On a birding trip to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge in Utah, I saw many flocks of White-faced Ibis heading to roost low over the marsh, and was struck with how their colors blended into the vegetation and the coming darkness. All the elements of the painting, including the sky, the mountains, the marsh, and the arrangement of the flock of ibis are used to highlight how the birds are heading away from the viewer into the distance.