Black-necked Stilt
Roof shingles galore
Gathering of the masses
A Tree Swallow's iridescence
Charcoal effect
An old barn in winter
Yellow-headed Blackbirds in every direction
Willet / Tringa semipalmata
Still standing
Trying to impress the females
Water patterns in matching colours
A prairie song
Ruddy Duck
Brown-headed Cowbirds
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Sparkling feathers
Cinnamon Teal
02 Tree Swallow trio
Escape of the Black-crowned Night Heron
This old house
Lighting up the storm clouds
Love those Canola fields
Barn Swallow
Layers
American Coot interactive display
Is this what I think it is? Yes, a Ferruginous Ha…
Marbled Godwit / Limosa fedoa
Layers of colour
Once a family home
Landscape colours
Juvenile Horned Lark
Roadside wild sunflowers
Swainson's Hawk
Swainson's Hawk
Weathered and patched
Swainson's Hawk in flight
At Mossleigh grain elevators
Storm clouds over Canola
Mossleigh grain elevators
Helmeted Guineafowl / Numida meleagris
Tea, anyone?
A use for old shoes
Across the river
The colours of fall
No need to worry about one or two wrinkles
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
Sunflower going to seed
An old barn with character
Grain elevator at Barons
Purple Petunias
Lapland Longspur? No, a female Red-winged Blackbi…
Silos/grain terminal and old elevator, Herronton
An old favourite
American Tree Sparrow
When storms blow in
Under a stormy sky
That sinking feeling
Ornamental Cabbage or Ornamental Kale?
Pretty Mama cat
Black-necked Stilt
Hanging on till the final fall
Seedpod of Datura sp.?
Grain storage in Heronton
Cinnamon Teal pair
Western Meadowlark
Caution - deep water
A tree full of Tree Swallows
Old barn in winter
Into the sun at Frank Lake
Weathered and patched
Northern Shrike / Lanius excubitor
Tangled
Looking across Frank Lake
Mural in Blackie, Alberta
Ice patterns
Bubbles at Frank Lake
The return of the Swans
Passing the time
Fence post with a difference
Blackie Grain Terminal, Alberta
Built with love
A life left behind
From days gone by
One of my favourite barns
Davisburg Community Church, Alberta
Farmyard scene on the prairie
Just a splash of colour
A cluster of red barns
Remembering a cold, frosty bird count
A fine old barn
Davisburg Community Church, Alberta
Old barn with a different style
Fancy silo with stairs
Davisburg Community Church, Alberta
When the clouds roll in
A friendly greeting
Aging gracefully
Little country church
'Superman, where are you now?'
The cross and the moon
Time for an old barn again
One of my favourite birds to photograph
Beware those icy fingers
Home of the Snowshoe Hare
Reflection through the fog
Little red barn on the prairie
Ice is nice
With a view of the mountains and the prairies
Long-billed ice bird
Christmas is a fun time for a kitten
Old homestead and barn
Textures of an old homestead
Tea, anyone?
A favourite little country church
The only one
A frosty prairie view
Old-aged matching colours
One of 9 Great Horned Owls
Through the frost to the bird blind
New roof and a fresh coat of paint
A foggy, frosty sunrise
A frosty view from Frank Lake blind
So far away, but better than nothing
Frosted Cattails
A clash of colour
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190 visits
One of a crowd
The day before yesterday, 24 April 2016, I was out for the day, SE of Calgary around Frank Lake. Finally, after so much glorious, summer-like spring weather, the weather changed for the worse and we had a cool (needed gloves), very overcast day, with light drizzle some of the time. Not good at all for taking photos. We also had a fair bit of desperately needed rain that night. I was especially disappointed with the shots I took of a beautiful Western Meadowlark. Usually, they fly even when they see you in the far distance, but this beauty let me slowly walk quite close to get a number of (very grainy) photos. The quality is awful, but I don't get a chance to photograph Meadowlarks very often, so I did post one yesterday.
Eight friends and I had a great day, despite the weather. This is one of my favourite areas amd I just haven't been getting time to drive there myself for quite a long time. We started off at the main gate and drove to the blind/hide area, stopping half way to search for very distant birds. While everyone else had their binoculars pointed over the water, I was slowly walking towards the Meadowlark, who was singing its beautiful song. You can hear them and they sound so close, but their song seems to carry a long way. It kept flying away but each time returned to the same post. I was amazed and delighted that this one let me get so close. If the sun had been shining, it would have been perfect!
As usual when we go to Frank Lake, almost all the birds are very distant and pretty impossible to photograph. I did catch a male Red-winged Blackbird perched on a sign - the females have not yet returned here. The other amazing thing was when we had walked from the Frank Lake bird blind over to the water in the other direction, a flock of about 50 Tree Swallows were flying to and from a low tree/shrub, catching the many insects while in flight. Again, while everyone was searching over the water, I gradually made my way to within just a few feet of the bush. Quite a feeling to have so many Tree Swallows circling all the way around you. I have never ever seen so many of them acting like this, so it was a neat experience.
From this main area, we called in at the usual three other places around the lake. Two were rough roads that led to Basin 2 from the east and the west, and the third was the Ducks Unlimited location at the far southern edge of the lake, at Basin 3.
Thanks so much for a great day, Tony, and for the ride all day. I always look forward to the Frank Lake trips.
"Handsome aerialists with deep-blue iridescent backs and clean white fronts, Tree Swallows are a familiar sight in summer fields and wetlands across northern North America. They chase after flying insects with acrobatic twists and turns, their steely blue-green feathers flashing in the sunlight. Tree Swallows nest in tree cavities; they also readily take up residence in nest boxes. This habit has allowed scientists to study their breeding biology in detail, and makes them a great addition to many a homeowner’s yard or field." From allaboutbirds.
www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/tree_swallow/id
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree_Swallow
I will add our leader, Tony Timmons' list of species seen, adding that only 6 people walked as far as the Hudsonian Godwits - I was not one of them.
"Nine people were on the trip today to Frank Lake. Expected species were present in pretty fair numbers, with the best sighting being 15 Hudsonian Godwits at Basin 3.
A flock of 50 Tree Swallows hacking insects and using a small bush for a perch, made for an interesting scene.
We had 56 species for the trip
Horned Grebe
Eared Grebe
Western Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
White-faced Ibis (1 seen by Dan P.)
Canada Goose
Trumpeter Swan
Tundra Swan
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Cinnamon Teal
Green-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Canvasback
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Lesser Scaup
Bufflehead
Common Goldeneye
Ruddy Duck
Northern Harrier
Swainson's Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Gray Partridge
American Coot
Killdeer
Black-necked Stilt
American Avocet
Lesser Yellowlegs
Willet
Hudsonian Godwit
Wilson's Snipe
Franklin's Gull
Bonaparte's Gull
California Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Black-billed Magpie
American Crow
Common Raven
Tree Swallow
Marsh Wren
American Robin
European Starling
Song Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Red-winged Blackbird
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Western Meadowlark
Brewer's Blackbird
House Sparrow"
Eight friends and I had a great day, despite the weather. This is one of my favourite areas amd I just haven't been getting time to drive there myself for quite a long time. We started off at the main gate and drove to the blind/hide area, stopping half way to search for very distant birds. While everyone else had their binoculars pointed over the water, I was slowly walking towards the Meadowlark, who was singing its beautiful song. You can hear them and they sound so close, but their song seems to carry a long way. It kept flying away but each time returned to the same post. I was amazed and delighted that this one let me get so close. If the sun had been shining, it would have been perfect!
As usual when we go to Frank Lake, almost all the birds are very distant and pretty impossible to photograph. I did catch a male Red-winged Blackbird perched on a sign - the females have not yet returned here. The other amazing thing was when we had walked from the Frank Lake bird blind over to the water in the other direction, a flock of about 50 Tree Swallows were flying to and from a low tree/shrub, catching the many insects while in flight. Again, while everyone was searching over the water, I gradually made my way to within just a few feet of the bush. Quite a feeling to have so many Tree Swallows circling all the way around you. I have never ever seen so many of them acting like this, so it was a neat experience.
From this main area, we called in at the usual three other places around the lake. Two were rough roads that led to Basin 2 from the east and the west, and the third was the Ducks Unlimited location at the far southern edge of the lake, at Basin 3.
Thanks so much for a great day, Tony, and for the ride all day. I always look forward to the Frank Lake trips.
"Handsome aerialists with deep-blue iridescent backs and clean white fronts, Tree Swallows are a familiar sight in summer fields and wetlands across northern North America. They chase after flying insects with acrobatic twists and turns, their steely blue-green feathers flashing in the sunlight. Tree Swallows nest in tree cavities; they also readily take up residence in nest boxes. This habit has allowed scientists to study their breeding biology in detail, and makes them a great addition to many a homeowner’s yard or field." From allaboutbirds.
www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/tree_swallow/id
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree_Swallow
I will add our leader, Tony Timmons' list of species seen, adding that only 6 people walked as far as the Hudsonian Godwits - I was not one of them.
"Nine people were on the trip today to Frank Lake. Expected species were present in pretty fair numbers, with the best sighting being 15 Hudsonian Godwits at Basin 3.
A flock of 50 Tree Swallows hacking insects and using a small bush for a perch, made for an interesting scene.
We had 56 species for the trip
Horned Grebe
Eared Grebe
Western Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
White-faced Ibis (1 seen by Dan P.)
Canada Goose
Trumpeter Swan
Tundra Swan
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Cinnamon Teal
Green-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Canvasback
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Lesser Scaup
Bufflehead
Common Goldeneye
Ruddy Duck
Northern Harrier
Swainson's Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Gray Partridge
American Coot
Killdeer
Black-necked Stilt
American Avocet
Lesser Yellowlegs
Willet
Hudsonian Godwit
Wilson's Snipe
Franklin's Gull
Bonaparte's Gull
California Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Black-billed Magpie
American Crow
Common Raven
Tree Swallow
Marsh Wren
American Robin
European Starling
Song Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Red-winged Blackbird
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Western Meadowlark
Brewer's Blackbird
House Sparrow"
Yves Saulnier, ROL/Photo, have particularly liked this photo
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