The Wild West
When Jay Mahoney, one of our favorite and best contributing photographers, moved to Edwards, Colorado, it was Rye’s loss. But, happily, he continues to send us portraits of wildlife taken in his backyard, at national parks, and wherever his travels take him.

 

When Jay Mahoney, one of our favorite and best contributing photographers, moved to Edwards, Colorado, it was Rye’s loss. But, happily, he continues to send us portraits of wildlife taken in his backyard, at national parks, and wherever his travels take him.

 

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His wondrous shots of Eastern hummingbirds have made our pages, but this summer he sent us photographs of two species from his area, the Rufous and the Broad-tailed Hummingbird. “I took those at my house,” Mahoney wrote.

“The elk moved through our neighborhood in June and I took pictures of them playing in the pond at the end of our street. They will return around the middle or end of September,” he continued.

How did he feel about running into a black bear? “ It was a very large one for our area, about 450 to 500 pounds,” was his unflappable response.

 

Over two summers Mahoney photographed a den of red foxes in Leadville. “One is a black morph, which is somewhat rare but not unusual.”

 

He said he was lucky to get a photo of an Eared Grebe. “Grebes carry their young on their back,” he told us with amazement.

 

Any of us lucky enough to be on Jay Mahoney’s email list are in a state of amazement. He makes us appreciate the abounding life all around us.