![\"western](\"http:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/02\/western-meadowlark-9643-ron-dudley.jpg\")
<\/p>\nI’m used to seeing Western Meadowlarks all winter long.\u00a0 True, their numbers go down as some of them migrate south but there\u00a0always seems to be a resident population of them here in northern Utah and I typically photograph them year-round.\u00a0 Not so this winter.<\/p>\n
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\u00a01\/3200, f\/7.1, ISO 500 500 f\/4, 1.4 tc, natural light (techs were set for take-off)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n This is the last meadowlark I photographed, taken on\u00a028 December, 2012 and it’s been weeks since I’ve even seen one.\u00a0 Though they’re a permanent resident in my area we’re right on\u00a0the border between their “permanent resident” and “breeding resident” ranges – see map<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/a> if you’re interested.<\/p>\n I\u00a0suspect they’ve all\u00a0vamoosed for warmer\u00a0climes because of our\u00a0recent extremes of cold and snow.\u00a0 If that’s the case, this is\u00a0one more species I’ll add to my list of birds whose return I’ll anticipate as harbingers of spring.<\/p>\n Ron<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I’m used to seeing Western Meadowlarks all winter long.\u00a0 True, their numbers go down as some of them migrate south but there\u00a0always seems to be a resident population of them here in northern Utah and I typically photograph them year-round.\u00a0 Not so this winter. \u00a01\/3200, f\/7.1, ISO 500 500 f\/4, 1.4 tc, natural light (techs were set for take-off) This is the last meadowlark I photographed, taken on\u00a028 December, 2012 and it’s been weeks since I’ve even seen one.\u00a0 Though they’re a permanent resident in my area we’re right on\u00a0the border between their “permanent resident” and “breeding resident” ranges – see map if you’re interested. I\u00a0suspect they’ve all\u00a0vamoosed for warmer\u00a0climes because of our\u00a0recent extremes of cold and snow.\u00a0 If that’s the case, this is\u00a0one more species I’ll add to my list of birds whose return I’ll anticipate as harbingers of spring. Ron <\/p>\n