A Black-billed Magpie checks out what the prairie dogs and humans are up to at the Echo Canyon Welcome Center Rest Stop in Utah. The magpie has a black head. The shoulders are black, with a white stripe down the middle. The wings are iridescent blue, until the very longest feathers, which are tipped with white and then black at the edges. The dark blue-purple iridescent tail is a long as the rest of the magpie. The bird is perched on a dead branch, back to the camera, and is looking off the left. Aside from the magpie, the predominantly color tones of the image are muted, unsaturated, light browns and greens and a hint of orange in the dead wood.

A Black-billed Magpie checks out what the prairie dogs and humans are up to at the Echo Canyon Welcome Center Rest Stop in Utah.

I have never done so much wildlife photography at an Interstate Rest Stop.

#wildlifePhotography #photography #BlackBilledMagpie #SeenAtARestStop #Utah #birdPhotography

A prairie dog surveys the comings and goings of the humans and their cars and trucks and motorcycles at the Echo Canyon Welcome Center Rest Area in Utah. Horizontal frame: the prairie dog is standing up on its hind legs, front paws down, amidst brown and green grass. It is looking up and off camera left, to where the parking area is when the humans come from. It's a bright, sunny day,

The Watch Dog

A prairie dog surveys the comings and goings of the humans and their cars and trucks and motorcycles at the Echo Canyon Welcome Center Rest Area in Utah.

#wildlifePhotography #photography #prairieDog #SeenAtARestStop #Utah