Warm June Mornings at Farmington Bay Bird Refuge

Mornings are a time to get clear your head, groom those feathers, and say good morning to your flock.  These pelican's were caught doing just that. I think they really like being with each other. They even seem to snuggle.
 

It is June and love is in the air at the Farmington Bay Bird Refuge. This yellow headed black bird is looking for a mate.  I go to the bird refuge for my own refuge. It is the awesome birds, the quiet,  peaceful, and beautiful songs of the birds. It is also the anticipation that at any moment, I may see something unexpected. I may see the great blue heron fly in close. I may see a water snake pass by, and if I am really lucky maybe a fox and her young.

This snowy egret has a system going. As he walks in the shallow water, he kicks up his feet and stirs up something to eat. He slowly walks around picking up the insects that rise up. If he is lucky he gets a small fish once in a while.
 

I love seeing the snowy egrets at Farmington Bay. They are so white, and their feathers are like beautiful plumes. They are always a welcome sight for me.

June at Antelope Island

Bison on the Island are losing their heavy fur

I have noticed that it is difficult to get a picture of buffalo with their heads up. Being a grazer they walk around with their head in the grass eating. You can wait for one to finally lift his head. Then you can wait a little longer as you wait for him to look up, and maybe in your direction. So these are two pictures out of many that I took, but they have their noses out of the grass. Score!

A Long Hard Winter

Blue sky hopefully signals the ending of a long harsh Winter and the Beginning of Spring.

Winter in Utah this year as been very cold. Snow has been deep and much of the wildlife has suffered. I found the eagles in different places than I usually do. I had just about given up on them. But I did get some good pictures.
Ice has stayed longer on the ponds and water ways also. So their fishing has been harder.
I am able to get out and take pictures of birds and animals and I learn so much more about them. With photographs, I can study them more closely, having the photograph to view them again and closer. I can't think of much I would rather do than this. 
 

 

 

 Winter is not my favorite time of year. It is my least favorite time of year, but even in the cold and dreary settings, there is beauty, the swan below. 

Lunching with Eagles

 

 

 

 

Fresh Sushi
 

 The eagles here are eating carp. As you can see they are surrounded by seagulls. I watched as the seagulls kept trying to steal a piece of fish from the eagles. The eagles appeared to only be slightly annoyed. when it got too much they would chase the gulls off. They even squabbled among themselves for the fish. The eagles are only here for a little while and they continue their migration. It brings fun to a time when there is little out there to look for. I love it.

You can almost hear what this big guy is saying. This is mine! All mine.

Winter Blues

Because it feels like winter has just drug on and on, I find it harder and harder to get out in the areas I need to go to find some wildlife to take pictures. Even the eagles have kept their distance from me. I love the eagles, but I must say, I am looking forward to Spring with more impatience than usual. Thank goodness the Hawks are always here flying low looking for a meal and the good guys they are, they eat a lot of mice.

Pronghorn Antelope Winter on the Island

Antelope Island's beauty.

These pronghorn antelope were a sweet surprise. There they were after the clouds lifted. It is a gift to me, or at least it feels like it is.

This sweet fellow patiently posed for me. I seriously would have like to seen a coyote following him just for drama.

I think he was talking to me.

There was a whole herd of these animals just west of us with the sun behind them. So every picture I took was dark. But then as we drove by, there on the other side of the road with the sun shinning on them were about four or five antelope, and it was beautiful because the sun lit up their coats and just made for a good picture.

Winter Moose, and the Pelicans leave

It seems like one minute the world is full of life and growth, and the next it is survival of the fittest.  These pelicans flew over me as I was sitting on a grassy hill. I was enjoying the quiet peacefulness of my surroundings. I had seen several pelican's fly over me, but these were so close. Just think of lying on a grassy hill and looking at the clouds, this was like that only better.

Then it is winter and you look for anything you can find. We found two moose, a male and female. They were across the road and up on the side of a hill. Too far away to be a danger, and almost too far to take a picture. I am thankful for a good zoom lens, and good camera.

Up Weber Canyon

I have got to give it to bullwinkle, he got my blood pumping which was good because the temperature outside was about 12 degrees. I was wearning gloves and tucking my nose into my sweater.

Winter is beautiful. God gave us so many good times of the year and so many good places, and so many wonderful things to see. But I still want Spring

 



Fall Colors

Deer in the Fall take on a special appearance as they put on weight for the winter, and they are surrounded with golden leaves.


Deer living near Tooelle

Birds

I go out to find awesome things, and sometimes I just find seagulls. But I have to admit although I think they are true scavengers, thiefs, and lazy creatures. When they fly with the sky behind them they too are pretty. Just don't think too hard about their personality.


The Great Blue Heron is an odd bird. It is big (I like that), but it lookes like it could be from the dinosaur age. Maybe that is why it facinates me.

When the Herons fly they are graceful, but their legs hang down and they look kind of odd. They really are good fishers. The other birds watch them, because they are  easily frightened, so smaller birds know they are ok as long as the Heron was there.


The Great Blue Heron

The Pelican is the goofiest looking of all. Go figure.

Pelicians at Bountiful Pond

Coyote

It was hunting time and these hunters stayed pretty close to the road looking for mice and rabbits. You can also see them following the deer. They stay back a ways but shadow them. My granddaughter was a great lookout for us and noticed quite a few close to us.

Antelope Island in Summer

Day break is always almost a sacred moment, but there is nothing like the moment when you are looking east from a mountain. To make this even better if you can share it with someone close to you.

The Big Buck

The biggest buck in the cemetery

He was not bothered by me, he just laid his  head down and slept.

If I ever want to see deer without driving all over the place, I go to the cemetery. I love these guys. I learn more the more I go out and take pictures. The pictures teach me. Later I can ponder them and see so much more than the moment I took the photograph. I know to not get too close and that the animals can be unfriendly (that is what my friends keep reminding me of and sending me videos of deer attacking people).


Young bucks practicing

Badger from Wyoming

While driving through a lonely part of Wyoming my friend and I were lost. Lost on dirt roads. We were looking for a lake, but all we saw was an ocassional cow or brokent down wooden building. While pondering and driving, I saw something running next to us just about twenty feet off the road. We stopped and it ran into a hole. So we sat there and waited. After about two minutes up popped this badger, who stared us down.

The Big Guys

I know, I keep going back to the buffalo. I think it is their massive size that gets me. They have to stink, they always are surrounded by flies, but they are massive. I don't think they are afraid of much.

Biting Gnats drive the poor Bison Crazy

Notice all the flies (biting gnats or "no-see-ums) aroung his head. There are so many you can see them in the picture

Antelope and Burrowing Owls are some of my Favorites.

Family of pronghorn antelope on the Island

Small Burrowing owl at Antelop Island

Antelope Island is a wonderful place of stark scenery and really tough animals. The challenge is that some days I can drive the whole Island and see next to nothing. The next time I go I see a lot of animals. I just like the challenge I guess.

San Diego California