Normally it’s my practice to avoid posting the same species two days in a row. But in celebration of the (unexpected) good news about the juvenile Short-eared Owl we rescued from barbed wire two days ago I decided to make an exception. After all, I think we all prefer our owls happy and acting normally rather than hanging from barbed wire and in despair.
Many readers will remember the Barn Owl I had to cut out of barbed wire last summer in Montana. At the time I only had a small, cheap and dull pair of wire cutters with me and the effort required to cut the thick double-stranded wire strained tendons in my arm that took several weeks to heal. So I invested in two new heavy-duty pairs of wire cutters to carry in my pickup in case I ever came across a similar situation again. It’s a darn good thing I did.
Yesterday morning was windy at Bear River MBR but it would take more than a little wind to curb the curiosity and enthusiasm of the many grebe chicks at the refuge. I saw Western Grebe, Clark’s Grebe and Pied-billed Grebe chicks but I had the most fun with Clark’s.
I continue to make the occasional rookie mistake when photographing birds in the field but this time I still like the results.
It isn’t often that I can stay locked on to a bird in flight for this many images after takeoff.
Birds and their feathers continue to surprise me with what they can do when they need to.
I’ve said before that this has been a banner year for breeding Short-eared Owls in northern Utah. Here’s more proof.
Sometimes I have to rely on subtle clues to figure out what’s really going on in my own images. And I was there!
I’ve been watching for Burrowing Owl chicks in northern Utah for a couple of weeks with no luck until yesterday morning.
One of the many variables one must deal with when photographing birds at takeoff is direction of flight.
I’ve never had such a good look at a fledgling Short-eared Owl as I did yesterday morning. At this stage they look quite different from the adults.
Yesterday morning in northern Utah this Short-eared Owl had a surprise waiting for me and it came at an unexpected moment.
I seldom photograph raptors with nesting material because I won’t closely approach their nests but I got lucky with this female Red-tailed Hawk.
Last week in northern Utah a pair of Swainson’s Hawks mated right in front of me. I’ve seen it happen fairly often over the years but this time they were close, I had good light, an unobstructed view and my camera was ready. I couldn’t believe my good fortune.
