Willow Ptarmigan are the most entertaining and photo friendly birds I have photographed. They make the best call and are just plain fun to observe. When I arrived in late April I was hoping to catch them still in their winter plumage.
So, with plenty of snow still around I checked their favorite haunts from last year. As you can see most had already started to change.
They change colors fast. These images were captured last week. Some of the females are totally changed and sitting on nests already.
One of the features I enjoy most about these birds is the way the males vibrate their eye brows when attempting to attract a female or when alerted.
Denali is in full swing. All the facilities outside the park are now open. Visitation seems as busy now as it was in July last year. I have seen several bears every day at the checkpoint and we have had to manage the public at several bear jams. We had a cow moose with a new born calf chase a visitor into the restrooms below the checkpoint yesterday. I'm still with limited internet capability realizing this may be the circumstance for the entire season. Blue Skies.
10 comments:
If your season start off like this, I hope the rest is going to be as promising Ken.
I love the way you have shown the changes the bird goes through. Here only some of our birds go through it as there is not much difference between our winter and summer climates.
It must look very comical with those orange eyebrows anything to get the attention of the ladies :))
Such a beauty!
Seems that with that luck you may run of wildlife to photograph...great captures.
Its a beautiful capture Ken, I browsed through a few of your images, I m pleasantly amazed at the variety of wildlife on your blog...Thomas
I had never heard of those birds. They look very interesting. They remind me of a chicken somehow. Great pictures. Hope your internet connection lets you keep photos throughout the season!
Beautiful captures of the Ptarmigan!
It looks like it will be another great season for you Ken. Fantastic photos and what a great start to the season.
Beautiful! I never knew just how much! Thank you! love those eyebrows!
Ken: That is certainly a beauty, I like this color phase.
Post a Comment