Wildlife, landscape and weather photography
On this day, a dozen of them were hanging out on a pond in Adams County, Colorado and decided to be kind to me and let their picture be taken. I was able to lay down and get some nice, eye-level captures.
During the summer these birds are pretty common in Colorado but during the winter they prefer the warmer environs of Mexico. I don’t blame them. 😉
I happened across this handsome, young fellow recently. I found it interesting that he payed me absolutely no attention, not even a glance.
Instead, he stood motionless, focused on a hill about 100 yards away. Having seen this behavior before, I suspected there must be coyotes nearby. Sure enough, three popped up over the hill – one of which I shared a pic of on Saturday.
While the buck wasn’t worried about me, the coyotes were and opted not to approach any closer, keeping their distance from the human. Feeling assured he was safe, the buck turned around and went on his way.
As many times as I see raptors do this, I really don’t know how the heck they don’t hurt themselves. Those talons are so sharp and clearly meant for killing and yet bald eagles and others can use them to scratch themselves as casually as we do our fingers.
This particularly bald eagle put on quite a show at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge, choosing a very public spot to hang out for the better part of two hours. I have no doubt it was the most photographed eagle in the state of Colorado that day.
The morning after a snowstorm always seems to be a great time for wildlife viewing. The critters seem to revel in the cold and with the snow on the ground, it makes for some neat pictures.
This wily one was one of three coyotes hunting a field, looking for their breakfast. They looked gorgeous with their full winter coats and were far better prepared for the cold than I was. 😉
Taken at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge near Denver, Colorado.
Ah yes, it is the day for lovers and this pair was getting started a bit early this past Sunday.
The images of the activity are, quite frankly, pretty poor and I was very disappointed in them. Light was very low, there was a lot of haze / fog and the eagles were just too far off. Nevertheless, I share them because it was a very fun encounter and something I had not witnessed with goldens before. I suspect very few people have in fact.
When I arrived at this spot in the Colorado foothills, the make was perched alone and on a different post. Not two minutes later, she arrived, circling him twice then landing on the other pole. That, apparently, was all the invitation he needed. They mated twice over the next few hours.
The first image in this series is from the first time and the poorest quality pic. However, the symmetry of their positions is pretty neat and something I was happy to have captured. The rest of the images are from their second attempt when lighting was slightly better.
On this day, they had opted for a different tree than the previous one I had seen them in but it actually provided better viewing. Well, about as good of viewing as you could hope for with these notoriously shy creatures.
This one was the most easily spotted, something which it didn’t seem to particularly appreciate. It was a bit surprised to find someone watching it but once it ascertained I wasn’t a threat, settled down and went back to sleep.
As you’re looking at this pic, check out the owl’s talons. Quite impressive and certain to do some damage.
In terms of just ‘fun wildlife viewing’, it is hard to beat mountain goat kids. Their antics provide an abundance of smiles and entertainment and let’s face it, they are simply adorable.
When the herd shows up at the top of Mount Evans in the mornings, there is little doubt who are the stars of the show. Tourists and photographers quickly focus their attention on them and the little ones seem to relish all the attention.
On this morning back in July they seemed particularly rambunctious as they bounded around, jumped from rock to rock and play fought each other. Despite being one of the smallest kids, this one was not about to be shown up by the slightly older ones. Here. It takes a bit of a leap between boulders, showcasing how even at a very young age, mountain goats are extremely agile.
While they aren’t seen often, red foxes are quite common across the entire Northern Hemisphere from near the equator to the Arctic Circle. As shown here, they are extremely adaptable and able to coexist in areas with large human populations.
As common as foxes are, they are not particularly common to photograph so I am definitely keeping my eyes out. If anyone has a line on any along the Colorado Front Range, particularly in the north Denver metro area, please do drop me a note.
This was a fun little encounter northeast of Denver, Colorado yesterday. Driving the backroads looking for photo subjects, I happened to see this jackrabbit run into some grass near the road.
They are masters at keeping themselves hidden and initially I couldn’t see it after I stopped. I slowly approached and then the race was on.
It took off running at a truly impressive speed and I quickly put my camera off and started taking pictures. It was going away which is kind of a bummer but the images show the amazing motions it went through when running.
White-tailed jackrabbits are found across much of the central and western areas of North America from the prairies to the high country. I see their black-tailed cousins far more often than the white-tails. In fact, I think this is the first white-tailed jackrabbit I have photographed.
If it looks like it was cold when this picture was taken, well, believe me it was. The sun hitting the Rocky Mountains over a frozen lake was gorgeous though and the cold couldn’t deter me. It was a very peaceful, calming scene and one of the fantastic views we enjoy here in the Centennial State. Beautiful blue skies with whispy clouds lie above. Below, the mountains with Mount Meeker and Longs Peak behind it to the bottom right.
