Harris Hawk Gathering Nest Materials

Continuing with my "5" Star Photos. Here a Harris Hawk stopped on a utility pole en route to making a nest in a nearby tree. It almost seemed like the hawk wanted its photo taken. Why else would he have stopped there in the open?  I had to thank him for that wonderful and unique opportunity:

Harris Hawk

Harris Hawk Scolding

Living on 5 acres in the Sonoran Desert has provided many "5" Star Photo Opportunities right outside my door. Today's is the perfect example. Here a Harris Hawk was perched on top of tree. I have easy access to my roof so could get very close. The hawk was obliging at first, but maybe it was one step too many and he scolded me. It wasn't the photo I was looking for  ............ but it was perfect. Thank you Harris Hawk.

Harris Hawk

Harris Antelope Ground Squirrel Climbing Cactus

"5" Star Photos don't have to be Grizzly Bears, Caribou, Elegant Trogons, or butterflies. Almost any wildlife can present itself in a way that gives the potential for a "5" Star Photo. Today, this Harris Antelope Ground Squirrel provided such an opportunity. These little events happen very quickly. If you don't have your camera with you, ready to shot, ..............  well, as they would say in Jersey, "forget about it." This little chipmunk looking squirrel was really quite cute and fun to just watch. Here he is climbing a small fishhook barrel cactus looking for its fruit:

Harris Antelope Ground Squirrel

Harrier Hawk Moon

Continuing with my "5" Star Photos we come to one of my first Award Winners, a Harrier Hawk at Dusk. This photo was taken in 1997 before digital cameras and digital manipulation software became the craze. Now, with digital you could take 30-40 shots to get this. But with film, I had one. And, of course, with digital manipulation, you could create this photo at a computer. But, no this is real.

It was taken in Northeastern Oregon near the town of Joseph. I was watching the hawk flying low over a field looking for a meal. Then he began to soar and snap, I caught him just at the perfect moment as he reached the moon. 

What is exciting about wildlife photography is capturing a "once in a lifetime" photo --- and, how often that may happen.

Harrier Hawk

Gulf Fritillary: The Art of Color

Back to my alphabetical series on "5" Star Photos. Butterflies  often make for beautiful photos. First, they are very colorful themselves; second, they often are on very colorful flowers; and third, there is often an off-setting green background. Such is the case with today's Gulf Fritillary I captured going from one lantana flower to another. Backyard butterflies, have to love 'em. 

Gulf Fritillary

On Pause: Burrowing Owls

Pausing for today from my series on "5" Star Photos, I wanted to share with you my success in finding Burrowing Owls. 

Normally, I look at the ABA.Org birding news for Arizona/New Mexico everyday just to see what's going on. But occasionally there is a bird sighting that makes me jump in the car and head out to that site. Yesterday was such a day. There was a post about Yellow Billed Cuckoos in Empire Gulch, Las Cienegas, Arizona (about 50 minutes from here). It was such an inviting post:

"In the lower gulch where there is almost always standing water, we were treated to exceptional views of several YELLOW-BILLED CUCKOOs, completely in the open and of long duration. In fact, from the parking area to where the water comes to the surface, we likely saw 5-7 cuckoos."

Yesterday, I spent several hours in the Gulch but no Yellow Billed Cuckoos. Such is often the case when looking for a specific bird that someone had seen the day before. One of the things I've realized over the years of "birding" is that  ......  and this is really key:   birds have "wings!"  

However, just a week ago there was a post about Burrowing Owls at the Safelite Autoglass Corporate Headquarters near the Tucson International Airport. This too, made me jump in the car and go take a look. But, this time it was successful. In all, I saw six Burrowing Owls. Here are a few of those photos:

Burrowing Owl standing just in front of a storm drain in the parking lot.

Just across the street from the corporate office is another building with hearts  painted on the  walls. Here were three Burrowing Owls sitting on the fence in front of a heart. Had to be worth a photo.

A close-up of one as he began to "fly away"

Burrowing Owl near his escape route.

Grizzly Bear Feast

Okay, so this isn't exactly the best photo in terms of focus and detail. However, it gets a "5" Star Rating simply because of what it depicts. Here is a very large adult Grizzly Bear eating what is left of a Bison with 40-50 Ravens on the ground (there were another 40-50 circling in the air). The photo was taken in Yellowstone National Park.

Grizzly Bear