Wild animals of Alberta 3

A week ago, on 22 February 2016, I went on a birding walk at the Bow Valley Ranch, Sikome & Hull's Wood areas in Fish Creek Park. This little Red Squirrel was welcome on this rather birdless day. We had split into two groups, and the list is a combined list from both. My group didn't see the Pheasant or Shrike (i.e the two best sightings!). FFCPPSoc. Birding, FC Hq & Sikome, FCPP, Calgary, 0915-1200, Mon22Feb2016. Sunny, N. wind 15kph -2 to 6°C. Two groups; 1. Canada Goose- 500 2. Mallard-100 3. Common Goldeneye-30 4. Bufflehead-10 5. Ring-necked Pheasant-1 m 6. Bald Eagle-2 (1ad/1juv). 7. Great Horned Owl-2, pair nesting. 8. Downy Woodpecker-10 9. Hairy Woodpecker-1 10. Northern Flicker-15 11. Northern Shrike-1 12. Blue Jay-1+ 13. Black-billed Magpie-6 14. Common Raven-7Black-capped Chickadee-25 15. Black-capped Chickadee-15 16. Red-breasted Nuthatch-3 17. White-breasted Nuthatch-5 18. European Starling-5 19. House Finch-2 20. White-winged Crossbill-8 21. Pine Siskin-4 22. House Sparrow-3 Eastern Gray Squirrel-3 After going home for lunch, I then called in at Fish Creek Park again, but at a different location of the park. I was really hoping to see the Varied Thrush again and hopefully get a few much better photos. I passed a couple that I recognized and asked them if they had seen the Thrush and they told me that, yes,it was there. Well, do you think I could find it, lol?! Of course not! Also had a most interesting chat with another couple down there, whom I had never met before - Mike and Cheryl. So nice to meet you both. From Fish Creek Park, I finally went and washed my absolutely filthy car. A few months of driving through muddy slush in the city and on the gravel backroads out of the city, you couldn't tell what colour my vehicle was.

This White-tailed Jack Rabbit (Jackrabbit) was busily eating grass at the Union Cemetery, right alongside the Reader Rock Garden. Sometimes when I see it, it's happily hopping around at the Reader Rock Garden. This time, I spotted it as I was driving very slowly through the cemetery on my way home, enjoying nibbling on blades of grass - it obviously tasted far too good to leave just because of me. Taken on 25 June 2014. We have a lot of these Jack Rabbits in the city - apparently, they tend to come out at night, but I often see them in my neighbourhood in the daytime. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White-tailed_jackrabbit

All three photos posted today were taken the day before yesterday, 15 March 2016. I drove NW of Calgary again, hoping that maybe one of the Great Gray Owls might just be seen. When I arrived, a car was pulled over at the side of the road and the occupants were photographing an owl. It was hidden from my view by a group of bushes and I only saw it when it flew over to the distant trees. This particular photo was taken during my drive there, to give an idea of the kind of countryside I go through to reach my destination. The drive is along a huge valley, past farms and fields and the very occasional wildlife, such as these Mule Deer. Love the colouring of the fields at the moment, though they may now be at least partly covered in the snow that fell last night, at least here in Calgary. I hadn't been sure whether to do such a long drive that day (roughly 250 km round trip) as the weather forecast wasn't exactly the best. Just after I left home, a few snowflakes fell for maybe five minutes, but not enough to settle. When I got closer to my destination, the gravel roads were snow-covered and not very pleasant to drive on. However, I'm glad I did decide to go, as I did get to see an owl on several different trees while it hunted. Eventually, it flew off into the forest and didn't return. "Although the Great Gray Owl is the tallest American owl with the largest wingspan, it is just a ball of feathers. It preys on small mammals and has relatively small feet. Both the Great Horned and Snowy owls weigh half again as much, and have larger feet and talons. The oldest recorded Great Gray Owl was at least 18 years, 9 months old and lived in Alberta." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Gray_Owl/lifehistory en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_grey_owl Last night, we had some proper snow - March does tend to be the snowiest month here. The temperature is -1C early this afternoon and the sun is trying to burst through the overcast sky.

Note: This is NOT my main photo of the three (i.e. the very last photo posted) I'm posting today! The Great Gray Owl is my main photo. Flickr is messing up yet AGAIN, showing my photos in a different order from what I post when some people look at them, which drives me nuts! Often, my second and third photos are much poorer quality (sometimes downright awful, lol), so that is what people see if they have Flickr set to show only one photo from each Contact, instead of what is usually the best of my 'daily three'. They are always displayed in the right order on my photostream. Even though these majestic Elk are raised at the Canadian Rocky Mountain Ranch, along with Buffalo/Bison, it's amazing to see them on the rolling hills SW of Calgary. Of course, one always prefers photos of animals in the wild, but I rarely get to see wild Elk and, when I do, they tend to be way off in the distance. Throughout history, elk have been hunted for their quality lean meat. More information on the Canadian Rocky Mountain Ranch can be found at the link below: www.crmr.com/ranch/ The light was so harsh when I arrived at a wetland in SW Calgary rather late in the afternoon of 5 June 2015. There didn't seem to be a lot of birds in sight and just the usual ones, so I didn't stay long. No sign of any young ones yet with the Red-necked Grebe, lying on her distant nest. From the wetland, I drove a few of the backroads SW of the city, seeing familiar birds that I often photograph, but always happy for the opportunity to shoot again. One hillside had numerous white-spotted baby Elk - raised on a ranch, but still so cute to see, despite not being wild. Three Mourning Doves were perched on a high wire in their usual spot. A herd of gorgeous Long-horn cattle and their cute youngsters were in a field that I passed, but again, the afternoon sun was just too harsh for photos. Stopped to photograph a pair of Mountain Bluebirds - there were flashes of blue along many of the backroads. A Snipe standing on a fence post in a different place completed my afternoon.

Much as I don't like my composition here, with the animal in the centre of the shot instead of being to the left side, I didn't want to crop and lose the patch of bright orange lichen : ) On 10 August 2013, I had such a wonderful day in the mountains! I don't get out there very often at all, and certainly not as far as we went today, so it was an absolute treat! Friend Sandy had found an interesting Liverwort (non-vascular plant) there and wanted to go back to see it at a different stage, hoping it would make ID a little clearer. She asked if I wanted to go with her - ha, yes, you bet! I had only ever once been to Bow Lake and that was 30+ years ago, but I had always longed to go back. It's one of my favourite places. We went past Banff and Lake Louise, as far as Bow Lake (seen in my photo) along Highway 93, the Icefields Parkway. They do say that this scenic highway is the most beautiful in the world, and it's easy to believe. I had jokingly said to Sandy when we left Calgary, that what I would really like, please, was blue sky to start with it, then a few puffy white clouds and then maybe even a touch of grey with the white - and that's exactly what we got (plus some rain on the drive back to Calgary). While we were there, we walked very slowly along the Bow Glacier Trail, which runs along the right hand edge of Bow Lake, but we didn't continue as far as the Falls. At the first rock fall, we were entertained, while having lunch, by several of these small Golden-mantled Ground Squirrels. They look rather similar to a Chipmunk and are very fast-moving animals, ha. They love a rocky mountain slope for their habitat. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden-mantled_ground_squirrel

Added later, in the evening, on 1 April 2016. I don't know how many of you make posters through fd's Scout program. I have just finished creating 166 posters (lol!!!) and 10 for my daughter today, thanks to fd's annual April 1st 'treat' for us. That is one disadvantage of having so many images on Flickr - too many posters to make. All ones photos are displayed in 'Order of Interestingness" just for today. I love these attractive posters, and they are a great way to keep a record of every photo that you have posted on Flickr. Something to keep in mind, given the various articles and comments about whether Flickr is likely to be closing down or not. I guess we will all find out, eventually. All three photos that I've uploaded today were taken yesterday morning, on a birding walk in North Glenmore Park and Weaselhead as far as the green, metal bridge. No sign of the sun until our walk was over. When I opened my front door, I realized just how gloomy it was outside, with dark grey clouds filling the sky. Temperature was 3C to 5C. Far from a good day to take photos, but we were still quite lucky with the bird and mammal species we saw. I had to brighten all three photos, but when I see them this morning, they all still look rather dark - and I think I'm too tired to brighten them more. We split into three groups, going in different directions, but still eventually covering the same locations. My group looked out over the Glenmore Reservoir and then drove through the park to the Crowchild Stormwater Ponds. After we returned to the main parking lot, we walked down into Weaselhead, crossing the green, metal bridge, and then walked back up the long hill. Everyone enjoyed watching this little Least Chipmunk stuffing his cheek pouches with nuts and seeds. He was so small, so fast, and SO cute. "A small rodent with a long, narrow but fairly bushy tail, the least chipmunk (Tamias minimus) is the smallest and most widely distributed chipmunk species in North America. The diet of the least chipmunk consists mainly of seeds, nuts and fruits, although it will also take other plant material, such as leaves and flowers, as well as fungi, insects and occasionally birds’ eggs. The least chipmunk may also sometimes feed on carrion. While foraging, the least chipmunk will often fill its cheek pouches with seeds and nuts, which it then hoards in various locations or carries to its burrow to store for the winter. This behaviour, typical of chipmunks, is reflected in the scientific name of the genus Tamias, which comes from the Greek for ‘storer’ or ‘distributor’." From the Arkive website. www.arkive.org/least-chipmunk/tamias-minimus/ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Least_chipmunk I will add the list of species compiled by our leaders: Canada Goose-40 Trumpeter Swan-25 American Wigeon-3. Mallard-20 Green-winged Teal-1 m(ale). Bufflehead-1 Common Goldeneye-50 Common Merganser-80 Bald Eagle-1, imm(ature) unsuccessfully trying to capture a Common Goldeneye. Northern Goshawk-1 Ring-billed Gull-50 California Gull? - 4 Herring Gull-2+ Great Horned Owl-2 Downy Woodpecker-4 Northern Flicker-7+. 5 in Wslhd parking lot, landing on utility pole. Blue Jay-9, in one group at parking lot Black-billed Magpie-12 American Crow-8 Common Raven-2 Black-capped Chickadee-30 Red-breasted Nuthatch-7 White-breasted Nuthatch-2 American Robin-5+ American Tree Sparrow-3 Dark-eyed (Slate-colored) Junco-3 House Finch-4 White-winged Crossbill-50+ Common Redpoll-1 Pine Siskin-30 American Goldfinch-1 heard. Coyote-1 Red Squirrel-2 Eastern Gray Squirrel-1, with lots of rufous on ears, neck and legs, suggestive of Fox Squirrel. Least Chipmunk-3 Snowshoe Hare-1 After the walk, friend Sandy and I went for lunch at a nearby cafe. A savoury crepe and welcome coffee really hit the spot. Great to get the chance to chat with you and catch up on news, Sandy!

Five birding friends and I had a most enjoyable day trip east of Calgary two days ago, on 16 April 2016. The weather was gorgeous, with perfect clouds that were reflected in every pond/slough/wetland that we came across before the breeze disturbed the water. I think the main highlights for me were a Western Meadowlark that flew to a tall post just about within camera reach; a mixed pair of Red-tailed Hawks (one light and the other dark) perched together in a tree; and a beautiful LEUCISTIC Merlin (i.e. paler than it should be) that three of us were lucky enough to see after we split up to start our journey back to Calgary. It was enjoying a snack on top of a very tall utility pole. Also, this little Muskrat was fun to to watch along the shore at Chestermere Lake. "An adult muskrat is about 40 to 60 cm (16 to 24 inches) long, almost half of that tail, and weighs from 0.7 to 1.8 kg (1.5 to 4 lb). Muskrats are much smaller than beavers (Castor canadensis), with whom they often share their habitat." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muskrat "Leucism is an abnormal plumage condition caused by a genetic mutation that prevents pigment, particularly melanin, from being properly deposited on a bird’s feathers. As a result, the birds do not have the normal, classic plumage colors listed in field guides, and instead the plumage have several color changes, including white patches where the bird should not have any; paler overall plumage that looks faint, diluted or bleached; or overall white plumage with little or no color discernable." From birding.about.com. birding.about.com/od/identifyingbirds/a/leucism.htm Our leader, Terry Korolyk, always writes such a detailed account of each trip, so there is no point in my repeating some of the information. Many thanks for another great day (including the write-up), Terry, and many thanks, Tony, for the ride! “Today's Nature Calgary Field Trip had beautiful weather for its trip east of Calgary. We met just west of the Rowing Club around 9:30 A.M., checking the Reservoir there firstly, then, heading east on Glenmore Trail. The only bird of note on the Reservoir was a Common Loon in the bay at the Yacht Club. We then headed east on Glenmore Trail turning south on Stoney Trail going as far as 114 Avenue where we turned left driving to 84 Street, then, going south to Ralph Klein Park. Birds of particular interest at the Park included American Avocet, Black-necked Stilt and, Lesser Yellowlegs, the latter of which we had the pleasure of observing a couple of flocks of significant size one of at least 70 birds fly in. This was a particularly good sign for the day as we saw many Yellowlegs totalling 227 birds in the final analysis. From Ralph Klein Park, we kept south on 84 Street to 146 Avenue where we turned east driving to Range Road 284 where we turned north checking sloughs along the way to Township Road 232 where we turned we turned east, then north on to Range Road 283. We followed Range Road 283 to Chestermere Lake stopping at the Dam; then Sunset Park on the east side of the Lake; then, the north end of the Lake north of Highway 1A. From there, we drove under the Trans-Canada Highway through the subdivision on the east side of the Highway to McElroy Slough. From McElroy Slough, we kept eastward on Inverlake Road driving to Highway 9, then, from Highway 9 south to Highway 560, turning east at the 4-way junction there driving to Weed Lake. From Weed Lake, we headed westward towards Calgary checking a slough at the Highway 560-Range Road 284 junction, then, from there we stayed westward to Stoney Trail turning north on Stoney Trail turning off at Peigan Trail, then westward on Peigan past the City of Calgary Landfill. We had many highlights; the most important of which was a mixed pair of Red-tailed Hawks. Of the pair, one adult was a RUFOUS MORPH bird; the other was a light-phase EASTERN RED-TAIL. The pair were together, but, I cannot divulge the location as this a sensitive pairing (rare). You can contact me if you wish more details. The birds have nested at this site previously. I did not see them there in 2015, but, saw them there previously 2 out of 3 years. I believe young were probably raised in at least one year; the year when the JAEGERS were at Weed Lake (POMARINE and PARASITIC). I believe it was 2013. At that time while going out to the Lake I noticed at least 3 rather unusual-looking Red-tails on the west side of Weed Lake and west of Weed Lake. Other highlights were an ALBINISTIC American Wigeon at a slough on Range Road 280 just south of Inverlake Road. The bird had 2 large white clear patches on each side; an incredible LEUCISTIC MERLIN photographed by Tony Timmons at the 4- way stop in Langdon (it looked like a miniature white-morph Gyrfalcon with a banded tail); five hybrid TUNDRA-TRUMPETER SWANS at McElroy Slough, and 50 AMERICAN PIPITS at a shallow wetland on 146 Avenue just east of 104 Street. Northern Pintail was the most numerous Duck of the day with 1621; American Wigeon came in at 1017; and, Northern Shoveler came in at 962. BLACK-NECKED STILTS and AMERICAN AVOCETS were a particularly wonderful sight at the south end of Weed Lake and at Langdon Corner Slough, which is at the Highways 1 and 9 junction. Two SWALLOWS were seen briefly at the Dam at Chestermere Lake, but, we were unable to identify them. One other DARK MORPH Red-tailed Hawk was seen, and 4 American Kestrels were seen. The City of Calgary Landfill had excellent numbers of Gulls; I would estimate their numbers at 1500 for anyone interested in doing some Gullwatching this coming week.”

William J. Bagnall Wilderness Park is named after Mountain View County’s first reeve, who served in the position from 1961 to 1981 and also served as a councillor until 1985. The William J. Bagnall Wilderness Park (34.7 acres) is located seven kilometres west of Water Valley just off Highway 579. "Remediation efforts for the wilderness park were undertaken after the area was made inaccessible following the flood of 2005. Included in the upgrades is a new entry and parking lot on the south side (just off Highway 579); two walking trails that will form a 1.2-kilometre loop; a historical sign detailing the history of the site as a coal mining area; a small picnic area, including outhouses, tables and pest-proof containers; along with several stairways for steep-grade accessibility." From an article in the Mountainview Gazette on 14 June 2011. www.mountainviewgazette.ca/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/201... Yesterday, 18 April 2016, I went NW of Calgary with a small group of friends to explore the William J. Bagnall WIldness Park. This was actually my very first visit to this wilderness park. A couple of friends had mentioned it recently and two weeks ago, on 5 April 2016, I finally decided to go and explore the area. That day, I drove through some beautiful scenery, but discovered after I got home that, in fact, I had not even been in the park itself. Instead, I had kept driving past the entrance way along what I think is the Harold Creek Rd. William J. Bagnall Wilderness Park is only small, with a fairly short trail that loops back to the parking lot. It leads through the forest, down the forested hillside to the creek which still has a layer of old snow and ice on it, and then back up the slope to where the cars were parked. It was still too early for plants and fungi to be growing, but the friends I went with are specialists in mosses, lichens and fungi, with most impressive knowledge of every kind of nature, including birds. The second photo I posted this morning shows one of the rather attractive lichens that we saw on a rocky outdrop that was covered in these circular patterns. As far as photography goes, there was not very much to photograph, though I did catch this little Red Squirrel near the parking lot. I also stood listening to the call of a Varied Thrush and, when I was ahead of the rest of the group, I suddenly saw a bird fly into a distant tree. Couldn't find it in my viewfinder, but I could tell exactly where the call was coming from. Then the bird flew and I got a tiny glimpse of its colour. A tiny Comma butterfly gave me a chance to use my camera, too. We stopped and ate our lunch at the small picnic area that has an outhouse. Always a welcome sight! Once back at the cars, we then returned to the city via Highway 22. Thanks so much for driving, Peter - much appreciated. It was pure luxury to travel my usual owling route with someone else driving! A great day in glorious weather and in great company. Nothing like having summer weather in mid-April. It's supposed to get up to 27C this afternoon, which is crazy. A week from today, though, the forecast is for 3C and snow, lol!

Amazing, our temperature yesterday, 19 April 2016, got up to 27C! We have been having summer weather and it's only spring. The temperature in Calgary climbed high enough yesterday to top a century-old weather record. "According to Environment Canada, the previous record high for Calgary on April 19 was recorded at the Calgary International Airport in 1910 when it was 26.7 C. Calgary had tied that record by 2 p.m. and beat it at around 5 p.m. by reaching 27.5 C." globalnews.ca/news/2647710/calgary-poised-to-break-100-ye... This photo was taken on 31 March 2016, on a birding walk in North Glenmore Park and Weaselhead as far as the green, metal bridge. No sign of the sun until our walk was over. When I opened my front door, I realized just how gloomy it was outside, with dark grey clouds filling the sky. Temperature was 3C to 5C. Far from a good day to take photos, but we were still quite lucky with the bird and mammal species we saw. We split into three groups, going in different directions, but still eventually covering the same locations. My group looked out over the Glenmore Reservoir and then drove through the park to the Crowchild Stormwater Ponds. After we returned to the main parking lot, we walked down into Weaselhead, crossing the green, metal bridge, and then walked back up the long hill. Everyone enjoyed watching this little Least Chipmunk stuffing his cheek pouches with nuts and seeds. He was so small, so fast, and SO cute. "A small rodent with a long, narrow but fairly bushy tail, the least chipmunk (Tamias minimus) is the smallest and most widely distributed chipmunk species in North America. The diet of the least chipmunk consists mainly of seeds, nuts and fruits, although it will also take other plant material, such as leaves and flowers, as well as fungi, insects and occasionally birds’ eggs. The least chipmunk may also sometimes feed on carrion. While foraging, the least chipmunk will often fill its cheek pouches with seeds and nuts, which it then hoards in various locations or carries to its burrow to store for the winter. This behaviour, typical of chipmunks, is reflected in the scientific name of the genus Tamias, which comes from the Greek for ‘storer’ or ‘distributor’." From the Arkive website. www.arkive.org/least-chipmunk/tamias-minimus/ en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Least_chipmunk I will add the list of species compiled by our leaders: Canada Goose-40 Trumpeter Swan-25 American Wigeon-3. Mallard-20 Green-winged Teal-1 m(ale). Bufflehead-1 Common Goldeneye-50 Common Merganser-80 Bald Eagle-1, imm(ature) unsuccessfully trying to capture a Common Goldeneye. Northern Goshawk-1 Ring-billed Gull-50 California Gull? - 4 Herring Gull-2+ Great Horned Owl-2 Downy Woodpecker-4 Northern Flicker-7+. 5 in Wslhd parking lot, landing on utility pole. Blue Jay-9, in one group at parking lot Black-billed Magpie-12 American Crow-8 Common Raven-2 Black-capped Chickadee-30 Red-breasted Nuthatch-7 White-breasted Nuthatch-2 American Robin-5+ American Tree Sparrow-3 Dark-eyed (Slate-colored) Junco-3 House Finch-4 White-winged Crossbill-50+ Common Redpoll-1 Pine Siskin-30 American Goldfinch-1 heard. Coyote-1 Red Squirrel-2 Eastern Gray Squirrel-1, with lots of rufous on ears, neck and legs, suggestive of Fox Squirrel. Least Chipmunk-3 Snowshoe Hare-1 After the walk, friend Sandy and I went for lunch at a nearby cafe. A savoury crepe and welcome coffee really hit the spot. Great to get the chance to chat with you and catch up on news, Sandy!