I haven’t posted a Chukar for many months so I figured it’s about time.
1/2500, 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
I photographed this one this past June as it was calling from a rocky outcropping on Antelope Island. I like the calling pose, the clean background and the rocky perch. And this is one of those cases where I think the sidelight works well.
This was one of the last times I’ve photographed a Chukar on the island. We just don’t see as many as we used to and I’m worried about what’s going on with them. They used to be ubiquitous on the island but they’re far from that now and have been for several years.
Today’s post is a short one because I have a lot on my plate this morning, including but not limited to an important doctor appointment. I’m a busy boy.
Ron
PS – And speaking of medical stuff I have to give a shout-out and a thank you to my good friend and neighbor Mike Welch. It snowed most of the day yesterday – the biggest ‘dump’ we’ve had all winter with 7″ at my house and up to 18″ elsewhere in the valley. The snow was unusually wet and dense and that will be good for birds and wildlife in the long run but there’s no way I could have dealt with shoveling and snow blowing it with my bad back and related issues. Mike knows my situation and good guy that he is he took it upon himself to do my driveway and sidewalk.
Good friends – what would we do without them?
Love the markings on this bird and glad you have good friends to lend a hand-I remember how heavy those wet snows are!
Beautiful bird and beautiful image. Curious though, the Chuckar not being native, that you worry about its abundance?
Great to have neighbors like that; good luck at the doc and driving the icy roads (I remember, and don’t miss, Cache Valley in the winter).
Thanks, Lyle. I guess for me it’s the difference between introduced birds whose numbers don’t explode in the habitat causing known environmental problems and introduced birds that do. Chukars and Ring-necked Pheasants in my area as compared to European Starlings and House Sparrows.
Yes, Cache Valley has even colder winters than we do. I spent two frigid winters there going to Utah State.
This Chukar has a beautiful pose. I love how the color of those chunky legs, the orange rim around the eye and the bill all match.
I wish you the best with your health issues. Dealing with those types of issues can really wear someone out. Thank you for posting your blog daily in spite of your challenges.
Thanks very much, Alice.
I haven’t seen a Chukar here since my very first sighting at a cottage on the west coast of our province. However recently, one has taken up residence in the yard of a seniors complex in my home city on the east coast of the province..
Good neighbors are a gift…Be well.
Thanks for the good wishes, Therese.
Hooray for helpful friends. Good luck with your medical appointment.
And many thanks for the chukar. I have missed the beagle boys and am sorry to hear that you are seeing less of them.
I remembered how you like Chukars, EC. Thanks.
Nice photo Ron. Have never seen a Chukar. Good luck with the doctor visit. Great memories of shoveling snow as a WW2 kid back in Pennsylvania. School would close for the snow and then we kids would shovel everyone’s driveways and walkways. I think the going price was $1.
Everett Sanborn, Prescott AZ
One dollar wasn’t bad bad in those days, Everett. I remember thinking I was rich when my folks finally raised my weekly allowance to a quarter! And when I was maybe 10 I used my horse to help my uncle Floyd move his cattle to their winter range and he wrote me a check for $4. I thought I’d never have to work again… 🙂
Lovely photograph! And so nice to hear about thoughtful neighbors.
Thank you, Joanne. Mike’s one of the good guys.
Lovely little bird! 🙂 The calling pose, rock, and background light all contribute to a wonderful picture… 🙂 Hope the Dr. appt goes well – the “joys of aging”…….. 🙁 Glad you got good moisture. We got some nice, wet, much needed snow but only a couple of inches here. Now if the wind, which is to blow today, doesn’t pick it all up. Good friends/neighbors are critical and a blessing….. 🙂
Good luck with your MT wind, Judy! I was actually hoping for some wind yesterday to blow some of the snow off of the huge elm tree that overhangs my house. Didn’t happen though. Thank you.
Very interesting bird! Not one that I’ve seen in the wild. I really like the color details in the feathers…also those legs…beauties! 😍 It is a great capture…perfect profile and that background is terrific. Looks like the snow you had will be hitting us in these next 24. As I head out the door for MI, I hope it doesn’t hit full bore until I return tonight. The good news with my mother did not last and looks like radiation is back into the picture and multiple weekly trips.
Thanks, Kathy. I hope the storm is less disrupting when it hits you than it was here. It caused (along with poor driver habits) over 200 vehicle accidents and lots of tree damage. Snow plows are still trying to catch up.
So sorry to hear the bad news about your mother. I wish her the very best.