Rough-legged Hawk Overlooking The Great Salt Lake
For me this image has the stamp of Antelope Island through and through, though others may not recognize it.
Tag: rough legged hawk
Rough-legged Hawk Kiting Along The Antelope Island Causeway
This bird was kiting in the updrafts as the winds rose when they hit the elevated causeway to Antelope Island.
Rough-legged Hawk At Farmington Bay
I photographed my first Rough-legged Hawk of the season four days ago. The last time I’d photographed them prior to that had been on January 27, 2014 so it had been 285 days in-between opportunities with this species that spends much of the year in the high arctic. Hopefully that gives me an excuse to post images of roughies twice within just a few days.
My FOY Rough-legged Hawk And A Rookie Mistake In Setting Up A New Camera
I found my FOY (first of year) Rough-legged Hawk yesterday morning but largely blew the photographic opportunity because of a rookie mistake in setting up my new 7D Mark ll.
Rough-legged Hawk – Hopefully A Harbinger Of Birds Soon To Come
Rough-legged Hawks are one of the salves that help me get through our cold, dreary winters. When they show up…
Rough-legged Hawks In Contrasting Styles
Partially based on input from my readers I’ve been thinking more about styles in my bird photography.
Dark Morph Rough-legged Hawk In Flight
The dark morph color phase of the Rough-legged Hawk is a near-nemesis bird for me but two days ago I found one in Utah Valley.
Rough-legged Hawk – Topside View, With Prey
It’s pretty unusual to be able to see prey in the talons with a topside view of a hawk in flight.
A Different Look At The Alula (bastard wing)
Yesterday morning a Rough-legged Hawk gave me a perspective on the alula that I had never seen (or at least noticed) previously. I was on the verge of deleting these images when at the last second something about the left wing caught my eye.
Rough-legged Hawk In A Frosty Wonderland
During winter, photography in the valley of the Great Salt Lake can be difficult at best due to frequent inversions that trap fog and smog in the low-lying areas and that especially includes the marshes near the lake. These inversions often last for days or even weeks and the fog and smog get progressively worse each day. But the fortunate result for photographers is the thick hoarfrost that blankets everything in the vicinity of the lake if and when the fog burns off during the day.
Dark Morph Rough-legged Hawk
I’ve only had two reasonably good chances at the dark morph of the Rough-legged Hawk and one of them was a highly unexpected encounter two weeks ago.
Rough-legged Hawk Hunting Technique
Like some other buteos, depending on conditions the Rough-legged Hawk may hunt from the air using flapping/gliding flight or from an elevated perch but their tendency to hunt in flight goes up significantly with increasing wind speed. This makes sense because hovering in the wind requires less energy than flapping flight.
Rough-legged Hawk Flying Into The Wind
Yesterday morning I was able to get my first decent Rough-legged Hawk images of the season. It’s a good thing too because this was the only cooperative bird I found all morning.
Frosty Rough-legged Hawk
It was one of those classic frosty mornings at the bay where everything was covered with the thick hoar-frost that I tend to love in my settings.
The Roughies Are Coming!
Early this morning, before leaving to look for birds on Antelope Island, I saw a Facebook post by my friend, bird aficionado and artist extraordinaire Bryce Robinson. It was a simple post, saying simply ” “I felt a change in the air today. The Roughies are coming…” and it was illustrated with one of his fine drawings – a portrait of a Rough-legged Hawk. The “change in the air” that Bryce was referring to was our first nippy cold morning after a long, hot summer and such changes always bring thoughts to mind of the return of the Rough-legged Hawk.
Then I spent the morning on the island looking in vain for birds (it’s very slow out there right now) so as I drove around my mind wandered regularly to thoughts of Roughies – inspired by Bryce’s post and the chilly temps (51 degrees on the causeway).
-
Rough-legged Hawk Kiting Along The Antelope Island Causeway
This bird was kiting in the updrafts as the winds rose when they hit the elevated causeway to Antelope Island.
Rough-legged Hawk At Farmington Bay
I photographed my first Rough-legged Hawk of the season four days ago. The last time I’d photographed them prior to that had been on January 27, 2014 so it had been 285 days in-between opportunities with this species that spends much of the year in the high arctic. Hopefully that gives me an excuse to post images of roughies twice within just a few days.
My FOY Rough-legged Hawk And A Rookie Mistake In Setting Up A New Camera
I found my FOY (first of year) Rough-legged Hawk yesterday morning but largely blew the photographic opportunity because of a rookie mistake in setting up my new 7D Mark ll.
Rough-legged Hawk – Hopefully A Harbinger Of Birds Soon To Come
Rough-legged Hawks are one of the salves that help me get through our cold, dreary winters. When they show up…
Rough-legged Hawks In Contrasting Styles
Partially based on input from my readers I’ve been thinking more about styles in my bird photography.
Dark Morph Rough-legged Hawk In Flight
The dark morph color phase of the Rough-legged Hawk is a near-nemesis bird for me but two days ago I found one in Utah Valley.
Rough-legged Hawk – Topside View, With Prey
It’s pretty unusual to be able to see prey in the talons with a topside view of a hawk in flight.
A Different Look At The Alula (bastard wing)
Yesterday morning a Rough-legged Hawk gave me a perspective on the alula that I had never seen (or at least noticed) previously. I was on the verge of deleting these images when at the last second something about the left wing caught my eye.
Rough-legged Hawk In A Frosty Wonderland
During winter, photography in the valley of the Great Salt Lake can be difficult at best due to frequent inversions that trap fog and smog in the low-lying areas and that especially includes the marshes near the lake. These inversions often last for days or even weeks and the fog and smog get progressively worse each day. But the fortunate result for photographers is the thick hoarfrost that blankets everything in the vicinity of the lake if and when the fog burns off during the day.
Dark Morph Rough-legged Hawk
I’ve only had two reasonably good chances at the dark morph of the Rough-legged Hawk and one of them was a highly unexpected encounter two weeks ago.
Rough-legged Hawk Hunting Technique
Like some other buteos, depending on conditions the Rough-legged Hawk may hunt from the air using flapping/gliding flight or from an elevated perch but their tendency to hunt in flight goes up significantly with increasing wind speed. This makes sense because hovering in the wind requires less energy than flapping flight.
Rough-legged Hawk Flying Into The Wind
Yesterday morning I was able to get my first decent Rough-legged Hawk images of the season. It’s a good thing too because this was the only cooperative bird I found all morning.
Frosty Rough-legged Hawk
It was one of those classic frosty mornings at the bay where everything was covered with the thick hoar-frost that I tend to love in my settings.
The Roughies Are Coming!
Early this morning, before leaving to look for birds on Antelope Island, I saw a Facebook post by my friend, bird aficionado and artist extraordinaire Bryce Robinson. It was a simple post, saying simply ” “I felt a change in the air today. The Roughies are coming…” and it was illustrated with one of his fine drawings – a portrait of a Rough-legged Hawk. The “change in the air” that Bryce was referring to was our first nippy cold morning after a long, hot summer and such changes always bring thoughts to mind of the return of the Rough-legged Hawk.
Then I spent the morning on the island looking in vain for birds (it’s very slow out there right now) so as I drove around my mind wandered regularly to thoughts of Roughies – inspired by Bryce’s post and the chilly temps (51 degrees on the causeway).