Under the right conditions I like what fog can do to light when it isn’t too thick. Antelope Island at dawn this morning was a jumble of moving, thick pockets of fog. I drove around in an attempt to find some clear spots with birds present but when I would find some sun it wouldn’t take long for the fog to envelope me again. But in one spot, just for a couple of minutes, the effect of the fog on the light was dreamy and ethereal and I loved it.
I was able to get five consecutive shots of this Black-billed Magpie as it took off from the top of its dome-shaped nest last spring on Antelope Island.
Black-billed Magpies feed primarily on carrion, ground-dwelling arthropods and seeds. But yesterday morning I photographed a magpie with an apparent kill, a vole.
Today, readers get a “twofer”: a Forster’s Tern with prey and a rare Common Black-hawk.
Juvenile Black-billed Magpies have significantly less iridescence in their plumage than the adults so the amount that appeared in this young bird surprised me.
Earlier this month as I was watching this juvenile (relatively short tail) Black-billed Magpie through my lens on Antelope Island I didn’t expect anything interesting to happen except for a possible take-off shot.
On my last Montana trip I think I figured out part of the reason why Black-billed Magpies often perch high on power poles in some areas. I’m sure this apparent behavior is known to others but it was something new for me.
I often photograph Bald Eagles in Utah during winter but for me those images have a different mood (for lack of a better word) because they’re often taken near urban environments and for me they don’t convey the feeling of wildness that I so love about the Centennial Valley. And I very seldom get anything “green” in my Utah Bald Eagle images taken in winter.
Female Black-billed Magpies beg aggressively for food from the male prior to and during incubation.
The cause(s) of plumage coloration in birds isn’t as straightforward as it might first appear.
Photographing birds as they take off is tricky but with a little luck and perseverance it can be done. Landing shots are much more difficult and often require creative innovation.
Each spring I spend time photographing magpies on Antelope Island. Not many images of them are keepers but this is one I like.
Around here Black-billed Magpies are among the first species to begin nest-building activities. It tickles my fancy to see another sign of spring after this miserable winter.
By definition there is often a price to be paid for ethical nature photography since the image you get may not be the one you envisioned or hoped for.
Magpies aren’t among the most glamorous of birds so they don’t get a lot of attention from photographers but I enjoy them for their fascinating behaviors, their gutsiness and their apparent intelligence. And if you want a particularly challenging photographic subject you can’t go wrong with the Black-billed Magpie.
