White-breasted Nuthatch

This photo was taken two days ago, on 11 October 2015, during a morning walk in very high winds, at Lafarge Meadows, Fish Creek Park, with friends. The hope that the juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron might still be at a small pond or perched high up in a nearby tree was enough to make me get up early and push me out the front door. Also, I wondered if the rare (in Alberta) Hooded Warbler might still be around in that area. No sign of the Night Heron (maybe it was sheltering from the strong wind), but we did see the little Warbler again. It is such a difficult bird to spot and photograph, though I did end up with a single shot - I think even worse than the photo I posted the other day, lol! This little White-breasted Nuthatch was seen near the beginning of our walk. I'm supposed to be doing a lot more walking, so I felt virtuous by the time I got back home.

I will add our leader, Howard Heffler's report of the outing:

Even though it was Thanksgiving, six people showed up for a walk from the boat ramp to Lafarge Meadows. Of course the Hooded Warbler that had been reported by several observers all week was a good reason to be a bit late to get the turkey in the oven. And good fortune prevailed as we had excellent, albeit fleeting, views of this little cutie! Other highlights included a Northern Shrike perched near the top of snag beside the trail and a Rough-legged Hawk riding the riding the wind on the other side of the Bow River. We recorded 26 species:

Canada Goose 9
Gadwall 4
American Wigeon 207
Mallard 40
Lesser Scaup 65
Bufflehead 12
Common Goldeneye 3
Common Merganser 1
Pied-billed Grebe 2
Great Blue Heron 1
Bald Eagle 2
Rough-legged Hawk 1
American Coot 400
Greater Yellowlegs 5
Ring-billed Gull 50
Rock Pigeon 3
Downy Woodpecker 2
Northern Flicker 2
Northern Shrike 1
Black-billed Magpie 6
American Crow 30
Common Raven 4
Black-capped Chickadee 4
White-breasted Nuthatch 2
European Starling 40
Hooded Warbler 1

Howard Heffler