On the Road is a weekday feature spotlighting reader photo submissions.
From the exotic to the familiar, whether you’re traveling or in your own backyard, we would love to see the world through your eyes.
It’s Albatrossity Monday! Then we’re off to Boneyard beach with Paul in St. Augustine, patrick II takes us home with him to Indiana, then we stroll through Central Park with ema, and finish up with a “staycation” in Wisconsin with Elma!
Albatrossity
Our site at Buffalo camp offered opportunities to wander local, but it was also possible (when the roads were passable) to get out and see more Big Sky country and critters. Here are some images from a couple of those days.
We got a tour of the area from my daughter Ellen, and part of that tour included an excursion through the Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge to Fourchette Bay, a camping area and boat launch on the north side of Fort Peck Reservior. The installation of the Fort Peck Dam downstream from here has changed the river considerably from when Lewis and Clark passed through, but there are still scenic vistas to be viewed.
On the way to Fourchette Bay we passed an Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) nest. On the way down to the river there was only one adult in attendance, but on the way back we found both of them. They were unimpressed, but I was happy to see an Osprey nest that was just about at eye level when viewed from the high road.
From our campsite we could see a distant mountain range to the west; these are the Little Rocky Mountains. Certainly the big and biggest mountains were further west, but they did offer mountain vistas and the possibility for seeing different birds and habitat. So we set out in their direction. Here they are from a spot about 6-8 miles west of Buffalo Camp. Fence post, glacial erratic boulder, grass, sky, and distant mountain range. Iconic Montana view.
Up in the mountains themselves, we found a couple of campgrounds (full of people with multiple internal combustion powered vehicles of various sizes), and some mountain trees and birds. We were able to point out this male American Redstart (Setophaga ruticilla), perched on an aspen snag, to one of the campground folks. She ooohed and aaahed appropriately!
A bit lower down, along the Missouri River, was another lovely campground that seemed a bit empty (more on that later). We stopped and had lunch in a cottonwood grove, and watched this female Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor) bustling in and out of this cavity in a big cottonwood, presumably feeding her babies in there.
The trip back to Buffalo Camp was very wildlife intensive. We saw many Pronghorns (Antilocapra americana), but relatively few were willing to pose for a portrait. One of them was this handsome buck.
Another relatively common denizen of these prairies is the Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus). The region we were in is barely within their current range, and they are threatened with habitat loss throughout the range. So it was good to see this hen, with several chicks, even if her primary concern was to run away from the camera!
Shorebirds also use this inland grassy “sea” as a breeding ground, even though it is far from any shores. One of the most obvious and vocal birds on these prairies is the Long-Billed Curlew (Numenius americanus). This one probably had chicks (or perhaps eggs) hidden in the grass nearby, and was extremely insistent that we should just move along. Most of the birds in this population of curlews probably winter on the Gulf Coast (restoring some of their shorebird cred), passing through western KS in late March/early April. This species is also found on the west coast, and as far south as the Galápagos.
Another vocal shorebird was also abundant there, but this one has a slightly upturned bill. The Marbled Godwit (Limosa fedoa) also winters on the coasts of North America and moves to Montana (and adjacent states and provinces) for the summer. They pass through Kansas in the spring and fall, but it is always nice to see birds where they live (and you are on vacation).
Wag
Fantastic photos, as always.
raven
Big Sky Mind
J R in WV
Always amazing stuff. Loved the pronghorn…
Many, many years ago when I still collected minerals with shovel and sledge hammer my collecting buddy and I went through CO and WY with a Ranger truck and a small trailer filled with tools, and heading back east, rocks. Driving south through the great Basin of WY we drove along with a herd of pronghorns, all of whom were faster than my Ford rig on the desert dirt roads. Much faster!
OzarkHillbilly
I understand they are fun to drive but ATVs (of all sizes) can ruin a day in the outdoors almost as thoroughly as a nuclear bomb.
Van Buren
Love the pics, thanks for sharing.
Subsole
Beautiful. Especially that third one. That sky looks like it ought to be on the wall in a museum with a frame around it.
SiubhanDuinne
Wonderful photos and commentary as always, Albatrossity. I especially love the photo of the marbled godwit.
“Marbled godwit” sounds like a Shakespearean insult.
Ten Bears
Takes me baaaack …
SteveinPHX
Thank you for photos. That pair of ospreys is cool.
Wag
@J R in WV: Pronghorns are the fastest land animal in the Western Hemisphere. They can run for sustained distances at 40 mph.
joel hanes
changed the river considerably from when Lewis and Clark passed through
You may be interested in the paintings of Charles M. Fritz, who spent years along Lewis and Clark’s route creating large-scale oil paintings of the Corps of Discovery
https://smile.amazon.com/Charles-Fritz-Artist-Corps-Discovery/dp/156037313X/
Yutsano
Marbled Godwit has OPINIONZ!!!
mvr
Really like the Osprey photo (I would because I like Ospreys) but the action photo of the Tree Swallow is also really impressive.
You wrote:
But I’m not seeing the followup down below.
Thanks!
stinger
Greater Sage-Grouse: I like how the sharp focus on the hen blurs out the chick’s features, like you’d protect a child by blurring the face in a photo.
The clouds with fencepost and boulder: Wowza!
stinger
@mvr: Yes, that raised without satisfying my curiosity, too!
JanieM
Great pictures as always, Albatrossity. I love the two landscapes — especially pic #3, which makes me homesick for a place I’ve never seen.
munira
@SiubhanDuinne: Also especially taken with this one and Shakespearean insult is perfect. Of course, it would also be a good name for a band.
Albatrossity
@mvr: Followup to that comment about the campground will be in a later On The Road submission.
Laura Too
@Albatrossity: waiting with bated breath! :) Beautiful as always. Thanks!
mvr
@Albatrossity: I look forward to it.