Exactly as predicted....
that first, nice sunny day....
and the Tree Swallows were back! Just a couple of pairs on Saturday, the 9th until this evening when, despite a lot of cloud and threatened showers, there were hundreds dipping and diving all over the estuary.
and today, even though it was no longer clear and sunny, but still mild....
a flash of blue in a blackberry bush over at Harrison Bay.....Mountain Bluebirds!
a pair here....
a selection along with one American Robin here....
and another look at a male here. Must have been about a dozen of them.
Lots of robins now too...
and speaking of 'lots'....there must be some sort of fish run right now because the last couple of days....
there have been masses of Common Merganser on the river with lots of diving and splashing as they are obviously chasing and feeding on something.
for something a bit different....
if you've been following this blog for a while you might recall we found some of this special sub species of Snowshoe Hare living in the area last year. Well seems they are still here. This one ventured out from under the blackberry bushes to feed on the fresh grass today. This particular sub species stays brown all year round and is only found in a small area of the Fraser Valley.
Other sightings the last few days have been of the regulars...
Spotted Towhee....
the Bald Eagle pair are around but not settled to doing much at the nest yet.
and have to say that despite all the debate about daylight saving's time, it sure is nice to be able to get out for a walk in the evening now.
Have been having some computer issues....don't know why and don't know why it is now working, but am taking advantage while it is!
So a bit of catching up to do - first have to say it was so nice to go outside after supper tonight and hear robins calling!
so we will go back to the 4th where we woke to a dusting of snow, in fact we did that for several days in a row. There just hasn't been a lot in the way of birds around, but that morning there was a Great Blue Heron perched on one of the pilings....
Here is a close up look.
We've also been seeing...
little Gold-crowned Kinglets from time to time....best photo I could manage.
have also seen the occasional Brown Creeper....like this guy, working his way up a big fir tree.
This is one of the reasons there has been a lack of little birds visible...
.
this little hawk has been hanging around. I think it is an adult Cooper's Hawk. Alway's hard to tell the difference between them and the slightly smaller Sharp-Shinned. Both feed on smaller birds.
over at Harrison Bay it has also been pretty quiet for small birds but there have been a couple of interesting items. Have to point out how much beach there is. The water levels are the lowest we can remember ever seeing them. That, of course will change as soon as the weather warms and all that 'almost' record breaking snow in the interior starts to melt!
So on this day, our attention was drawn by....
a pair of Common Raven that were carrying on....
in the same area....
there were two agitated male Northern Flickers....was trying to figure out why, when I realized there was a Bobcat at the base of the tree! I didn't get a photo of it as I was scrambling to grab my little dog before he spotted it, but this......
is what a Bob Cat looks like. This photo was taken last April in Kentucky/Allyene Provincial Park.
Back to Harrison Bay....
this Douglas Squirrel was also in the same area and maybe what the Bob Cat was after. This is the first native squirrel I've ever seen over there.
All this brings us to today....
the start of what is promised to be a beautiful spring weekend.
Canada Geese and ducks, mainly Northern Pintail like these, but also some Mallard and a few Green Wing Teal.
One of the Bald Eagle pair near the nest....
and Dark-eyed Junco singing.
Surely, with the weather in the forecast, the Tree Swallows will show up....this will be one of the latest dates for their 'first' arrival ever.
Well we are still waiting for spring.....yesterday was down right cold when we headed over to Harrison Bay for a walk....
there really wasn't much of anything around, except for the pair of Bald Eagles....now at the nest....but not just content to sit at the nest....all those ducks that have been out in the fields have created a smorgasbord....
and they are taking full advantage! You can see one of them taking off with a duck in it's talons....they both headed back to the nest to 'eat lunch'......surprising that the Canada Geese didn't see too alarmed about the whole thing.
This morning we wandered over to the log bay....that is after yet another dusting of snow over night...
really quiet over there too....
just a few Mallard, like this guy that had been in this tiny puddle, no bigger than it was.
After lunch the weather improved...
although there was still a brisk wind coming down the river and is usually the case, if there is a wind, there aren't any birds....and those hunting eagles seem to have chased the hundreds of ducks away....a few here and there, but nothing like we've seen for the past few weeks.
still lots of Canada Geese....
and Cackling Geese - the one in the middle with the 'cute' head and little short beak.
Hasn't even been a lot of activity at the feeders....
although did spot this Northern Flicker yesterday and there have been a few of the regulars, just not in large numbers. Keep thinking that some finch should be showing up soon - maybe this coming week when we are promised some sunshine.
Here we are, March already. Doesn't seem that long since New Years!
It wasn't the most exciting day today....kind of dull and chilly in the morning...
but at least it wasn't raining (or snowing)
there was one lone Great Blue Heron down along the fore shore....
over at the log bay....
saw a total of 6 Northern Flickers! Couldn't get a good look at all of them, but any I did see up close, like this guy, were the regular Red-shafted variety....this one being a male. This is the month when we are liable to see a Yellow-shafted or inter-grades between the two.
and it is so nice to be able to say 'and of course there were Robins!' 3 or 4 of them there today. Lots of the regular Sparrows and Towhees too.
the Red-wing Blackbirds were all gathered in this poplar tree, busy calling.....sounds like spring.
For a little while this morning it almost felt like spring....
and first bird we spotted was an American Robin. In fact there were birds everywhere. Can't swear to it but thought I heard swallows - couldn't spot any though and due to other commitments, couldn't really take the time to search them out.
so just for the record - here is what the last day of February 2018 looked like at the estuary.
By the time we could head over to Harrison Bay for a decent walk...
it was no longer spring like....we did manage to not get too wet and boy were there birds! Nothing out of the ordinary, but lots and lots of the regulars....
Red-wing Blackbirds.....lots of them, all through the bushes and trees along the dike.
Song Sparrows....there were lots of Spotted Towhee's too but none of those photos turned out (it wasn't exactly great photography weather)
all kinds of members of the woodpecker family - here a female Hairy Woodpecker (saw another one further along, also several little Downy Woodpeckers)
and a Pileated Woodpecker. There had also been a Northern Flicker.
and lots and lots of Dark-eyed Junco!
One of the Bald Eagle pair was perched near the nest (you can just see a tiny bit of it in the bottom corner.
a little flock of Black-capped Chickadees....
also a couple of Brown Creepers (only one in the photo)
European Starlings too....lots of them...
and speaking of 'lots'....
ducks, hundreds of them in the fields on the way to the walk....
Northern Pintails - I don't recall us ever having the number of Pintails we've had here this winter.
and Mallards...with a few American Wigeon (the littler ones)
and so tomorrow it will be March and the weather is forecast to improve....things should start getting interesting!
