A Series of Boreal Owl Encounters

Boreal Owl in the Uinta Mountains in Wasatch County, Utah
October 3, 2020

Let the Utah Boreal Owl Hunt Begin

Hello, friends and nature lovers! A little over two years ago I presented myself with a "lifer" choice that would either have me driving two-plus hours to the Uinta Mountains in northeastern Utah or three-plus hours to parts of the Colorado Plateau near Moab, Utah.  "Lifer" is how birders and herpers (reptile and amphibian seekers) refer to a species observed for the first time. In the Uintas I would look for my first-ever Utah Boreal Owl, a rare species for our state. In the Moab area I would go looking for Eastern Collared Lizards. It was mid-summer so it was kind of a choice between the cooler temps of our mountains or the warmer temps of the desert. Reptiles had captured my attention at that time so I chose the desert. I went and had a wonderful time sleeping under the stars and finding and photographing the lizard the following day. I've shared that experience in a previous post found at this link.

Two weeks ago my wife and I did a trip to Yellowstone National Park. Prior to that trip the two-year-old Boreal Owl itch returned so I decided to scratch it by adding an hour or two of owling to the trip.  I would have loved spending more time owling during our evenings, but it was a trip for "us" so my birding interests were barely on the radar for by non-birding spouse. Limited time required me to be efficient so I studied Google Maps before the trip and paid close attention to habitat and location as we drove into the area.

After some downtime at the hotel on our last night of the trip I received the "okay" to venture into the dark for owls. I drove to a dense pine forest with sporadic meadows outside of West Yellowstone. As an FYI, I drove to that location because I had planned to play calls to locate a bird and national parks prohibit the use of recorded calls to attracts birds. The Proper Use of Playback in Birding by David Sibley provides guidelines for using calls to attract birds.

It was quiet that evening on the road I chose, not a single vehicle drove in my direction. I played a Boreal Owl song for about twenty seconds and then listened and waited for a few minutes. With no evidence of an owl being present I tried the process a couple more times. I did this at several stops without getting any indication of an owl's presence. I used my light to scan the trees around me with no success. I drove to what would be my final stop and was again met with utter silence. I gave the surrounding trees one last look before getting back into the car and that's when this little creature appeared in my view. It was perched in a tree about forty feet away.

Boreal Owl near West Yellowstone, Montana
September 29, 2020

That little owl, standing about 9-10" tall, depending on whether it was male or female (males being smaller), had come to see who was calling without ever making a sound. It was one of the "silent observers" as I call them. 

It was an amazing experience, for which I was incredibly grateful. I gave a verbal thank-you to the owl before departing. It was my second Boreal Owl ever and the first one that I was able to find on my own.

Boreal Owl Near West Yellowstone, Montana
September 29, 2020

Time to Find a Utah Boreal Owl

The success of my first Boreal hunt propelled me to develop a plan for finding my first Boreal Owl in Utah.  Prior to leaving for Yellowstone I talked with a friend who had encountered a Boreal Owl in a remote location of the Uinta Mountains at the end of August. I wanted to get a description of habitat without knowing the specific location. I don't ask other birders or photographers for specific locations of the rare species they discover for two reasons. First and foremost, it avoids putting them in an awkward position when they are uncomfortable with having to say no. Secondly, I actually enjoy the process of learning and discovering things on my own as much as possible. I find great satisfaction and joy in the process of learning, exploring, and discovering for myself what nature has to offer. Capturing images as a result of that process often provides nice memorials for those experiences so I do try to get quality images when possible.

Preparation

To prepare for my Utah search I reviewed the handful of eBird reports of Boreal Owl sightings in the Uinta Mountains, spoke with a biologist who has some experience with the species and studied range maps, habitat, and recordings of their vocalizations online. Some range maps showed a thin slice of the range passing through the Uinta Mountains and others showed the Boreal Owl range skirting around Utah from the Rocky Mountains in Colorado up to Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho. The Uinta Mountains are considered to be on the fringe of the normal range so it began to feel like I might be searching for a needle in a haystack, but that just made the adventure all the more enticing. For additional intelligence I spoke with a couple of local birders who had recently returned from unsuccessful searches in the Uinta Mountains. They generously provided information regarding the terrain that I would need to traverse in the search I was planning. High clearance, durable all-terrain tires, solid suspension, and 4WD would be required. I heard in my mind, "Don't try this at home, kids!" Neither a sedan nor even a small SUV with highway tires would be well suited for such an endeavor.  The location would not be a good place for a breakdown, nor to simply get stuck in a rut, because much of the area is outside of phone service. With all that information I was ready to begin my search and try to answer my question about how common or rare the species really is in the Uinta Mountains.

Success in the Uinta Mountains!

I set out on my first Utah Boreal Owl hunt October 3rd, 2020. I made it to my starting point during daylight to explore some of the more remote and risky routes in the area. That was a good thing because I lost Verizon service on my phone and was unable to continue viewing the targeted spots I had marked on a personal Google Map. It didn't take long to realize that the roads were rougher than all previous routes I'd taken for owls in other remote mountain locations. I saw lots of great spots to check, however, as I drove deeper into the area. I decided to turn around at one point because I felt like I was in a small boat being tossed to and fro on a roaring sea as I was bounced and tilted side to side from boulder to rut while advancing at a snail's pace. I had already passed through good habitat and it seemed unnecessary to risk the additional wear and tear on my Tacoma.

I stopped as the sun was setting to enjoy the scenery.  It was deathly silent until a Northern Pygmy Owl called from a distant perch and some Mountain Chickadees came in to check me out as I mimicked the call of the Pygmy-owl.

Darkness increased and signaled the time to begin the real hunt for my first Utah Boreal Owl.  I don't know if I got super lucky or if there are more Boreal Owls than we think, but I was able to find my first one after two stops and within seconds of attempting to call for one.  My heart pumped with excitement as I quickly fired off a few fames to document the encounter. I could not believe that the moment had arrived so early in my search because I had prepared myself to return home without seeing one. To my delight, the bird was accommodating and allowed me to capture better images and a brief recording of one of its vocalizations.

Boreal Owl in the Uinta Mountains in Wasatch County, Utah
October 3, 2020

Boreal Owl in the Uinta Mountains in Wasatch County, Utah
October 3, 2020

Once again, I expressed gratitude to the owl before parting. I could have called it a night early and headed home with a great feeling of achievement, but I was then more curious than ever to see how easy or challenging it would be to find another owl. Little did I know that I would choose to stop in a subsequent location that produced two Boreal Owls. They appeared to be a pair, a smaller one presumed to be the male and a larger one appearing to be the female.

Boreal Owl in the Uinta Mountains in Wasatch County, Utah
October 3, 2020

Boreal Owl in the Uinta Mountains in Wasatch County, Utah
October 3, 2020

These two birds vocalized what struck me as contact calls intended to communicate each other's location. The male issued a soft but high-pitched squeak or hiss and the female responded with a slightly louder "wert" call.  Here is a link to the recording of the  Boreal Owl Pair Calling.  The audio file is stored on my Google Drive so if you have the Google Drive app it will probably play well for you. It may help to turn up your volume when you listen to the recording. And, depending on your device, you be required to download the file to hear the soft calls. 

As I was photographing one of the owls it leaned forward and rotated its head side to side a couple of times before expelling a pellet, which it then grasped and held in a talon.

Boreal Owl Casting a Pellet
Uinta Mountains in Wasatch County, Utah
October 3, 2020

Boreal Owl With a Pellet in the Uinta Mountains in Wasatch County, Utah
October 3, 2020

The owl eventually let the pellet fall to the ground and then I retrieved it before leaving the scene because I wanted to take it home, dry it out, and inspect its contents. I saw it as a way to learn a little bit more about the owl I had observed. I'll publish the results of that inspection in a future post.

Needless to say, I was beyond elated with the surprising results of my first Utah Boreal Owl hunt. It was a Boreal Owl bonanza beyond any expectation. I am incredibly grateful for seeing three owls, recording a calling pair, and watching one of them cast a pellet, which became a parting gift of sorts. 

Thank you for visiting my blog and sticking with me through this long post. I hope you enjoyed it and learned something new. May you have safe and excellent encounters as you venture into nature.

Additional resources to learn more about Boreal Owls:

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Boreal_Owl

https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/boreal-owl

Owling the Outskirts of a Tiny Town on Friday the 13th

Great Horned Owl Giving a Hoot

I love looking for owls, especially Northern Saw-whet Owls, near the summit of the Alpine Loop where stretches of road from Utah and Wasatch Counties rise to meet at nearly 8000 feet. The roads that allow access to the summit are closed during the winter months and generally reopen each sprint around Memorial Day weekend. Consequently, I've been left only to dream of what the Saw-whet Owls are doing up there in the early spring months as their breeding season goes into full swing. Recently I was told there was a way to drive my truck up into that area from the Wasatch County side. The Utah winter has been extremely mild with very little snow so I decided to give it a shot last night with my friend Eric Peterson. Eric and I most recently had owling success during our Presidents' Day weekend excursion to Southeast Arizona. You can read about and see images from that fun-filled weekend trip in my most recent blog posts.

Last night we enjoyed the beautiful scenery of Provo Canyon and Deer Creek Reservoir back-dropped by the majestic snow-capped peaks of Mount Timpanogos as we made a 40-minute drive from our homes in Utah County to Heber Valley in Wasatch County. I asked Eric if he'd be interested in checking for Great Horned Owls along the way. He was certainly interested so we made a stop on the outskirts of the small town of Midway, Utah where I'd located a Great Horned Owl roost a few years before.

We employed some simple owling techniques to locate not one but two Great Horned Owls. We suspect they are a breeding pair. We searched below some dense conifers for evidence of an active roost. We discovered pellets, remains of prey, and feathers. The ground below one particular tree was littered with pellets. I wondered what DNA might be found in those pellets. No doubt bits of mammals we in them.

Although we had loads of evidence pointing to one particular tree it was the call of a male we heard from another tree that let us know for sure we were on the trail to a Great Horned Owl. Eric located a pair of rabbit ears that certainly wouldn't help any TV get better reception.

These owls are meat eaters and rabbits provide lots of meat, especially for a nest of hungry little owlets. Apparently even these dominant owls experience threats from nature. The feathers below appear to be Great Horned Owl feathers that were aggressively removed since several are stuck together at the base. It's possible they belong to another species of bird that became prey to the owls, but they appear to match Great Horned Owl feathers as far as I can tell. The natural process of molting would result in individual rather than batches of feathers being lost.

Once we heard the male calling just before the sun was going down we moved in its direction. It was coming from an evergreen that was very tall and heavily covered. I've put the owl dead center in the cropped image below to make it easier to see while also providing a since of how deeply hidden the owl was in the tree.

Here's another image from a slightly different angle that is more heavily cropped for a closer view.

The owl flew from the tree and over our heads. The sun had dropped behind the mountains so the lighting was very poor, but I managed to lighten up the image below to show some of the detail of the owl. The owl was merely a dark silhouette straight out of the camera so I'm pleased with how digital technology allowed me to reveal the hidden details of the original image.

We heard the female engage in the calling at one point so we think we know where she is on a well-hidden nest, but it was the male that put on a show for us as he flew from one perch to another.

I did my best to hold the lens still as I attempted to capture two short video and audio clips of the owl hooting. I had my tripod/monopod in the truck and it would have improved the steadiness of the video, but I opted to go handheld since we were quickly losing light. Be sure to watch the video in HD for the best image quality.

Our last look at the owl before we resumed our drive into the mountains for the Saw-whets was a silhouette high atop a distant tree. What looks like a tiny owl from this perspective is a bird that is on its way to imposing death and destruction on unsuspecting mammals.

We finally reached the road that was to take us into Saw-whet territory from Soldier Hollow, but it was closed to vehicles. Determined to find our owls, we decided to check another road that would lead to great Saw-whet habitat and made our way there. That road was closed as well. We decided to drive up a third canyon road get into higher elevations. Fortune was on our side with our third option so we pressed onward and upward. The pavement transitioned to mud and rocks and the mud and rocks gave way to snow pack. I engaged the 4WD and pressed forward to where we would find perfect Saw-whet habitat, a mix of conifers and aspens.

We made our first stop and attempted to whistle and call for Saw-whets. We could hear that someone was on the dark and treacherous road ahead of us. There was no way to park on the side of the road due to the narrowness of the road and the deep snow covering the sloping edges so we simply stayed in the middle of the road hoping no one would need to pass us on their way down. Within a few minutes a Saw-whet responded to us and a tiny dark figure flew right by our heads. It landed in a short aspen on the side of the road and began interacting with us. Moments later it moved to a conifer where it posed for some photos. I never get tired of seeing these 8-inches-tall carnivores.

As we were photographing the owl a man with a shovel came walking up the road. He'd parked his truck below where the snow pack began and was on his way up to help dig his son's truck from the snow. Apparently the people we heard above us were stuck. We offered help and then decided we'd back the truck down from our location rather than attempt to go forward. We found a place to do about an 8-point turn. Eric guided me from outside the truck to make sure I didn't get too close to the edge of a drop off and deeper snow. Once we completed that careful maneuver we began a slow decent to another spot that appeared ideal for Saw-whets. We hit another jackpot at our second stop with our second Saw-whet of the evening. We were now three for three on owling targets for the evening.  The second Saw-whet allowed us to watch and listen to it call for several minutes before we decided to continue our way down from the mountain.

About sixty minutes and a late-night, semi-decent, fast food combo meal later we were back to our homes from a memorable evening with owls on the outskirts of a tiny town called Midway.

The Bird That Got Away: Technically Bad But Interesting Bird Images

I originally shared this post on Birding Is Fun!. I'm now sharing on my own blog.

Capturing a great nature shot--especially when the subject can fly, scurry, or run--is a combination of skill, determination, equipment, and plain old luck or timing. Photographers often sift through lots of bad images before they share their work with others. Thank goodness for digital images that can be captured and deleted at practically no cost in comparison to film.  I've heard some great photographers say they shoot from tens to hundreds of images to get the one they think is worth sharing.

I love capturing and sharing images of birds and other creatures and I typically share only my favorites unless the image is meant for functional purposes such as providing proof of a rare bird. This post, however, will be the exception to the rule. In other words, I'm sharing images that would have been really awesome had I been better prepared, had better equipment, lighting, timing, etc. I'll probably kill any chance I had for being published in National Geographic once this post gets out. What follows are images that could have been.

I was wandering around Silver Lake near Utah's Brighton Ski Resort one wintry morning when a Steller's Jay gave a call. I turned around just in time to fire off my shutter and capture the jay flying over head. It looks more like an x-ray than a bird in flight. The sky was gray so lighting, camera settings, and my preparedness were off for this one.

Steller's Jay at Brighton Ski Resort Near Salt Lake City, UT

I can't complain about the lighting for these images of a Red-shafted Northern Flicker that was coming in for a landing one sunny morning as I was strolling along American Fork Boat Harbor. I saw the bird coming, I've always wanted to capture an image showing the really cool salmon-colored feathers and this was my opportunity. Unfortunately, I didn't get a tight focus until right before it landed and the branches obscured what I was targeting.

Northern Flicker (slightly out of focus) American Fork, UT

Northern Flicker (missed opportunity) American Fork, UT

An Osprey caught me off guard once and left me with a slightly out of focus image of what would have been an awesome raptor shot. If I crop it any more than this you'll quickly see that the eyes were out of focus. When the subject's eyes are out of focus it just doesn't make the cut--unless your point is to show what can go wrong in nature photography. Which, I have to remind myself, is the point of this post.

Osprey in American Fork, UT

Several years ago my company moved me into a nice corner office on the top floor of our building which was right next to excellent habitat for birds, foxes, deer, marmots, and more. I had seen some Peregrine Falcons around the area so I kept my camera in my office in case the perfect opportunity arose. On the day the opportunity presented itself I had left my camera in my truck. I saw a Peregrine enjoying lunch on the balcony ledge outside my office. I ran to the elevator, dropped six floors, retrieved the camera  from the truck and then slightly opened the door while on my knees to get a direct line to the bird. I snapped what would have been very nice images if there weren't two metal wires running horizontally between me and the bird. Consequently, the falcon's chest and the lunch (a dove) were blurred.

Peregrine Falcon with Dove South Jordan, UT

I was quite "surprised" as I was driving through Surprise, Arizona on my way back to Utah one day. I saw a Greater Roadrunner, running rather greatly along the road. I suddenly veered to the shoulder of the road. I'm not sure if it was legal where I was driving, but my excitement about seeing a roadrunner up close for the first time overruled my concern for everything else going on around me. I scrambled to get the camera bag and turn on the camera. The excitement was so great I was fumbling with every move. The bird suddenly plucked a Round-tailed Squirrel from beneath the sand and proceeded to thrash it against the ground. Man, I wish I would have been on a higher shutter speed to get a clearer image. It was definitely a moment I'll always remember.

Greater Roadrunner With Round-tailed Squirrel Surprise, AZ

Speaking of roadrunners, I got some really nice images of two roadrunners near Lytle Ranch in southwestern Utah this spring. However, one image had a missed opportunity because I wasn't anticipating that the bird would leap from one branch of a Joshua tree to another. I guess you could use this image to study its feet. The tail doesn't look like much, but wait til you see the next image.

Jumping Greater Roadrunner Washington County, UT

I had an adult Sharp-shinned Hawk fly right passed me as it was pursuing its breakfast one morning in Tonaquint Nature Center in St George, Utah. I got some nice images of the bird perched, but this time, unlike the jumping roadrunner, this bird decided to dive down from a perch. Too bad people aren't more interested in seeing the undertail of Sharp-shinned Hawks.

Tail of Adult Sharp-shinned Hawk St George, UT

Townsend's Solitaires are often viewed as rather bland, gray birds. I've always wanted to get an image of a Townsend's Solitaire with it flashing it yellow wing patches. The bird below was actually perched and suddenly took flight. Unfortunately, the unexpected wing patch shot turned out to be more of the bird playing a mean joke on me. Not a bad shot of a branch however.

Townsend's Solitaire in Pleasant Grove, UT (it was perched when the image was framed)

Another unexpected jumping bird turned out to look like a Photoshop effort gone bad. I don't use Photoshop so this is probably just as good as if I did Photoshop the image all by myself. Trust me on this one.  It would have been a nice image if the bird would have sat still on the branch below it.

Jumping Townsend's Solitaire at Tibble Fork Reservoir Utah County, UT

How do you like this awesome Barn Owl shot? It was actually perched on a power line as I was driving to the grocery store. It started to fly when I pulled over for a photo. Apparently this owl doesn't know how to frame itself well for a photo. If you look closely you can see the little black spots on it underside. By the way, that's a beautiful snow-covered mountain in the background. Be honest now, doesn't it make you want to ski in Utah?

Missed Barn Owl Shot Pleasant Grove, UT

I was driving home from work a few years ago and saw not only my first Swainson's Hawk ever, but I saw several within minutes. They must have just gotten off the last flight from Argentina. That's where they come from you know. It was April and I think that is when flights from Argentina to Utah are heavily booked by Swainson's Hawks. I was also new to photography at the time and I think I had everything on my camera set to auto. Someone told me that was all I needed to do to get good photos. Must have been a poor job on the hawks part. I'm sure if it knew it was going to go viral on the Internet it would have focused itself and kept all of its body parts in the frame.

Swainson's Hawk Springville, UT

I don't know. Is this a bad image of a Killdeer? Nice colors I guess, but what did I do to scare it off in such a hurry?

Killdeer Spanish Fork, UT

When I saw this Pygmy Owl's eyes go wide and it mouth start to gape I knew a pellet was about to be ejected in some sort of projectile fashion. I pressed the shutter release and fired away in continuous shooting mode. It took longer for the bird to clear its throat than expected. Between the capacity of the camera's sensor and the memory card the frames per second choked and stalled right as the pellet came forth.

Northern Pygmy Owl Aspen Grove Lodge Utah County, UT

The best I could do was take a picture of the pellet after my friend traipsed through hip-deep snow to retrieve the pellet and place it on the road. The point of showing this image is to see if you can identify the species of bird or mammal inside.

Freshly Expelled Northern Pygmy Owl Pellet Aspen Grove Lodge Utah County, UT

Please don't give up on my work. I have desire and better equipment now. I'm getting better all the time. I promise I'll do better next time.

Casting a Pellet AND Yard Bird Species #68: What's That All About?

I know.  It's a confusing title for a blog post, but it does allude to two birding highlights I experienced Friday.

I received a phone call from my birding and bird photography friend Eric Peterson Friday morning. He had just found a bird he knew I was trying to add to my species list for the new year--a Northern Pygmy Owl. It was perched on a power line near Aspen Grove, just above Sundance Ski Resort in the mountains above Provo Canyon in Utah County, Utah. I quickly grabbed my bag of gear and made the 30-minute drive into Provo Canyon and up the east end of Alpine Scenic Highway. Eric and the owl were right where they were when I got the call. The owl was content as it perched on the power line above the road. Eric and I took some photos and then followed the owl when it flew further up the canyon and back onto a power line.

Northern Pygmy Owls are about 6.5 inches long, are often active in daylight, and generally eat small birds and small mammals. It's one of the smallest carnivorous birds in North America. While these owls are residents to Utah and other mountainous western states and areas of the US, Canada, and Mexico, most sightings of this bird in Utah take place during the winter when their puffy little bodies are more easily seen as they perch on barren horizontal branches and wires along mountain roads. This vantage point allows them to keep watch over the open roads and spaces below them where unsuspecting birds and rodents pass and become easy prey.

While we were visiting and observing the owl we noticed that it opened its bill wide and started to heave. We knew it was getting ready to cast a pellet. For those who are not aware, birds of prey often eat their prey whole. They digest the meat and fluids of the prey and eventually regurgitate the remaining fur, feathers, bones, etc. in the form of a compact wad of leftover stuff.  We focused our lenses on the owl when it began to heave and started firing away with our digital cameras. Below is a series of images of the owl as it heaved and ejected the unwanted wad of stuff.  I missed the actual ejection with my captured images, but Eric has shared one image where the pellet was captured mid-air, just after being ejected.

Northern Pygmy Owl Near Aspen Grove in Utah County, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper)

Isn't this how people look just as they realize they are about to lose their lunch, blow chunks, or toss their cookies?

Northern Pygmy Owl Preparing to Cast a Pellet Near Aspen Grove in Utah County, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper)

Hack! This appears to be quite the process. The eyes are closing, a sign of intense focus, and the posture is beginning to lean forward.

Northern Pygmy Owl Preparing to Cast a Pellet Near Aspen Grove in Utah County, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper)

And here's the image, courtesy of Eric Peterson, capturing the the projectile and the force behind it--the process consisted of multiple heaves, eyes going closed, fulling gaping mouth.

Northern Pygmy Owl Casting Pellet Near Aspen Grove in Utah County, UT (Photo courtesy of Eric Peterson)

And here is an image of the wet, blackish pellet (~1/2 inch) after Eric trudged through snow up to his thighs to retrieve it and placed it on the road. You should be able to make out some fur and a tiny bone or two. Probably the remains of a small bird and/or mouse or vole.

Freshly Ejected Norther Pygmy Owl Pellet Near Aspen Grove in Utah County, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper)

As Eric and I parted I thanked him for calling me to see the owl. He asked me to call him if I found anything of interest. He was hoping to photograph a particular species. That brings us to yard bird species #68 and the second part of this post's title. It also shows that favors are returned among good friends.

I had just finished visiting with someone in my home and heard the trill of Cedar Waxwings coming from the backyard. I looked through the back door and began to scan, with the naked eye, a small flock of Waxwings. I was looking specifically for a larger, grayer Waxwing with rufous under the tail and around its dark mask. I was hoping for Bohemian Waxwings to be mixed in with the flock since we've had an irruption of them in the northern parts of Utah this winter. I'm not sure if that's the result of harsh winter conditions in Canada or a good breeding season that has the birds spreading farther to the south than usual.  Just as I was about to give up on my hopes for a Bohemian, a larger Waxwing flew into the Flowering Plum Tree near my back patio. Bingo! A Bohemian Waxwing! The bird Eric said he was hoping to photograph earlier in the day as we were observing the owl. I ran through the house locating my phone for Eric and my camera to document yard bird species #68 (according to my eBird records).  Eric arrived shortly after my call and we photographed the birds as we wandered around my backyard and the yards of two neighbors (permission granted of course--I called them prior to Eric's arrival).

You can see a comparison of the colors and sizes of Cedar and Bohemian Waxwings from one of my previous post by clicking here.  The images below were captured Friday afternoon.

Bohemian Waxwing Visits My Backyard in Pleasant Grove, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper)

Bohemian Waxwing Visits My Backyard in Pleasant Grove, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper)

Bohemian Waxwing Visits My Backyard in Pleasant Grove, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper)

Bohemian Waxwing Visits My Backyard in Pleasant Grove, UT (Photo by Jeff Cooper)

You can see a comparison of Cedar Waxwings and Bohemian Waxwings from a previous post by clicking here.