Back-To-Back American Kestrels – Male And Female With Prey
I got relatively close to two kestrels, a male and a female, both with prey, within four minutes. Miracles do happen…
Tag: montana
Barbed Wire Barn Owl Released Back Into The Wild (with photos)
A Couple Of My Nemesis Birds – Belted Kingfisher and Sora
For me a “nemesis bird” is a species I haven’t been able to get any (or very few) decent photos of. Recently I had some luck with two of them in that category.
Juvenile and Adult Swainson’s Hawks – A Feeding Session
Things got a little frenzied when one of the adult Swainson’s Hawks would bring a vole in to feed their juvenile offspring.
Status Report (with current photo) Of The Barn Owl That Was Entangled In Barbed Wire
Regular readers will remember my post of two weeks ago where I documented the heartbreaking story of this Barn Owl entangled in barbed wire in the Centennial Valley of Montana.
Adult Swainson’s Hawk, Perched And In Flight
This light morph Swainson’s Hawk challenged my photo gear-swapping technique as I photographed it perched and taking off.
Four Poses From A Northern Flicker On An Old Post
This male Northern Flicker chose a perch that in my experience is more typical of one preferred by a raptor.
Juvenile Swainson’s Hawk – A Leap Of Faith (or at least of hope)
I’ve been watching a mated pair of Swainson’s Hawks near Monida, Montana all summer and for several reasons I believe their first nesting may have failed and they started over.
Merlin Takeoff- What Long Toes You Have!
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.
A Predictable, Cooperative Merlin (and their history in falconry)
Landing Juvenile Swainson’s Hawk (with an observer)
These two sibling juvenile Swainson’s Hawks were sorely lacking in patience as they waited for their parents to deliver voles to them.
Swainson’s Hawks – Juvenile & Adult Food Exchange
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.
Barn Owl Hung Up On Barbed Wire
Believe me, this was a traumatic event for all concerned. Yesterday morning while driving west on the South Road in the Centennial Valley of southwest Montana we found this beautiful Barn Owl hanging from barbed wire along the side of the road. In its struggles to escape the owl had wrapped its wing around the sharp double barb that had penetrated its flesh to the point that it was bleeding and I couldn’t get the owl off the wire easily. First I cut both barbs off but I still couldn’t disentangle the owl so I had to cut out a 2′ piece of the wire with the owl still attached to it. Then we laid the owl on my pickup tailgate (partially wrapped in a towel) and began the extraction process. At that point a near-miracle occurred. A car drove up on the deserted road and it happened to be Bill West, Manager of nearby Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. Bill was on his way to a meeting in Dillon (roughly 80 miles away) and helped me to extract the owl from the wire. We wrapped it up in his jacket and Bill took it to the Humane Society in Dillon where arrangements were made to transport it to a rescue center in Bozeman. My next concern was the wire I had cut. “Cuttin’ fences” is serious business in cattle country – cows can get out and both people and cows can be killed in accidents when they do, not to mention the fact…
Sharp-shinned Hawk On A Rock At Sunrise
I don’t get many opportunities with accipiters but yesterday morning this Sharp-shinned Hawk gave me several.
An Unforgettable Short-eared Owl
This individual Short-eared Owl has had a significant effect on the focus of my life as a bird photographer and nature lover.
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Barbed Wire Barn Owl Released Back Into The Wild (with photos)
A Couple Of My Nemesis Birds – Belted Kingfisher and Sora
For me a “nemesis bird” is a species I haven’t been able to get any (or very few) decent photos of. Recently I had some luck with two of them in that category.
Juvenile and Adult Swainson’s Hawks – A Feeding Session
Things got a little frenzied when one of the adult Swainson’s Hawks would bring a vole in to feed their juvenile offspring.
Status Report (with current photo) Of The Barn Owl That Was Entangled In Barbed Wire
Regular readers will remember my post of two weeks ago where I documented the heartbreaking story of this Barn Owl entangled in barbed wire in the Centennial Valley of Montana.
Adult Swainson’s Hawk, Perched And In Flight
This light morph Swainson’s Hawk challenged my photo gear-swapping technique as I photographed it perched and taking off.
Four Poses From A Northern Flicker On An Old Post
This male Northern Flicker chose a perch that in my experience is more typical of one preferred by a raptor.
Juvenile Swainson’s Hawk – A Leap Of Faith (or at least of hope)
I’ve been watching a mated pair of Swainson’s Hawks near Monida, Montana all summer and for several reasons I believe their first nesting may have failed and they started over.
Merlin Takeoff- What Long Toes You Have!
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.
A Predictable, Cooperative Merlin (and their history in falconry)
Landing Juvenile Swainson’s Hawk (with an observer)
These two sibling juvenile Swainson’s Hawks were sorely lacking in patience as they waited for their parents to deliver voles to them.
Swainson’s Hawks – Juvenile & Adult Food Exchange
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.
Barn Owl Hung Up On Barbed Wire
Believe me, this was a traumatic event for all concerned. Yesterday morning while driving west on the South Road in the Centennial Valley of southwest Montana we found this beautiful Barn Owl hanging from barbed wire along the side of the road. In its struggles to escape the owl had wrapped its wing around the sharp double barb that had penetrated its flesh to the point that it was bleeding and I couldn’t get the owl off the wire easily. First I cut both barbs off but I still couldn’t disentangle the owl so I had to cut out a 2′ piece of the wire with the owl still attached to it. Then we laid the owl on my pickup tailgate (partially wrapped in a towel) and began the extraction process. At that point a near-miracle occurred. A car drove up on the deserted road and it happened to be Bill West, Manager of nearby Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. Bill was on his way to a meeting in Dillon (roughly 80 miles away) and helped me to extract the owl from the wire. We wrapped it up in his jacket and Bill took it to the Humane Society in Dillon where arrangements were made to transport it to a rescue center in Bozeman. My next concern was the wire I had cut. “Cuttin’ fences” is serious business in cattle country – cows can get out and both people and cows can be killed in accidents when they do, not to mention the fact…
Sharp-shinned Hawk On A Rock At Sunrise
I don’t get many opportunities with accipiters but yesterday morning this Sharp-shinned Hawk gave me several.
An Unforgettable Short-eared Owl
This individual Short-eared Owl has had a significant effect on the focus of my life as a bird photographer and nature lover.