A relatively quick post this morning, for reasons that will be come evident.
1/8000, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS II US, not baited, set up or called in
I photographed this presumed male Sage Thrasher on April 20, 2016 on Antelope Island. He was performing what’s known as the bilateral wing display as part of his courtship ritual. They’re usually quite shy while they’re doing it and this was the closest I’ve ever been to a performance like this in good light (I didn’t even have my teleconverter attached).
I caught the bird in its namesake habitat (sagebrush), his beak is open as he sings, he’s sharp, I love the pose and I find the bi-colored background appealing. Some of the out-of-focus sagebrush stems are a bit of a bother but for me they don’t detract much. I’m a little embarrassed by the exorbitant shutter speed but I was so excited to be this close to a displaying thrasher I just fired off some shots without checking my camera settings for fear the bird would fly off before I could get any photos.
On an unrelated note: Veteran Feathered Photography readers in particular deserve an explanation as to why I’ve been posting more older photos than usual lately (this one is older but it’s new to my blog). There’s several reasons for it, including:
- For many weeks we’ve been having overcast weather almost exclusively and it’s largely a waste of time to photograph birds in poor light so I don’t even bother to go shooting. Hopefully that weather pattern will break soon.
- Birds have been alarmingly scarce around here for months. Winters in northern Utah are usually very good for raptors in particular but that hasn’t been the case this year. I’m looking forward to imminent spring migration as a remedy.
- My own health issues haven’t helped. My recent bout with shingles (a nasty virus if there ever was one) has finally improved significantly but I was miserable for weeks and it’s difficult to concentrate on photography in the field when you’re in that much pain.
- My chronic back problems have also kept me out of the field more than usual lately and yesterday morning was an example. For one of the first times in weeks we had a spectacular sunny morning with no wind and stunning light but I had an appointment at a surgical center for a steroid epidural in my spine to hopefully mitigate my back, leg and foot pain so I couldn’t take advantage of the good light. Frustrating but worth it because I think I may already be feeling some relief (I hope that optimism isn’t premature).
I don’t like to whine about my personal health issues on my blog but I figured an explanation to loyal readers was way past due.
Ron
PS – I’m late posting this morning because I slept in until 5:30 which is highly unusual for me. I was about 90 minutes late getting up, probably because relatively painless sleep felt so darn good.
Wonderful shots Ron! Glad to hear you’re doing better. A good reminder I need to get the shot.
Charlotte
Late to the party, Ron, but what a stunning shot! Looks like he’s grasping onto that sagebrush for dear life! No need to apologize for dipping into the archives. Your blog is one of the sweetest spots in my day, re-runs or not. Hope tomorrow is the start of another pain-free week!
I agree with Diane – your blog is definitely a sweet spot in my day!
Most importantly, take care of yourself 😜‼️
Great photos as always. Please take care of yourself.
So glad you seem to be seeing the rear end of the shingles and that the epidural has given you some relief. Take as much advantage of pain-free sleep as you can! I know I do on those rare nights. 🙂
Hope the planets align in the right way soon to give you a pain-free day, good light, and lots of birdies!
Thanks on all counts, Marty.
and NO SHOVELING! 😉
Great shot Ron. Glad you are on the mend. Back problems are bad enough, but with Shingles added. I can’t imagine the discomfort you were in.
I hope the worst of it is behind me, Jean. Thanks.
Good. Morning Ron. Thank you for another magnificent image beginning this sparkling day. It has rained at last! I’ll keep a sharp eye for Chanterelles as I roam around today.
Somme of your family history is included in George Willisobn’s 1945 book “Saints and Strangers.” His engrossing account obtained from actual diaries and records fortunately discovered by accident is fascinating. Much obliged for your remarks about your ancestors.
Your back troubles are a reminder of mine. They are resolved since laminectomy / spinal fusion December 2016 ( I avoided surgery with Yoga for the back with a certified therapist beginning 2012) A year ago my doctor cleared me to resume most normal activity. He emphasized caution. Avoid yard work, “Your back is not a piece of heavy equipment!” I did much internet research beforehand: history of back surgery, recent advances and numerous well regarded venues.. My working career supplying most physicians in our area helped me grasp things. My doctor insisted that I walk five miles daily to recover. It was February when I managed that, pushing beyond eight miles and 963 ft. elevation in April last year.. Living in the country on a dirt road with our old Lab and young Shorthair for company on my road work was a big help.. My care was outstanding. Doctors, hospital, physical therapists – terrific.
My spine surgeon and neurosurgeon have worked together often. They were utterly candid, noting that 25% of patients expected more improvement. Surgery is elective. After pain Rx more than a month, continuing that for life’s remainder did not appeal. I hope that what you decide upon for your back helps you as much as I’ve been helped.
As many other Featherd Photography readers, I especially value your bird behavior explanations discovered from your curiosity about subtle details in your images. Similar focus on your own well being shall serve you too.. Thoroughly research efficacy. My appreciation for you is enormous, Ron. You are relly a treasure and your health deserves your considerable talent no less than our avian friends. Truly Gary
What a nice comment, Gary! I really appreciate hearing about your experience with your back and perhaps it will give me some valuable insight. And I think I’ll follow up on Willibson’s book and see if I can round out my understanding of times back then. Thanks so much for your interesting and helpful comments.
Whatever you do, avoid doing dishes, shopping and vacuuming forever….:-)
Ha, I just finished doing dishes, Patty. My hands are still a little wet.
Looks like your followers are of the same mind. Sorry to hear you are suffering and hope it gets better soon. Previous or brand new your photos and information are great and at my advanced age it’s hard to determine which is which. Take care.
Thank you, Betty.
Oh Ron.
I hope that the exuberant Sage Thrasher is ushering in a new pain free dawn for you. Pain sucks. Better than Dyson has ever managed.
And old or new, your photos and posts are ALWAYS a delight and an education.
Thanks very much, EC.
Love the Thrasher photo. Regarding your nasty back pain, you have a lot of soulmates. I have also come to the conclusion that aging is mostly a connective tissue disease, i.e. the inability of connective tissue to repair itself. Discs and joint surfaces seem especially vulnerable. Hope the epidural will get you back in the field soon.
Thanks, Dennis. You may very well be right about connective tissue.
Your photo of the Sage Thrasher has many great aspects: eye, wing position, sage and the feet position.
I hate to say it but “I feel your pain” because I’ve had chronic pain for 25 years. It is not a fun ride and I don’t like to whine. You do not whine.
Feel better and get some much needed sleep. It is a wonderful healer.
Sorry to hear about your pain, Alice – especially since it’s lasted so long. I can hardly imagine. Thank you.
I am so sorry I mentioned my pain on your blog. There are so many people who have much more difficulties than me. I hope that you and your readers accept my apologies for bringing it up.
I hope you feel better. Pain is am awful curse.
There’s absolutely no reason to be sorry about it, Alice. If you need to apologize then so do I and that just isn’t going to happen. Don’t give it another thought.
The upside to senility is that everything old is new again 😉 But seriously, I don’t mind one little bit and I GET the pain thing. After a huge bout with enormous stress, I’ve got my RA in a flare up to the point where all I’ve been able to do is nap and play Solitaire, and of course, care for the dogs/birds. But that was IT. Things I needed to do sat there undone, which added more stress AND as a bonus, made me all cranky and grumpy. Nobody likes that–even me!
When chronic pain happens, it can take over your life in ugly ways and there’s little to nothing you can do about it. So, do not worry about us. Most of us are senile and we believe in reuse, recycling and repurposing…LOL!
The good thing is that the arrival of Big Red’s new egg at Cornell has lifted my spirits. I’m hoping the winds won’t knock me down today so Jack and I can get out in the field, which will lift my spirits even more! And as usual, you begin my day with beauty and joy. Add to that, my vultures are back, sparrows are nesting under the roof of the mews and overall, life IS good! YIPPEE!
It also brings me great joy to hear the shingles pain is subsiding and I sincerely hope your back treatments work immediately if not sooner.
“The upside to senility is that everything old is new again”
With one exception, Laura. I’m old but I’m far from “new again”!
And speaking of wind (and bad timing). We had a few absolutely horrific gusts last night at 12:45 AM which brought down a couple of large branches from a tree in front of my house. Cleaning it up with a bad back isn’t something I look forward to. It’s snowing now so I’ll use that as an excuse for putting it off…
Really? You need SNOW as an excuse when you’re in pain from your back? Jeesh! But you are a man…hopefully Mia will intervene with some common sense! In other words, leave it! It will still be there when you’re feeling better. Trust me on this 😉
I neglected to tell you how much I enjoyed this morning’s image. What a beauty! AND he gifted you a song with that spectacular pose! What a deal.
I don’t mind the replay of older photos, they are still lovely images and interesting informative reading. The position of and lighting on the sage thrasher are stunning. I am sorry for the pain you are having, it is frustrating falling apart when you want to be active. I am in the area if you or Mia need anything give me a shout.
Your “old” images are often new to us…personally, as I’ve said before, I llove to see “old” images again…I enjoyed them the first time, and love seeing them, again and again (.that’s one of the reasons so many of us have something called “books”…we can look at them over and over agsin!!!)….
Good point about books, Patty. Excellent point in fact…
So kind of you to offer, April. Thanks very much.
There’s a HUGE difference between reporting, sharing and “whining”….JEEEEZ!!!! You may be a nutty, obsessed, determined bird photographer, but you sure as heck are no “whiner”!!! Shingles are the pits! And on top of a bad back!!!(no sleep, have been there!!!) …what you contiue to do borders on masochism!!! LOVE the thrasher display…didn’t know they did that….always something new from you….
Thanks for saying I’m not whining, Patty. But most everyone has their health challenges and discomfort and many don’t talk about it publicly. I just thought readers deserved to know why the “tone” of my blog has changed a little recently. Hopefully it won’t last…
When I was teaching, because shared the fact that I was having terrible back and sciatic leg and foot pain, I got the most useful, helpful, effective, compassionate advice from one of my “toughest” students, a 6′ 4″ juvenile delinquent named Jamal…my “bad news bear” guardian angel…
So sorry to hear of your health issues, be sure to take care of yourself, you deserve it. I love your blog and photos and still hope to run into you (figuratively) in the field one of these days.
That would be fun, Ken. I hope it happens one day.
Such an impressive display of feathers. I’ve got to think that females of the species would be enthralled. Not a bird I would see here in NW Washington, so thanks for the making me aware of them.
Like Mom used to say, “getting old isn’t for sissies”. Hard to relate to when we were young, but here we are!
“Such an impressive display of feathers”
I agree, Lyle. I love the feather definition on the left wing. And yes, it is “hard to relate” to these health issues when we’re young. Been there, done that…
I LOVED THIS SHOT OF THE THRASHER! I’ll SAY you’re not a whiner……..just getting out of bed and carrying on when you have shingles, back pain, and are sleep-deprived is the essence of
stoicism in my book……..I wish you good sleep for many more nights to come, and by then the light, weather, and bird supply will have improved and you’ll be up to taking advantage of it all.
I’ll take you up on ALL those good wishes, Kris! Thank you.
Amen!!!
Good morning Ron! Hopefully things will improve for you, pain wise as well as weather. Have you had a CT scan done on your back. In the winter of 1999 after moving back to Nelson from Vancouver I slipped & fell 5 times one morning & herniated a disc in my back. The pain was a little hard to take going down my leg into the outside of my foot. I had surgery by a Neurosurgeon in Kelowna to shave off the now hardened leakage from the disc. Needless to say the numbness in the outside of my foot is easier to tolerate than the pain before the surgery. I even came home right after the surgery & built a fence around a flower bed. Yesterday I got some pictures of a Northern Pintail, never seen one before and a species looking very much like an American Wigeon male except that instead of green on the sides of his head was red so not quite sure who he was or was trying to be? I don’t mind seeing photos from earlier on as with the Sage Thrasher, whom I have not seen before either. Thank you Ron!
Shirley, Yes, I’ve had a CT scan on my back – it’s a train wreck (or it looks like I’ve been in one…).
IMO the Pintail is the most elegant of ducks I photograph. Thank you.
Eurasian Widgeon, perhaps?
Glad to read you are feeling better. I’m a longtime reader (first time commenter) and I always enjoy your photos and commentary, old or new. I hope spring brings lots of good weather and birding opportunities for you!
Thanks very much, Kirsten. And welcome to the commenting world of my blog! 🙂
Nice photo Ron and interesting to see a different Thrasher that I am not familiar with. We have Curve-billed and Crissal, but no Sage. Wishing you well and quick healing for your physical problems. Not fun out in the early morning cold with back and shingles pain. Wishing you and everyone on your list a very Happy St. Patrick’s Day.
Everett Sanborn, Prescott AZ
Thank you, Everett. Corned beef and sauerkraut for us for dinner tonight!
I have found it so amazing to the see that the beautiful colors of the birds
blend in so well with their habitat where ever they live!
After our last hurricane here in Florida,(hurricane Irma), in September,,,it seemed as if
the birds were totally wiped out…and it wasn’t until January that more came. The robins
came through here in February on their way up north…I do hope they realized they were rushing
back to winter!
Adele, some folks describe the Sage Thrasher as “drab” but with their brightly colored eyes and well-marked breast I don’t agree.
We, too, had a lull in the number of birds here is SW CT last year, but I’m hopeful Spring (if it ever arrives!), will bless us with their return. It will be the teens here tonight, March 17, and another nor’easter is predicted for next wee. May Spring also bring you good health and regular days of birding!🙏🏻
Thanks, LS. Wow, you folks have had more than your share of nor’easters lately!
Cool shot – you health affects everything you do and, in my opinion, you certainly aren’t a “whiner” 🙂 Hopefully the epidural gets the job done – for awhile anyway – and the shingles are abating. SLEEP, glorious SLEEP! 🙂 Without decent rest everything else isn’t much fun for sure – glad you got some good sleep – hope it continues. We’ve been doing the fog/freezing fog thing for a few days – not conducive to photography for sure..
Yup, sleep is essential for most everything we do, Judy. Thanks very much.
Heading for Butte today……….? 🙂
Wonderful photos whether they are old to you or new – they are all new to me and I love seeing them and learning from you. I hope the shingles are gone and that the epidural solves your back pain issues. Wishing you good health, good light, and good birds.
Thank you, Nancy – for appreciating the image and for the good wishes.