I took many, many shots of this crazy, mixed up Meadowlark this past spring and I posted a few of them previously. This is another one that I like.
1/1250, f/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D, Canon EF500mm f/4L IS II USM +1.4, not baited, set up or called in
This was one goofy bird. I photographed it for about a minute as it “dry bathed” high on a rabbitbrush perch on Antelope Island. It hadn’t been raining and the meadowlark wasn’t wet (or anywhere near dust for dust-bathing) but I swear it thought it was bathing in water. All of its actions were precisely as if it were doing just that, sans the water. It repeatedly put its head down, as if in water, and then ruffled and shook its feathers vigorously. I’ve spent many hours watching meadowlarks and haven’t seen this behavior, except in water or in wet grass, before or since (there are more photos and a slightly more detailed description of the behavior here if you have the interest).
I’m posting this image because the light and pose appeal to me and I really like how my lens renders the bokeh of backgrounds like this. For my tastes this background enhances the image significantly. And I thought my Canon 7D handled the noise quite well at ISO 800 (no noise reduction was applied and the image has been cropped to 50% of the original image).
Ron
RON!RON!RON! The birdvwas obviously bathing in a mirage!!!
I love your perspective, Patty!
Terrific capture of an (apparent) unusual behavior, Ron! Maybe it started to preen and some sort of “muscle memory” thing kicked in? Great detail on the entire bird given the f5.6 setting. And you’re right about the bokeh for this image – it echoes the rich colors of the Meadowlark.
WOW! What a sensational shot Ron!
Charlotte
Silly? HOw rude and ignorant of you. This meadowlark is doing its environmental duty – conserving water. And both this and the early post make me smile until my face aches. Thank you both.
That bird might be smarter than I give it credit for, Elephant’s Child. From this very vantage point it could see large parts of the Great Salt Lake that have dried up due to drought – they’re only mud flats now.
I saw this behavior in a tree wet with dew…a cardinal was bathing in the wet leaves early one morning…it woiuld flop around and go in and out of the leaves, fluttering as if bathing. It took a while for me to realize what it was doing. First I thought it was in trouble then thought it had gone nuts!
Patty, yes, it’s a bit discombobulating to see this behavior without water at least nearby. It was dry as a bone everywhere around the bird.
I like the color, light and the goofiness! of this beautiful bird! I miss their song … Thanks for this post and the link of the earlier post Ron! Quite enjoyed the show 🙂
Thanks, Rima – glad you enjoyed the previous post. I know that some of my readers have seen those earlier posts before but I provide the links because others have not.
BTW, our meadowlarks sing almost for the entire year – not as often or as enthusiastically but they still sing on the island, even in snow sometimes. I really enjoy it.
I went back and looked at the other photos again. I think the bird was perhaps trying to entertain you? Once again, it put a smile on my face.
And entertain me it did, Susan. It’s amazing how much more interesting it is to watch something like this through a powerful lens “up close” than it usually is from relatively far away. That intimacy makes a big difference.