If I was going to describe the weather on today’s bird-watching trip, the only word that comes to mind is, well, blaah.
With the prevailing temperature hovering right around freezing, the overall conditions this morning were nothing more than very low clouds, a slight wind, and a forecasted snowstorm that eventually showed up and chased me back home.
But even with such poor birding and photography conditions, I am one who believes even an off day of birding is far better than a day with no bird watching.
Maybe I am growing a little too biased against winter the older I get but in all fairness, I will say winter is the second best time of the year to go watch and photograph birds, in my own slightly disgruntled opinion that is.
It sounds pretty counterintuitive to say winter is the second best opportunity of the year to enjoy birding I will admit.
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I mean seriously, look at the facts.
There is certainly no disputing the claim that winter means fewer overall bird numbers and fewer species of birds to view and photograph.
So why on earth do I like it so much when a good percentage of my winter bird-watching trips have a lot fewer birds to find, photograph, and enjoy and the weather can oftentimes only be described as being just plain old blaah?
The first thing that comes to mind is the satisfaction that immediately comes when I do find an interesting bird to watch and photograph.
It’s not always easy to find birds during the winter and today at Farmington Bay that certainly held true.
Birds other than waterfowl were definitely in short supply but I’m happy to say all the photographs on this particular blog post were from today.
When I eventually did find a bird this morning, no matter if it was a ring-billed gull posing on a nearby pole or a flock of white-crowned sparrows hiding in a roadside thicket, there was a bit of satisfaction and accomplishment that comes from sticking it out and finding the peruviol needle in the frozen haystack as it were.
Another very viable reason winter is a great time to go bird watching is some birds are just easier to view and photograph in the winter.
One bird that most definitely comes to mind fitting that bill is the American kestrel, the smallest falcon in North America.
The American kestrel is a very hard bird to photograph during the summer months, at least for me it is.
These small but feisty birds of prey are common in many places here in northern Utah but that doesn’t necessarily translate into easy viewing or, even more so, easy photographs.
As winter comes and temperatures fall, most birds of prey, including owls, are much easier to find, view, and photograph as these winter birds are more reluctant to expend any more energy than they need to during this crucial time of year.
That means American kestrels, other raptors, and owls will oftentimes sit and pose for a few pictures during the winter when other times of the year they just fly off.
With that said, however, never, ever chase, horas, or get too close to a bird of prey during winter.
This time of year is pretty hard on birds of prey as food sources are low so give them their due space and enjoy them from a respectable distance.
For those who are wondering, I use a Tamron 600 mm camera lens and sometimes have to crop quite heavily to get usable images for my blog but it’s worth it more to leave a little bit of distance between me and a possibly stressed raptor or owl than to approach for the “perfect photo”.
I think the next reason I love winter bird watching so much, even on blaah days, is how peaceful and serene it can be, especially when a light snowfall has just started.
(Ducks Feeding In A Snow Storm From Today’s Bird Watching Trip.
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As I was watching a flock of mallards on a nearby pond this morning, the impending snow finally arrived and it was quite a beautiful sight.
Unfortunately, I knew my time out bird watching was coming to a close with each flake gently laying itself on the asphalt roadway in front of me, slowly building up as time went by and potentially making my drive home a slippery one.
But sitting there watching the ducks handle what nature was currently throwing at them, no pun intended mind you, was quite stirring, to say the least.
Bird watching can be a very solitary pastime, I know it is for me a lot of the time.
But one of the reasons I love winter bird watching is seeing other like-minded people out and about enjoying nature and birds when it is arguably not very pleasant conditions by any stretch of the imagination.
Yes, I do indeed enjoy seeing other dedicated nature enthusiasts and bird watchers outdoors doing what I think is a most enjoyable and satisfying hobby, especially during winter when there are so many reasons not to but, like me, they still go birding because they love it as much as I do.
Today was certainly no shortage of that as I came across what looked like a very healthy amount of people out and about enjoying birds up and down the roadway at Farmington Bay and at the Eccles Wildlife Education Center grounds.
So there you have it, even on blaah days, I can always find a reason to go bird-watching during the winter months.
It’s actually not too hard once the birding-bug has bit and the joy of bird-watching starts to grow inside of you.
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