To my surprise Great Blue landed right in front of me and started hunting. Sometimes when you are looking for birds they just don’t cooperate. They become invisible and disappear. Your only choices are to curse and go home, or to exercise a little patience and sit and wait. A few weeks ago I was faced with that decision. I was on the beach at the …
Birds
Birds of Vancouver Island
Birds of Vancouver Island – A Photographic Journey by Glenn Bartley These brief reflections represent but a few of my memories of the beautiful birds of Vancouver Island. Over the past four years I have spent as much time as possible out in nature finding and photographing birds. I feel fortunate to have been able to see such wonderful creatures, …
Top Five Birding Spots in the Alberni Valley
I recently ran across a couple at Victoria Quay in Port Alberni. They had the tell-tale sign of a birder and a visitor – binoculars hanging from their necks and hanging around the signs by the Somass River. I approached them and they started asking about how to get to the bird sanctuary on the other side. There are many …
A Place of Rainbows
The name Sointula, the Malcolm Island community of utopian origin off northern Vancouver Island, translates as ‘Place of Harmony.’ However, it might equally be known as a ‘Place of Rainbows’. A frequency of rainbows of course means an abundance of rain, of which Malcolm Island receives over 150 cm annually. In addition, the south facing shore of the island also …
Brandt’s, not Brant’s
A Brandt’s Cormorant (Phalacrocorax penicillatus) showing off its exotic blue gular patch and white breeding feathers. If I only had a dollar for every time I’ve seen the confusion in the spelling of Brandt’s and Brant, I might be able to afford my dream birding trip to Ecuador. Right now we are nearing the end of the Brant Goose migration …
Big Day Birding – Brant Wildlife Festival
One of the fun activities associated with the annual Brant Wildlife Festival is the Big Day Birding competition. Groups of birders work together to find and count the most birds over the course of a big day. The winning team takes home prizes and claims bragging rights. Search for gulls during the Brant Wildlife Festival Big Day bird count. Saturday, …
The Littlest Duck
The male Bufflehead (Bucephala albeola) sports attractive iridescent purple and colours on its head. The Buffleheads (Bucephala albeola) may be the smallest ducks in North America, but they are the favorites of many bird lovers. Because of their petite size and elaborate courtship displays, they are always fun to watch. Whenever I see them in freshwater ponds or the shallow …
Winter Birding at Oyster Bay
Looking out at the old pilings at Oyster Bay. The eastern coast of Vancouver Island has many locations that are excellent for winter birding. Sheltered bays offer resting places for numerous species of waterfowl and the beaches can be productive for shorebirds. One of the highlights between Courtenay and Campbell River is Oyster Bay Shoreline Regional Park, which is located …
Book Review – Field Guide to Birds of North America
Win a copy of Field Guide to Birds of North America – see contest details below. National Wildlife FederationField Guide to Birds of North AmericaEdward S. BrinkleySterling Publishing CompanyPaperback527 pages2007 I’m always looking for good natural history reference books and discovered the National Wildlife Federation’s Field Guide to Birds of North America while browsing the nature section in Chapters. I …
Great Backyard Bird Count – February 12-15, 2010
House Finches (Carpodacus mexicanus) should be easy to find on Vancouver Island during the Great Backyard Bird Count. Photo © Judy Howle. Bird watchers coast to coast are invited to take part in the 13th annual Great Backyard Bird Count, Friday, February 12, through Monday, February 15, 2010. Participants in the free event will join tens of thousands of volunteers …