Lesser Scaup male

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY to all Mothers and Mother figures (including Grandmother, Step-Mother, Mothers-in-law, Guardians). In Canada, Mother's Day is celebrated on the second Sunday of May each year. Of course, each and every day should be Mother's Day : )

Hope everyone is enjoying the new Flickr layout, lol! What a mess! Hope they get this all sorted out - and quickly.

WHY PHOTOGRAPHERS GET SUCH A BAD NAME! Shown on The Weather Network.

www.theweathernetwork.com/videos/Gallery/all/video_galler...

Three days ago, on 7 May 2015, I joined friends to go on a birding walk at the south end LaFarge Meadows, accessed off 194th Ave. The weather was beautiful, though the temperature was only 7C-11C, and the birds were so far away : ) I did manage to get a distant shot of two of the three Trumpeter Swans (both juveniles) that were near the river. A Bald Eagle flew overhead and a Great Blue Heron flew in the far distance. A little Savannah Sparrow posed in a small tree for us and a Muskrat was seen in the large pond by the river.

The reported list is as follows, though I didn't see many of these birds myself:

1. Canada Goose-15 + two families with young
2. Trumpeter Swan-3 juv.
3. Gadwall-4
4. American Wigeon-40
5. Mallard-30
6. Blue-winged Teal-42
7. Cinnamon Teal-3
8. Northern Shoveler-6
9. Canvasback-6
10. Redhead-1 m
11. Ring-necked Duck-6
12. Common Goldeneye-3
13. Common Merganser-5+
14. Red necked Grebe-3
15. Great Blue Heron-2
16. Osprey-2+
17. Bald Eagle-2ad. (adult on nest feeding young)
18. Sharp-shinned Hawk-2 (1 m/1 f.)
19. Swainson’s Hawk-3+ (includes one dark morph)
20. American Coot-100
21. Killdeer-4
22. GREATER YELLOWLEGS-1
23. SOLITARY SANDPIPER-2
24. SPOTTED SANDPIPER-5
25. Franklin’s Gull-380
26. white-headed gull sp.-1 heard
27. Black-billed Magpie-3
28. American Crow-2
29. Common Raven-3
30. Tree Swallow-20
31. Northern Rough-winged Swallow-1
32. Bank Swallow-1
33. American Robin-2
34. European Starling-1
35. CLAY-COLORED SPARROW-1 heard
36. Savannah Sparrow-15
37. Song Sparrow-3
38. Red-winged Blackbird-6 (5 m/1 f)

After the walk, I decided to call in at a wetland in SW Calgary, hoping that at least a few of the birds would be close enough for photos. I met a delightful, enthusiastic and knowledgeable photographer/birder while I was there, and she showed me the area accessed from a point that I had never tried before. A handful of duck species could be seen, including this handsome male Lesser Scaup. Just love his black and white, patterned feathers.

"Two scaup species live in North America: the Greater Scaup prefers salt water and is found in America and Eurasia, while the Lesser Scaup prefers freshwater and is found only in North America. The Lesser Scaup is one of the most abundant and widespread of the diving ducks in North America." From AllAboutBirds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Lesser_Scaup/id