Spring has Sprung

With the warm February that we have had here in Idaho, the animals and birds are starting the migration and dating early.  Yesterday was very overcast, but I still went looking for action.  Too early for a good picture, I caught these two Golden eagles dating.

Then in mixed flocks of waterfowl, I found these two Canada's playing "wings" as they kept flirting with each other.

 

The flocks of waterfowl were joined by the first flight of Snow and Ross's geese that are about two weeks early from their normal migration here.

 

About 130 snows joined other waterfowl to eat the leftovers from the digestive process of a herd of bison west of Market Lake.

 

There were seven pair of Northern Harriers doing their mating flights over the still frozen ponds of Market Lake.  Here I caught a female harassing seven Long-eared owls in a windrow of thick brush.

 

It appears that six of the seven owls have chosen their partners for the nesting season while one needs a dating service to find someone before Valentine's Day.

Its beginning to look like a love fest has started in the wilds of Idaho.  May Cupid smile down on you during this time of new beginnings.

Golden eagle, elk and Snowshoe

After the flu and a trip slowed me up for a few days, I went chasing the wildness of Idaho for a couple of mornings.  With a snow/rain mix the opportunities of good pictures were dim.  But the experiences are more important than great pictures.  I had a great time working the wildlife of Camas one more time.

A Downy woodpecker  worked some scrub willows near three Great-horned owls.

 

The Great-horned owls were always hiding from me, peeking out through all the branches.

 

It took me a while to find the elk, but after I worked as close as I could, I watched them until two bulls started fighting.

 

There were 47 bulls in the herd and they finally located me when the breeze changed and my smell got to them.

 

As I was leaving the elk, a Snowshoe hare flushed out of some sage.

 

On the way home, I captured this Golden eagle perched on the power pole looking for a hapless rodent along a desert road.

 

Whether it is sunny, cloudy or even stormy weather, you have to get out is the wilderness to enjoy the wilds - even in Idaho.

Experiences of a lifetime

Friday I had one of those days even a wild man of Idaho would believe it was not possible to have.  It was very foggy at 5:30 when I got up, so I tied two dozen fishing flies and checked the weather.  "Heavy patchy fog with clear areas west of Rexburg."  So I headed for the desert and Camas National Wildlife Refuge.

At Sage Junction, I headed out on a primitive road with Black-tailed jackrabbits using the fog as cover as the rainbow-circled sun peeked through the heavy ground fog. All of a sudden a rabbit headed for my truck, running under it and not coming out.

 

In the fog I finally saw the reason; a Golden eagle was out hunting and had flushed the rabbit and it was hiding under a very large blue "rock."  Eventually both the eagle and rabbit moved on.  But a dream experience for one wild man in the wilds of Idaho was enjoyed ...... it would not be the last of the day.

 

After entering Camas National Wildlife Refuge and visiting with several naturalists and photographers with reports of "nothing worthwhile to see" I decided to hike the back roads of the fog-plagued refuge.  After seeing a few White-tailed deer through the mist, I saw a Northern harrier harassing a patch of tall sage with strange sounds coming from the brush.   

 

Inching closer I saw a porcupine grazing in the grass.  While taking pictures of the spiky animal and with my back turned to the pocket of sage, I heard the strange sound behind me and turned just as a Short-eared owl flushed from the sage and disappeared into the tall bull rushes.  Dang it all to heck - I was not quick enough - or the camera was not quick enough to record that exit - probably both.

 

After the two mile hike, I was almost back to my truck when I saw a movement like a flock of birds flushing in the sage - not birds, but a herd of about 200 migrating elk quartering past me.  The herd was being led by an old respected cow followed by mostly cows and calves with a few small bulls mixed in.

 

But the last two of the herd was a young cow and a very tired huge bull.  With breeding over, most bulls have left their herds, joined in groups and migrated before the cows.  This one was lost or was left behind by the other bulls, or had found a late girlfriend.  Reminded me of some old men that ought to know better.

 

With a responsibility waiting for me in town, I headed for the truck in a hurry.  Near the truck in a thicket of willows, I was greeted by a chorus of Song sparrows. 

 

I felt they were begging me to come back on another gloomy day when there appears to be "nothing worthwhile to see."  Sometimes you have to leave home and the comfortable vehicles to appreciate and experience the beauties that are to be had in the Wilds of Idaho.  If you stay home in the rain, snow and fog; you may miss four memorable lifetime experiences.

Retirement

Today was my first day of retirement after 29 years of teaching high school, coaching and other great fun activities.  So I decided to spend it out in the wilds of Idaho.  So I headed for one of my favorite places: Camas National Wildlife Refuge.  There I located a lot of wild things.

Four antlerless White-tailed deer.

 

A golden eagle.

 

A buck White-tailed deer.

 

Four different Great-horned owls.

 

Also I saw four Bald eagles, pheasants, four bull elk, cottontail rabbits,  Red-winged blackbirds, horned larks and the newly arrived Rough-legged hawks.

 

I hope all of you had a lovely Thanksgiving.

Busy Saturday

I wanted to do some birding Saturday, but I was not able to do any serious until 11:30 and I headed for Market Lake Wildlife Management area. 
Early it was all raptors like this Prairie Falcon.

There were plenty of starlings for the falcons, kestrels, and shrikes for lunch and dinner.

I finally located another nesting Great-horned owl nest to make four that I have found so far.

This "big daddy" did not feel up to attacking me as he has twice before.

And spring is in the air as these two Canada geese are flirting and showing off for each other.

A great way to finish the day was watching three Golden Eagles playing tag high over head and then locating and photographing a flock of Common Red Polls (later this week in my blog, madisonbirds) after a successful fishing trip.

A great day in the wilds of Idaho.

Wildlife at Howe

On my way home from fishing Mackey Reservoir ( see http://billschiessfishing.blogspot.com/ for that story) I spent about 30 minutes looking at the raptors and other wildlife near Howe, Idaho.

Several people feel Howe may support the largest number of raptors during the winter in the state of Idaho or even the nation.  In 30 minutes I counted 78 hawks and 12 eagles.  The most numerous were the Roughlegged hawk that have just migrated from the Artic Circle.  Here is a beautiful one working a hay field.

Golden eagles were perched on hay stacks and sprinkler lines while Bald eagles were feeding on a few sheep and antelope carcusses around the area.

Herds of antelope filled  the fields along the road.  I estimate there were about 1000 pronghorns in a nine mile stretch.

A great way to end another wild day in Idaho.

Eagles have Landed, Camas NWR

This afternoon I ran out to Camas National Wildlife Refuge to see if the eagles had showed up. Yesterday there were only 14 there and today the migration had begun with 38 showing up. I also saw Northern Harriers, Red-tailed hawks, Rough-legged hawks, Kestrels, Merlins, Northern Flickers and even a Golden eagle.

In this tree alone there are 8 mature Bald eagles and one immature Bald eagle.


Here two mature Bald eagles play tag in a very cold strong north wind.

As the sun set I located these six white-tailed deer as they came out of the cattails and started feeding.

Just another wild day in Idaho.