Pirouetting Bald Eagle? Nah, not really. I just happened to snap this pic just as this gorgeous juvenile Bald Eagle was launching into the air. An unusual pose but I really like the picture. Certainly at the stage of development this eagle is in, they aren’t as regal looking as a full adult. However, I think they look pretty darned cool nevertheless.
Banking Bald Eagle
One of the cool things about taking pictures of animals is the ability to freeze a moment in time. You then get to see subtleties that you might not have noticed when the event happened.
In the case of this majestic raptor, you see its intense stare as it looks toward its target and the nearly perfect ‘L’ of the angle of its wings as it banks hard in pursuit. When watching it ‘live’ I simply saw the eagle make a nice flyby, never seeing the details.
Yum! Grass does a deer body good.
A mule deer buck works to get some roughage into its mouth for its breakfast. This buck was very handsome with a great looking rack. Taken at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge? on January 31. 2015.
Great Horned Owl takes flight
Taken last May, this Great Horned Owl male was on its way from a nearby stand of trees to the nest where its mate and their three owlets were roosted.
The same pair has been busy lately prepping the same nest for another group of offspring with Mama regularly sitting in the nest and Dad nearby. I haven’t been too successful getting pics of them yet beyond mom’s head sticking up a bit. Last week I caught a fleeting glimpse of dad as he flew around and then hid from me.
Who me?
A young Red-Tailed Hawk has a bit of a guilty look, perhaps due to the fact it had just killed a #prairie #dog and was chowing down on it for lunch. You don’t have to go to far outside the Denver metro area to find prairie dog colonies and when you do, you can bet there are raptors nearby keeping watch. I absolutely loved the look on this ones face. Notice the blood on its face and also notice the rodent lying at its feet / talons.
Time to go fishing
Time to go fishing! A juvenile Bald Eagle launches into the air on the way to snag a fish out of a pond. We had a little bit of a snowstorm over the past 24 hours here in Denver and despite light snow still falling and 6″ of it on the trail, I couldn’t resist checking out this handsome raptor.
After letting me get my fill of pics of it sitting and posing, the eagle launched itself into the air and snatched a small shad from the water.
Scroll below the main image to view the complete gallery.
Fun Flicker flight
Kind of a neat image of a Northern Flicker. I was taking pictures of this cool bird sitting nicely on the lower branch when it suddenly decided to leap to the one above. With its wings and legs tucked back, it looked quite streamlined and sleek. Image taken in Thornton, Colorado on January 20, 2015.
Bald Eagle enjoys trout for breakfast
A trip to Cherry Creek State Park, #Colorado this morning started out relatively nicely with this handsome Bald Eagle enjoying a 15″ trout. It devoured it in about nine minutes flat. Unfortunately it was still early and cloud cover was heavy so the lighting was poor. Still lots of fun to see this raptor feed.
Scroll down to view the photo gallery from the day.
Young deer bucks enjoy mild day in the Colorado mountains
A bit of a different location for my Saturday photo trip yesterday as I headed to Gross Reservoir west of the Denver in the foothills. The scenery was absolutely gorgeous as always in the high country. Wildlife however was pretty sparse.
I did come across three young mule deer bucks. Two of them are pictured here. One is still hanging on to its antlers while the other has shed his.
Love on the line
A female and male American Kestrel gaze skyward, perhaps thinking about their future together? 😉 I’ve captured many pics of both female and male Kestrels but never two together until yesterday when I happened across this pair north of Denver, Colorado, USA.
Happy Valentine’s Day!