Leighton Photography & Imaging

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  • With a beak that is anything but common, this common moorhen is catching fish and insects in the floating vegetation at Wakulla Springs, in North Florida.
    Common Moorhen
  • This attractive little member of the finch family was photographed against a backdrop of coniferous trees and melting snow just south of Renton, Washington.
    Pine Siskin
  • A common moorhen walking on floating reeds at Wakulla Springs, in North Florida.
    Common Moorhen
  • The incredibly difficult to photograph and super-shy clapper rail hiding among the grasses on Merritt Island, near Cape Canaveral.
    Clapper Rail
  • A song sparrow perches in a tree on a bright summer morning above Soos Creek in Kent, Washington.
    Song Sparrow
  • One of many bald eagles actively hunting over Lower Klamath Lake on a sunny late winter day in Northern California.
    Bald Eagle
  • Recently, the western scrub jay was split into two distinct species: the California scrub jay (which is a brighter blue and is found in the coastal regions of the Pacific Northwest) and the Woodhouse's scrub jay (which is a duller blue and found in more interior regions away from the coast.) Much like any jay or other corvid, these often loud and very inquisitive birds will eat just about anything they can overpower or steal. These California scrub jays are easy to recognize from their neighboring cousins by the distinct blue "collar" around the neck. This one was found screeching in a maple tree in Southern King County, Washington on a chilly afternoon.
    California Scrub Jay
  • The black-chinned hummingbird is a common hummingbird at lower elevations in most of the American Southwest and parts of the Pacific Northwest, occasionally wintering near the Gulf of Mexico, but generally moving much further south along Mexico's Pacific Coast for the colder months of the year. This female was waiting her turn as some of the larger buff-bellied hummingbirds were chasing her away from the wildflowers she was trying to feed from. She finally paused for a moment for this shot in the Lower Rio Grande Valley on a warm winter morning near Weslaco, Texas.
    Female Black-chinned Hummingbird (Ar..dri)
  • Very common and easily recognized across most of the eastern half of North American and along most the US/Mexico border, excluding California, the red cardinal (and in particular - the bright red male as seen here) one of our most common backyard birds. They are often seen in pairs searching for seeds and insects in bushes and on the ground, or frequenting bird feeder. This one was a surprise for me, because I've been unsuccessful in getting a decent shot of a nice bright red male for 20 years until last week in South Texas. This one suddenly landed right in front of me and stayed there for about 5 minutes while I had a blast photographing him from different angles.
    Northern Cardinal
  • A mallard drake (male) with paddles around in Soos Creek on a chilly Pacific Northwest winter day in Kent, Washington.
    Mallard Drake
  • A mallard hen swims in Soos Creek in Kent, Washington on a bright summer day.
    Mallard Hen
  • A song sparrow sings a beautiful song on a bright summer morning along Soos Creek in Kent, Washington.
    Song Sparrow
  • The notorious mountain camp thief, the gray jay is a very clever and charismatic member of the corvid family that includes blue jays, crows, ravens, and magpies. This one seen in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming shows the distinctive regional Rocky Mountain color variation with a nearly white head.
    Gray Jay
  • Recently, the western scrub jay was split into two distinct species: the California scrub jay (which is a brighter blue and is found in the coastal regions of the Pacific Northwest) and the Woodhouse's scrub jay (which is a duller blue and found in more interior regions away from the coast.) Much like any jay or other corvid, these often loud and very inquisitive birds will eat just about anything they can overpower or steal. These California scrub jays are easy to recognize from their neighboring cousins by the distinct blue "collar" around the neck. This one was found screeching in a maple tree in Southern King County, Washington on a chilly afternoon.
    California Scrub Jay
  • A song sparrow perches in a tree on a bright summer morning above Soos Creek in Kent, Washington.
    Song Sparrow
  • This enormous great horned owl was spotted from almost a quarter-mile away perched in a cottonwood tree next to Lower Klamath Lake in Northern California.
    Great Horned Owl
  • The black-crowned night heron is one of the most elusive species of heron in North America, and can be found throughout most of the world on every continent except Australia and Antarctica. Active primarily at night and nearly invisible during the day, these ambush hunters fish the water's edge for fish, reptiles, insects, crustaceans, mussels, clams, small rodents and anything else they can overpower. This one was found stalking its prey in the early evening in Fort Myers, Florida.
    Black-crowned Night Heron
  • The black-crowned night heron is one of the most elusive species of heron in North America, and can be found throughout most of the world on every continent except Australia and Antarctica. Active primarily at night and nearly invisible during the day, these ambush hunters fish the water's edge for fish, reptiles, insects, crustaceans, mussels, clams, small rodents and anything else they can overpower. This one was found stalking its prey in the early evening in Fort Myers, Florida.
    Black-crowned Night Heron
  • Native to the deserts of the American Southwest and northern Mexico, these tiny, noisy relatives of the wrens are completely at home in the driest of deserts where they make their living among the mesquite and cacti and feeding on spiders and insects. This black-tailed gnatcatcher was found in the Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument within sight of the Mexican border in Arizona.
    Black-tailed Gnatcatcher
  • Because the anhinga lacks the oils for buoyancy in its feathers like other birds, and it has a heavier skeleton than other diving birds, the swimming anhinga is completely submerged except for its head and long flexible neck, earning it the common nickname, "snakebird." This one was spotted in a bream-rich lake in Fort Myers, Florida.
    Anhinga
  • Also known as the snakebird, the anhinga is a common fish-eating bird found along the coasts and interior of Florida and as far south as the Southern Amazon in Brazil. This female is in full breeding plumage on a warm spring day in Fort Myers, Florida. Note that beautiful blue eye-ring!
    Female Anhinga
  • Also known as the snakebird, the anhinga is a common fish-eating bird found along the coasts and interior of Florida and as far south as the Southern Amazon in Brazil. This female is in full breeding plumage on a warm spring day in Fort Myers, Florida. Note that beautiful blue eye-ring!
    Female Anhinga
  • Related to pelican and cormorants, this male anhinga is in full breeding plumage in the Florida Everglades. Common along the wetlands of the Gulf Coast on the United States, this fish-specialist is widely scattered across Central America and can be found throughout the whole of the Amazon River Basin in South America.
    Male Anhinga
  • Also known as the snakebird, the anhinga is a common and very effective fish-hunter found along the coasts and interior of Florida and as far south as the Southern Amazon in Brazil. This male was spotted perched in a bald cypress tree in the Big Cypress National Preserve in Southwest Florida.
    Male Anhinga
  • A prairie falcon streaks past, pivots and dives while hunting along a large cliff in Northeastern Califonia in rural Modoc County. Very similar yet only slightly diminished in size and speed as its distant cousin, the peregrine falcon, the prairie falcon makes its home in the wide, open prairies and arid deserts of the American West interior.
    Prairie Falcon in Flight
  • Common along the entire west coast of North America, this dark little member of the sandpiper family was found grooming and bathing in a tidal pool among some rocks just outside of Los Angeles.
    Black Turnstone
  • An osprey in flight over Everglades National Park.
    Osprey in Flight
  • A trio of black-necked stilts wading through the salt marshes of North Florida's St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge in search of juvenile fish and small crustaceans, just outside of Tallahassee on the Gulf Coast.
    A Trio of Black-necked Stilts
  • Large for a sandpiper, and of the four species of godwits in the world, the marbled godwit is the biggest. This beautiful cinnamon-mottled shorebird breeds in the central North America's Great Plains (Alberta, the Dakotas, Montana, Minnesota and Nebraska) and travels to the coasts to winter where it can be found along the Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. Mostly associated with marshes, mudflats and sand flats, these uncommon shorebirds can sometimes be seen on the beach, such as this one along with several others in Los Angeles, California near the Del Rey Lagoon.
    Marbled Godwit
  • Large for a sandpiper, and of the four species of godwits in the world, the marbled godwit is the biggest. This beautiful cinnamon-mottled shorebird breeds in the central North America's Great Plains (Alberta, the Dakotas, Montana, Minnesota and Nebraska) and travels to the coasts to winter where it can be found along the Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of Mexico. Mostly associated with marshes, mudflats and sand flats, these uncommon shorebirds can sometimes be seen on the beach, such as this one along with several others in Los Angeles, California near the Del Rey Lagoon.
    Marbled Godwit
  • The pyrrhuloxia is a member of the cardinal family that has a range that just reaches into the Unites States in the states of Arizona, New Mexico and Texas. It is very similar in appearance to the more common red (or Northern) cardinal, but has an overall gray coloration with a red face (males) and red crest. This beautiful male was found and followed through the Sonoran Desert in Tucson, Arizona on a hot spring morning.
    Pyrrhuloxia
  • A busy  female mallard takes a break from showing her eight bundled ducklings how to find and eat peamouth minnow eggs from a shaded tiny creek in Bellevue, Washington on a warm spring afternoon.
    Mallard Family
  • This song sparrow was welcoming the springtime with the most beautiful singing in Bellevue, Washington.
    Song Sparrow
  • A red-breasted nutchatch perches in a maple tree on a warm spring Pacific Northwest day in Kent, Washington.
    Red-breasted Nutchatch
  • Slightly smaller than other raven species found around the world and about the size of the American crow, this Mexican raven may look like any other raven, but the differences stop there. Most notably, the under-feathers on its neck are pure white. In the dry grasslands of the American Southwest it replaces the common raven (Corvus corax) of the north and breeds in the Southwestern United States, but it is far more common to the south in Mexico where it is found year-round. At northern end of range (eastern Colorado, western Kansas), the Chihuahuan raven is far less common today than in 1800s. I saw this one quite by accident as I was setting up my tent and cooking some dinner on my travels on a small ground fire on top of a hill overlooking Sonoyta, Mexico in Southern Arizona on the US-Mexico border. It got my attention by crowing on top of an almost-flowering saguaro cactus while I was waiting for the water to boil on my camp stove.
    Chihuahuan Raven in the Wind
  • A curve-billed thrasher pauses for a moment in an old hanging chain cholla cactus early in the morning in rural Southern Arizona in the Sonoran Desert about three miles from the Mexican border in Pima County.
    Curve-billed Thrasher
  • The California gull is a medium-sized, common migratory gull found across most of the western half of North America. Primarily feeding on fish, insects and eggs, it is a well-known scavenger of trash and garbage. It breeds far inland as far as Colorado north to Canada's Manitoba and the Northwest Territories, but it always returns to the Pacific Coast in the winter. This one was among many found in Los Angeles, California near Del Rey Lagoon on a warm, sunny springtime afternoon.
    California Gull
  • The black-chinned hummingbird is a common hummingbird at lower elevations in most of the American Southwest and parts of the Pacific Northwest, occasionally wintering near the Gulf of Mexico, but generally moving much further south along Mexico's Pacific Coast for the colder months of the year. This male photographed near La Joya, New Mexico - if seen in the right position in the sunlight reflects bright iridescent feathers with an electric magenta throat!
    Black-Chinned Hummingbird
  • A male northern red-breasted sapsucker hunts for insects on a maple tree in Kent, Washington on a sunny winter day. This beautiful large woodpecker is found along the Pacific coast of North America from Baja California in Mexico to Alaska.
    Northern Red-breasted Sapsucker
  • This handsome little member of the finch family was photographed from my back porch south of Seattle, Washington. Declining in numbers for the past 50 years around the north where they are still somewhat common throughout Alaska, Canada and the mountainous areas of the Northern United States. It is believed that the cause of the siskin decline is the increase of brown-headed cowbirds throughout their range that lay their eggs in siskin nests. This parasitic behavior leads the much larger cowbird chicks to out-compete their "siblings" resulting in weaker pine siskin chicks, that are more likely to not survive.
    Pine Siskin
  • Also known as the snakebird, the anhinga is a common fish-eating bird found along the coasts and interior of Florida. This one was in wait in a wild cocoplum while hunting near the Sweetwater Strand near Naples, Florida.
    Anhinga
  • A red-shouldered hawk feasts on a panfish caught deep in the Big Cypress National Preserve of Southwest Florida.
    Red-shouldered Hawk
  • An adult barred owl watches from the hardwoods at the northern end of the Fakahatchee Strand early in the morning in Southwest Florida near Golden Gate.
    Fakahatchee Barred Owl
  • Close-up portrait of a laughing gull in Apalachicola, Florida on the northern Gulf Coast. A shrimp boat had just pulled in to port, and this sneaky opportunist was just waiting for an easy meal!
    Laughing Gull Portrait
  • Sunlight reflected off the water illuminates a beautiful snowy egret as it congregates with other snowy egrets in the mangroves of Sanibel Island in Southwest Florida during breeding season.
    Snowy Egret
  • A juvenile yellow-crowned night-heron close-up as it hunts for crabs and fish on the mangrove backwaters on SW Florida's Sanibel Island.
    Juvenile Yellow-Crowned Night-Heron
  • Eventually the King of the Florida Everglades ends up getting eaten. This alligator met its demise in the Fakahatchee Strand, and provided a meal, ready to eat for this black vulture. Without carrion birds such as this to keep the ecosystem clean from decay and rot, very little of the habitat would be safe for wildlife.
    Black Vulture
  • Brightly colored, yet perfectly camouflaged, the somewhat rare canyon wren blends in perfectly with the lichen encrusted basalt cliffs of White Pass, above the Tieton River.
    Canyon Wren
  • Occasionally heard in remote canyons and rocky cliffs, but seldom seen, this curious canyon wren stayed with me for some time as I wound my way up a narrow trail up the steep basalt cliffs of White Pass near Naches, Washington.
    Canyon Wren
  • A barred owl in the fading light next to Deep Lake, in Enumclaw, Washington.
    Barred Owl
  • A wild male California quail hunts for seeds and insects in a disturbed field outside of Yakima, WA in Cowiche Canyon. Although it is California's state bird, this native quail is found from Canada to Mexico along the West Coast in dry, arid habitats.
    California Quail
  • This pale male dark-eyed junco (Junco hyemalis oreganus) is one of six subspecies of this relative of New World sparrows found throughout the Pacific Northwest. Sometimes referred to as the Oregon Junco, these birds have a noticeably dark "hood" or head compared to others of the same species found across North America. This one was photographed<br />
 just south of Seattle, Washington.
    Dark-Eyed Junco
  • A gray jay pauses on a rock about halfway up Mount Rainier in the Pacific Northwest.
    Gray Jay
  • A male ring-necked duck surfaces for a moment while feeding just south of Mount Hood's peak in Oregon's Cascade Mountains.
    Male Ring-Necked Duck
  • A female ring-necked duck swims on Oregon's Lake Trillium during a rainstorm on a chilly sub-alpine summer day.
    Female Ring-Necked Duck
  • A red-eyed male Phainopepla hesitates for a second as I press the shutter in Southern Nevada on a chilly spring morning. This common bird to Mexico is frequently seen in the extreme lower southwestern United States.
    Phainopepla
  • One of the most common birds found across North America, this American robin perches in a tree on a cold winter morning in Western Washington at the base of the Nisqually River.
    American Robin
  • Wintertime at the southern end of Washington's Puget Sound attracts thousands upon thousands of Canada geese, such as this one in the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge.
    Canada Goose
  • One of the most friendly and curious of American songbirds, this black-capped chickadee pauses on a stick next to me, watching me as closely as I was watching it in the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge.
    Black-Capped Chickadee
  • The provincial bird British Columbia, Canada - the very intelligent Stellar's jay is a close relation to crows, magpies and ravens.
    Steller's Jay
  • Close-up of the male sooty grouse during courtship as he tries to woo the female I was photographing just prior to his arrival, flying over my head then landing just a few feet away.
    Male Sooty Grouse
  • A female sooty grouse perches on a rock on the southern face of Mount Rainier.
    Female Sooty Grouse
  • This (possibly hybrid) glaucous-winged gull was seen on the shore of the Puget Sound as it bathes and splashed in a shallow pool. This noisy large gull has a large bill with a bright red spot - characteristics helpful in distinguishing it from other similar-looking gulls.
    Glaucous-winged Gull
  • A trio of green-winged teals (two males and a female) seen swimming at the base of the Nisqually River. These smallest of the Pacific Northwest's ducks were photographed in the Nisqually National Wildlife Refuge at the southern tip of the Puget Sound.
    Green-winged Teals
  • A dark-eyed junco perches in a maple tree south of Seattle.
    Dark-Eyed Junco
  • A black-capped chickadee perches in a maple tree south of Seattle.
    Black-Capped Chickadee
  • A female hooded merganser swims apart from the group in a pond in Medina Washington.
    Female Hooded Merganser
  • A male hooded merganser shows off his head-crest in a small pond in Medina, Washington.
    Hooded Merganser
  • Three of the ten "first year" whooping cranes flying to their wintering grounds in St. Marks - part of the extensive efforts of Operation Migration.
    Whooping Cranes in Flight!
  • This tiny winter visitor was photographed here in the Corkscrew Swamp as it paused for a moment over the middle of a hardwood hammock.
    Black-and-White Warbler
  • This fast little warbler was seen in the Florida Everglades foraging along the edge of a pond.
    Palm Warbler
  • Scrub jay in Highlands County near Lake June-in-Winter. This one landed next to the car as we were getting closer to the lake.
    Florida Scrub Jay
  • One of the more difficult Florida birds to photograph, these shy birds fly swiftly with dexterous precision through the thick brush of Florida's wetlands and pine scrubs, and are easily recognized by their cat-like screech, and black "mohawk".
    Catbird
  • Male boat-tailed grackle showing off its beautiful metallic colors in the morning sunshine in Naples, Fl.
    Boat-Tailed Grackle
  • Eastern kingbird seen in the Big Cypress National Preserve. It kept landing near us and seemed to want to be photographed!
    Eastern Kingbird
  • Mallard duck photographed in Tallahassee, Florida.
    Mallard Duck
  • Canada goose photographed on 1/18/2010 next to a pond in Southern Alabama. I couldn't have asked for better natural lighting!
    Alabama Canada Goose
  • A Muscovy duck at Lake Ella at sunset in midtown Tallahassee, Florida.
    Muscovy Sunset
  • A willet works its way around the tidal pools of Eagle Harbor at low tide on a cold winter day on the Florida Panhandle.
    Willet
  • Male pileated woodpecker in a melaleuca tree in Fort Myers, Florida. The male has red feathers on the cheeks and from the crown of the head to the beak.
    Pileated Woodpecker
  • A Canada goose on Lake Seminole, on the Florida-Georgia border.
    Canada Goose
  • A pair of pileated woodpeckers in Fort Myers, Florida. One cannot mistake them for anything else in the wild. When drumming on trees, it literally sounds like a jackhammer!
    Pileated Woodpecker
  • Female pileated woodpecker in a melaleuca tree in Fort Myers. This huge woodpecker is often seen in forests and woodlands all over Florida.
    Pilated Woodpecker
  • One of america's most endangered birds..... this image is featured in the National Audubon Society's 2011 Calendar.
    Whooping Crane
  • A beautiful snowy egret prowls the surf during the golden hour of a South Lido Beach, Florida late afternoon.
    Snowy Egret
  • A juvenile green heron blends in perfectly against the cypress knees at the edge of a Florida lake.
    Juvenile Green Heron
  • A great blue heron at dawn looking over the salt marshes of the St. Marks National Wildlife refuge in North Florida ona cold winter morning.
    Great Blue Heron
  • A tri-colored heron stalking its prey in the Florida Everglades.
    Tricolored Heron
  • Great blue heron in breeding plumage photographed on Merritt Island near the Kennedy Space Center in Central Florida.
    Great Blue Heron
  • The beautiful and multi-hued green heron in the Florida Everglades National Park.
    Green Heron
  • Great blue heron portrait in the Florida Everglades.
    Great Blue Heron
  • Great blue heron close-up shot with tongue sticking out in the Florida Everglades. Who knew herons had such long tongues?
    Great Blue Heron
  • Common in California and the upper Atlantic Coast, these terns on occasion will migrate across the mainland to the Gulf of Mexico in winter - as was the case with this tern.
    Sandwich Tern in Flight
  • The skittish and shy green heron at the water's surface keeping an eye on minnows in the Sweetwater Strand, Monroe County, Florida.
    Green Heron
  • One of the smallest American gulls - this little beachcomber was showing off its winter plumage on Anastasia Island, near St. Augustine, Florida.
    Bonaparte's Gull
  • Tricolored heron hunting crabs and small fish at J.N."Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge.
    Tricolored Heron
  • A Forster's tern in winter plumage on Fernandina Beach, Florida.
    Forster's Tern
  • Laughing gull in its winter plumage looking for scraps from nearby tourists on Captiva Island, Florida. This is the most common gull in southwest Florida, and are seen all year long.
    Laughing Gull (Winter Plumage)
  • A close-up of a snowy egret in Punta Rassa, Florida. This little shorebird had to be gradually crept up upon to get this shot. Eventually, it was so close that was literally inches from my leg, making my zoom lens useless!
    Snowy Egret
  • The very rare and reclusive reddish egret at the J.N. "Ding" Darling National Wildlife Refuge on Sanibel Island - internationally known as one of the best birding sights for seabirds.
    Reddish Egret
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