Long, Winding Road to Short, Winding Rattlesnake

I learned several years ago that every hobby has its risks. Birding is no exception and my first encounter with a Mojave Rattlesnake last week in Nevada's Kane Springs Valley drove that reality home again. It turned out to be a safe and fascinating experience, but wearing short pants, not being familiar with the sound of a rattler vs an insect, taking one more step or any combination of the above circumstances could have drastically altered the experience and entire weekend. Mojave Rattlesnakes are reported to be one of the most dangerous pit vipers in North America. Their venom is not just hemotoxic, but is neurotoxic as well, attacking the central nervous system.

My friend, Eric Peterson, and I had planned a trip from northern Utah to Las Vegas last weekend so we could find and photograph some fun desert birds. Massive amounts of rain and subsequent flooding days prior to our scheduled departure wiped out parts of I-15 near Moapa, Nevada. The interstate was shut down so traffic was being diverted between Las Vegas and southern Utah. Eric and I are adventurous so we welcomed a good reason to create our own detour that took us west toward Great Basin National Park in Nevada from Delta, Utah. We saw Wheeler Peak, the highest peak in Nevada as we passed north of Great Basin National Park. We wandered through the eastern part of central Nevada on what is known as The Loneliest Road in America, US 50. We headed south from US 50 on US 93.

After passing through the small town of Caliente we spent some time looking for birds at Kershaw-Ryan State Park. From there we decided to detour from US 93 to State Road 317. A "Road Closed" sign caused me some hesitation at first, but a local whom we happened upon told us the road would take us back to a more southern point of US 93. We were told it would save time over following 93 all the way down to I-15 north of Vegas, but we also knew the road would turn to dirt and gravel and did have "some rough spots". It was a road less traveled so we also realized we'd likely stop and explore for wildlife along the way so "short cut" was not really our purpose for taking the road. 

We saw a small wash that was bordered by trees as we were passing through Kane Springs Valley so we stopped to explore. Eric and I often separate slightly as we traverse desert terrain in order to increase our odds of finding something interesting. Eric flushed an accipiter (Cooper's or Sharp-shinned Hawk) at one point. I decided to move quickly toward him to get a glimpse of the hawk as it was flying away. That's when the real fun began for me. I was just about to approach and round a sagebrush when I heard a sound I had locked into my memory when I had a previous rattlesnake encounter while birding. I stopped immediately and looked toward the ground to find a young Mojave Rattlesnake positioned just under and at the edge of the sagebrush. It was facing me and poised for a strike if necessary. Boy was I grateful for the timely warning the snake gave me. Another step in that direction might have ruined my whole weekend and then some. I called Eric over and we began a short photo session. I studied it's pattern since I had never seen one before. The snake was about 18-20" long.

Mojave Rattlesnake, Kane Springs Valley, Nevada

Mojave Rattlesnake, Kane Springs Valley, Nevada 

Mojave Rattlesnake, Kane Springs Valley, Nevada

The snake eventually became accustomed to our presence as we captured some images. The thought occurred to me that for a snake in this location we may be the only humans it will ever encounter. We didn't have an actual snake hook or tongs so we located a makeshift hook in a dried-out juniper branch. I asked Eric to capture the image below as the snake was resting on the curve of the branch. It looks crazy, but I was being careful in handling this situation. I still want to say, "Don't try this at home, kids!"

Mojave Rattlesnake on Makeshift Snake Hook, Kane Springs Valley, Nevada

The full pattern of the snake's scales can be seen from head to tip of tail in the image below. We captured this image as we were releasing the snake from our brief encounter.

The Patterns From Head to Tail of a Mojave Rattlesnake, Kane Springs Valley, Nevada

The sun was setting quickly so we made our way back to the truck to continue our journey. I stopped momentarily to capture this image from where we studied and photographed the rattlesnake. The landscapes, sunrises, and sunsets we encounter during our birding adventures amplify the beauty of the world we love to discover.

A View of the Southern Sky as the Sun Set Over Kane Springs Valley in Nevada

And just before we reached the truck I was impressed by the scene before me. My truck was parked on the side of an open road that I was travelling for my first time. I was in the middle of nowhere, so to speak, and I felt gratitude for the freedom to explore a beautiful world in a nice truck with a good friend. The southern sky was painted beautifully by the setting sun, the road was open ahead of us, and mountains and valleys were yet to be discovered. Scenes like this make me wish every weekend could be an extended weekend dedicated to exploring new places on our amazing planet.

The View Ahead After Stopping and Discovering a Mojave Rattlesnake in Kane Springs Valley in Nevada

A Short Stroll in the Park

I was loading the last few dirty dishes into the washer this evening when I glanced out the kitchen window to check the position of the sun. I could see that daylight was short, but I figured I might be able to fit in a few minutes of checking for migrating warblers at Highland Glen Park.

The park is just five minutes from my home and right behind the local high school. It just so happened that there was a home football game getting ready to start so the road to the park was quite congested. The slow-moving swarm of cars near the school caused me to lose more light than I hoped. Fortunately, the first movement I saw in the trees when I arrived at the park turned out to be an unexpected species--White-breasted Nuthatch. That's a great bird for that park and it took less than ten seconds to spot.

I watched tonight's nuthatch forage along the trunk and major branches of the trees near the parking lot. I heard another one calling and realized there were at least two making a pit stop in the park as they were heading to their final destinations. The image I captured tonight (right) caught the bird moving up the tree. The more typical view of a White-breasted Nuthatch can be seen in the image below. I captured this image during a previous encounter with the species.



As I was watching the nuthatches and hearing other birds call from their various positions around the parking lot a Western Scrub-Jay flew into my view.  I immediately noticed that the Jay was missing all of its tail feathers.

I and other people who spend time birding occasionally run across birds missing their tail feathers. Sometimes the lack of tail feathers is a result of molting. Sometimes it is a result of predation, losing the tail feathers as a result of being attacked by a predator. It could be some sort of disease or other cause as well. I've never really noticed much of a struggle to fly for any of the tail-less birds I've encountered. The image to the right shows the typical tail for a Western Scrub-Jay. I captured this image when a Jay perched above one of my backyard feeders.

I strolled up to the pond just as the sun dropped below the horizon tonight. Along the way I heard the celebration that erupted from the home team crowd as a touch down was scored. I saw small groups of teenagers flirting with one another. It was obvious they were on their way to the football game with their school shirts and painted faces, but they had become distracted by their fascination with one another. Flirting was prioritized over football. And who can blame them? Families and individuals were fishing and walking around the park. I stopped my stroll, looked toward the sunset, and realized it was a beautiful backdrop to happy people enjoying the local park.

Fireworks, The Moon, Owls, a Snake, And Sunsets

Birding is often slow during July and this year is no exception. When the birding gets slow, however, I turn to other opportunities to explore and enjoy outdoor activities.

The 4th of July is a fun holiday for our family. This year I made my first real attempt at photographing fireworks. The show was free to the public and held at Thanksgiving Point in Lehi, Utah. I read that I should use a long lens (at least 200mm) for fireworks so I took my 80-400mm lens. Once the fireworks started I realized I needed to back away from the action even with the lens pulled back to 80mm. I moved back as far as I could and I was still unable to fit complete firework blasts inside the camera frame.  I was pleased with the results.

I heard we had a super moon approaching so I set up my camera on a tripod in my driveway the night before the super moon and practiced capturing night images. The moon looked like a pearl cradled in the clouds the night before the peak of the super moon.

The Night Before the July 2014 Super Moon (Seen from Pleasant Grove, UT)

I enjoyed capturing images of the super moon the night it peaked. Again, I was in my driveway so the glow of the city lights impacted the overall results. I learned a bit about photographing the moon and was wishing I was high in the darkness of our local mountains.

Super Moon Seen From Pleasant Grove, UT

The night after the super moon I made my way up into our local mountains via American Fork Canyon. I found a place to park and set up my gear. It was at 8000 ft and near the summit of the Alpine Loop (Hwy 92). The detail of the craters on the moon was better than the night before, but it was a waning, or not-so super, moon.

The Night After the July 2014 Super Moon (The waning, or not-so super, moon)

Before capturing images of the moon that night I spent some time whistling for a Northern Saw-whet Owl. I've learned some tricks for calling these owls in that include taking advantage of a very short window at a certain level of darkness and the type and order of the whistling sounds I make. I was successful at whistling in an owl before the moon rose above the horizon, but I wasn't able to capture an image. It was a skittish little owl. The image below is of an owl I whistled in previously at the same location.

Northern Saw-whet Owl Wasatch County, UT

Flammulated Owls breed in our mountains during the summer months so I called one of those in as well. These owls are much more cooperative with being photographed. These owls will migrate down to Mexico and beyond once they finish breeding and their young have become adept at hunting and flying.

Flammulated Owl in Wasatch County, UT

I've been riding my mountain bike along the Murdock Canal in the early evening hours recently. I watch for birds and other critters, especially, Rattlesnakes as I ride along that trail. It runs along the foothills so snakes often come down to the trail where the asphalt and gravel are warm. The other night a ran across a new species of snake. I'm not sure I've ever seen one before, but I wasn't surprised when I looked in up in my reptile guide and discovered it was a subspecies of Racer. I managed a few images, but once it decided to leave my presence is moved faster than any snake I've ever seen.

Western (Yellow-bellied) Racer in Cedar Hills, UT

Western (Yellow-bellied) Racer in Cedar Hills, UT

Western (Yellow-bellied) Racer in Cedar Hills, UT

Sunsets in July can be quite spectacular. I always enjoy watching a sunset unfold because you never know what to expect. If there are clouds in the sky and on the horizon they can often be painted in a variety of colors by the light from the lowering sun.

Summer Sunset Seen from American Fork, UT

Birding Sun-up to Sun-down in Northeastern Utah

This past Saturday I enjoyed my fourth annual birding trip under the guidance of Mark Stackhouse of Westwings Birding Tours. I started this tradition when I enjoyed a full-day of birding with over 130 species on Deseret Ranch in northeastern Utah. Mark spent many years in Utah and was the education director at Salt Lake City's Tracy Aviary for a number of years before he moved his home base to Mexico. He guides birding groups professionally to Utah, Mexico, and other countries. He's an awesome guide and shares expert information on wildlife, plants, ecosystems, and much more. His birding-by-ear skills are incredible. We identified over 120 species during our trip and I'm pretty sure we would have missed at least 20 if it weren't for Mark's ear tying otherwise obscure songs and calls to specific species.

Saturday's outing began with a couple of stops in the Salt Lake City area to pick up a total of seven birders from Utah County, Salt Lake County, Cache County, and even Idaho. Our day included stops at a number of birding locations between Pineview Reservoir in Weber County and Bear River Meadows near Randolph in Rich County, all along State Roads 39 and 16.  Our first stop was at Pineview Reservoir to observe a number of water birds. We also explored the North Arm Natural Area of the reservoir for about 90 minutes. Gray Catbirds, Goldfinches, Yellow-breasted Chats, Fox Sparrows, and Black-headed Grosbeaks were prominent in the area with a handful of others species.

American Goldfinch at North Arm Natural Area of Pineview Reservoir in Weber County, UT

Gray Catbird at North Arm Natural Area of Pineview Reservoir in Weber County, UT

As we were observing several Black-headed Grosbeaks feeding on Squaw Berries on a hillside a grosbeak flew from behind our group and landed in some bushes in front of us. We recognized the black and white wings of the grosbeak as we got our first glimpse of its upper side when it flew in for a landing. It immediately turned to face us and several of us declared simultaneously, "Rose-breasted Grosbeak!". We thought that might just be the most unexpected bird of the day--but it wasn't the only one. It quickly flew out of sight before anyone could get photos to document it. However, we relocated it a few moments later. It was high on a hillside so the images below had to be severely cropped even with my 300 mm lens.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak at North Arm Natural Area of Pineview Reservoir in Weber County, UT

The nice red breast against a white belly is more than enough evidence to identify the bird as a male Rose-breasted Grosbeak, but the image below also captured its red under wing feathers as it adjusted its perch.

Rose-breasted Grosbeak at North Arm Natural Area of Pineview Reservoir in Weber County, UT

Our trip continued along State Road 39. We eventually stopped at Monte Cristo Campground for lunch. Mark, the awesome guide, prepared lunch for everyone as we wandered in various directions to see what birds might be observed. We saw Hammond's Flycatchers, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Red Crossbills, Red-breasted Nuthatches and more. I spent a little time watching a House Wren sing and sing over its territory.

House Wren at Monte Cristo Campground in Weber County, UT

It paused from singing for a moment, gave a good shake to it body feathers and then perched slightly fluffed before it began singing again.

House Wren at Monte Cristo Campground in Weber County, UT

House Wren at Monte Cristo Campground in Weber County, UT

After a nice lunch, some visiting, and learning a little more from Mark's vast birding knowledge we were encouraged to gather and capture an image of our newly-formed patrol of birders. Jo Ann used the timer on her point-and-shoot camera to capture the image below.

(Front, L-R) Mark, Jo Ann, Terry, Rachel, Laurie
(Back, L-R) Scott, Chris, Jeff
Monte Cristo Campground in Weber County, UT (Photo by Jo Ann H)

After our photo we explored the campground as a group. Scott had been hearing from and about Western Wood-Pewees all morning. He was more than ready when we finally found one that provided nice looks. We observed 24 species in the campground (plus hearing a Williamson's Sapsucker call there later in the day when we stopped again on our way home). We also spent a little bit of time watching a Mountain Chickadee forage for food to take back to a nest hidden inside a nearby tree. Birds which are foraging to eat immediately consume their food. However, when they are foraging to secure food for chicks they secure and carry the food back to the nest. That's just one indication of bird breeding behavior.

Mountain Chickadee at Monte Cristo Campground in Weber County, UT

Mountain Chickadee at Monte Cristo Campground in Weber County, UT

I captured the Red Squirrel and Mule's Ear flower images just before we packed up the van to move on to new areas and habitats.

Red Squirrel at Monte Cristo Campground in Weber County, UT

Mule's Ear at Monte Cristo Campground in Weber County, UT

Dry Bread Pond proved to be another stop that provided an unexpected species. We didn't spend much time in this area, but it was long enough to capture a few images and allow Mark to hear the song of a male Purple Martin, another great surprise for the day.

Violet-green Swallow at Dry Bread Pond in Weber County, UT

This image of a female Purple Martin in flight was a lucky shot in terms of timing. It was flying between trees and I was able to get focused on the bird just before it disappeared behind some Aspen Trees.

Female Purple Martin at Dry Bread Pond in Weber County, UT

The same martin is seen here as it perched near a nest site in a large Aspen. It was in the shadows so I had to work with exposure compensation to bring out some detail from the darkness.

Female Purple Martin Near Nest Site at Dry Bread Pond in Weber County, UT

This juvenile Mountain Bluebird allowed us to see plumage that is not often seen and that often stumps birders when they do see it. The obvious white eye ring resembles a Townsend's Solitaire. However, the juvenile bluebird has more of a streaky chest and belly where the juvenile solitaire would look more scaly in those areas.

Juvenile Mountain Bluebird at Dry Bread Pond in Weber County, UT

Another real hot spot for our group was along Crawford Mountain Road and Bear River Meadows just outside of Randolph, Utah. We drove over a bridge where Cliff Swallows were nesting. I managed to capture one in flight as it passed over our van and above the passenger side where I was seated.

Cliff Swallow Over Crawford Mountain Road Randolph, UT

Several members of our group had searched through thousands of White-faced Ibises over several years, before Saturday, in hopes of finding a vagrant Glossy Ibis. When we stopped Saturday to look at a group of ten Ibises we found another bird surprise for the day--a Glossy Ibis. I was in the front passenger seat of the van and the birds were on my side. Mark was in the driver's seat as we began to scan the birds through our binoculars. Mark began scanning from left to right (over my left shoulder) and I started scanning from right to left. The second bird I saw was the Glossy Ibis. I exclaimed, "Glossy Ibis!" and our birding hearts leaped. Just before I was able to get my camera lens on the bird they all flew about fifty yards away from us. We exited the van so Mark could put his scope on the bird and give everyone a nice look and time to discuss the differences between the White-faced (typical for summer in Utah) and the Glossy (not typical for Utah). I captured the images below to document the observation and include with the submission I would make to the Utah Bird Records Committee. These images were cropped quite a bit, but they clearly show the powder blue lines bordering the dark skin in front of the eyes.

Rare Glossy Ibis Found Along Crawford Mountain Road Randolph, UT

Rare Glossy Ibis Found Along Crawford Mountain Road Randolph, UT

We saw other nice birds as we moved along Crawford Mountain Road, including several Wilson's Phalaropes.

Wilson's Phalarope Along Crawford Mountain Road Randolph, UT

The adult Willet below was sending out an alarm call as we passed by in our van. Mark pointed our attention to the tall grass below where we observed several juvenile Willets and the reason for the alarmed adult as humans passed by.

Adult Willet Found Along Crawford Mountain Road Randolph, UT

Juvenile Willet Along Crawford Mountain Road Near Randolph, UT

Black Terns were flying quickly over the meadows, they were dark, and they were often casting shadows on themselves as they tilted and turned in flight. I'd love to get clearer and closer images, but these were the best I could get during this outing.

Black Tern Along Crawford Mountain Road Randolph, UT

Black Tern Along Crawford Mountain Road Randolph, UT

Violet-green Swallow Along Crawford Mountain Road Randolph, UT

Female Bullock's Oriole Along Crawford Mountain Road Randolph, UT

Some of the last birds I photographed for the day were the first American Avocet fledglings I'd ever seen. They were cute little fuzz balls showing the same colors as an adult in breeding plumage.

Juvenile American Avocet Along Crawford Mountain Road Randolph, UT

Juvenile American Avocet Along Crawford Mountain Road Randolph, UT

American Avocet Along Crawford Mountain Road Randolph, UT

I'll end this post with images captured as the sun was setting on an awesome day of company and birding. The artistry of nature can be fleeting so some moments have to be fully enjoyed while they last. We saw the beginning of what we knew would be a spectacular sunset so we began searching for a place to pull off the road. We wanted to see what colors the sun would reveal on a canvas of thick clouds. Mark pulled onto a dirt road marked by a sign that read, "Mount McKinnon." He navigated the road up a hill and presented us with an impressive, hill-top view of a sunset none of us will for forget.

The images begin with the scene we saw as we approached the crest of the hill. The sun painted the clouds with brilliant colors as the images progressed. It's last performance was a fiery orange as it disappeared from our view.

Sunset Seen From Mount McKinnon Weber County, UT

Sunset Seen From Mount McKinnon Weber County, UT

Sunset Seen From Mount McKinnon Weber County, UT

Sunset Seen From Mount McKinnon Weber County, UT

Sunset Seen From Mount McKinnon Weber County, UT