An extra bonus

This fully zoomed and cropped photo of a Ring-necked Pheasant was taken on 25 May 2014, shortly after our May Species Count had "officially" ended. Wanted to add it to my Birds of Alberta 8 album, just to remind myself of this welcome sighting.

This year, there were seven people in my group and we travelled in two vehicles, covering a large area SW of Calgary and W of Priddis. The Count lasted from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. and the weather was mostly clear but clouded up by noon, with a short shower while we were having lunch at Brown-Lowery Provincial Park. Heavy clouds for the rest of the day, calm, 9-18°C, with 88km travelled by car. 69 bird species were found, plus 15 White-tailed Deer and two Moose. A good day : ) Thanks for the ride, Phil! Much appreciated!

Each year on this Count, a highlight is calling in to see the much sought-after Evening Grosbeaks at Barb Castell's acreage. They didn't let us down, and even gave us some chances to get a few photos.

After the Count ended, it was pointed out that we could return to the city by one of two different routes. If we had chosen the other route, we would have missed the other highlight of the day - a Great Gray Owl! It didn't stay around for long, as it was busy hunting, but we did manage to get a handful of quick shots. The final sighting on the way home was this Ring-necked Pheasant in a field, just barely within camera range before it ran off into the distance.

I will add the list (compiled by the Count leader, Gus Yaki), of the 69 bird species seen, for my own memory. It probably won't be of much interest to most of you : ) I should add that I didn't see every single one of these species.

Canada Goose-60 ad/30 juv.
Gadwall-3
Mallard-19
Blue-winged Teal-16
Cinnamon Teal-2
Northern Shoveler-10
Green-winged Teal-6
Redhead-2
Ring-necked Duck-9
Lesser Scaup-19
Bufflehead-10
Barrow's Goldeneye-2
Ruddy Duck-10
Ring-necked Pheasant-1 heard.
Common Loon-1
Pied-billed Grebe-1
Great Blue Heron-1
Swainson's Hawk-1
Red-tailed Hawk-7
Sora-5
American Coot-6
Killdeer-3
Spotted Sandpiper-3
Wilson's Snipe-10
Wilson's Phalarope-5
Black Tern-22
Mourning Dove-1
Great Gray Owl-2
Red-naped Sapsucker-1
Downy Woodpecker-1
Northern Flicker-1
Western Wood-Pewee-2
Least Flycatcher-7
Eastern Phoebe-1
Eastern Kingbird-4
Warbling Vireo-1
Blue Jay-7
Black-billed Magpie-8
American Crow-7
Common Raven-6
Tree Swallow-213
Barn Swallow-4
Black-capped Chickadee-12
Mountain Chickadee-5
Boreal Chickadee-2
White-breasted Nuthatch-1
House Wren-7
Ruby-crowned Kinglet-5
Mountain Bluebird-24
American Robin-12
Gray Catbird-2
European Starling-7
Tennessee Warbler-6
Yellow Warbler-3
Northern Waterthrush-1
Chipping Sparrow-9
Clay-colored Sparrow-26
Savannah Sparrow-3
Song Sparrow-2
Dark-eyed Junco-3
Red-winged Blackbird-164
Brewer's Blackbird-11
Common Grackle-8
Brown-headed Cowbird-9
Baltimore Oriole-1
Purple Finch-2
American Goldfinch-1
Evening Grosbeak-15
House Sparrow-4

Red Squirrel-4
Richardson's Ground Squirrel-1
Columbian Ground Squirrel-1
Meadow Vole-1
White-tailed Deer-15
Moose-2

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/ring-necked_pheasant/id