In my area Black-billed Magpies are among our earliest nesters.
1/2500, f/6.3, ISO 640, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
Yesterday morning I spent almost two hours trying to photograph a pair of magpies as they were constructing their nest but shooting conditions were very difficult so my results were marginal. The nest and birds were further away than I prefer and I was shooting through a mass of last year’s dried sunflower stems that only gave me a narrow path of unobstructed view. More often than not I had sunflowers in the way but given the challenges I do think I got a few interesting photos and I wanted to document their early spring nest-building behavior.
I got very few flight shots of them carrying nesting material to the nest and almost none of them had any eye contact. The actual nest is buried in the bush just out of view at bottom.
1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 640, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
My best chances of catching them in flight came when they would take off after a twig delivery. Sometimes they’d launch from the top of the nest bush which put a narrow band of blue in the background from an arm of the Great Salt Lake.
1/5000, f/6.3, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
But other times they’d take off from the center of the bush which made for very busy and quite bright backgrounds. Thankfully the black and white birds still stand out quite well with backgrounds like that.
1/2000, f/6.3, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
With this background I was surprised I like this shot as much as I do. I think that vertically raised tail with its flashy iridescence in contrast to the rest of the body makes all the difference for me. Though it might look like the magpie is about to take off it really isn’t. With the tail down it kept getting caught up in the mass of twigs behind the bird so the magpie raised it vertically to avoid the apparent discomfort of it all. As it did so it briefly began to lose its balance, thus the partially extended wings.
On an unrelated note: State representative Mike Noel (R-Kanab) has dropped his bill proposing that the highways near southern Utah’s National Parks be renamed ‘”The Donald J. Trump Utah National Parks Highway”. He says he dropped it because “all the personal attacks wore him down”. Whatever his motivation to do so (I’d like to know what it really was) it’s wonderful news for any thoughtful and reasonable American.
That bill was an abomination and in in-your-face affront. It’s good to know that raising a stink can still make a difference.
Ron
I was highly amused by the folks that wanted to add an on/off ramp called Stormy Daniels.
Great shots of the magpie with the reflected light. We are a ways off from Spring yet, but hearing reports from you in Utah makes me hopeful!
I am luck enough to have these feisty birds where I live, love watching them.
Sooo glad to hear that bill blew into the wind. Boy did that one set my husband off😆😆
See you tomorrow ❗️
Those magpies really pop! Great images, and happy that the highway naming has been put to rest.
Beautiful series Ron!
Charlotte
I really miss the magpies from my time in Utah. Your shots are even more colorful than I remember them. We don’t have them here in Norhwest Washington, at least none that I’ve seen. Miss the Utah birds but not the politics.
“Miss the Utah birds but not the politics.”
I don’t blame you on either count, Lyle.
Our elected leaders better get used to the blow back or get out of the race! Congratulations on the fabulous pic of the iridescent tail!
Yup, I hope this little melodrama inspires more blowback like that. We need it.
Hooray for the sane people in Utah! And hooray for that iridescent tail pic!
“Hooray for the sane people in Utah”
There are a few of them around but they’re definitely at a premium, Pat…
My wimpy comfort loving self looks at those twigs and winces. NOT a nest which appeals to me. It reminds me of those stoics who sleep (pretend to sleep) on beds of nails. The magpies on the other hand… just glorious.
And whatever the reason, hooray for a bit of sanity. Some bills should never, ever be passed.
EC, of course the flip side for magpies is that those twigs and spines provide protection for the youngsters. I’ve looked inside their domed nests after nesting season and it looks like a torture chamber in there.
Tough love. And yes, I did know that.
Apparently, a fool and his bill are soon parted. Love the magpie shots — especially the ones showing the iridescent feathers. They are such beautiful little stinkers!
“beautiful little stinkers” us perfect for them, Marty – especially given their skunk colors.
Somehow your “marginal results” and mine are worlds apart. Nice work…again!
Thanks for the kind words, James.
Ron: Great shots! I enjoy seeing such nice work. Thank you.
Thank you, Richard.
I don’t mean to change the post from nature and wildlife to Trumps wildlife but did you hear one of Mike Noel’s caller proposed calling the road the “Stormy Daniel’s Frontage Road”? I laughed my head off!
Yes, I reported on that in yesterday’s post. It was actually State Senator Jim Dabakis who threatened to attach that amendment and the name he proposed was “Stormy Daniel Rampway”.
Beautiful shots Ron – my wife will love these. We were in Santa Fe last May and then spent a day up at Taos – neither of us had ever seen a Magpie and then everywhere we went in that area we were seeing these strange birds – we had to ask folks there what they were. I remember a Welsh friend telling me about their funny superstitions regarding Magpies. Great pictures of beautiful birds.
Everett Sanborn, Prescott AZ
Thanks, Everett. I do hope your wife enjoys them.
Speaking of “in your face”– that sounds like those flashy, noisy magpies–I just love all these shots ! My suspicion about the real motivation for the abandonment of that FOOL BILL is that Gov. Herbert
in his usual quiet way let it be known that he considered it “premature”, and when pressed as to whether he would veto it if passed, refused to answer publicly–I’m guessing that the word passed thru back-
channels was that it would be DOA. I’m sure glad to know that there is at least one grownup on capitol hill in SLC …….now we can get back to BIRDS and BEAUTY !
Kris, I agree that Herbert played a positive role in this little melodrama and I’ll give him credit for that. But he’s still got a very long ways to go before he gets in my good graces…
How the magpies balance in the twigs they are using is beyond me – guess they use what is at hand. The twigs they use here are MUCH sturdier for the most part. 😉 The 4th photo with the iridescence in the tail feather REALLY showing is great! 🙂 YES! on the fool dropping his bill 🙂 🙂 🙂
Judy, I think that long tail is actually quite useful in maintaining balance while perched. It can sure get in the way sometimes though…