Friends, this is the last day at Hawk ridge for the educators and volunteers. I have learned so much from them about the raptors that i can never thank them enough. I t has been a wonderful fall season. thanks everyone. My one hawk that i have not seen up close is a rough legged hawk, but i saw this one on my way home on Monday, so maybe i will see one up close today. This hawk was quite a good way and even with the telephoto he was probably too far for a great shot, but he is a symbol of the whole project and a target for today. so onward and upward, til Tomorrow MJ
Oct 30
This gallery contains 3 photos.
Friends, these images illustrate differences in individual Northern Goshawks. Both birds are first year hatch birds, both males but the white content varies from white in the right hand bird to a cream color in the left hand image. Both images were balanced with the white in the bird and the backgrounds are very different, […]
Friends, this immature redtailed Hawk is eyeing me, he wants to be sure that i stay in my vehicle blind and don’t come any closer to his tree. I am often asked how i get so close to the birds and i answer that staying in your vehicle is the key. Sitting quietly in your vehicle in a place where the birds are usually present will increase your chances of getting close. Of course this takes loads of patience so be prepared to spend a few minutes watching the landscape and quieting your soul; you may get more rewards than patience itself. My husband liked this image this morning, so I dedicate this blog to him. This hawk is probably headed south at this time, but I have the photo to remember him til he returns in the spring. til Tomorrow MJ
Friends, These birds are sometimes foreign to Wisconsin having migrated from the far North. We are Florida to these rough-legged Hawks. I am putting together a book of the hawks that i have photographed from Hawk Ridge this fall during the migration. One specie is being difficult to get a photo, although a few have gone over the ridge, I have not been there when a Rough-Legged Hawk has been in hand. This Roughie was photographed by me in Crex during a recent irruption year, maybe it will be my only photograph. They get their name from the beautiful feathering on their legs that protects them from ice, snow and other hazards of the very far northland. I have three days left to photo this bird, maybe I will get lucky. til Tomorrow MJ
Friends, this image is to show what October means to me and to enter the October Photo Challenge, please tune in and enter, it is still October, isn’t it?, but October means bird migration to me. These Greater Sandhill Cranes are on their way to the south and if you follow my blog regularly, you have seen the hawk migration up close and personal, til Tomorrow MJ
Friends, this sharp-shinned Hawk is spreading her wings and tail to fly away. I think this image is a “pleasing blur” as described by Arthur Morris and Denise Ippolito in their book by the same name. You can check it out at: https://store.birdsasart.com/shop/item.aspx?itemid=298.
I have been practicing my flying shots and found that using the manual mode, setting the aperture to f8 and the shutter speed to 1/1000, while putting the iso selection on auto, works well on these flight shots. Using a central focus point and panning with the image stabilization on setting 2 is also part of my digital data for this image. Larger birds are best for practicing the panning technique so go out and find a bird. Practice, practice, practice. My goal is to be able to pan the smaller birds of winter, juncos, chickadees and pine grosbeaks. til Tomorrow MJ
Friends, this Red tailed Hawk is not a happy camper. Her hackles are raised on the back of her head and her mouth is open, both signs of a bird who is not happy. As she was stroked by the educator she became quiet and her hackles went back to normal. She is a beautiful mature female buteo and minutes after this photo was taken , she was released back to the wild thermals above Hawk Ridge. I am running out of Hawk images, so I need to return to Crex or go back to Hawk Ridge. Hmmmm, such a lovely decision, til Tomorrow MJ
Oct 17
This gallery contains 5 photos.
Friends, this slideshow is various positions of a Goshawk’s wings as he flies back into the wild. Why so many images of the Northern Goshawk, you ask?, Hawk Ridge is the primary migration banding station for Goshawks, meaning that more Goshawks are counted and banded here than anywhere else in North America. During the fall […]
Friends, This hatch year Cooper’s Hawk is peeking around the corner to see where that clicking is coming from (my camera). I love the various poses of these beautiful birds, especially the youngsters. On a sad note, only twenty percent of these first year birds will live to finish the migration north next spring. The feather ruff around his head and his size mark him as a Cooper and his yellow eye says hatch year bird. til Tomorrow MJ
Oct 15
This gallery contains 3 photos.
Friends, to celebrate my fiftieth anniversary (of my 16th birthday) I adopted this Coopers hawk and released him back to the wild. A friend took this image of my release technique. The bird in flight was an ornery Cooper who bit the educator and no one wanted to adopt him. As the educator released him, […]
MJ Springett 