Predators
An unintended consequence of logging is the addition of nice perches for eagles to wait for spawning fish.
House Finch
Cold winter mornings always bring out the best in small birds. This female house finch is not the most colorful bird but fluffed up in the early morning light she is striking.
Steller's Jay
Sometimes birds are nervous and disappear or hide in the bushes when sighted. Not with this Steller's Jay. He was completely oblivious to my presence hopping around the beach looking for food. At one point as I sat on a rock he passed within a foot.
Merlin
While their normal winter range is way south, on the prairies, Merlins come into the cities to feast on an abundance of sparrows and chickadees. This Merlin was checking things out in a coulee down by the river.
Merry Christmas
May your holidays be a time of joy and laughter.
Grumpy Old Man
Every evening this Great Blue Heron would show up on the dock for a evening fishing expedition and sulk. If I showed myself at all he would leap from the dock and fly off complaining only to show up again a few minutes later. Then he would grumpily stand like this until it got too dark for me to see him. I think he sulked like this all night as he was always there in the morning.
Tundra Swans
Tundra Swans by the hundreds feed in the fields and rest on the river at Harrison Mills. BC
Northern Hawk Owl
When, from a distance, I first saw this bird sitting on the top of the tree I assumed it must be a raven. As I approached it became apparent that this was no raven. He was not particularly interested in me as he was hunting for dinner. While I watched he spotted a mouse in the grass, swooped down and grabbed dinner to go. He even was kind enough to take it back up into the tree so I could get a picture.
Bohemian Waxwing
Almost magically the Cedar Waxwings of summer have been replaced by the Bohemian Waxwings of winter.
Magpie
A magpie fluffs up and takes a few minutes rest on a cold day.in November.
Boreal Chickadee
This Boreal Chickadee was the only one in a flock of Black-capped Chickadees. We don't often see them here as we are on the southern edge of their range.
Landing Gear Down
These geese circled a fe times and then decided to land directly in front of me. This is a view that is rarely captured. Probably for good reason.
Northern Flicker
With Northern Flickers the males have a black or red mustache. This male partakes of a tasty apple for a frosty early morning breakfast.
Canada Geese
Every afternoon around four the geese take off from the rivers and ponds and head to the fields for the evening feed. It is quite a sight seeing hundreds of geese take off down the river slowing gaining altitude before turning and heading out.
On a frosty day this flicker warms itself in the morning sun.
Coyote
Being the first really cold day of the season all of the animals were active early. First there was a herd of skittish deer that disappeared into the bush. Then this coyote crossed our path. He was a little more curious so I was able to get a couple of shots in before he disappeared. Finally, there was a moose and her calf. They were bedded down in the bush so all I could get was a picture of an eye looking out of the grass.
Great Horned Owl
It was snowy and cold when I heard this owl squelching. It wasn't hooting and at first I thought it was only the sound of my boots on the snow. Once I realized it was coming from the woods I followed it off trail. A few hundred yards into the woods I got the feeling I was being watched, looked up and was face to face with this owl. He was interested but not worried so he posed patiently as I shot off a bunch of pictures.
Black-capped Chickadee
Whether eating sunflower seeds from you hand or flitting from bush to bush Chickadees are great fun to have around.
Dinner's On
The flocks of robins have dwindled but there are still a few that will probably decide to stay the winter.
Seagull Ballet
These Ring-billed Gulls were acrobatically dabbling on the river finding something to eat off the surface. Ring-billed Gulls are interesting in that this time of year there are only adults. The juveniles left for the wintering ground in August.
It's Hard to Be Drab in the Fall
Autumn creates a riot of color around this House Sparrow.
Robin
Each fall the robins descend for a few weeks to feed on berries and fruit before heading further south for the winter.. You can tell that this is a western bird because there is no white at the end of the tail.
A Chinook Cometh
A windy day in the mountains as a Chinook races over the front range.
Greater Yellowbrows
As can be seen this is a White-throated sparrow but, to me, that's not the discerning criteria. It's the black eyestripe, white crown, yellow lores and the white throat with a malar stripe. They breed across Canada and winter in the Southern States. Sound familiar?
