#birbsofsaskatchetoon

[timinsaskatoon]

STILL Finishing up the last few pages of the Birbs of Saskatchetoon 2022 Sketchbook Volume 2... yesterday's pic of the Surly BFD felt lame without a background... so...

[timinsaskatoon]

Finishing up the last few pages of the Birbs of Saskatchetoon 2022 Sketchbook Volume 2

[timinsaskatoon]

There are a few pages left at the end of the Birbs of Saskatchetoon 2022 Sketchbook Volume Two that I thought I should fill up instead of leave blank... so... Maybe the rest will be the equipment i used or the bikes I rode around on...?

[timinsaskatoon]

Yellow-Rumped Warbler

Just as I was riding back into town by the QE2 Power Plant, I spotted a BALD EAGLE over the river hovering and diving then taking to flight again, soaring about, terrifying the massive flocks of gulls, being chased about by some crows, hovering and diving again and eventually settled down on a stop in the middle of the river. Then it was joined by a Great Blue Heron!? 

It was quite the sight! It cheered me a little after a long and disappointing ride to a number of dried up wetlands devoid of birds or much other life! 

While I was busy taking pictures of these from the West Bank of the river trying to get a good angle through the thick brush that borders the river, I noticed a number of small birds flitting about in the bush right next to me… so I took a few pictures of those as well. Some were Cedar Waxwings, but at least one other was one I hadn’t seen before!! Yellow-Rumped Warbler!

[timinsaskatoon]

Sharp-Tailed Grouse

This past Saturday I went for a LONG ride in countryside south and west of Saskatoon. I’d plotted out a number of areas to visit that I’d never been to before. Both maps and Google Earth assured me were wetlands. I was hoping to maybe spot some migratory birds heading south. Instead it was a hot and dreary ride and every one of the areas I visited were entirely dried up and there were no birds to be seen at any of them… 

Along one dusty summer road a flight to Sharp-Tailed Grouse furiously took to flight at my approach, startling me. As they only flew a short distance ahead, the moment was repeated several times - though during the supplementary bursts into flight I had my camera ready and caught a few in frame… grainy and out of focus, a couple were good enough to clearly identify and use as reference for drawing. 

[timinsaskatoon]

Snow Goose I went for a quick ride out to The Chappell Marsh the morning of Monday, 5 September 2022. The small area that hasn’t completely dried up was just teeming with birds - loads of Canada Geese and assorted shore birds and ducks - even a Great Blue Heron! In the middle of it all was a big white bird - not Pelican big - it was the same size as the Canada Geese! It was far to busy preening (or resting) to lift up it’s head for me to get a proper look - or a decent picture… Ugh... geese... such divas...

[timinsaskatoon]

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

At the same wetland I spotted the Sandhill Cranes, I briefly spotted what I thought was a Hairy Woodpecker at first - black and white, red cap - but then I realized the pattern was different and it had red on the front of its face below the beak. I raced around the brush, trying to get a better look - and a picture! But it was too quick - as soon as I thought I had an angle and zoomed in on the spot - it was gone! 

I’d almost completely forgotten about it until I got home and was downloading pictures for the day and found all the pictures of empty branches of dead trees surrounding the marsh and remembered the bird. I asked Amanda if she knew of a woodpecker with red on it’s face below the beak - like a chin or a bib - and off the top of her head she said “Yellow-Bellied Sapsucker”…? I looked it up and, sure enough, that was the bird I’d been looking at. 

I am so damned grateful to have her in my life… for so many reasons… not the least of which is how much she knows about birds (Which is far, FAR MORE than I think she gives herself credit for at times...!) 

[timinsaskatoon]

Sandhill Cranes

This past Saturday, 3 September 2022, I went out for a long bike ride south of town on the east side of the river looking for Sandhill Cranes. I was riding into a 30Km/hr, gusting to 50Km/hr wind and it was +33°C, but I’d heard they were passing through and didn’t want to miss them! I’ve often seen them in Chief Whitecap park or the fields to the east and on the sandbars in the river along the west side of the park. Just as I got to the off-leash area of the park I was devastated to see a MASSIVE FLOCK of them lifting off in the distance and flying off to the west, across the river! By the time I made it around the bypass trail to the river  there were only four left flying off in the distance - too far to see properly or take pictures of. I saw immediately the cause of their departure - a half-dozen or so speed-freak-goons tearing up and down the river on jet skis… ugh… 

I carried on to the east and south again hoping to see some having out in the fields. Nothing. 

I got far enough south I bumped into the north edge of CFD Dundurn and turned back along the dirt road bordering the base. 

I turned north to check out a small wetland I’d only been to once before. Thankfully there was SOME water left in the wetland (SO MANY have just COMPLETELY dried up over the last two years!!!). There were piles of little shore birds - loads of Killdeers and at least two other species that I’m still not sure about. 

Clear across on the other side there were specs that I figured were probably geese chilling (I’m not sure if you can call it “chilling” in the mid-plus-thirties…?) on the “beach” (land left bare by receding waterline!) I didn’t have binoculars as I’ve fallen out of the habit of bringing them along (I found I hadn’t been using them and just taking pictures with the zoom-camera), but now at least four or five times have wished I had brought them.

I took a number of pictures of the shore birds and the birds across the way… it wasn’t until I actually got home and looked at the pictures I’d taken that I realized there HAD been a pair of Sandhill Cranes among them!!! Yay!!!