![](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/tundra-swan-9266b-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"tundra-swan-9266b-ron-dudley\\"")
<\/a><\/p>\n1\/4000, f\/6.3, ISO 640, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in <\/em><\/p>\n I usually hear Tundra Swans before I see them and that’s what happened 12 days ago at Farmington when waves of these birds suddenly and unexpectedly flew in from the south. They were my first reasonably close swans of the season and it was wonderful to both see and hear them. The light angle wasn’t a good one so they’re mostly back-lit but seeing my photos of them makes me hear their calls in my head and that awakens my senses and gets my juices flowing (a welcome phenomenon right now at 4:40 AM…).<\/p>\n It was a series of\u00a0very\u00a0loud explosions to the south that scared these swans (and several hundred others) up. They were much\u00a0louder and more concussive than gunfire so I wondered if researchers far out in the marshes were using cannon nets in an attempt to capture some of them for banding and\u00a0research purposes. The source of the explosions remains a mystery.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/2000, f\/5.6, ISO 800, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in <\/em><\/p>\n This isn’t my favorite kind of perch but it’s always special to get close to an American Kestrel and this good looking guy allowed me a fairly close approach two days ago in Box Elder County. I like the light on the falcon and the tone variations\u00a0in the out-of-focus snowy background.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/1250, f\/7.1, ISO 1600, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 100-400mm f\/4.5-5.6L IS II USM @ 328 mm, not baited, set up or called in <\/em><\/p>\n This Canada Goose was sleeping through a snowstorm several days ago at a local pond. Normally I’m not fond of closed nictitating membranes or eyelids but in this case I think the closed eyelid was perfect for the situation because in this dismal light (ISO 1600 – sheesh!)\u00a0it highlights the otherwise dark eye that would be very difficult to see if the eye were open.<\/p>\n And the closed eyelid shows what this bird was doing – trying to endure the storm by sleeping through it. The goose is dead still in the water as snow falls in the background and accumulates on its back.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/4000, f\/7.1, ISO 400, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in <\/em><\/p>\n For some unknown reason I seldom have opportunities to photograph Horned Larks anymore. I still see some of them around but there just doesn’t seem to be as many of them as there used to be. So nowadays I usually jump at any chance to photograph them\u00a0when I often used to pass them up. I like this photo of a male because of the singing pose and the erect “horns”.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/500, f\/7.1, ISO 400, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in <\/em><\/p>\n This is a Pied-billed Grebe eating a small feather it found floating on the water at Farmington a few days ago. I\u00a0always enjoy\u00a0photographing behaviors and grebes are\u00a0known for eating feathers\u00a0as\u00a0an aid to digestion. I won’t go into\u00a0more detail here\u00a0about why they do it\u00a0but if you’re interested here’s a link to an\u00a0older post <\/a>where I covered that subject in some detail.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n 1\/3200, f\/7.1, ISO 320, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in <\/em><\/p>\n I’ll end with a portrait of an immature Bald Eagle taken 13\u00a0days ago\u00a0at Farmington. It’s unusual for me to get anywhere near this close to an eagle of either species so I always\u00a0enjoy intimate portraits like\u00a0this one when I\u00a0can get them. This bird was perched atop a bat box so a close-up like this excludes its ugliness.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n My run of bad luck continues. The forecast for today was a dreary one\u00a0of clouds and snow so after I got my 500mm\u00a0lens back from Canon\u00a0(I’d sent it in for repair and a tune-up)\u00a0I arranged to have all my gear recalibrated to\u00a0the 500\u00a0by my good\u00a0friends at Pixel’s Foto and Frame<\/a>. But this morning the weather radar unexpectedly suggests that we may have some good light today for one of the\u00a0few times in recent weeks\u00a0and my cameras and lens are “in the shop” and I won’t be able to pick them up\u00a0until later today.<\/p>\n I hope I’m using up my quota of bad luck so there’s mostly good luck in my future. I\u00a0could use the turnaround.<\/p>\n Ron<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Six images, six species.<\/p>\n None of these photos is an award-winner but for disparate reasons each one grabs me just a little and I’ll mention why in this post. All of them were taken in the last several weeks.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n