I didn't get many wildlife shots in 2024. That was due in large part to not going to any of my slam-dunk wildlife spots -- Waterton Canyon for Bighorn Sheep, Mt. Blue Sky for Mountain Goats, Brainard Lake for Moose, and so on. I wanted to get some wildlife shots, so what better place to go for some than a National Wildlife Refuge? I'd had success at RMA in the past, and this past Friday had the added bonus of falling snow adding a little something.
American Robins were hunkered down in still-dormant bushes right near the start of the Wildlife Drive.
A female
Mallard stayed close to the shore of Lake Ladora.
This
Canada Goose looked pensive to me, just sort of taking it all in. But if you've ever met a goose, I don't the word "pensive" actually applies.
This was probably the closest I'd seen the
American Bison at the refuge.
I don't think the bison actually noticed it was snowing.
I had my windows down and was driving slowly enough to try and pick up sounds. I heard this
Western Meadowlark before I saw him, loud enough to know that he was close to the road.
Frankly, the meadowlarks were the most active wildlife I saw. Alone and in pairs, their yellow chest plumage made them fairly easy to spot.
This
Swainson's Hawk is flying off in a huff. I got too close to the tree he was perched atop, and he gave me an earful when he finally decided he'd had enough of me and took off.
I did a second loop on the Wildlife Drive to see if the bison had gotten any closer to the road. They hadn't.
The
Black-tailed Prairie Dogs had emerged on my second circuit, though. The wind and snow had abated a bit, which may have drawn them out of their holes.
I love how this guy is sitting on his haunches and holding the stalk of grass on which he's nibbling in his little paw.
The trip scratched my wildlife photography itch for the time being, but I do plan to hit some of my regular spots again this summer!
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