And some of them even came out to play.
It takes me a long time to get to my destination in the west desert and I always try to get there before sunrise, so I do a lot of driving in the dark. But the drive can be far more interesting when I can watch…
the nearly full moon slowly sinking to the horizon directly in front of me. A cell phone photo doesn’t do it justice. It really was quite beautiful. Even mesmerizing.
Yes, that’s dust on my dashboard. A lot of it. When you spend as much time driving on dirt roads as I do, dust is part of the equation. And when you have a bad back it doesn’t get cleaned very often.
I try to think of dust as camouflage. Admittedly, it’s a stretch.
When I finally arrived at my destination I was pleasantly surprised by how many Chukars were out and about. I saw dozens and heard many more. At times it sounded like Antelope Island in the ‘old days’.
Unlike the Chukars on the island, these birds are truly wild so they’re much harder to approach. But like Chukars do in the spring and early summer, many of these birds were calling from atop large rocks on the steep mountainsides so they were ‘stickier’ than they are at other times of the year.
Here’s a much looser crop of the same photo that allows the viewer to get a better sense of the natural habitat and allowed me to place the bird in the frame according to the ‘rule of thirds’.
This bird was calling at/toward another Chukar that was about 50′ away. They were calling to each other alternately, which strongly reminded me of dueling banjos (Chukars sound a lot like chickens so it was more like dueling chickens). The second Chukar wasn’t calling from such a prominent location so it took me almost five minutes to locate that bird.
I finally spotted him just before he jumped off the rock he’d been calling from and…
landed in the vegetation just below.
As Chukars are prone to do, he started running so fast down the steep mountainside I had little chance to keep him in my viewfinder and almost no chance to get him sharp. After this shot, all of my photos of him running were soft.
Thirteen minutes later I found another Chukar calling from atop another rocky peak but this bird had its back to me. At least in this shot we can see the face of the bird. Almost immediately after this photo was taken he hopped off the rock and disappeared.
I saw and heard many dozens of Chukars yesterday, even in habitats that aren’t typical for them. I’m thinking that it’s going to be a very good year for Chukars, at least in this area.
Ron
Lucky you ! I miss the chukers on the Island. Great photo as always.
I love chuckers Miss seeing them on the island.
Love these photos. Always makes me happy to see and hear Chukars.
Bobbi, I remember how much you love Chukars. Thank you.
love these chukar photos!
Good. Thanks, Eloise.
I always love chasing Chukars with my short hair pointer. They are such a hardy bird. I was watching a documentary on snow leopards and Chukars were setting off their camera traps at 12,000 ft which of course in the Himalayas is the valley floor. The saying goes the first time you pursue Chukars it’s for fun the second time is for Revenge. They live in rough rugged and steep country that will test your legs and your lungs.
“The saying goes the first time you pursue Chukars it’s for fun the second time is for Revenge.”
I’ve heard that saying from hunters many times, Steven. I strongly suspect it’s accurate.
Points for owning a GSH! 😀 They are awesome dogs.
I miss my short hair Katie she’s been gone 8 years now I just haven’t had a place where I can keep such a high energy dog and it takes 3 years to train them. And I’m not sure that my legs could keep up with the another short hair I’m thinking about getting a Boykin Spaniel Her AKC name was Katarina Von Greif Master Huntress.
Hi, always nice pictures and I feel like I am ridding right along beside you. Thanks
Thank you, Trudy.
Neat-looking birds, even though introduced. Are these thought to be breeding, or are they all releases?
Anthony, Chukars breed here regularly. I see and sometimes photograph their chicks in late spring.
You really take some long drives to get your photos and we are appreciative. Always enjoy the Chukar photos. I have never seen one other than in your photos.
Thanks, Everett.
Love that first shot. Never had the moon as a navigational aid before. That photo reminds me that it has been too long since my last dawn patrol into the wild. Got me thinking.
Those Chukars sure are handsome birds. That second photo is my favorite of the bunch.
Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, Michael. I hope you’re able to get out (early) soon.
Watched a beautiful moonrise here in Ottawa last night, and hoping we get a good view of the upcoming solar eclipse. I really enjoy your beautiful shots of birds I’ll never get to see. We focus so much on the dangers of the ubiquity of our connected internet world that we sometimes overlook how much pleasure it brings us. Thank you.
“We focus so much on the dangers of the ubiquity of our connected internet world that we sometimes overlook how much pleasure it brings us.”
Burrdoo, we forget until it doesn’t work. The Comcast guys (two of them) are here right now trying to fix a probem.
It’s nice to see something that’s doing as well as in “the good old days”
For sure!
Beautiful little birds! 🙂 Always amazes me how they can blend in when they appear colorful when out and about……
Moon rise here is what always gets my attention – surprising how “fast” it really moves at times.
Get the dust living on a dirt/gravel lane. 😉
“surprising how “fast” it really moves at times”
That’s for sure, Judy. Especially when it’s close to the horizon.
Chukars are such stunningly marked birds ! I think that the blue
sky makes for a gorgeous contrast to the orange, black, and
white……I’m glad that they gave you such a good show as a reward
for getting up and making a long drive in the darkness– and how else
to see such a moon ? Thanks for this beautiful post !
Thanks, Kris. Watching that moon drop slowly to the horizon sure made the trip seem shorter. It was almost like a slow-motion drama.
I also try to photograph the moon. Guess I need a class, but also don’t have a good camera. Your photography is awesome and inspiring though.
Thanks, Gail. I thought about stopping and photographing the moon with my “good camera” but that would have made me late arriving at my destination. When it comes to timing on these trips, I don’t give myself much wiggle room.
They have some light bluish spots on their back that I always thought for unique