Photos, videos and docs of Anne Elliott, with the keywords: "Tree Swallow"

Tree Swallow fledgeling

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 16 Jul 2019 15:39:17 +0000

This morning, 16 July 2019, I woke up to find that it's raining - again! It definitely feels like it has rained almost every day for weeks. "Risk of a thunderstorm" seems to be the norm these days. Our temperature is only 11C (windchill 9C) at 10:00 am..

Yesterday afternoon, I just needed to get out for a quick drive, so, despite the forecast for rain, I drove SW of the city along several usual roads. I soon discovered that one of the roads I was going to drive had roadworks going on - oiling the road. With a car that was already covered in dead insect "splats", from my 12-hour drive south of the city, the last thing I wanted was to add oil to the mix. So, yesterday's drive ended up being very short; just a couple of hours in total. Amazing what one can come across in a short time, though.

A Wilson's Snipe was perched on a fence post, giving me yet another chance for a few photos. A Red-winged Blackbird was perched on another fence post, happily and noisily displaying its scarlet and yellow shoulder patches. Down a different road, a fluffy Tree Swallow fledgeling sat on the barbed-wire by its nesting box, all alone.

Leaving the area, ready to go home, I came across two immature Red-tailed Hawks, both perched on the same wooden beam at the top of a utility pole. Such beautiful birds.

Further on, I suddenly decided to drive up a road that I don't think I have ever driven before. What a treat I discovered - a gorgeous old barn! Absolutely made my day.

Tree Swallow / Tachycineta bicolor

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sun, 16 Jun 2019 14:08:37 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Three days ago, on 13 June 2019, I was invited to visit the acreage where friend, Jackie, now lives. The 16 photos taken there and posted yesterday afternoon are all on private land, so no location is given, for obvious security reasons. Jackie has only been there for the last few months, but is loving life in such a nature Paradise. So much wildlife and plant life, and I can't think of anyone more perfect to be living there, enjoying every new sighting and loving all the regulars. Thank you so much for inviting me, Jackie, and it was great to catch up with everyone!

Perhaps the main creature that I was really hoping I would see was the beautiful Thirteen-lined Groundsquirrel. I had seen them in Weaselhead in a couple of places, and in Waterton Lakes National Park.

Obviously, the information below is now outdated, but still of interest. Just makes me feel even luckier than ever : )

"The Thirteen-lined or Striped Ground Squirrel, if it still exists here, may be the rarest mammal in the Calgary area today...... Calgary sightings: The only known location in Calgary where this species has been sighted is in South Glenmore Park, to the northwest of the park building. It was last reported on 28 April 2002 and 6 June 2002. A population occurs near Millarville (south of Calgary), where one was reported on 17 April 2005. " From the great talkaboutwildlife website, which no longer exists.

"The thirteen-lined ground squirrel is strictly diurnal and is especially active on warm days. A solitary or only somewhat colonial hibernator, it often occurs in aggregations in suitable habitats.

In late summer, it puts on a heavy layer of fat and stores some food in its burrow. It enters its nest in October (some adults retire much earlier), rolls into a stiff ball, and decreases its respiration from between 100 and 200 breaths per minute to one breath about every five minutes. It emerges in March or early April.

The burrow may be 15 to 20 feet (4.6 to 6.1 metres) long, with several side passages. Most of the burrow is within one to two feet (about half a meter) of the surface, with only the hibernation nest in a special deeper section. Shorter burrows are dug as hiding places. This ground squirrel's home range is two to three acres (0.8 to 1.2 ha).

Its primary diet includes grass and weed seeds, caterpillars, grasshoppers, and crickets, but it may also eat mice and shrews; it will viciously attack and consume cicadas if able to catch them. This squirrel sometimes damages gardens by digging burrows and eating vegetables, but also devours weed seeds and harmful insects.

It is well known for standing upright to survey its domain, diving down into its burrow when it senses danger, then sometimes poking out its nose and giving a bird-like trill. It has a maximum running speed of 8 mph (13 km/h) and reverses direction if chased." From Wikipedia.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thirteen-lined_ground_squirrel

After visiting Jackie, I decided to drive and see if any of my regular birds were out and about. Luckily, they were, so this morning I have posted 9 shots, including Wilson's Snipe, Mountain Bluebirds, and Eastern Kingbird.

Tree Swallow / Tachycineta bicolor

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 04 Jun 2019 03:49:24 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

After at least a week of disrupted TV channels and function, Internet service was lost for a few hours this afternoon/evening, just as I was about to upload my first photo for today. Finally, service has returned, and I have now posted the remaining photos taken during the annual May Species Count on 26 May 2019. I couldn't decide which Tree Swallow photo I liked best, so I posted all four of them. Such a gorgeous bird. I only have a handful of photos left to post tomorrow, taken on a couple of very recent birding walks in the city. Not sure if i will be able to get back to sorting and editing photos from Day 8 of our trip to South Texas in March.

From 31 May 2019: Oh, my goodness, the smoke from the wildfires in northern Alberta reached us yesterday evening. I was out at a meeting and all was as usual on my drive there. When I came out later, the air reeked of smoke and visibility was poor. The Weather Network had warned that this summer would be a smoky one - again. Last summer was dreadful and not good health-wise to go out in, so I stayed home on so many days. When I woke up the next morning, my whole house smelled strongly of smoke. It always makes me think of the poor people close to any forest fire - how on earth do they breath?!

"The Air Quality Health Index in Calgary has reached 10+, or high risk, with most of the province under a special air quality alert due to smoke blowing in from wildfires in northern Alberta.

Dr. Raj Bhardwaj, a Calgary physician, says the particulate in the air on Friday has the same health effects as smoking 10-15 cigarettes a day." From CBC News.

Flickr staff seem to have solved several issues, especially in connection with views statistics. The number of views has never been accurate, we all know that, but very recently, the number of views has been out of control. Now things seem to be back to a more realistic number, thank goodness, I haven't yet tested out the issue of comments and faves, to see if all comments and all faves are acknowledged, but it looks OK so far. That would be great to know that when someone comments on an image, their comment/fave can be seen, especially after going to the trouble of writing a comment.

Posting a few more photos today taken during our May Species Count on 26 May 2019. Many of the photos posted this afternoon were taken at our first stop on the Count, which was at the Castell Ranch, SW of Calgary. This is such a rewarding and enjoyable place to be, with so many species flocking to the feeders, grounds and pond. Unfortunately, most of my shots were taken through a glass window that had netting on the outside, to prevent birds from flying into the window. We had to look from this room, in order for the birds to come down - standing outside tends to keep the birds away. On the Count last year, the same thing happened and almost all my photos were blurry. This year, I think I can manage to rescue a few of the less blurry images, sharpening them as much as I dare.

After this early morning treat, we drove a few of the back roads in the area, calling in at several acreages. Brown-Lowery Provincial Park was also one of our stops - has an outhouse (yay!) and a picnic table where we sat for our lunch. The park is not part of our Count area, but each year, we stop there for the outhouse and table and also to take a short walk into the forest to check and see if there are any Calypso Orchids in bloom. We managed to find one tiny flower in full bloom, so we were content.

Afterwards, we made one last drive to see if there was any sign of a Bobolink. One or two people have been seeing them already this spring. A couple of cyclists came by and one of them asked if we were looking for a Bobolink - he told us he had seen one just a few hours earlier in a particular place. Sure enough, with a bit of patience, we suddenly realized that there was one behind us on the far side of the road. Will post a dreadful photo of it, just for the record.

Tree Swallow / Tachycineta bicolor

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 04 Jun 2019 03:46:30 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Tree Swallow / Tachycineta bicolor

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 04 Jun 2019 03:44:49 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Tree Swallow

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 04 Jun 2019 03:39:50 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Tree Swallow male / Tachycineta bicolor

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sun, 28 Apr 2019 22:48:46 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Thought I would add a few more recent photos taken locally, before I start sorting and editing Day 5 photos from our trip to South Texas.

On 18 April 2019, I had to move my car out of the parking lot between 8:00 am and 6:00 pm, so that the lot could be cleaned (dried mud and gravel from all the months of winter). This meant I would have to find something to do for all those hours, so a drive out of the city made the most sense.

The morning started off with looking for a Mountain Bluebird or two. I saw several and was lucky enough to get a few photos of both the male and female. Though the male is much more colourful, I always think the female has her own beauty. The only other birds I saw and photographed were a Rough-legged Hawk and a Tree Swallow. The latter was giving the Bluebird pair a rough time, often going close to the Bluebird nesting box and causing the male to come in for the attack. Much as I love Tree Swallows, too, they can easily go to a nearby empty box and build their nest there. In fact, two boxes are supposed to be placed close together for this very reason.

As it was still so early in the day, the thought of an early lunch at the Saskatoon Farm came into my mind. I thought I knew the way to get there, going eastwards. However, it took me ages to find the way, as roads have two numbers/names and this is so confusing. I then remembered that this had happened to me in this area once before, ages ago. Eventually, I did get as far as the Farm, where I enjoyed their delicious quiche. A short wander round the grounds gave me a few photo opportunities, but the gardens have not yet been planted with all their flowers.

Still too early to return home, so I drove a bit further south and made a quick visit to Frank Lake. So much water around the blind and practically no birds. A number in the far distance, but a Canada Goose and a couple of Coots were the only ones near the blind. Things will get much better as time goes by. It was also very windy.

Day 2, Tree Swallow, Rondeau PP

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Fri, 12 Oct 2018 16:24:45 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Wow, there are only 8 new photos showing from My Contacts and it is already 11:15 am.. Strange. Is everyone busy or is it yet another Flickr glitch?

This morning, I have added 6 photos from our trip to Pt. Pelee, Ontario, and Tadoussac, Quebec, in May 2018. I am trying to add any images in roughly the order in which they were taken. These 6 photos were all taken at Rondeau Provincial Park on 8 May 2018, Day 2 of our amazing trip. Formed in 1894, this is Ontario’s second oldest Provincial Park. A delightful place! We were at the Visitor's Centre over lunchtime and an absolutey delicious curry soup was available. As for marking my photos on my map, I have no idea exactly where we saw what, so I will place all the Rondeau photos in one general location, mainly to show where Rondeau Provincial Park actually is - NE of Pt. Pelee, further along the coast. Also, a few of the photos may have been taken while driving to and from the park, back to our hotel in Leamington.

"Rondeau protects one of the last remaining stands of old growth Carolinian Forest in Ontario. Apart from protecting 3254 ha of Oak Savannah, Carolinian Forest, Dune habitat, and Coastal wetland, Rondeau is one of North America’s best examples of a Cuspate Sandspit. Formed by the erosion and deposition of sand and gravel, the Rondeau peninsula extends into Lake Erie, and forms a protected bay which is important habitat for a variety of species at risk as well as providing many recreational opportunities. The peninsula, combined with the open bay, attracts migrating birds throughout the spring and fall, resulting in some of the best bird watching in Ontario." From Rondeau Park website.

rondeauprovincialpark.ca/about-rondeau-park/

Four friends (four of the six friends with whom I went to Trinidad & Tobago in March 2017) and I left Calgary airport on 6 May 2018 and flew to Toronto, Ontario, Canada. There, we rented a van and did the long drive to Point Pelee for four whole days of birding. We stayed at the Best Western Hotel in Leamington, which is close to Point Pelee National Park. It fills up very quickly (with birders) and our rooms were booked many months ahead of time.

Our four days walking at Point Pelee were very interesting and I, for sure, saw various things I had never seen before, including my very first Raccoon : ) Various friends had told me that the Warblers at Pelee were fantastic - so many and numerous species, and so close. Have to disagree with the "closeness" when we were there! I don't have binoculars as cameras are enough for me to carry around, so I know I missed all sorts of birds. Though my Warbler count was lower than my friends' counts, I was happy to at least get a few distant photos of some species. So many of my shots are awful, but I will still post some of them, just for the record of seeing them. Some photos are so bad that I doubt anyone can ID them.

We covered several different trails at Pelee, and also drove to a few places somewhat further afield, such as Hillman Marsh. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the magnificent barn at this Conservation Area! I was in so much pain that I wasn't sure if I would be able to walk across a grassy area to take a few photos. However, it was so unusual and beautiful, that I reckoned I could try and move forward inch by inch - or crawl (ha, ha) if necessary. Another place we enjoyed was Rondeau National Park. One amazing and totally unexpected sighting just outside Pelee was a very distant male Snowy Owl sitting in a fieldl!!

We walked every single day that we were at Pelee and the areas mentioned above, seeing not just birds, but a frog/toad, snakes that we suspect were mating, several Painted turtles, a few plants (including both white and red Triliums, that I had never seen growing wild before, and a couple of Jack in the Pulpit plants).

The Friends of Point Pelee have food available at lunch time that one can buy. They also have a shuttle bus that one can take from the Visitor Centre all the way to the southern tip of Pelee, which is the most southern part of Canada. They have birding walks with a guide each day (there is a charge), but we walked the trails on our own, except for one morning. On 9 May, we spent the morning from 6:00 am to 11:00 am on a birding walk at Pelee with guide, Tom Hince, whom we had contacted while we were still in Calgary.

At the end of our stay at Point Pelee, we had to drive all the way back to Toronto, from where we flew to Quebec airport. From there, we had a four-hour drive to Tadoussac on the coast of the St. Lawrence Seaway. This is such a delightful, small place and in a beautiful setting. One of our friends, Anne B, and her husband have a summer cabin further along the cliff from the few stores and port. She had invited the four of us to go with her from Pelee to spend a week at her beautiful home. What an absolute treat this was! We were able to meet some of her relatives, too, who also have built cabins out there. We were looked after so well, and we were able to see and photograph all sorts of birds and other things. We made several trips to see different places, including the Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Area, where we were able to see endless thousands of Snow Geese. Breathtaking!

We also had two boat trips from Tadoussac - one was a whaling trip in a Zodiac, where we saw very, very distant Beluga and Minke Whales. The Belugas looked almost like the white wave crests - but they were Belugas. The other boat trip was to the Brandy Pot Islands, inhabited by thousands of Razorbills and Common Murres, which were new birds for us, and Double-crested Cormorants that were nesting in tree tops. That long boat trip (in a tiny boat named Juno) started off in the rain and dark clouds and it was soooo cold! Thermal underwear, layers of fleece and toque and gloves were needed. This day was arranged through a contact of Anne's and it was so much enjoyed! Of course, we anchored a distance away from the island and sat there and ate our sandwiches and took endless photos. It is forbidden to land on the island at nesting time.

Anne, I can't thank you enough for organizing this holiday for us all and for inviting us to spend a week at your cabin. You worked so hard and it was so much appreciated by each and every one of us. Thank you for doing all the many hours of driving, too! Janet and Anne, thank you so much for compiling the lists of birds seen each day at various locations, and posted to ebird. These entries will be a huge help while I try and sort out where we were and when, and what species we saw. Miss your cookies and muffins, Janet, that you kindly made for us in Tadoussac, to go along with the wonderful meals that Anne planned and made for us : )

The beauty of iridescence

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sat, 26 May 2018 12:34:00 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Thought I would add a few photos this morning that were taken yesterday, 25 May 2018, SW of the city. Exactly why did I position the Tree Swallow right in the centre of the shot, with no room to crop to a much better composition? No idea, other than that the little focus rectangle was in the centre of my viewfinder, lol! Annoyed with myself when I do this. Anyway, this male Tree Swallow was looking so beautiful in the sunshine yesterday, when I was out for the day with my daughter, to celebrate yet another birthday for me. I always look forward to a day like this - my favourite way to spend a day! I hope she enjoyed it as much as I did. It was the first time she had been out in a car since her surgery in something like five weeks, so she wasn't too sure how well she would do. Apart from a meeting I went to the evening before, it was the first time I had been out anywhere since getting back from my Pt Pelee trip a week ago, so I wasn't too sure how well I would do, too. Fortunately, the severe pain I have had the last few weeks due to inflamed shoulder rotator cuffs (again) and painful kneecaps being pulled out of place, that flared up just in time for my two-weeks away, is gradually improving, and all went just fine yesterday. Just glad that we saw Mountain Bluebirds, too.

Our day started with breakfast at the Saskatoon Farm followed by wandering the grounds, taking photos, which we both love to do. Then we called in at the garden nursery, "Spruce it up" I think it's called. From there, we drove westwards till we reached a favourite area, finding Mountain Bluebirds and Tree Swallows, but no sign of any kind of owl. Not too surprising, as it was afternoon by then. Not even a Wilson's Snipe perched on a fence post.

Up early this morning, as I made a last-minute decision to at least try a bit of the annual May Species Count walk in the city today. Very overcast and windy - where is the sun? Tomorrow's Count is driving (carpooling) out of the city in one of my favourite areas.

Tree Swallow, Pt Pelee, Ontario

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Thu, 24 May 2018 15:03:09 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

I cropped a bit off the bottom of this photo, but it is an example of what my Nikon B700 does. I compose an image (always using the viewfinder), press the shutter button to focus, then click. On this trip, so many photos taken with this camera suddenly jumped upward, down, or to one side, often cutting off part of the bird or other object. I was lucky that the Swallow's head was not cut off. Part way through our holiday, I just gave up using this camera - and will have to go back to the store (yet again!). I ended up taking three cameras with me on this holiday, but only carried two at any given time. I was shocked to discover that the brand new replacement Panasonic FZ1000 that I received just a few days before we left home, was doing exactly the same thing as the previous one - jumping over some photos when viewing images in Playback. I didn't have a chance to try out the camera before leaving, as I was so busy packing, etc.. How I would love just one camera that works properly so that I would only need to carry one camera anywhere! My old FZ200 is still my most used camera, but it only has a 24x optical zoom, which just isn't enough.

Four friends (four of the six friends with whom I went to Trinidad & Tobago in March 2017) and I left Calgary airport on 6 May 2018 and flew to Toronto, Ontario, Canada. There, we rented a van and did the long drive to Point Pelee for four whole days of birding. We stayed at the Best Western Hotel in Leamington, which is close to Point Pelee National Park. It fills up very quickly (with birders) and our rooms were booked months ago.

Our four days walking at Point Pelee were interesting and I, for sure, saw various things I had never seen before, including my very first Raccoon : ) Various friends had told me that the Warblers at Pelee were fantastic - so many and numerous species, and so close. Have to disagree with the "closeness" when we were there! I don't have binoculars as cameras are enough for me to carry around, so I know I missed all sorts of birds. Though my Warbler count was lower than my friends' counts, I was happy to at least get a few distant photos of some species. So many of my shots are awful, but I will still post some of them, just for the record of seeing them. Some photos are so bad that I doubt anyone can ID them.

We covered several different trails at Pelee, and also drove to a few places somewhat further afield, such as Hillman Marsh. If you are unfamiliar with this Conservation Area, just wait till you see a photo of the old barn that was there. I couldn't believe my eyes! I was in so much pain that I wasn't sure if I would be able to walk across a grassy area to take a few photos. However, it was so unusual and beautiful, that I reckoned I could try and move forward inch by inch - and crawl (ha, ha) if necessary. Another place we enjoyed was Rondeau National Park. One amazing and totally unexpected sighting just outside Pelee was a very distant male Snowy Owl sitting in a fieldl!!

We walked every single day that we were at Pelee and the areas mentioned above, seeing not just birds, but a frog/toad, snakes that we suspect were mating, several Painted turtles, a few plants (including both white and red Triliums, that I had never seen growing wild before, and a couple of Jack in the Pulpit plants).

The Friends of Point Pelee have food available at lunch time that one can buy. They also have a shuttle bus that one can take from the Visitor Centre all the way to the southern tip of Pelee, which is the most southern part of Canada. They also have birding walks with a guide each day (there is a charge). On 9 May, we spent the morning from 6:00 am to 11:00 am on a birding walk at Pelee with guide, Tom Hince, whom we had contacted while we were still in Calgary.

At the end of our stay at Point Pelee, we had to drive all the way back to Toronto, from where we flew to Quebec airport. From there, we had a four-hour drive to Tadoussac on the coast of the St. Lawrence Seaway. This is such a delightful, small place and in a beautiful setting. One of our friends, Anne B, and her husband have a summer cabin further along the cliff from the few stores and port. She had invited the four of us to go with her from Pelee to spend a week at her beautiful home. What an absolute treat this was! We were able to meet some of her relatives, too, who also have built cabins out there. We were looked after so well, and we were able to see and photograph all sorts of birds and other things. We made several trips to see different places, including the Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Area, where we were able to see endless thousands of Snow Geese. Breathtaking!

We also had two boat trips from Tadoussac - one was a whaling trip, where we saw very, very distant Beluga and Minke Whales. The Belugas looked almost like the white wave crests - but they were Belugas. The other boat trip was to Brandy Pot Island, inhabited by thousands of Razorbills and Common Murres, which were new birds for me, and Double-crested Cormorants that were nesting in tree tops. That long boat trip (in a tiny boat named Juno, piloted by Greg) started off in the rain and dark clouds and it was soooo cold! Thermal underwear, layers of fleece and toque and gloves were needed. This day was arranged through a contact of Anne's and it was so much enjoyed! Of course, we anchored a distance away from the island and sat there and ate our sandwiches and took endless photos. It is forbidden to land on the island at nesting time.

Think I had better stop typing! As I add more photos, I can add bits of extra information. We only arrived home fairly early evening on 19 May. Still so tired, especially as I was up at any time from 4:45 am to 6:00 am each morning, many hours earlier than I usually get up, being such a dreadful night owl!

Anne B, I can't thank you enough for organizing this holiday for us all and for inviting us to spend a week at your cabin. You worked so hard and it was so much appreciated by each and every one of us. Thank you for doing all the many hours of driving, too! Janet and Anne, thank you so much for compiling the lists of birds seen each day at various locations, and posted to ebird. These entries will be a huge help while I try and sort out where we were and when, and what species we saw. Miss your cookies and muffins, Janet, that you kindly made for us in Tadoussac, to go along with the wonderful meals that Anne planned and made for us : )

Tree Swallow male

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Mon, 30 Apr 2018 17:00:24 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Back to local birds, but also back to the archives. It was a case of either post no photos this morning or quickly grab three from my archives. Still taking no new photos and still missing all the new bird arrivals back to the city and surroundings, which is so frustrating and disappointing. Soon, that will change, and I will be so thankful.

I recently discovered that I had not posted any photos from the folder of photos taken on 2 June 2017. Nothing too special and mainly Mountain Bluebirds. This was just a short drive to see if I could see any Bluebirds and, usually, where there are Bluebirds, there are also Tree Swallows, competing for the nest boxes. I love to see the Tree Swallows, too, and they look so gorgeous when the sun brings out the iridescence of their feathers.

Don Stiles' Bluebird & Tree Swallow route

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Fri, 30 Jun 2017 16:13:16 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

This weekend is Canada's 150th birthday! Canada Day is tomorrow, 1 July 2017. Happy Birthday, Canada!!! Such a great country to live in and I am so thankful to be here and to have spent the last 39 years in Alberta. There will be celebrations all over the place and lots of people on the roads. Please drive carefully, everyone!

Yesterday evening, 29 June 2017, a rather large group of us met at 6:30 pm and went SW of the city with Don Stiles, who has been a dedicated Mountain Bluebird Monitor for something like 38 years! It was around 10:00 pm when I finally arrived home.

I'm adding a link to a CTV News article from 12 August 2015, about Don and his son, Andrew. Also a link to Andrew's birdhouse-building blog. Two great guys : )

calgary.ctvnews.ca/calgary-birdman-proves-conservation-is...

calgarybirdman.blogspot.ca/

andychurch.org/bird-men-stiles-helping-save-mountain-blue...

andrewstilescalgary.blogspot.ca/

This drive is an annual trip along Don’s Bluebird Route. We get the chance to see Mountain Bluebirds, Tree Swallows and Wrens nesting in various wooden nesting boxes along the country roads. Some boxes have eggs in the nest, others have tiny babies all packed tightly together. I managed to get a photo of a Bluebird nest with eggs in it, but, with so many people, it wasn't easy to see the various other boxes and get photos. I have seen them before on several other trips and have photos in my Mountain Bluebird album. This photo shows Don holding a Tree Swallow that he had banded.

Along the route, we saw a few other bird species, including beautiful American Goldfinches - one pair was hanging out on a fence down the road with a family of Bluebirds. I don't often see baby Bluebirds, so it was fun to see several in this family. The bright yellow of the male Goldfinch was so pretty with the spectacular blue of the male Bluebird. We also saw a Wilson's Snipe perched on a tall crag, a very distant Baltimore Oriole, Cedar Waxwings, to name just a few.

Many thanks, as always, Don, for letting us come along with you. It is an evening I look forward to every year, and I could tell how much everyone enjoyed themselves.

Tree Swallow female

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 20 Jun 2017 17:50:09 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Late yesterday afternoon, I just needed to get out for a short while and so drove my usual short route SW of the city. As so often happens when I go in that direction, even though the weather forecast was good, the dark clouds blew in and the light became too poor to take photos. A few photos did come out OK, including this one of a female Tree Swallow, but after a few photos of the usual birds - Mountain Bluebirds, Snipe and Tree Swallow, I left for home.

"Handsome aerialists with deep-blue iridescent backs and clean white fronts, Tree Swallows are a familiar sight in summer fields and wetlands across northern North America. They chase after flying insects with acrobatic twists and turns, their steely blue-green feathers flashing in the sunlight. Tree Swallows nest in tree cavities; they also readily take up residence in nest boxes. This habit has allowed scientists to study their breeding biology in detail, and makes them a great addition to many a homeowner’s yard or field." From AllABoutBirds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Tree_Swallow/id

Tree Swallows - time to change places

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Mon, 19 Jun 2017 14:53:11 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

This bird house was on the tree right outside a friend's seasonal trailer. Five of us went east of the city for the day, on 17 June 2017, to visit our friend, Shirley. This pair of Tree Swallows was busy taking turns to fly off or return to the nest. Each time, the exchange was rapid.

Most of our birding was done at and near Shirley's seasonal trailer site, including seeing a wonderful owl family, two Killdeer and their nests, a Baltimore Oriole, and (finally!) a pair of Brown Thrashers. I had hoped for several years to see one of these birds, so it was a real treat to see a 'lifer'. It was far away and so high up, but I managed to get a couple of shots just for the record.

As we were walking around the grounds, two ladies stopped us and showed us some baby birds that they had had to remove from the engine of their vehicle. They wondered if we knew what kind of birds they were, but we were unable to help. I posted a photo of them yesterday morning, just in case someone can ID them. The ladies had a bird house that they were going to put the babies into, hoping that the parents would hear them calling and be able to continue feeding them.

Thank you so much, Shirley, for inviting us all out to visit you while you were there for the weekend! It was such a pleasure to see some of "your" birds that you enjoy so much. Such a great variety of species! Wow, what a lunch we had, sitting at a table under the Tree Swallow tree, with a very vocal American Robin just a few feet away. How DO birds manage to sing non-stop?! Hot chili made by Shirley, and a whole array of delicious salads and desserts left me feeling full till the early evening.

Many thanks, Anne B, for picking up three of us and for driving us east across the prairies. Hugely appreciated!

The innocents

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 13 Jun 2017 17:28:47 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

I'm not sure that the female Tree Swallow (on the right) looks 'innocent', but both were equally guilty of harassing the nesting pair of Mountain Bluebirds with a box on the next fence post. Who knows why they do this, especially when the Bluebirds have been nesting for some time already. The male Bluebird had to fly in to attack several times while I was there.

There is always so much competition between these two species when nesting season arrives. Two nest boxes are supposed to be placed a certain distance from each other, but fairly close, to give both species a chance. I enjoy photographing both species. The male Tree Swallows are glorious when the sun brings out their iridescence.

Yesterday afternoon, 12 June 2017, on the spur of the moment, I went for a short drive SW of the city. The sun was shining, but unfortunately it was windy most of the time. My main purpose was to check on a few of the Mountain Bluebirds, who are now busy as can be, collecting insects to feed to their hungry babies. I know this will soon be over and the young ones will have fledged, so I really must make myself visit them again, or it will be too late.

I had also hoped that maybe one of the Great Gray Owls in the area might just be out hunting. No luck this time. Makes me even more grateful to have seen one during our May Species Count on 28 May 2017.

Such an elegant bird

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Mon, 20 Jun 2016 17:13:53 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Well, hello, SUMMER! It has felt like summer here for so many weeks already, but now summer has really arrived today, 20 June 2016.

It was the annual May Species Count on the weekend of 28 and 29 May 2016. My group's Saturday Count was down in Fish Creek Provincial Park, Votier's Flats and Shaw's Meadow. On the Sunday, our usual small group (six of us in two cars) covered an area SW of the city - which happens to be one of my favourite and most visited areas. We had a great day, stopping at a few wetlands and calling in at Barb Castell's acreage where she usually has amazing birds to show us. Several special species were missing, but we were delighted to watch a teeny Ruby-throated Hummingbird. We were also happy to see seven Rose-breasted Grosbeaks elsewhere during the day.

We stopped at Brown-Lowery Provincial Park and ate our picnic lunches and then did a short walk to look for Calypso Orchids. I took too long to try (in vain) and get a sharp photo of a little group of fungi, that I missed the orchids, but that's OK, as I have seen them plenty of times before.

After the Count came to an end, I drove a few of the back roads again, taking a few more shots of the Wilson's Snipe - a favourite of mine - and this beautiful Tree Swallow.

“Handsome aerialists with deep-blue iridescent backs and clean white fronts, Tree Swallows are a familiar sight in summer fields and wetlands across northern North America. They chase after flying insects with acrobatic twists and turns, their steely blue-green feathers flashing in the sunlight. Tree Swallows nest in tree cavities; they also readily take up residence in nest boxes. This habit has allowed scientists to study their breeding biology in detail, and makes them a great addition to many a homeowner’s yard or field.” From AllABout Birds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Tree_Swallow/id

I will add the final list from our leader, Gus Y - 70 bird species seen, wow!

"The count goes May 28-29: Calgary birders have been out in force every May since 1979, contributing to a broad census of the constantly changing patterns of bird distributions in North America. Last year (2015) we found 212 species. The count circle is the same as previous years, extending from Olds to Nanton, and from Exshaw to Standard, and includes a variety of environments." From NatureCalgary.

"May species count, Terr. #22, Priddis Area: Plummers Rd, from Hwy 22 to #762, SW of Calgary, 0730-1530, Sun. 29May2016. 58 km. Mostly sunny, becoming overcast at noon, S wind, becoming gusty, 10 -20 kph. 13-18°C.

Canada Goose-45
Gadwall-2
American Wigeon-6
Mallard-29.
Blue-winged Teal-16
Cinnamon Teal-8
Northern Shoveler-3
Green-winged Teal-4
Redhead-6
Ring-necked Duck-12
Lesser Scaup-29
Bufflehead-5
Hooded Merganser-1 f.
Ruddy Duck-11
Ring-necked Pheasant-3
Great Blue Heron-1
Swainson’s Hawk-2
Red-tailed Hawk-6
American Kestrel-2
Sora-6
American Coot-10
Killdeer-5
Spotted Sandpiper-8
Wilson’s Snipe-10
Wilson’s Phalarope-4
Black Tern-22
Mourning Dove-1
Ruby-throated Hummingbird-1
Red-naped Sapsucker-1
Black-backed Woodpecker-2
Northern Flicker-3
Western Wood-Pewee-5
Least Flycatcher-6
Easterm Phoebe-1
Easterm Kingbird-1
Gray Jay-2
Clark’s Nutcracker-1
Black-billed Magpie-6
American Crow-4
Common Raven-5
Tree Swallow-86
Cliff Swallow-6
Barn Swallow-2
Black-capped Chickadee-3
Mountain Chickadee-1
Boreal Chickadee-2
Red-breasted Nuthatch-2
House Wren-9
Mountain Bluebird-29
American Robin-13
Gray Catbird-2
European Starling-8
Tennessee Warbler-11
Yellow Warbler-6
Cape May Warbler-1
Chipping Sparrow-8
Clay-coloured Sparrow-13
Savannah Sparrow-4
Song Sparrow-1
Lincoln’s Sparrow-4
White-throated Sparrow-1
Rose-breasted Grosbeak-7
Black-headed Grosbeak-1, or hybrid.
Red-winged Blackbird-178
Western Meadowlark-2
Yellow-headed Blackbird-2
Brewer’s Blackbird-7
Brown-headed Cowbird-6
Baltimore Oriole-4
American Goldfinch-5
Richardson’s Ground Squirrel-11

Muskrat-1
Mule Deer-1
White-tailed Deer-4
Boreal Chorus Frog-10+
Green Comma Butterfly-2
Western White-1
Tiger Swallowtail-2

Gus Yaki"

Tree Swallow female

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Fri, 03 Jun 2016 11:23:32 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

Most of the Tree Swallows that I see, and certainly photograph, are males. Happened to photograph this female recently and thought it was more than time to add this beautiful lady to my photostream. Females are duller with more brown in their upperparts than the males.

This photo was taken on 24 May 2016, when I went for just a short drive SW of the city. After a couple of days of rain, the sun came out and I reckoned I had better make the most of it. On the way, I called in at a wetland in SW Calgary and was glad to see the Red-necked Grebe. Just drove my usual back roads, seeing some of the usual birds - Mountain Bluebirds, Wilson's Snipe, Red-winged Blackbirds and Tree Swallows.

“Handsome aerialists with deep-blue iridescent backs and clean white fronts, Tree Swallows are a familiar sight in summer fields and wetlands across northern North America. They chase after flying insects with acrobatic twists and turns, their steely blue-green feathers flashing in the sunlight. Tree Swallows nest in tree cavities; they also readily take up residence in nest boxes. This habit has allowed scientists to study their breeding biology in detail, and makes them a great addition to many a homeowner’s yard or field.” From AllABout Birds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Tree_Swallow/id

02 Tree Swallow trio

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Thu, 26 May 2016 17:39:15 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

About a month ago, on 24 April 2016, I was out for the day, SE of Calgary around Frank Lake. Finally, after so much glorious, summer-like spring weather, the weather changed for the worse and we had a cool (needed gloves), very overcast day, with light drizzle some of the time. Not good at all for taking photos. We also had a fair bit of desperately needed rain that night. I was especially disappointed with the shots I took of a beautiful Western Meadowlark. Usually, they fly even when they see you in the far distance, but this beauty let me slowly walk quite close to get a number of (very grainy) photos. The quality is awful, but I don't get a chance to photograph Meadowlarks very often.

Eight friends and I had a great day, despite the weather. This is one of my favourite areas and I just haven't been getting time to drive there myself for quite a long time. We started off at the main gate and drove to the blind/hide area, stopping half way to search for very distant birds. While everyone else had their binoculars pointed over the water, I was slowly walking towards the Meadowlark, who was singing its beautiful song. You can hear them and they sound so close, but their song seems to carry a long way. It kept flying away but each time returned to the same post. I was amazed and delighted that this one let me get so close. If the sun had been shining, it would have been perfect!

As usual when we go to Frank Lake, almost all the birds are very distant and pretty impossible to photograph. I did catch a male Red-winged Blackbird perched on a sign - the females had not yet returned here. The other amazing thing was when we had walked from the Frank Lake bird blind over to the water in the other direction, a flock of about 50 Tree Swallows were flying to and from a low tree/shrub, catching the many insects while in flight. Again, while everyone was searching over the water, I gradually made my way to within just a few feet of the bush. Quite a feeling to have so many Tree Swallows circling all the way around you. I have never ever seen so many of them acting like this, so it was a neat experience. Also saw several American Avocets and Black-necked Stilts that were reasonably close.

From this main area, we called in at the usual three other places around the lake. Two were rough roads that led to Basin 2 from the east and the west, and the third was the Ducks Unlimited location at the far southern edge of the lake, at Basin 3.

Thanks so much for a great day, Tony, and for the ride all day. I always look forward to the Frank Lake trips.

"Handsome aerialists with deep-blue iridescent backs and clean white fronts, Tree Swallows are a familiar sight in summer fields and wetlands across northern North America. They chase after flying insects with acrobatic twists and turns, their steely blue-green feathers flashing in the sunlight. Tree Swallows nest in tree cavities; they also readily take up residence in nest boxes. This habit has allowed scientists to study their breeding biology in detail, and makes them a great addition to many a homeowner’s yard or field." From allaboutbirds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/tree_swallow/id

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tree_Swallow

I will add our leader, Tony Timmons' list of species seen, adding that only 6 people walked as far as the Hudsonian Godwits - I was not one of them.

"Nine people were on the trip today to Frank Lake. Expected species were present in pretty fair numbers, with the best sighting being 15 Hudsonian Godwits at Basin 3.

A flock of 50 Tree Swallows hacking insects and using a small bush for a perch, made for an interesting scene.

We had 56 species for the trip

Horned Grebe
Eared Grebe
Western Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Great Blue Heron
White-faced Ibis (1 seen by Dan P.)
Canada Goose
Trumpeter Swan
Tundra Swan
Gadwall
American Wigeon
Mallard
Blue-winged Teal
Cinnamon Teal
Green-winged Teal
Northern Shoveler
Northern Pintail
Canvasback
Redhead
Ring-necked Duck
Lesser Scaup
Bufflehead
Common Goldeneye
Ruddy Duck
Northern Harrier
Swainson's Hawk
Red-tailed Hawk
Gray Partridge
American Coot
Killdeer
Black-necked Stilt
American Avocet
Lesser Yellowlegs
Willet
Hudsonian Godwit
Wilson's Snipe
Franklin's Gull
Bonaparte's Gull
California Gull
Rock Pigeon
Mourning Dove
Great Horned Owl
Black-billed Magpie
American Crow
Common Raven
Tree Swallow
Marsh Wren
American Robin
European Starling
Song Sparrow
Dark-eyed Junco
Red-winged Blackbird
Yellow-headed Blackbird
Western Meadowlark
Brewer's Blackbird
House Sparrow"

Puffed up Tree Swallow

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Tue, 24 May 2016 15:42:29 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

This was a Tree Swallow seen where I often take photos of Mountain Bluebirds, SW of Calgary. Taken on a cold, rainy day, on 21 May 2016, after I had spent the morning with a group of friends at Barb Castell's acreage. It had been arraged for us to visit to see birds such as Evening Grosbeaks, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Baltimore Orioles, and three species of Hummingbird. However, I guess they just didn't like the weather any more than we did and were keeping hidden and sheltered somewhere. We did still see a Tree Swallow, Mountain Bluebird, Sapsucker, etc., but not the less commonly seen birds. It was an early start to the day, too, as I had to leave the house at 7:00 am.

After spending time at Barb's place, we stopped at several sloughs to check on birds, and then we went our various ways. There were a few places I wanted to check out, plus a brief stop at Brown-Lowery Provincial Park (the best place because it has an outhouse). When I was there, I thought I might as well at least take a few steps down the rough path, where I was happy to find a group of tiny mushrooms. Also bumped into a fellow birder, who spotted a Cape May Warbler on top of the tallest coniferous tree. I had never seen one before and must remember to see if I can brighten the very distant, black silhouette in a photo I took.

From Brown-Lowery, I called in again at a favourite slough to look for the Wilson's Snipes that I love to photograph and found a couple of them. Also found a pair of Mountain Bluebirds that were so cooperative. They were busy collecting strands of dried grasses to line their nesting box. Quite amusing to watch the male try to handle one piece that was too long.

Normally, when the weather is very overcast and raining, I stay home : ) I was amazed that some of my photos came out reasonably well, at least when seen at this size, despite the low light. The day after this, on 22 May 2016, it was the same kind of weather. The day was spent with my daughter (as an early birthday for me), but we were mainly in the car and not outside in the rain. Some photos came out OK and others were blurry - just thankful for the ones that came out well enough. We had a lovely day together, starting with a late breakfast at the Saskatoon Farm and then driving some of the back roads SW of Calgary. Thanks so much, Rachel!

Perched in the sun

nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) — Sun, 15 May 2016 12:44:16 +0000

Anne Elliott has posted:

All three photos posted this morning were taken yesterday, 14 May 2016, when I went on a morning walk with birding friends. We met at the Boat Launch in Fish Creek Park and walked in the Sikome and Lafarge Meadows areas. This included checking on the usual Great Horned Owl family - all four members were way up high in the trees, more or less hidden from view. Later today, I will add the list of bird species seen.

After this walk, I drove a short distance to see a different family of Great Horned Owls, presumably the same pair of adults that we had seen last year, nesting near the Bow Valley Ranch. Amazingly, this pair had four - yes, four! - owlets this time. Somewhat better views than of the first family, at least for the short time I was there.

Stopped long enough to take a photo of this iridescent Tree Swallow during our walk. There are so many of these birds everywhere at the moment, and plenty of swarming insects for them to feed on.

"Handsome aerialists with deep-blue iridescent backs and clean white fronts, Tree Swallows are a familiar sight in summer fields and wetlands across northern North America. They chase after flying insects with acrobatic twists and turns, their steely blue-green feathers flashing in the sunlight. Tree Swallows nest in tree cavities; they also readily take up residence in nest boxes. This habit has allowed scientists to study their breeding biology in detail, and makes them a great addition to many a homeowner’s yard or field." From AllAboutBirds.

www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Tree_Swallow/id

Bird list from our leader, Melanie S.:

Fish Creek PP--Boat Launch, Calgary, Alberta, CA
14-May-2016 9:00 AM - 12:10 PM
Protocol: Traveling
3.5 kilometer(s)
Comments: 10 to 15 deg C. Sunny. Nature Calgary field trip, leader Melanie Seneviratne.
46 species (+1 other taxa)

Canada Goose 24
Gadwall 8
American Wigeon 10
Mallard 22
Blue-winged Teal 4
Northern Shoveler 1
Canvasback 1
Redhead 7
Lesser Scaup 6
Common Goldeneye 2
Common Merganser 2
Pied-billed Grebe 1
Double-crested Cormorant 4
American White Pelican 5
Great Blue Heron 1
Osprey 4
Northern Goshawk 1 Flew over car park as we were leaving.
Swainson's Hawk 4
American Coot 4
Spotted Sandpiper 4
Wilson's Snipe 1
Franklin's Gull 3
California Gull 1
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) 2
Great Horned Owl 4 2 adult 2 juveniles
Downy Woodpecker 1
Northern Flicker 2
Northern Flicker (Red-shafted) 1
Pileated Woodpecker 1
Black-billed Magpie 2
American Crow 2
Common Raven 5
Tree Swallow 250
Barn Swallow 1
Cliff Swallow 20
Black-capped Chickadee 1
White-breasted Nuthatch 1
American Robin 12
European Starling 10
Clay-colored Sparrow 2
White-crowned Sparrow 1
Savannah Sparrow 3
Song Sparrow 1
Red-winged Blackbird 30
Yellow-headed Blackbird 6
Brewer's Blackbird 1
Brown-headed Cowbird 5