![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/long-billed-curlew-0279-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"long-billed-curlew-0279-ron-dudley\\"")
<\/p>\nPlus, by request, some Black-billed Magpie “mate-feeding” photos related to yesterday’s post. Today’s post is kind of like two posts crammed into one. I blame it on Stephen C. And Chris Sanborn. And Marty K.<\/p>\n
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1\/2500, f\/6.3, ISO 640, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f\/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n Two days ago I spent some time with this male Long-billed Curlew on Antelope Island after I finally located him in the cheat grass after hearing him calling from some distance away. The thick cheat grass hid his long legs and I’m not a fan of that invasive grass anyway so I was hoping for flight shots if he lifted off while I was there. He continued to call to another curlew I could hear far away but couldn’t see and he showed no indication of imminent takeoff. So eventually I left him, stowed my lens in my lens caddy, and started driving slowly down the road to look for other birds.<\/p>\n It was at that point that I could tell from the sound of his calling through my open window that he had taken off and might be flying in my direction. A quick glance behind me confirmed my suspicion but what was I going to do about it? I didn’t have time to stop my pickup and wait for it to rock back after applying the brakes because by then he would be past me.<\/p>\n My only chance for flight shots was a Hail Mary attempt while I was still driving forward at slightly more than 10 mph. At that hour of the morning the roads were deserted so I knew it was completely safe to grab my lens, aim it out the window and fire off a quick burst. So that’s exactly what I did.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/5000, f\/6.3, ISO 640, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f\/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n Surprisingly it paid off with about a half dozen sharp shots of the curlew with the Great Salt Lake in the background. I’ll include two of them in today’s post. At first glance, photos like these may look like they have blue sky in the background but the strong horizontal banding suggests otherwise (in a way it actually is blue sky because the sky is reflected in the water).<\/p>\n I love the color of the lake in my backgrounds in the early morning when blue sky is reflected from its surface.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/6400, f\/6.3, ISO 640, Canon R5, Canon EF500mm f\/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n And yes, the curlew continued to call to the second curlew as he flew in the direction of the other bird.<\/p>\n I want to stress that I wouldn’t have made this attempt if I didn’t know I could do it safely while driving. I only had my eyes off the road for about four seconds, I was only traveling about 10 mph and the road was completely deserted.<\/p>\n Ron<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Playing catch up:<\/em><\/p>\n In yesterday’s Black-billed Magpie post I mentioned that the male magpie feeds the female during the entire time of incubation. The female comes out of the nest to be fed. I also mentioned that I had photos of the behavior but didn’t include any. I should have.<\/em><\/p>\n In a comment Stephen C asked “Are you going to post pics of the feeding?” I answered by saying no, my photos of the behavior aren’t very good. But then Chris Sanborn and Marty K persisted in asking to see some photos so I relented and said that I’d tack a photo of the behavior onto the end of tomorrow’s post “if I can find one that’s worth seeing.”<\/em><\/p>\n I found three of them.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n This is a photo of the same magpie pair taken a few days earlier. The female had come out of the nest and was begging to be fed atop a sagebrush adjacent to the nest bush. Here the male is flying in to feed her. Often times I couldn’t actually see the food item he presumably had so I wonder if it was small and he had it inside his bill.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n As soon as he landed she mobbed him – all we see is a jumble of feathers during the frenetic food exchange.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n This photo of the same pair was taken on the same day as the photos of the female I posted yesterday. The magpies were far away and partially hidden by branches but here the female, on the right, has rushed her mate in an attempt to be fed. She actually appears to be pulling his bill inside hers, which I think is reminiscent of hungry chicks trying to get food from a parent.<\/em><\/p>\n Thank you Stephen C, Chris and Marty for persisting. If I’d been thinking I’d have included these magpie photos in yesterday’s post<\/a><\/span><\/span>.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Plus, by request, some Black-billed Magpie “mate-feeding” photos related to yesterday’s post. Today’s post is kind of like two posts crammed into one. I blame it on Stephen C. And Chris Sanborn. And Marty K. (6 photos)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/long-billed-curlew-0318-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"long-billed-curlew-0318-ron-dudley\\"")
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