{"id":37713,"date":"2016-02-25T05:20:18","date_gmt":"2016-02-25T12:20:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.featheredphotography.com\/blog\/?p=37713"},"modified":"2016-02-25T06:00:46","modified_gmt":"2016-02-25T13:00:46","slug":"western-bluebirds-male-and-female","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/2016\/02\/25\/western-bluebirds-male-and-female\/","title":{"rendered":"Western Bluebirds – Male And Female"},"content":{"rendered":"

Yesterday I photographed Western Bluebirds in Utah for the first time. Ever!<\/p>\n

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\"western<\/p>\n

1\/1600, f\/6.3, ISO 640, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

We found a small flock of them on the eastern slope of the Stansbury Mountains and two of them were quite cooperative. This beautiful male landed on a nearby fence post and checked us out for some time so I was able to get quite a few shots of him in good light.<\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n

\"western<\/p>\n

1\/2000, f\/5.6, ISO 840, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Soon a female perched on a\u00a0metal post slightly closer to me. To my eye she’s just as stunning as the male but in a more subtle way.<\/p>\n

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 <\/p>\n

\"western<\/p>\n

1\/1600, f\/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + 1.4 tc, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Then another male (or the same one) came back and landed on the original post but this time he showed me his other side.<\/p>\n

In Utah, Western Bluebirds are listed as “sensitive” (declining population due to limited range or habitat). They’re seen most often in southern Utah but this species seldom ventures north of the central part of the state so I was absolutely delighted with this opportunity with them in northern Utah.<\/p>\n

These birds brought back very\u00a0pleasant memories for me. I don’t believe I’ve seen a Western Bluebird anywhere since about 1953 (I was 6 years old)\u00a0when my father put up a nest box under the eaves of our garage in Montana and one summer it was used by Western Bluebirds to raise a family. My mother made a big deal about it and those birds are still\u00a0seared into my memory.<\/p>\n

I’ve photographed Mountain Bluebirds often but last night I added a new category, “Western Bluebirds”,\u00a0to my photo organizer. That doesn’t happen every day!<\/p>\n

Ron<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Yesterday I photographed Western Bluebirds in Utah for the first time. Ever!<\/p>\n

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