Birds and other Critters

A spot for me to share some of the photos taken during my many birding episodes.

[mattybird88]

It’s that time of year again where I anxiously await for new species to show up at my feeders. November provided some exciting visitors including this Cassin’s finch and Evening grosbeak. The Dark-eyed junco and House finch pictured last are among the most common species.

[mattybird88]

A flock of California quails has been busy raiding my feeders in the Okanagan. Since they stay off the feeders and only forage on the ground I don’t mind hosting flocks of up to thirty birds! Despite being very common here they are always still a joy to watch.

[mattybird88]

We did lots of hiking in the Okanagan during a road trip through the valley last July and came across some fascinating landscapes and ecosystems. Despite the late summer birding lull, we still found a few lifers and some very photogenic individuals such as this Spotted towhee.

[mattybird88]

I was lucky to see some Mountain goats along the road while passing through Glacier National Park. It’s not often you get an easily accessible chance to see these guys.

[mattybird88]

In late June we spent a day explore the Great Sandhills in southwest Saskatchewan. It happened to be one of the hottest days of the year at a blistering 38°C! Not too many birds around in these conditions but lots of butterflies and, fittingly, a Nuttall’s blister beetle. We then came back at night to look for nightjars, Ord’s kangaroo rats (we found the tracks during the day) and Great Plains toads.

[mattybird88]

A few of the better shots to come out of the birdathon I did in late May. Some birds may just have been starting to nest but others, like the Great-horned owl fledgling in the first photo were well on their way to finishing up.

[mattybird88]

These were taken back in May just as the swallows were arriving back in southeast Alberta. A nice male barn swallow above and a pair of northern rough-winged swallows below.

[mattybird88]

A day trip to Waterton Lakes National Park in May yielded some good birds and a few bears to boot.

[mattybird88]

This is camping in the Alberta foothills on May long weekend. A surprise morning snowfall may have been a shock to breeding birds but didn’t deter them from going about their business as usual.

[mattybird88]

An April morning spent birding in Tommy Thompson Park, Toronto. Lots of swans and other waterfowl to be seen but not too many migrating song birds just yet.

[mattybird88]

Pronghorns on the prairie - a male and his harem in spring

[mattybird88]

Breeding season is already starting to get underway for some birds. I’ve seen a few species carrying nesting materials and others expressing territorial behaviour, especially the local merlins.

[mattybird88]

This day at Kinbrook Island was all about the owls, including a pair of late Snowys on consecutive power poles. The last ones should be leaving southern Alberta and heading back north pretty soon.

[mattybird88]

Spring is arriving slowly but surely in southeast Alberta as evidenced by the western meadowlarks that have suddenly reappeared in droves.

[mattybird88]

A windy day on the prairie in southeast Alberta meant a quiet day for birds but the raptors were not to be deterred. A great-horned owl pair nesting on a low branch of a very lonely tree were really feeling it.

[mattybird88]

Driving through eastern Idaho I felt compelled to look for greater sage grouse. I was in luck and found a lek with some males already dancing despite it being quite early in the season. Sage grouse crossing signs and marked fences are several aspects of sage grouse conservation going on in this area.

[mattybird88]

Antelope Island State Park in Utah provides some unique birding opportunities but it was fairly quiet on this occasion. I did manage to catch a few glimpses of chukar which are common on the island and plenty of the free-roaming herd of bison.