One of three
Eastern Kingbird
A lovely splash of colour
American Goldfinch female with Sunflower seed
A snack that is sure to tickle
Mountain Bluebird female
Bluebird of happiness
Petunias
All decked out
Dark-eyed Junco / Junco hyemalis
CL Ranches, Alberta
Fence line in the fall
Pine Grosbeak male / Pinicola enucleator
So far away, but better than nothing
A frosty view from Frank Lake blind
A touch of frost
A road less travelled
Golden Eagle along the fenceline
In the bleak midwinter
Outlined in frost
The donkeys with reflector eyes
Christmas remnants
Fenced in
A winter day in southern Alberta
Home of the Snowshoe Hare
The best colour to see in winter
A fence without an owl
Short-eared Owl
Taking the quieter road
Time for an old barn again
'Superman, where are you now?'
A friendly greeting
Old barn with a different style
Four more months to wait
Narrow strip of light
A view through the bushes
Little church in the valley
A cluster of red barns
And they call this winter (in Alberta)?
A snack for his babies
Natural beauty
03 Short-eared Owl / Asio flammeus
Just a splash of colour
A sky filled with clouds
Mountain Bluebirds have no blue pigment
A white barn from yesterday
Mountain Bluebird
Yellow-headed Blackbirds in every direction
Still standing
Wilson's Snipe, seen from afar
Dandelions - of course : )
McDougall Memorial United Church
01 Spic and span
The old barn at the Ellis Bird Farm
Entrance to the Ellis Bird Farm
Female Mountain Bluebird / Sialia currucoides
Along a country back road
I think he caught a beautiful Tiger Moth : )
Such good parents
Female Bobolink / Dolichonyx oryzivorus
Beautiful wings of a female Mountain Bluebird
My first Bald Eagle on a fence post
This old house
Little red barn on Mother's Day
Vibrant colour of spring
Simple but bright
Strong winds on the prairies
Red barn in a field of gold
A favourite tree
Off limits
Delicate damselfly
Wrinkled sky
Gently falling snow
Red barn on a sunny day
Horse on the prairie
The wonder of hoar frost
A prairie view
Do you see what I see? Look very closely at the w…
Made to feel welcome
Red
The prairies in winter
Aged beauty
Driving in a winter wonderland
Frosty fence and fields
Three little kittens
A nice old barn
Three little birders of the wrong kind
A quick peek through the fence
Late fall on the prairies
A barn with a difference
Old barn and sunflower shed
A beautiful country barn
At the end of the path
McDougall Church on a sunny day
Two of a kind!
Avian beauty
A Snipe from last year
Dandelion bokeh
Brewer's Blackbird with food for his babies
Swainson's Hawk on a rainy day
Sharing her catch
Superman's barn
Fog is not good for birding
Yay, Superman!
Pretty little lady
Winter sunrise.jpg
Some white patches have eyes : )
Is it a Snowy? ... no, it isn't ... yes, it is!
When winter is beautiful
Eastern Kingbird with summer bokeh
Barn beauty
Winter shadows
A winter moment
Towards the sun
Harsh reality
Winter simplicity
Road conditions
Rural winter scene
Face in the fence
Love a splash of red
Fence line in winter
Bluebird of happiness
Time to head for home
Today's reward
Along the fenceline
See also...
Keywords
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Changes by new owners in "The Famous Five" field
This photo might just be of interest to a handful of local people, as until the land (including "The Famous Five", a row of five, red granaries seen in the previous photo) was recently taken over by new owners, the field had been just one huge, open field. Now there are a few patches of trees dotted here and there, and also a line of coniferous and deciduous trees just inside the fence line.
Three days ago, on 17 May 2015, I finally got out with my camera for a few hours. The previous few days had been dreary and overcast, with rain the last couple of the days. The sense of freedom felt so good, as I stopped in at a wetland in SW Calgary and then drove my usual loop along the backroads SW of the city.
At this first pond, I saw the usual Mallards, Lesser Scaup, Redheads, Common Grackle, Red-headed Blackbirds, and a quick glimpse of a distant pair of Cinnamon Teal glowing in the sunshine. Something I didn't know until a few minutes ago is that many female Redheads make no nests of their own, but instead lay their eggs in the nests of other ducks.
I had intended walking around to where I had seen the Canada Geese nest in other years, but before I did so, I suddenly noticed a distant pair of Geese swimming in my direction. I didn't really think much about it, but as they got closer, I realized that they were escorting 10 little goslings. They swam right up to where I was standing, as if to show off their new little family. And then they were gone, swimming off in the direction from which I had seen them come. After taking a few more photos of the nearby ducks, I carefully looked at each pair of Geese on the pond and none of them had any goslings swimming with them. Maybe they had returned them to the edge of the wetland and hidden them well. These were my very first goslings this spring, so I was happy as can be to see them.
A week earlier, on 10 May, my daughter and I had great views of a pair of Red-necked Grebes, who seemed to be building a nest closer to shore than in previous years. It was disappointing to see that the tiny "island" that they seemed to have chosen was now very low in the water, after all the rain we had had. Hopefully, they won't move to a higher mound that is further away, but that is what I am expecting. Makes me thankful to have seen the pair fairly close 10 days ago.
From this pond, I continued on my drive, greatly appreciating the sunshine and fairly empty roads, despite this being the Victoria long weekend here. The Brewer's Blackbirds were perched on fence posts, and I always love to see these birds with their white eyes.
In one large pond, I watched two pairs of Blue-winged Teal, a Muskrat, a Pied-bill Grebe, and a pair of Red-necked Grebes. Most of these birds were very far away, but I did manage to get a few distant shots of the Teal.
At the next slough that I stopped at, I saw one solitary Swan, too far away to tell if it was a Trumpeter or Tundra (apparently a Trumpeter). I also spotted a funny little Pied-billed Grebe swimming fairly close to the road, but by the time I had driven a bit further in order to turn my car around, the Grebe was already closer to the far shore. Further on, I stopped to see a pair of Mountain Bluebirds that came to their nesting box just once while I was there. Tree Swallows made a quick appearance at the nest box that was nearby.
Continuing my drive, I passed a pair of American Wigeon preening themselves at a tiny slough, along with a Green-winged Teal. Further yet, I stopped to take a few photos of Red-winged Blackbirds and - to my great delight - a Wilson's Snipe, one of my favourite birds to photograph. Last year seemed to be such a great year for Snipe, so I was hoping this spring might be the same. When I drove this road in one direction, I was happy to spot a distant Snipe down in the grasses, but still wished that it had been standing on a fence post. After turning my car around, I slowly drove along the edge of the wetland again and, this time, there it was! Absolutely made my day - anyone would think it was my very first sighting ever of a Snipe! Surprisingly, it didn't stay for long, but gave me time to get three or four shots.
From here, it was time to return home along some of the backroads before eventually having to get back on to the highway. A dark phase Swainson's Hawk was where I had seen it (same one?) on a couple of other occasions. Took a photo or two through the windscreen, so not the best photos, but I thought it might fly if I got out of the car.
It was so good to get out and, though I saw no new or rare birds, I was, as always, happy to see the more usual ones, especially when they are close enough to photograph.
Three days ago, on 17 May 2015, I finally got out with my camera for a few hours. The previous few days had been dreary and overcast, with rain the last couple of the days. The sense of freedom felt so good, as I stopped in at a wetland in SW Calgary and then drove my usual loop along the backroads SW of the city.
At this first pond, I saw the usual Mallards, Lesser Scaup, Redheads, Common Grackle, Red-headed Blackbirds, and a quick glimpse of a distant pair of Cinnamon Teal glowing in the sunshine. Something I didn't know until a few minutes ago is that many female Redheads make no nests of their own, but instead lay their eggs in the nests of other ducks.
I had intended walking around to where I had seen the Canada Geese nest in other years, but before I did so, I suddenly noticed a distant pair of Geese swimming in my direction. I didn't really think much about it, but as they got closer, I realized that they were escorting 10 little goslings. They swam right up to where I was standing, as if to show off their new little family. And then they were gone, swimming off in the direction from which I had seen them come. After taking a few more photos of the nearby ducks, I carefully looked at each pair of Geese on the pond and none of them had any goslings swimming with them. Maybe they had returned them to the edge of the wetland and hidden them well. These were my very first goslings this spring, so I was happy as can be to see them.
A week earlier, on 10 May, my daughter and I had great views of a pair of Red-necked Grebes, who seemed to be building a nest closer to shore than in previous years. It was disappointing to see that the tiny "island" that they seemed to have chosen was now very low in the water, after all the rain we had had. Hopefully, they won't move to a higher mound that is further away, but that is what I am expecting. Makes me thankful to have seen the pair fairly close 10 days ago.
From this pond, I continued on my drive, greatly appreciating the sunshine and fairly empty roads, despite this being the Victoria long weekend here. The Brewer's Blackbirds were perched on fence posts, and I always love to see these birds with their white eyes.
In one large pond, I watched two pairs of Blue-winged Teal, a Muskrat, a Pied-bill Grebe, and a pair of Red-necked Grebes. Most of these birds were very far away, but I did manage to get a few distant shots of the Teal.
At the next slough that I stopped at, I saw one solitary Swan, too far away to tell if it was a Trumpeter or Tundra (apparently a Trumpeter). I also spotted a funny little Pied-billed Grebe swimming fairly close to the road, but by the time I had driven a bit further in order to turn my car around, the Grebe was already closer to the far shore. Further on, I stopped to see a pair of Mountain Bluebirds that came to their nesting box just once while I was there. Tree Swallows made a quick appearance at the nest box that was nearby.
Continuing my drive, I passed a pair of American Wigeon preening themselves at a tiny slough, along with a Green-winged Teal. Further yet, I stopped to take a few photos of Red-winged Blackbirds and - to my great delight - a Wilson's Snipe, one of my favourite birds to photograph. Last year seemed to be such a great year for Snipe, so I was hoping this spring might be the same. When I drove this road in one direction, I was happy to spot a distant Snipe down in the grasses, but still wished that it had been standing on a fence post. After turning my car around, I slowly drove along the edge of the wetland again and, this time, there it was! Absolutely made my day - anyone would think it was my very first sighting ever of a Snipe! Surprisingly, it didn't stay for long, but gave me time to get three or four shots.
From here, it was time to return home along some of the backroads before eventually having to get back on to the highway. A dark phase Swainson's Hawk was where I had seen it (same one?) on a couple of other occasions. Took a photo or two through the windscreen, so not the best photos, but I thought it might fly if I got out of the car.
It was so good to get out and, though I saw no new or rare birds, I was, as always, happy to see the more usual ones, especially when they are close enough to photograph.
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