The distinctive bright yellow feet and deeply contrasting jet-black legs of the Snowy Egret can really grab your eye when they’re visible above the water’s surface or even when the egret is in flight – so much so that both the bird and its feet are often referred to as “golden slippers”.
On a visit to Glover Pond last week I found this Greater Yellowlegs resting on a rock surrounded by relatively clear, still water which I thought made a nice setting for the bird (even though the rock also provided some compositional challenges).
On our Montana trips I’m always looking for Short-eared Owls but sadly, unlike just a few years ago when they were relatively abundant, they’re virtually nonexistent in the Centennial Valley these days. I’m pretty much convinced their absence is largely due to all the cattle (mostly yearlings who are the juvenile delinquents of the bovine world and they really tore up the place) that were allowed to graze Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge a couple of years ago.
This little Savannah Sparrow was one of my most memorable birds on our recent Montana camping trip. It was a fearless and a relentless hunter.
The eight minutes I spent photographing this male Northern Harrier in flight were both exhilarating and frustrating to the extreme.
In January I spent a few days with this adult Red-tail as it was hunting voles from power poles in Tooele County. Those blasted poles and wires are a real problem for the photographer.
Two years ago this juvenile Red-tailed Hawk hunted the same area of Antelope Island for much of the summer.
Yesterday morning I had a great time photographing an adult Red-tailed Hawk in northern Utah County as it hunted rodents from power poles. The experience was both rewarding and frustrating as I’ll explain.
Earlier this week I spent 59 minutes with this Barn Owl (a male I believe). This is early in the encounter when he was still getting used to me.
Getting light in the eye of a Barn Owl in flight is often a challenge because of their deeply set eyes but when you throw in the dark foreboding skies of an approaching storm it becomes even more difficult.
The Northern Harrier is arguably my favorite subject and I tend to post images of them often. Their dramatic sexual dimorphism in plumage color almost makes it seem as if I’m photographing two different species when I compare adult males to females.
When Northern Harriers choose to hunt along the edges of the dirt roads I frequent they sometimes give me interesting looks as they pass by. This is one of them.
Ferruginous Hawks are our largest and most powerful buteo but they’re also secretive, wary of humans and often roost on the ground so they can be difficult to locate.
The seriousness of confrontations between Northern Harriers varies with the situation. Conflicts over food, especially during harsh winters, can be intense and dramatic but they often seem to spar with each other just for the “fun” of it. I’ve often seen and occasionally photographed both extremes of aggressive behavior.
