eye Problem

Whenever I get an up-close look at a bird in the wild through my lens it’s always my subconscious expectation that it will be vigorous and healthy. It disturbs me when that doesn’t turn out to be the case.

Ratchet pointing, Dip-shaking Western Grebes

Two behaviors indicative of pair bonds between mated pairs of Western (or Clark’s) Grebes are “Ratchet pointing” and “Dip-shaking”. The behaviors are often alternated, one after the other. I photographed both of them as they were performed by a pair of Western Grebes three days ago at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge.