This afternoon we got for a walk over at Kilby....nice to start getting caught up...
not sure where to start, so we'll start with the first bird we saw...a Song Sparrow and note the berries of the Red-Osier Dogwood, not quite ripe although there were some that are.
and speaking of Song Sparrows....here is a fledgling one.
there were a lot of Spotted Towhee and couldn't get over the amount of Black Hawthorne fruit....not quite ripe here, they will be black when ripe, hence the name. It doesn't seem that long since I was taking pictures of the flowers.
lots of White-crowned Sparrows too, this one in a Himalayan Blackberry bush....lots of berries to come.
this Downy Woodpecker must have just had a bath....
there were a lot of Bullock's Orioles but didn't manage a photo of any of them, however the above is an Oriole nest, and from the noise, occupied by a bunch of youngsters. Orioles are one of the species where both parents and even siblings from the previous season help to raise the youngsters.
and it wasn't just birds.....the blue is called Viper's Bugloss....a strange name for a pretty plant that bees love. The yellow, of course, is a type of dandelion.
this is one I don't know, but am trying to find out...
well this is the common and well known Pink Spirea, also known as Hardhack...
and then this evening I was admiring the scene where there was a Bald Eagle perched on a log with some Canada Geese in the foreground....it wasn't until I downloaded the photos that ....
I noticed that the eagle had a fish....a good sized fish! Pretty impressive.
It is the first day (or at least part day) of summer and we are back from our spring wandering so time to get back at it....
a beautiful evening out there after a warm but cloudy day. You can see that water levels haven't budged much in the month or so we've been away.
The few times I've been to the boat launch there has been a lot of bird activity, but of course not when I took the camera....
have noticed a lot of Cedar Waxwings like the fellow above (sorry for the quality of the photo - I think my poor camera may be wearing out)...
A lot of American Robins too, like this young one, busy eating the berries of the red-osier Dogwoods.
Photos of a Yellow Warbler and a family of Black-capped Chickadees didn't turn out but should mention there are also lots of Red-wing Blackbirds and can hear Swainson's Thrush and the Bullock's Oriole. Also seeing Tree Swallows and a few Barn Swallows. Can hear Canada Geese out there, no doubt in their molt stage so staying hidden and quiet. Oh, also saw an adult Bald Eagle this afternoon.
Hopefully we will get over to Harrison Bay soon and maybe out in the canoe for an over view of just what is out there.
Well it is the middle of the May long weekend and the weather hasn't exactly been spectacular but is what we need....cool, cloudy and showery... Took advantage and went for a walk over at Harrison Bay...
very green and gray! Could hear a Spotted Sandpiper down there somewhere but couldn't find it.
there were quite a few White-crowned Sparrows and notice that the berries of these Red-elderberry bushes have already been eaten.
she is pretty hard to see but there is a female Common Yellowthroat down there in the grasses. Could hear quite a few of them.
American Robins too...this one is perched on one of the branches that blew down last winter and ended up in the fallow corn field...and is now rooting and growing...
and speaking of robins....
here is the first fledgling of the season.
Saw a pair of Bullock's orioles, as well as a female Black-headed Grosbeak. The Bald Eagle pair were there, from their activity I'd say she is still sitting on eggs. There is an Osprey sitting on a nest too.
there was a pair of Black-capped Chickadees being very busy, making me suspect they might have a family nearby.
and flower wise....
the Viper's Bugloss was just starting to come into flower.
Now, wanted to mention that a neighbour had a Black-chinned Hummingbird at their feeder. Wish I'd seen it! We have a lot of....
Rufous Hummingbirds around right now, including the first crop of babies like this little guy...
and...
the Anna's Hummingbirds...like this male. (sorry about the photo quality - best I've managed) but would have loved to have seen the Black Chinned.
Now unless something really spectacular happens tomorrow this will probably be the last posting for a while as we are heading off again to see what we can see.
This afternoon we decided to throw the canoe in the water and go for a short paddle....
the way the water levels are dropping figured better go while the going was good!
Several Canada Goose families were not amused and quickly moved their goslings into the safety of the long grass.
there was a Bald Eagle perched out on one of the partially submerged logs.
spotted this female Hooded Merganser hiding along the shore.
we were a bit concerned that there was no activity or any sign at all of any Purple Martins. Had to remind ourselves that it is only mid-May, perhaps it is too early yet.
at least the Bullock's Orioles are here - this female was busy on the shore, probably gathering nesting materials.
a pleasant surprise was finding a number of Evening Grosbeaks....none of which were too cooperative about picture taking.
and lot's of Red-wing Blackbirds....think most females are still sitting on nests... Birds seen but no pictures of were Tree Swallows, Barn Swallows, Turkey Vultures, and Osprey.
Earlier in the day took this photo of an American Robin having a bath in the boat launch.....and have to finish with a photo of these.....
native Foxgloves! They are just spectacular right now. These were growing on the bank.
Spent fifteen minutes sitting by the water at the boat launch today....as I approached a pair of Common Merganser had swum by....seemed strange that a male would still be in the area but then had to remember it is only the middle of May...
as you can see it was a cool, cloudy day and at first it seemed there was nothing around but then...
a pair of Canada Geese headed onto this submerged log...
then these two flew down to get a drink....I think it is probably 'mom' Red-wing Blackbird with a youngster as they nest really early.
apologies for the quality of this photo...but speaking of 'mom' or for that matter 'dad' this Bushtit was one of a pair very busy....probably with a nest-full of young ones not too far away.
meanwhile there were several Barn Swallows gathering mouthfuls of mud and nesting materials.
Spotted Towhee were very busy too but not co-operative about having their picture taken so this was the best I could do.
this pair of Eurasian Collared Dove were trying to get brave enough to come down for a drink and finally did so, just in time for someone to walk by and send them flying off again....but considering we'd (my dog and I) had only been there a few minutes, it was a pretty productive bird visit.
After a month having a great time experiencing spring in some other areas of the province, we are home for a week or two...
water levels are about where one would expect them to be this time of the year...the scary part is that normally one would be expecting them to continue to rise, where in fact they have apparently peaked....like everything else it seems we are a month ahead of schedule.
Since there is no where to actually walk here, we headed over to Harrison Bay this afternoon....
No beach these days and everything very green and lush compared to last time we were here. Being mid afternoon and very windy it wasn't the best day for viewing birds...
was trying to see if the Bald Eagle nest was occupied....couldn't tell when suddenly an Osprey flew a little too close to it and....
this guy suddenly appeared and chased it off while his mate cheered him on from the nest...nice!
Noticed a few...
American Robins...this one obviously packing food - in this case a ripe Salmonberry - to a nest....hadn't noticed at the time that the bird only has one leg.
Normally, but now, this field has been plowed and planted....it appears this year it is being allowed to lay fallow which I am sure all the local birds and wildlife are loving!!! Notice the healthy hedgerow of...
Himalayan Blackberries....just coming into flower...now for the scary part...these blackberries are supposed to be a late summer crop...they shouldn't be in flower in mid May!
Neither should the Hardhack be coming into flower for another month or so...
and the Nootka Roses should be just coming into flower...not being almost finished flowering which seems to be the case.
Back to birds...
this Black-capped Chickadee was very busy eating little bugs from the fruit of this local shrub that I have to find out for sure what it is.....
and now, I have to give kudos where they are due...following the major windstorm that the area experienced last fall a fatal accident that took place, not through any single event but due to a combination of events, there was a fear that a lot more of the mature tree's in the are were going to be removed....I was extremely relieved to see that common sense prevailed and...
the tree's were limbed but left....the birds thank you!
