I was down at Air Force Beach in Comox, British Columbia doing some birding this past weekend and was amazed at the amount of red seaweed washed up on the beach – in places it was at least thigh deep and was so thick that it was holding the incoming tide back from flooding the beach. Hundreds of gulls worked …
Birds
Knock, Knock. Who’s There?
Earlier this week I was enjoying some afternoon sun during my lunchtime walk when I heard the knocking of a woodpecker on a tree. The funny thing was that I couldn’t find the bird that was the source of the sound. I have to admit that I was perplexed. I could see plenty of signs that a woodpecker(s) had been …
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
I’ve been able to enjoy a few lunch-time walks this week and it’s been great seeing some bird activity in the hedgerows. I’m using an older Sigma 170-500mm zoom and hand-holding it – it’s not a perfect lens by any stretch of the imagination and light conditions pretty much have to be ideal to get any kind of sharp image. …
Where Have All the Barn Swallows Gone?
As a birder I’ve been aware that populations of certain species of birds have been declining, but I was unaware of how dramatically the numbers of Barn Swallows (Hirundo rustica) had fallen until I heard Dick Cannings talking about it on CBC Radio’s BC Almanac (available in iTunes – episode 2011-08-23 at about the 14:20 mark). According to Cannings, Barn …
Red-tailed Hawks
I was up at Strathcona Provincial Park this weekend helping out with the Friends of Strathcona Park Wilderness Festival and had the good fortune to get a closer look at a Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis). Scarlet, Mountainaire Avian Rescue Society ambassador poses for photographs at the Friends of Strathcona Park Wilderness Festival. Scarlet is a Mountainaire Avian Rescue Society ambassador …
A Backyard Visitor
We keep an informal backyard bird list and this week a new year bird showed up to investigate our fuchsia out front and our garden in the back. We’ve got lots of flowers in bloom and it seems like this immature Rufous Hummingbird (Selasphorus rufus) was stopping in for a quick feed. Our backyard visitor, a Rufous Hummingbird (Selasphorus rufus) …
Common Nighthawks Put on Twilight Display
On certain warm, summer nights in Courtenay on Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Common Nighthawks (Chordeiles minor) put on a complicated and beautiful display that surpasses that of the annual Snowbird performance at CFB Comox. A warm clear night with a bit of a cloud bank building – the Common Nighthawks and Black Swifts put on a show against this backdrop. …
A Barred Owl Comes Calling
Guest post by Marcie Callewaert Every summer a Barred Owl (Strix varia) visits our property. He makes himself known with his haunting calls each night and his bold presence perched on a branch or fence post during the day – watching for his next meal. A common owl on Vancouver Island, the Barred Owl’s (Strix varia) call is a “Who …
Book Review – The Crossley ID Guide (Eastern Birds)
Crossley ID Guide (Eastern Birds) The Crossley ID Guide: Eastern Birds Richard Crossley Princeton University Press Cloth Flexibound 544 pages 2011 I have to admit that I was initially pretty skeptical about the huge hype surrounding Richard Crossley’s new field guide The Crossley ID Guide: Eastern Birds. It’s been described as “mind-blowing,” “revolutionary,” and “unconventional,” among countless other superlatives. What …
White-throated Sparrow Surprise
Every so often a bird will show up unexpectedly. Such was the case this weekend up at Jocie’s mother’s place in Black Creek. We were sitting at the kitchen table having lunch when we noticed a sparrow with strong striping on its head working around the rock garden. Jocie and I realized that there was something different about the bird …