Falcons tend to have long toes but I thought those of this Merlin in flight (2nd image) were especially well seen. Merlins are bird-hunting specialists and they often snag their quarry right out of the air in flight so the bigger “net” they can throw the better.
These two sibling juvenile Swainson’s Hawks were sorely lacking in patience as they waited for their parents to deliver voles to them.
For the past three days I’ve been able to observe a variety of different types of prey exchanges between adult and juvenile Swainson’s Hawks.
I don’t get many opportunities with accipiters but yesterday morning this Sharp-shinned Hawk gave me several.
This is an eclectic group of images but maybe that’s part of the appeal for me. They give me a sense of the variety of my subjects even when my primary goal is birds.
This is only a mediocre image at best and I’ll never use it for anything other than this post but I was impressed that I was able to get it at all.
Birds were generally slow on Antelope Island yesterday morning but this Loggerhead Shrike saved the day.
Whenever I visit the northwest Montana farm where I grew up I feel like I’m returning home. It’s been 50 years since I actually lived there but I don’t think that feeling will ever leave me.
For better or worse the background of an image can have a significant impact on an image. This is one that works well for me.
Do some raptor species tuck their feet faster after take-off than others? I’m beginning to think so.
Whenever I catch this posture at takeoff I’m always impressed by the physical effort and athletic ability required to become airborne.
