Wildlife, landscape and weather photography
A red fox kit checks out its mama’s mouth when she yawns.
An image of a couple of the members of a local fox family that I took back at the end of May. The four kits were particularly rambunctious this evening, bounding around, wrestling and exploring.
The vixen was keeping her distance, undoubtedly weary of trying to keep track of them. One of the kits though was not about to let her rest and came running over to ensure she was paying attention. A
Taken in Adams County, Colorado.
A fun capture from back in November when I visited a nest under construction.
The pair was hanging out at their perspective home with the male pretty much doing nothing and the female going around gathering sticks. Here, right after launch, she extends her legs and prepares to use her talons to break off a stick.
She wasn’t successful, in fact she totally missed the branch, but I love the action it conveys and of course the look at those meat hook talons.
One for Throwback Thursday going to this past September. This was on my last visit of the season to Mount Evans, just before they closed the road for the winter. Up until then, I hadn’t done a very good job documenting these little high altitude creatures for the year but that changed on this day.
This pika in particular turned out to be quite a willing photo subject. I had staked out a spot on a rock in the talus field, patiently waiting for one of the little guys to pop out. Before long, it appeared and paid little attention to me.
Here, it hopped up on a rock not 20 feet away, taking a break from gathering food for the coming change of seasons. These little guys are highly entertaining and almost always in motion. When they stop, you better be ready to take the picture.
Well, this massive elk bull was not really smiling but actually taking a big whiff of the air.
This image was captured mid-September in Rocky Mountain National Park at the height of the annual rut. Hormones were raging and the bulls were fighting for dominance. The bull was guarding a nice sized harem of cows and calves.
Ungulates like elk and some other mammals do what is called the flehmen response. They lift their lips and open their mouths to take in more of a scent, just as you or I do when taking a big whiff of something.
A friend tipped me off to a spot not far from home where a great horned owl pair has been hanging out (thank you!).
This past Saturday I went to have a look and after a good while searching a stand of trees, I happened across one of them. It actually didn’t mind me one bit and let me take tons of pics of it sleeping.
However, some magpies soon discovered its hiding space and that did not go over so well. The owl woke up and stood ready, keeping close watch on the annoying noisemakers. It soon fled for a more sheltered spot, out of view of the magpies and I am sure enjoyed the quiet.
By the way, in looking at this image, be sure to check out those talons. Wow!
Taken in Thornton, Colorado.
This young white-tailed deer buck showed yesterday that Santa’s reindeer have nothing on it. 😉
A fun but very fast encounter yesterday morning. I saw this guy and a friend bolting across the Colorado plains on an intercept course to my path. By the time I stopped and got my camera up, the first guy had passed but I managed a few of the second as he flew by.
They were absolutely moving, probably 30mph or so, as they ran and bounded and I only had time to grab these three frames. Absolutely impressive athleticism.
As I returned to suburbia yesterday after my morning photo drive, I thought my photo day was done. However, I happened across this cool raptor hanging out on the remnants of a dead tree.
I quickly flipped a u-turn and pulled out my camera to grab a few shots. Red-tails are notoriously skittish and this one was no exception. I did manage a few quick shots of it posing and then this one as it launched into the air.
Taken in Thornton, Colorado.
This wily one wasn’t having much luck on its morning hunt. It started out on the ice of a lake thinking it might be able to grab a bald eagle (pics I shared previously). When that didn’t pan out, it came closer to land and dug at something frozen in the ice but it couldn’t dislodge it. The coyote then turned its attention to something out of view and took off at a trot across the ice.
Taken at Cherry Creek State Park, Colorado.
The sun had just topped the horizon and everything was bathed in yellow. This eagle had been hanging out quite patiently then suddenly decided it was time to take flight.
I wasn’t really expecting it so I used the “spray and pray” method (haha!) when it came to snapping the pics and managed a nice sequence of it. That light was just gorgeous as was the bird.
It isn’t often you will see one of these nocturnal creatures out and about during the day. If you do, there is usually something wrong and sadly, I suspect that is the case with this raccoon.
When I first saw it, I was of course a bit excited to get the opportunity for some pictures. As I snapped away though, it was clear something wasn’t right.
It never even looked at me, never showed any fear. It was completely non-aggressive and just didn’t look okay. Given its symptoms, I suspect it was suffering from distemper.
While I understand things like this are part of nature and I have certainly seen some gruesome stuff, it doesn’t make it any easier, especially given that the poor thing was suffering. I talked to a ranger about it and they were going to investigate and handle accordingly. :'(
