An amazing creature few photographers have captured. Okay, maybe not so rare and not really a pole. For every cool flight shot I capture, I get about 10 of these where the subject chooses to go in a direction that just does not work. Not sure why they aren’t more cooperative. 😉
Young Mule Deer buck keeps watch among the snow-covered terrain
This handsome young fellow is among the smaller bucks at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal. I have seen him a few times over the winter, usually keeping his distance from the older and much larger fellows. On this particular day, he and some of the does were grazing among the snow-covered grasses and shrubs. Mule Deer are quite common across the western half of North America. While this particular guy leads a charmed life on a wildlife refuge, they can be seen everywhere from the mountains to the plains.
Yellow-bellied Marmots wish for their own day too
So Punxsutawney Phil didn’t see his shadow today which in theory means spring will be coming early. I’m not sure of the weather forecasting ability of the groundhog but I wouldn’t mind if that were the case. I don’t have any pictures of groundhogs of the same species as Phil but I do regular see his high-altitude cousins. This pair of marmots was gathered on the talus slopes near the top of Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park this past summer. I wonder if they aren’t a bit envious of all the attention their cousin gets? 😉
“I don’t care for the snow or cameras!”
A Great Horned Owl looking a bit displeased not only with the weather conditions but also with having a camera pointed at it. 😉 These fabulous raptors are starting to be much more active as mating season is arriving. In fact, some Great Horned Owls have already been spotted sitting on nests along the Colorado Front Range. This particular one is a pair that is frequently seen at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal. I definitely will have to plan on making the rounds and checking some of the other area nests to see if anyone has setup house yet. Image taken Sunday, January 31, 2016.
Juvenile Bald Eagle keeps watch under a setting moon
In between snowstorms yesterday, there was some blue sky briefly. During the break in the clouds, I came across Charlie, a very sociable young eagle that some fellow photographers and I have named. Above him, the waning gibbous moon shone brightly. Kind of neat. One of my goals has been to get a picture of an eagle with the moon perfectly behind it – at least got kind of close with this one. 😉
Bison graze on the snow-covered plains
They say we here in Colorado are going to get a big hit of snow today. This follows a light snowfall yesterday that painted the landscape in white. I made a quick tour through the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge soon after dawn Sunday. The Bison herd was a bit scattered and none were particularly close. However I did like these compositions of some of them hanging out on a hill as blue sky tries desperately to try to peek out.
Stretch and launch!
This raptor was hanging out on the mast of a sailboat at Union Reservoir in Longmont, Colorado yesterday. I managed a nice series of it sitting and then launching and taking flight. This one I like the best – kind of a unique pose. Red Tails are the most common hawks here in Colorado along the Front Range, so much so that I oftentimes just bypass them without even attempting to take a picture.
Perhaps the last thing you will see?
Okay, kind of morbid but… I snapped this image by accident back in September and forgot that I wanted to share it. I was observing a bunch of vultures that had congregated and were circling around. As I tracked one with my camera, I wasn’t paying attention to realize it was leading me right into the sun. When I look at the image I imagine me laying on some dry, desert floor with no water and seeing the buzzards circling. Weird I know but it kind of cracks me up.
Bison makes use of a tree as a scratching post
Spend any time watching these massive beasts and you discover they really like to scratch themselves on things. In this case, a tree serves the purpose but I’ve seen them use fence posts, road markers and just about any other vertical object they wander by.
These massive animals were hunted to the brink of extinction in the 1700s and 1800s with as few as 750 reported by 1890. Their numbers have since rebounded with about 500,000 now living on public and private lands. This one was part of the herd at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge.
Bald Eagle takes flight for Freedom Friday
Showcasing its massive six foot wide wingspan, a Bald Eagle launches from a pole into the clear blue Colorado skies. These massive raptors are impressive when sitting still but it is when they take to the air that you gain a full appreciation for their size.
This eagle was happily perched northeast of Denver a few weeks ago when something in the distance caught its eye. It stared intently, monitoring whatever it was very closely then launched into the air, seemingly in pursuit of whatever it was. The determined look on its face and the focused stare sure made it seem like it was after something.
I never did see had its interest but then with vision four times better than a human with perfect vision, it certainly was capable of seeing far beyond my view.