Sunday, April 26, 2015

April in the West Desert, Utah

 A surprise snowfall, Apr. 16.
 Grassy Cove camp.
 Brewer's blackbird displaying.
A hopper's under appreciated underwings.

Spring appearances, April Utah

 A most amazing dance!
 Sharp-tailed grouse courtship display.
 A curious badger.
 April 14th.
First W. meadowlark chick seen April 14.

Utah Spring, upland and desert.

 Long-billed curlews arrived in April. Apr. 8, near Promontory.
 Short-eared owls were out in force in White's Valley April 9th.
 Collared lizards were out April 11th.


A huge and very dark Western Fence Lizard, 4/11.

Saturday, April 25, 2015

Wasatch spring

 Red Lake Trail April 7.
 Aspen catkins.
 Brigham City, "Gateway to the Worlds Greatest Bird Refuge"!

Spring in Utah

 Sage Thrasher.
 Red-breasted Mergansers passing through. From where to where?
My first Utah Leopard Lizard!

Tuesday, April 21, 2015

In the Wasatch, Little Cottonwood Canyon, Red Pine Lake


 Marten tracks, 3/27/15.
 Alta/
 Red Pine Lake.
 White Pine Lk/Red Pine Lk. trail.
First willows budding at Alta.

At the foot of the Wasatch





Salt Lake City and the Wasatch Front, Spring






APRIL

April 21, 2015 - The season is galloping along at such a pace that I cannot keep up.
In the West Desert spring is a subtle thing to witness. Cactus blooming, birds singing and nesting, winter blasts, snow and dust storms, etc. The only constants are the eagles high in the air or on their nest ledges. They seem to abide above and beyond the general melee below. Yet it is the health of the jackrabbit and rodent population that, determines if the eagles prosper, and these in turn are dependent on the amount and timing of rain and snow.
Last week we woke to 5 inches of heavy wet snow and two days later the grass was visibly greener.
Back in the Wasatch, Snowbird ski area received 44 inches of snow in 24 hours, more than they had received for the combined months of January and February!

Avocet at Bear River NWR.

 Tundra swans at Bear River.
 Female Hooded merganser in a city park.
 Chukar at Antelope Island.
Virginia Rail at Clear Lake NWR.
In Salt Lake the trees continue to bloom and leaf out more each day. Many have already dropped their blossoms.
So I will try to post photos from these two different environments separately.