The American Dipper

The American Dipper is a small, gray bird found along clear, swift-moving streams of the western states.  It does not migrate away from the cold weather in Wyoming but seems to thrive in it.  I have watched this bird on numerous occasions when the air temperature was sub-zero and it continued to feed non-stop by diving under water to locate small invertebrates.

At times it submerges only it’s head into the water scanning the creek bottom and other times I have watched it dive through the air a distance of 18+ inches before hitting the water and diving to the rocks below bringing a caddis larvae to the surface in its bill. It will dive continuously for a period of time working the same underwater area pulling up a variety of morsels for dining.

As winter continues it will take moments out of it’s feeding schedule to sing a melodic song consisting of a series of trills and whistles that are a thrill to hear as they are added to the sounds of the babbling creek on a cold, gray, winter’s day.

A quick little bird, it is often hard to follow with the camera and lens; predicting it’s movements works best but focus is still difficult to maintain on this constantly moving subject.  I have sat for hours watching and attempting to photograph the American Dipper.  It seems to avoid the areas with sun, sticking to the shadows as I desperately try to decrease my ISO and bring my shutter speed up to stop it in action. The Dipper is a photographic challenge along with great entertainment as it makes it’s living along cold, mountain streams throughout the winter months of Wyoming.

The Ultimate Compliment

I was out birding this morning and came across this beautiful Great-horned Owl.  It moved around a bit in the aspen grove looking as though it was trying to hunt but didn’t seem overly disturbed by my presence.  It finally settled on this fallen tree for a roost site.  I decided this bird to be a young-of-the-year owl with it’s fresh looking plumage and it’s curiosity and tolerance of this photographer.  I always try to disturb my wildlife subjects as little as possible as I like to document natural behavior.  This young owl paid me the ultimate compliment by falling a sleep in front of my camera lens.