American Kestrel (male)

This guy tried to eat one of our birds! -Kennedy

He came two days in a row to scatter the birds at our feeder. Cute and surprisingly small, but deadly! -Amy

Slate-colored Dark-eyed Junco (male)

This little guy was only around for a few days. He caught my eye because he didn't look quite the same as the "Oregon" Juncos we've got. According to my Sibley field guide, he's a "Slate-Colored" Dark-eyed Junco, Canadian Rocky Mountains variant. Big name for such a small bird! Apparently they nest in the Canadian Rockies and this one is spending the winter here in Utah.

European Starling (winter plumage)

Here is a European Starling in winter plumage - dark bill, blackish overall with small white spots.  A flock of about five or six of them stopped by today.

Loggerhead Shrike

I was so excited to see a new bird land right in front of me as I looked out the window! I barely had time to grab my camera and get three shots. He stayed for less than a minute, and I will be very surprised if I ever see him again. He wasn't checking the feeder for seeds, by the way, he was probably looking for dinner in the shape of a finch. Shrikes feed on birds and small rodents. You can just barely see the tiny (meat-tearing) hook at the tip of his bill.

Ring-necked Pheasant (female)

This Ring-necked Pheasant ran in front of my husband while he was driving home on Eagle Mountain Boulevard. When we drove by later she was still there hiding in the landscaped strip in the middle of the road, so we stopped and got a picture of her.

Northern Flicker (female)

         This must be mister flicker's wife! Maybe they have their home nearby. It was really astounding to see her take flight and flash all that red under her wings and tail. -Amy

She must be going to find some winter supply of food. - Kennedy

White-crowned Sparrow (Immature)

I used to think every small brown bird was a sparrow, but I'm learning that they really don't all look exactly alike, that they do have characteristic markings, and it's actually kind of fun to tell the difference. This little White-crowned Sparrow came alone to forage below the thistle seed feeder for several days in a row, and then disappeared.

Doesn't she look cute in our Aspen tree?

Sharp-shinned Hawk (adult)

Today I was lucky enough to catch this adult Sharp-shinned Hawk eating his dinner on the neighbor's back fence.

American Goldfinch (winter plumage)

Now sort of drab-looking in their winter outfits, the goldfinches are still here every day, and getting less shy and more numerous. - Amy

They look kind of dull right now, but I know in the spring and summer they will be totally bright! - Kennedy

Golden Eagle (juvenile)

This was a rare sight! A soaring Golden Eagle that seemed very calm in spite of the harrassment he was getting from a crow. 

Pine Siskin

We love to see the feeder
covered with pine siskins,
even though they are
kind of pushy
with the goldfinches.








The little siskin seems
 to be saying "Hi"!
 -Kennedy

Northern Flicker (male)

        We've only seen this guy a few times and we haven't been able to tempt him with the suet feeder. -Amy

He looks kind of dull when he sits, but he's magnificent when he flies! -Kennedy

Oregon Dark-eyed Junco (male)

These guys are so cute! They feed only on the ground under the feeders. They won't even take seeds out of a tray on the ground. They are here first thing every morning and we're sure going to miss them when they leave in the spring. -Amy

When we look out the window the juncos aren't scared away, but when we open the door, they all fly away. -Kennedy

American Coot (variant adult male)

This picture was taken at a pond on private property in Queen Creek, Arizona.

Great-tailed Grackle (female)

This picture was taken on private property in Queen Creek, Arizona.  It looks like the grackle is on a beach, but it's actually a chlorinated swimming pool with sand "beach" entry.

Steller's Jay (Interior West, adult)

Well I am pretty sure that I would never see this guy around in Eagle Moutain! -Kennedy

These pretty birds look so exotic to me. We're used to seeing brownish birds, so while these may be "common" they are kind of exciting to me. This one posed for me at the North Rim area of the Grand Canyon where we stopped on our way to visit my sister and her family in Arizona. -Amy

Gray-headed Dark-eyed Junco

I think juncos are so cute! We saw these little guys hopping all over the place during our visit to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.

Cooper's Hawk (Juvenile)

Where'd everybody go?

This Cooper's Hawk came looking for his lunch at our feeders!

Bullock's Oriole (female)

This was a rare sighting for me. She came and investigated the feeder area for a few minutes and then she was off, and I haven't seen her since. Next summer I'll leave some fruit out and maybe she'll stick around.

Black-chinned Hummingbird (female)

We recognize the Black-chinned hummingbirds right away because their tails pump up and down while they hover.

Black-chinned Hummingbird (male)

No mistaking this guy! We had a lot of females at the feeder, but only one or two males. -Amy

I LOVE this little guy! -Kennedy

Rufous Hummingbird (female)

If she hadn't turned slightly toward me for this shot, I wouldn't have noticed the orange-red spot on her throat that helped me identify her.

American Goldfinch (male and female)

I found out that I could attract goldfinches with thistle seed (Nyger), so I set up a feeder and didn't have to wait very long before they found it. We were sure excited to see something so bright yellow at our feeder!

Cliff Swallow

We found these Cliff Swallows in their characteristic gourd-shaped mud nests high up under a ledge of our church building.

Red-winged Blackbird

We got a far-away glimpse of this Red-winged Blackbird during a nature walk along the Jordan River Parkway.

Mourning Dove

Another find from tonight's stroll along the Parkway.

Swainson's Hawk

My husband stopped the car so I could take pictures of this Swainson's Hawk from the side of the road in Eagle Mountain town center.

American Robin (juvenile)

Robins are so common, but this is the first time I ever looked closely enough to see that this one was a juvenile, as shown by all the dark spots on the breast instead of plain orange-red.

European Starling (adult)

The European Starling is oily greenish-black all over with tiny white specks that are barely noticeable this time of year. Note the long, straight bill which is yellow in summer and black in the winter.

A pair of starlings tried to build a nest in our barbeque grill this summer. Random sticks, grass and bits of trash kept appearing in a loose pile. They were so confused when we put a cover on the grill.

Brewer's Blackbird (male)

The roof of my neighbor's house is a popular perch for a lot of the birds that come into our yard.  Here's a male Brewer's Blackbird. 

Brewer's Blackbird (female)

A small group of Brewer's Blackbirds appeared in the backyard at dusk, so I had to use the flash to get enough light on them to identify them. Here's a shot of one of the females.

Killdeer

I spotted this Killdeer running along the road behind our house. He seemed to be in quite a hurry. -Amy

House Finch (male)

House Finches seem to like any kind of seed I put out. To discourage house sparrows, I've quit offering seed mixes and put out thistle seed and suet instead. Now house finches are the most commonly seen birds at our feeders.

American White Pelican

My husband and I went with my sister and her kids on a nature walk today at Inlet Park in Saratoga Springs. Thanks to my zoom lens and my awesome Sibley field guide we were able to identify pelicans as they soared as tiny specks above us.

Yellow Warbler (female)

This little cutie's song was too pretty to ignore. She was busy in our neighbor's tree.

Western Kingbird

This was one of the first bird species we identified in our back yard. We recognize them by their yellow under-bellies and their little dark masks. Being flycatchers, they don't come to the feeders, but snatch insects out of the air. I'm thankful to them for that, but I had to evict them from our attic vents because of the noise!

Horned Lark (Interior West adult male)

This one went unidentified for a long time. I didn't get a very good picture and I guessed maybe it was a meadowlark because of the black "V" on its chest. But now I can see the black "horn", and the mask is pretty obvious. I hope he comes back next spring so I can get a better photograph.