https://www.ipernity.com/tag/293827/keyword/11709 https://cdn.ipernity.com/p/101/C3/7B/293827.buddy.jpg https://www.ipernity.com/tag/293827/keyword/11709 Thu, 28 May 2026 10:33:58 +0000 Thu, 28 May 2026 10:33:58 +0000 https://www.ipernity.com https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/50870584 tag:ipernity.com,2019-10-01,doc-50870584 Tue, 01 Oct 2019 16:04:01 +0000 2019-09-12T15:29:53-06:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/50870584"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/05/84/50870584.63f71706.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">I finally got as far as the Calgary Zoo, on 12 September 2019. The last time I was there was on 26 June 2018 and the time before that had been 6 October 2015. I used to go several times a year, but the long gap from 2015 to 2018 was because of major road construction and a bridge replacement right by the Zoo. Anyway, it felt good to be back there a few weeks ago. .<br /> <br /> My visit only covered a small area of the Zoo, as I usually spend a lot of time in the Conservatory, enjoying the plants and tropical butterflies. I did call in to see the Giant Pandas one last time before they leave the Zoo after their five-year visit. How lucky we have been to have these four amazing animals visit our Zoo. They were in an inside enclosure, full of plants - and Bamboo, of course. The Zoo had another Panda visit way back in 1988, but they only stayed for seven months. The Conservation Status of the Giant Panda is Vulnerable, with fewer than 1,800 giant pandas left in the wild.<br /> <br /> A few hours well spent, happily clicking. Hopefully, it won't be so long before my next visit, though the west entrance does close each winter, and the north entrance is out of my driving comfort zone. It felt so good to once again be back in a place full of colour and interest. It also feels good to have some colourful photos to post this morning, following our three-day snow storm. I reckoned there must have been about 10 inches of snow on top of my fence and, sure enough, 10.6 inches (27 cm) of snow was recorded. Further south, in Waterton, they received 37.4 inches (95 cm) of the white stuff. No more snow in the forecast for the next little while, and the sun is shining today. Unfortunately, my computer is just about out of room, so a massive back-up of photo files and a lot of deleting from my hard drive is what is urgently needed.</div> Garden flower <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/50870584"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/05/84/50870584.63f71706.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">I finally got as far as the Calgary Zoo, on 12 September 2019. The last time I was there was on 26 June 2018 and the time before that had been 6 October 2015. I used to go several times a year, but the long gap from 2015 to 2018 was because of major road construction and a bridge replacement right by the Zoo. Anyway, it felt good to be back there a few weeks ago. .<br /> <br /> My visit only covered a small area of the Zoo, as I usually spend a lot of time in the Conservatory, enjoying the plants and tropical butterflies. I did call in to see the Giant Pandas one last time before they leave the Zoo after their five-year visit. How lucky we have been to have these four amazing animals visit our Zoo. They were in an inside enclosure, full of plants - and Bamboo, of course. The Zoo had another Panda visit way back in 1988, but they only stayed for seven months. The Conservation Status of the Giant Panda is Vulnerable, with fewer than 1,800 giant pandas left in the wild.<br /> <br /> A few hours well spent, happily clicking. Hopefully, it won't be so long before my next visit, though the west entrance does close each winter, and the north entrance is out of my driving comfort zone. It felt so good to once again be back in a place full of colour and interest. It also feels good to have some colourful photos to post this morning, following our three-day snow storm. I reckoned there must have been about 10 inches of snow on top of my fence and, sure enough, 10.6 inches (27 cm) of snow was recorded. Further south, in Waterton, they received 37.4 inches (95 cm) of the white stuff. No more snow in the forecast for the next little while, and the sun is shining today. Unfortunately, my computer is just about out of room, so a massive back-up of photo files and a lot of deleting from my hard drive is what is urgently needed.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/50870578 tag:ipernity.com,2019-10-01,doc-50870578 Tue, 01 Oct 2019 16:01:53 +0000 2019-09-12T12:40:17-06:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/50870578"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/05/78/50870578.ece39906.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">I finally got as far as the Calgary Zoo, on 12 September 2019. The last time I was there was on 26 June 2018 and the time before that had been 6 October 2015. I used to go several times a year, but the long gap from 2015 to 2018 was because of major road construction and a bridge replacement right by the Zoo. Anyway, it felt good to be back there a few weeks ago. .<br /> <br /> My visit only covered a small area of the Zoo, as I usually spend a lot of time in the Conservatory, enjoying the plants and tropical butterflies. I did call in to see the Giant Pandas one last time before they leave the Zoo after their five-year visit. How lucky we have been to have these four amazing animals visit our Zoo. They were in an inside enclosure, full of plants - and Bamboo, of course. The Zoo had another Panda visit way back in 1988, but they only stayed for seven months. The Conservation Status of the Giant Panda is Vulnerable, with fewer than 1,800 giant pandas left in the wild.<br /> <br /> A few hours well spent, happily clicking. Hopefully, it won't be so long before my next visit, though the west entrance does close each winter, and the north entrance is out of my driving comfort zone. It felt so good to once again be back in a place full of colour and interest. It also feels good to have some colourful photos to post this morning, following our three-day snow storm. I reckoned there must have been about 10 inches of snow on top of my fence and, sure enough, 10.6 inches (27 cm) of snow was recorded. Further south, in Waterton, they received 37.4 inches (95 cm) of the white stuff. No more snow in the forecast for the next little while, and the sun is shining today. Unfortunately, my computer is just about out of room, so a massive back-up of photo files and a lot of deleting from my hard drive is what is urgently needed.</div> Conservatory, Calgary Zoo <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/50870578"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/05/78/50870578.ece39906.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">I finally got as far as the Calgary Zoo, on 12 September 2019. The last time I was there was on 26 June 2018 and the time before that had been 6 October 2015. I used to go several times a year, but the long gap from 2015 to 2018 was because of major road construction and a bridge replacement right by the Zoo. Anyway, it felt good to be back there a few weeks ago. .<br /> <br /> My visit only covered a small area of the Zoo, as I usually spend a lot of time in the Conservatory, enjoying the plants and tropical butterflies. I did call in to see the Giant Pandas one last time before they leave the Zoo after their five-year visit. How lucky we have been to have these four amazing animals visit our Zoo. They were in an inside enclosure, full of plants - and Bamboo, of course. The Zoo had another Panda visit way back in 1988, but they only stayed for seven months. The Conservation Status of the Giant Panda is Vulnerable, with fewer than 1,800 giant pandas left in the wild.<br /> <br /> A few hours well spent, happily clicking. Hopefully, it won't be so long before my next visit, though the west entrance does close each winter, and the north entrance is out of my driving comfort zone. It felt so good to once again be back in a place full of colour and interest. It also feels good to have some colourful photos to post this morning, following our three-day snow storm. I reckoned there must have been about 10 inches of snow on top of my fence and, sure enough, 10.6 inches (27 cm) of snow was recorded. Further south, in Waterton, they received 37.4 inches (95 cm) of the white stuff. No more snow in the forecast for the next little while, and the sun is shining today. Unfortunately, my computer is just about out of room, so a massive back-up of photo files and a lot of deleting from my hard drive is what is urgently needed.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/50559954 tag:ipernity.com,2019-08-23,doc-50559954 Fri, 23 Aug 2019 17:22:18 +0000 2019-08-18T10:31:00-07:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/50559954"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/99/54/50559954.736d9187.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Another 7 photos, taken at Akesi Farms on 18 August 2019, have been added this morning.<br /> <br /> Five days ago, on 18 August 2019, I was fortunate enough to make a return visit to a wonderful farm, NW of the city. I left home a few minutes before 8:00 am and arrived back home at 8:00 pm, feeling totally tired out. This was partly because I had only had a couple of hours' sleep the night before, and because it took me two hours to get to the farm. This was the first time I had ever driven myself there, as we had carpooled on the previous two visits. To say the least, I was not at all impressed to see the Maintenance light on my car dashboard come on before I had even left Calgary! Have an appointment this afternoon, to see to the matter. After leaving the farm, I took some new back roads that had been recommended to me while I was at the farm; roads that I had never driven before. Beautiful scenery, and I discovered a rather nice old log cabin and two or three old rusty vehicles, including a beautiful big, blue bus. I am SO happy that I made myself do both drives. I had to do it, as this is an amazing farm, and I couldn't bear the thought of not visiting again.<br /> <br /> This 53 acre farm, Akesi Farms, is a 90 minute drive from downtown Calgary and is near the town of Sundre. It belongs to Meghan Vesey and Kwesi Haizel. It is permaculture based with future crops of eggs, mushrooms, fruits and nuts! Hard to believe that this beautiful place has only belonged to this young, hardworking, enthusiastic couple since November 2014. A tremendous amount of work, thought and planning has already gone into adding to what was already there, with a 'little' help from family and friends.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.akesifarms.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.akesifarms.com/</a><br /> <br /> Below is the link to a video about Meghan and Kwesi and the farm, by The Redneck Gourmet Show, 23 March 2017. The video was taken in winter - in summer, the farm is a mass of colour!<br /> <br /> <a href="https://youtu.be/Tih5H5uMDNE" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">youtu.be/Tih5H5uMDNE</a><br /> <br /> Our visit coincided with Alberta Open Farms weekend, where about 100 farms were open to the public. Our Naturalist leader had arranged to take anyone interested in nature on a nature walk, at 10:00 am and 2:00 pm. A very interesting, short talk on the history of Bergen and the area around the farm was given by Marilyn Halvorson, who has lived in the area for many years. Three tables had also been set up - one had attractive barn quilts painted on wood (Jenni Weeks at N50 Barn Quilts). Another had knitted items and quilts from Irene Echlin. The third had produce such as jars of home-made marmalade (from Kettle Crossing Farm), and also green tomatoes which had been grown in a massive greenhouse near Olds. I discovered when I got home that eating just one tomato was not enough, they were so good. This is something I have been very impressed by ever since I first met Meghan and Kwesi. They are very community-minded, helping other farmers, which is so good to see.<br /> <br /> We were also shown a small display of several edible mushroom species that are being grown on the farm, Some of them are also growing in a few places around the farm - Meghan's mother very kindly pulled a little cluster of three Wine Caps that were growing in the vegetable garden, for me to take home and try. Of course, I had to take a few photos last night, before I added them to a Spanish Omelette : )<br /> <br /> Check out their mushroom business. They are selling mushroom spawn for if you want to grow your own. They also offer talks on how to do this. The Fante word "Akuafo" means farmer.<br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.fungiakuafo.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.fungiakuafo.com/</a><br /> <br /> Thank you so much, Meghan, Kwesi and Meghan's parents, for such a lovely day! Great to see new additions to the farm (well done, Kwesi!), as well as all the familiar things, including those beautiful dogs, Whiskey (male Border Collie/Great Pyrenees cross) and Titan (male Great Pyrenees), and your chickens and geese. Too bad we missed the honey created in your beehives. I wish you all the very best - you deserve all the successes that come your way.</div> Maltese Cross / Lychnis chalcedonica <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/50559954"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/99/54/50559954.736d9187.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Another 7 photos, taken at Akesi Farms on 18 August 2019, have been added this morning.<br /> <br /> Five days ago, on 18 August 2019, I was fortunate enough to make a return visit to a wonderful farm, NW of the city. I left home a few minutes before 8:00 am and arrived back home at 8:00 pm, feeling totally tired out. This was partly because I had only had a couple of hours' sleep the night before, and because it took me two hours to get to the farm. This was the first time I had ever driven myself there, as we had carpooled on the previous two visits. To say the least, I was not at all impressed to see the Maintenance light on my car dashboard come on before I had even left Calgary! Have an appointment this afternoon, to see to the matter. After leaving the farm, I took some new back roads that had been recommended to me while I was at the farm; roads that I had never driven before. Beautiful scenery, and I discovered a rather nice old log cabin and two or three old rusty vehicles, including a beautiful big, blue bus. I am SO happy that I made myself do both drives. I had to do it, as this is an amazing farm, and I couldn't bear the thought of not visiting again.<br /> <br /> This 53 acre farm, Akesi Farms, is a 90 minute drive from downtown Calgary and is near the town of Sundre. It belongs to Meghan Vesey and Kwesi Haizel. It is permaculture based with future crops of eggs, mushrooms, fruits and nuts! Hard to believe that this beautiful place has only belonged to this young, hardworking, enthusiastic couple since November 2014. A tremendous amount of work, thought and planning has already gone into adding to what was already there, with a 'little' help from family and friends.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.akesifarms.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.akesifarms.com/</a><br /> <br /> Below is the link to a video about Meghan and Kwesi and the farm, by The Redneck Gourmet Show, 23 March 2017. The video was taken in winter - in summer, the farm is a mass of colour!<br /> <br /> <a href="https://youtu.be/Tih5H5uMDNE" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">youtu.be/Tih5H5uMDNE</a><br /> <br /> Our visit coincided with Alberta Open Farms weekend, where about 100 farms were open to the public. Our Naturalist leader had arranged to take anyone interested in nature on a nature walk, at 10:00 am and 2:00 pm. A very interesting, short talk on the history of Bergen and the area around the farm was given by Marilyn Halvorson, who has lived in the area for many years. Three tables had also been set up - one had attractive barn quilts painted on wood (Jenni Weeks at N50 Barn Quilts). Another had knitted items and quilts from Irene Echlin. The third had produce such as jars of home-made marmalade (from Kettle Crossing Farm), and also green tomatoes which had been grown in a massive greenhouse near Olds. I discovered when I got home that eating just one tomato was not enough, they were so good. This is something I have been very impressed by ever since I first met Meghan and Kwesi. They are very community-minded, helping other farmers, which is so good to see.<br /> <br /> We were also shown a small display of several edible mushroom species that are being grown on the farm, Some of them are also growing in a few places around the farm - Meghan's mother very kindly pulled a little cluster of three Wine Caps that were growing in the vegetable garden, for me to take home and try. Of course, I had to take a few photos last night, before I added them to a Spanish Omelette : )<br /> <br /> Check out their mushroom business. They are selling mushroom spawn for if you want to grow your own. They also offer talks on how to do this. The Fante word "Akuafo" means farmer.<br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.fungiakuafo.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.fungiakuafo.com/</a><br /> <br /> Thank you so much, Meghan, Kwesi and Meghan's parents, for such a lovely day! Great to see new additions to the farm (well done, Kwesi!), as well as all the familiar things, including those beautiful dogs, Whiskey (male Border Collie/Great Pyrenees cross) and Titan (male Great Pyrenees), and your chickens and geese. Too bad we missed the honey created in your beehives. I wish you all the very best - you deserve all the successes that come your way.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/50314744 tag:ipernity.com,2019-08-12,doc-50314744 Mon, 12 Aug 2019 17:10:09 +0000 2019-08-08T13:56:47-06:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/50314744"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/47/44/50314744.ef11c29d.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="240" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Our few hot days have come to an end, at least for now, and we are back to cool, rainy days (the last two days and today, with more to come). This morning, 12 August 2019, the temperature is only 12C again.<br /> <br /> This beautifully weathered window belongs to the smaller red barn (the barn with the mule), seen in photo #5 posted this morning. I added a touch of filter in post-processing, to really bring out the grain of the wood.<br /> <br /> Four days ago, 8 August 2019, was definitely more of a barn day than a bird day. A while ago, another photographer had mentioned that a few barns in a certain area SE of Calgary had been removed and I was curious to see if any of the ones I had seen before were now missing. There is one huge barn in particular that I am always hoping still stands. I would love to be able to get photos from both sides of it, but it is way out in a farmer's field that is, of course, private property. Standing in the road, I can only get a distant shot and, as often happens, I had a problem with heat distortion on distant shots. There is an old, round, wooden grain bin and a partly hidden, smaller barn just near the barn, too. I think the first time I ever saw the barn was on 21 January 2015, when I took my daughter out for the day.<br /> <br /> My intention two days ago had been to leave early in the morning, but it was already 10:45 am when I climbed into my car. Seeing that the weather forecast for the next six days included rain on each day, I knew I just had to do this trip straight away. Some of the roads I drove to get to my destination(s) were familiar, but others less so. There are two or three highway intersections that are confusing to me and I usually end up taking the wrong turn. <br /> <br /> For a change, I turned off the main highway going south before my usual turn, in order to shorten the distance. My first sighting was a distant Red-tailed Hawk perched on a wooden fence at a wetland that used to be a great spot, but now is totally dried up.<br /> <br /> After a quick stop at a tiny church that I always photograph when I am out that way, I continued east till I came to the three old Mossleigh grain elevators - one of the places I always get confused about which way to drive. Ideally, a dramatic sky would have been great, but I have taken better photos in the past.<br /> <br /> From Mossleigh, I did my usual exploring, finding that a lovely old, wooden house was still standing. I believe this was built from a kit years ago, and it remains in reasonably good condition.<br /> <br /> Eventually, I found the large barn that I wanted to see again. It took me a while to work out which road it was on (thought I knew!), but I found it after some driving back and forth. It was good to see the smaller barn, in less then good condition, just down the road. The other two times that I have been standing in the road to take photos of this smaller barn, a lady has come along the road from a nearby farm and very kindly told me to on in and take any photos I'd like. No-one around yesterday, so I stayed on the road,of course. At one point, I happened to glance up the road and saw what I thought was someone's dog on the crest of the road. When I zoomed in on my camera, I realized it was a coyote, who started walking towards me. Unfortunately, it turned off into the field and disappeared. When I was at this smaller barn, it amused me to see a magnificent Mule near the barn, plus a horse. The Mule looked huge and was a real poser, wanting to be in almost every shot I took. Such a gorgeous creature, that I don't remember seeing there before.<br /> <br /> Once I had taken a few photos, I started on my homeward drive, not stopping anywhere as I could see that, if I hurried, I could get to the Saskatoon Farm in time to get a meal before the restaurant closed for the day. Yay, I just made it.<br /> <br /> Knowing that Frank Lake was only a short drive away, I couldn't resist driving back south to have a quick look. Found a couple of my friends there and spent some enjoyable time with them. Only took a few photos there, most to be deleted, before heading home. A fun day, though hot and hazy. Total distance covered was 275 km.</div> Weathered window from the smaller red barn <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/50314744"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/47/44/50314744.ef11c29d.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="240" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Our few hot days have come to an end, at least for now, and we are back to cool, rainy days (the last two days and today, with more to come). This morning, 12 August 2019, the temperature is only 12C again.<br /> <br /> This beautifully weathered window belongs to the smaller red barn (the barn with the mule), seen in photo #5 posted this morning. I added a touch of filter in post-processing, to really bring out the grain of the wood.<br /> <br /> Four days ago, 8 August 2019, was definitely more of a barn day than a bird day. A while ago, another photographer had mentioned that a few barns in a certain area SE of Calgary had been removed and I was curious to see if any of the ones I had seen before were now missing. There is one huge barn in particular that I am always hoping still stands. I would love to be able to get photos from both sides of it, but it is way out in a farmer's field that is, of course, private property. Standing in the road, I can only get a distant shot and, as often happens, I had a problem with heat distortion on distant shots. There is an old, round, wooden grain bin and a partly hidden, smaller barn just near the barn, too. I think the first time I ever saw the barn was on 21 January 2015, when I took my daughter out for the day.<br /> <br /> My intention two days ago had been to leave early in the morning, but it was already 10:45 am when I climbed into my car. Seeing that the weather forecast for the next six days included rain on each day, I knew I just had to do this trip straight away. Some of the roads I drove to get to my destination(s) were familiar, but others less so. There are two or three highway intersections that are confusing to me and I usually end up taking the wrong turn. <br /> <br /> For a change, I turned off the main highway going south before my usual turn, in order to shorten the distance. My first sighting was a distant Red-tailed Hawk perched on a wooden fence at a wetland that used to be a great spot, but now is totally dried up.<br /> <br /> After a quick stop at a tiny church that I always photograph when I am out that way, I continued east till I came to the three old Mossleigh grain elevators - one of the places I always get confused about which way to drive. Ideally, a dramatic sky would have been great, but I have taken better photos in the past.<br /> <br /> From Mossleigh, I did my usual exploring, finding that a lovely old, wooden house was still standing. I believe this was built from a kit years ago, and it remains in reasonably good condition.<br /> <br /> Eventually, I found the large barn that I wanted to see again. It took me a while to work out which road it was on (thought I knew!), but I found it after some driving back and forth. It was good to see the smaller barn, in less then good condition, just down the road. The other two times that I have been standing in the road to take photos of this smaller barn, a lady has come along the road from a nearby farm and very kindly told me to on in and take any photos I'd like. No-one around yesterday, so I stayed on the road,of course. At one point, I happened to glance up the road and saw what I thought was someone's dog on the crest of the road. When I zoomed in on my camera, I realized it was a coyote, who started walking towards me. Unfortunately, it turned off into the field and disappeared. When I was at this smaller barn, it amused me to see a magnificent Mule near the barn, plus a horse. The Mule looked huge and was a real poser, wanting to be in almost every shot I took. Such a gorgeous creature, that I don't remember seeing there before.<br /> <br /> Once I had taken a few photos, I started on my homeward drive, not stopping anywhere as I could see that, if I hurried, I could get to the Saskatoon Farm in time to get a meal before the restaurant closed for the day. Yay, I just made it.<br /> <br /> Knowing that Frank Lake was only a short drive away, I couldn't resist driving back south to have a quick look. Found a couple of my friends there and spent some enjoyable time with them. Only took a few photos there, most to be deleted, before heading home. A fun day, though hot and hazy. Total distance covered was 275 km.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49898352 tag:ipernity.com,2019-08-04,doc-49898352 Sun, 04 Aug 2019 15:24:09 +0000 2019-08-03T09:39:40-06:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49898352"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/83/52/49898352.c2d18981.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">"All parts of the plant are poisonous. However, accidental poisoning is not likely since the berries are extremely bitter. The berries are the most toxic part of the plant. A healthy adult will experience poisoning from as few as six berries. Ingestion of the berries causes nausea, dizziness, increased pulse and severe gastrointestinal discomfort. The toxins can also have an immediate sedative effect on the cardiac muscle tissue possibly leading to cardiac arrest if introduced into the bloodstream. As few as two berries may be fatal to a child. All parts of the plant contain an irritant oil that is most concentrated within the roots and berries." From Wikipedia.<br /> <br /> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actaea_rubra" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actaea_rubra</a><br /> <br /> The berries of this plant start off green, then change to either red or white. The flower cluster is white and beautiful.<br /> <br /> Yesterday, 3 August 2019, a small group of us were lucky enough to visit two neighbouring acreages west of the city. In fact, along the road that I tend to drive along each time I drive out west. Friend, Dorothy, knows the owners of the first property we went to and had arranged for us to come and do a bioblitz on their 9.1 acres of mostly forested land. Nancy and Bill Cook have a beautiful, forested acreage and we were led along several different trails. Accompanying us was their big, black dog who was very sweet and determined to try and keep up with us, despite arthritic joints, which needed a few very brief rests. They were such welcoming and kind people and it was such a pleasure to help them learn a little more about what was growing and living around them. A juvenile Yellow-bellied Sapsucker was a surprise, and there was even an occasional fungus, including a rather fine coral fungus. We were also treated to coffee, iced tea and chocolate brownies. Thank you!<br /> <br /> Part way through the day, we walked from their home to the neighbours, Dean & Charmaine Carton, who also knew we were coming. Their beautiful garden and 15 acres of land gave us a few lovely sightings, including a few bird species and, discovered growing on the ground inside a fire pit, a nice example of Marchantia liverwort, complete with fruiting body.<br /> <br /> Our few hours out were greatly appreciated and enjoyed by everyone. I always think these outings are a win/win situation, with landowners gaining new knowledge plus a very detailed list of all the species found, and the rest of us always meet such lovely people and have a very enjoyable time. <br /> <br /> Thanks so much, Nancy and Bill and your neighbours, for this experience. Thanks, as always, Dorothy and Stephen, for the ride there and back.</div> Red Baneberry <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49898352"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/83/52/49898352.c2d18981.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">"All parts of the plant are poisonous. However, accidental poisoning is not likely since the berries are extremely bitter. The berries are the most toxic part of the plant. A healthy adult will experience poisoning from as few as six berries. Ingestion of the berries causes nausea, dizziness, increased pulse and severe gastrointestinal discomfort. The toxins can also have an immediate sedative effect on the cardiac muscle tissue possibly leading to cardiac arrest if introduced into the bloodstream. As few as two berries may be fatal to a child. All parts of the plant contain an irritant oil that is most concentrated within the roots and berries." From Wikipedia.<br /> <br /> <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actaea_rubra" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Actaea_rubra</a><br /> <br /> The berries of this plant start off green, then change to either red or white. The flower cluster is white and beautiful.<br /> <br /> Yesterday, 3 August 2019, a small group of us were lucky enough to visit two neighbouring acreages west of the city. In fact, along the road that I tend to drive along each time I drive out west. Friend, Dorothy, knows the owners of the first property we went to and had arranged for us to come and do a bioblitz on their 9.1 acres of mostly forested land. Nancy and Bill Cook have a beautiful, forested acreage and we were led along several different trails. Accompanying us was their big, black dog who was very sweet and determined to try and keep up with us, despite arthritic joints, which needed a few very brief rests. They were such welcoming and kind people and it was such a pleasure to help them learn a little more about what was growing and living around them. A juvenile Yellow-bellied Sapsucker was a surprise, and there was even an occasional fungus, including a rather fine coral fungus. We were also treated to coffee, iced tea and chocolate brownies. Thank you!<br /> <br /> Part way through the day, we walked from their home to the neighbours, Dean & Charmaine Carton, who also knew we were coming. Their beautiful garden and 15 acres of land gave us a few lovely sightings, including a few bird species and, discovered growing on the ground inside a fire pit, a nice example of Marchantia liverwort, complete with fruiting body.<br /> <br /> Our few hours out were greatly appreciated and enjoyed by everyone. I always think these outings are a win/win situation, with landowners gaining new knowledge plus a very detailed list of all the species found, and the rest of us always meet such lovely people and have a very enjoyable time. <br /> <br /> Thanks so much, Nancy and Bill and your neighbours, for this experience. Thanks, as always, Dorothy and Stephen, for the ride there and back.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49658354 tag:ipernity.com,2019-07-18,doc-49658354 Thu, 18 Jul 2019 16:14:53 +0000 2019-07-11T19:15:08-07:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49658354"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/83/54/49658354.242165ff.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">On 11 July 2019, it turned out to be such a great day, with some much-appreciated sightings. I must have spent about 9 hours driving and almost every inch of my body ached like crazy at the end of it. Total distance driven was 461 km, leaving home at 8:45 am and arriving back home 12 hours later, at 8:45 pm. Now, each summer, I try and do two or three longer (for me) drives, to make sure I don't lose the courage to do this.<br /> <br /> Weather-wise, it was a beautiful, sunny day, with plenty of white clouds Unlike when I did this drive in August 2018, there was no smoke from any wildfires, thank goodness. <br /> <br /> It was a good day for Hawks, seeing some on the way south and a few on the way home. I did spot one Ferruginous Hawk, but it was perched on a very distant fence post. I'm also wondering if one of the 'hawks' was actually an immature Golden Eagle - seen in photo #4 posted this morning. I saw it from a fair distance and I remember thinking what a large hawk it was. Stopping at an angle in the middle of the road, I managed to get one shot before it took off and a couple just as it was doing so. <br /> <br /> A couple of Common Nighthawks also helped make my day. For several years, I had longed to see one of these unusual birds and, finally in 2017, I managed to find four of them. In 2018, I was able to find just one. These birds are 9½ inches from the tip of bill to the tip of tail. Very strange looking birds, and always a thrill to see one.<br /> <br /> "On warm summer evenings, Common Nighthawks roam the skies over treetops, grasslands, and cities. Their sharp, electric peent call is often the first clue they’re overhead. In the dim half-light, these long-winged birds fly in graceful loops, flashing white patches out past the bend of each wing as they chase insects. These fairly common but declining birds make no nest. Their young are so well camouflaged that they’re hard to find, and even the adults seem to vanish as soon as they land." From AllABoutBirds.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Nighthawk/id" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Nighthawk/id</a><br /> <br /> "North America has 13 nighthawk populations. All but one are in decline and the species is considered threatened in Canada and several U.S. states."<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/little-backpacks-gps-used-to-track-nighthawks-from-northern-alberta-to-brazil-1.4026199" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/little-backpacks-gps-used-to-trac...</a><br /> <br /> My actual destination on 11 July 2019 was the Alberta Birds of Prey Centre, near Lethbridge. I know some people feel that photographing birds that are not out in the wild is cheating. I kind of agree, though I think it's fine as long as someone says where a photo was taken. <br /> <br /> This Centre is a wonderful place that rehabilitates and releases (whenever possible) various birds of prey - hawks, owls, Bald Eagles, Turkey Vultures,and Golden Eagles. Some of these birds act as Wildlife Ambassadors, too, including educating the public away from the Centre. Sometimes, a bird is used as a foster parent, too. <br /> <br /> I love the changing scenery as one drives south, and my drive was timed perfectly to catch the golden Canola fields. Maybe half way, I pulled over to take a few photos of an old barn and there was a truck just pulling away. I thought the guy might have been taking photos, too. We got talking and one of the things we both said was that we had never seen a blue field of Flax Later in my drive, guess what I found : ) Looked beautiful, with blue on one side of the road and a field of yellow Canola on the opposite side. <br /> <br /> This was definitely a rewarding day, full of sightings of all kinds. My favourite kind of day!</div> Old, red barn <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49658354"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/83/54/49658354.242165ff.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">On 11 July 2019, it turned out to be such a great day, with some much-appreciated sightings. I must have spent about 9 hours driving and almost every inch of my body ached like crazy at the end of it. Total distance driven was 461 km, leaving home at 8:45 am and arriving back home 12 hours later, at 8:45 pm. Now, each summer, I try and do two or three longer (for me) drives, to make sure I don't lose the courage to do this.<br /> <br /> Weather-wise, it was a beautiful, sunny day, with plenty of white clouds Unlike when I did this drive in August 2018, there was no smoke from any wildfires, thank goodness. <br /> <br /> It was a good day for Hawks, seeing some on the way south and a few on the way home. I did spot one Ferruginous Hawk, but it was perched on a very distant fence post. I'm also wondering if one of the 'hawks' was actually an immature Golden Eagle - seen in photo #4 posted this morning. I saw it from a fair distance and I remember thinking what a large hawk it was. Stopping at an angle in the middle of the road, I managed to get one shot before it took off and a couple just as it was doing so. <br /> <br /> A couple of Common Nighthawks also helped make my day. For several years, I had longed to see one of these unusual birds and, finally in 2017, I managed to find four of them. In 2018, I was able to find just one. These birds are 9½ inches from the tip of bill to the tip of tail. Very strange looking birds, and always a thrill to see one.<br /> <br /> "On warm summer evenings, Common Nighthawks roam the skies over treetops, grasslands, and cities. Their sharp, electric peent call is often the first clue they’re overhead. In the dim half-light, these long-winged birds fly in graceful loops, flashing white patches out past the bend of each wing as they chase insects. These fairly common but declining birds make no nest. Their young are so well camouflaged that they’re hard to find, and even the adults seem to vanish as soon as they land." From AllABoutBirds.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Nighthawk/id" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Nighthawk/id</a><br /> <br /> "North America has 13 nighthawk populations. All but one are in decline and the species is considered threatened in Canada and several U.S. states."<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/little-backpacks-gps-used-to-track-nighthawks-from-northern-alberta-to-brazil-1.4026199" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.ctvnews.ca/sci-tech/little-backpacks-gps-used-to-trac...</a><br /> <br /> My actual destination on 11 July 2019 was the Alberta Birds of Prey Centre, near Lethbridge. I know some people feel that photographing birds that are not out in the wild is cheating. I kind of agree, though I think it's fine as long as someone says where a photo was taken. <br /> <br /> This Centre is a wonderful place that rehabilitates and releases (whenever possible) various birds of prey - hawks, owls, Bald Eagles, Turkey Vultures,and Golden Eagles. Some of these birds act as Wildlife Ambassadors, too, including educating the public away from the Centre. Sometimes, a bird is used as a foster parent, too. <br /> <br /> I love the changing scenery as one drives south, and my drive was timed perfectly to catch the golden Canola fields. Maybe half way, I pulled over to take a few photos of an old barn and there was a truck just pulling away. I thought the guy might have been taking photos, too. We got talking and one of the things we both said was that we had never seen a blue field of Flax Later in my drive, guess what I found : ) Looked beautiful, with blue on one side of the road and a field of yellow Canola on the opposite side. <br /> <br /> This was definitely a rewarding day, full of sightings of all kinds. My favourite kind of day!</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49126876 tag:ipernity.com,2019-05-21,doc-49126876 Tue, 21 May 2019 22:25:14 +0000 2019-05-19T11:50:09-06:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49126876"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/68/76/49126876.381c0e02.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">It is almost time for Smugmug to close down Flickr for maintenance so that they can perform the mammoth task of transferring every single thing on Flickr to a new server. Hard to imagine, and I'll keep my fingers crossed that the transfer all goes smoothly. There will probably be a few glitches to iron out afterwards, but these will no doubt eventually be fixed. <br /> <br /> The day before yesterday, 19 May 2019, I was out for the day with my daughter, to celebrate Mother's Day and 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. Unfortunately, the weather was cloudy and windy, especially when we went to Frank Lake after spending time at the Saskatoon Farm. We both still managed to get a few photos and, today, the colourful ones are most welcome, as we have yet another gloomy day. I think it must have rained again last night, as I can see there are puddles out there.<br /> <br /> Our day started with a delicious breakfast at the Farm, after which we walked around the grounds. I always enjoy seeing the farm cats and dogs wandering about, inside and outside. Visitors are not allowed to bring dogs, which means that the farm animals can roam in peace. <br /> <br /> The gardens have not yet been planted with flowers - just as well, as I noticed that there was a risk of frost on two recent nights. There are flowers blooming in the greenhouses, though.<br /> <br /> Our next destination was Frank Lake, where we hoped to see at least a few birds. It was very quiet, with little to photograph - not the best time of the day. Two Eared Grebes were swimming near the blind, but what a challenge they were! Non stop swimming and constantly changing direction, fast. I think I ended up with a couple of photos that might be sharp enough to post - the rest have been deleted. A Yellow-headed Blackbird, perched on a cattail, was swaying in and out of the viewfinder.<br /> <br /> It felt really good to get out, as I have been spending so much time going through all the images from our trip to South Texas. It did feel a little strange to be driving, as I have barely been out the last few weeks.</div> Blossom on red <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49126876"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/68/76/49126876.381c0e02.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">It is almost time for Smugmug to close down Flickr for maintenance so that they can perform the mammoth task of transferring every single thing on Flickr to a new server. Hard to imagine, and I'll keep my fingers crossed that the transfer all goes smoothly. There will probably be a few glitches to iron out afterwards, but these will no doubt eventually be fixed. <br /> <br /> The day before yesterday, 19 May 2019, I was out for the day with my daughter, to celebrate Mother's Day and 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. Unfortunately, the weather was cloudy and windy, especially when we went to Frank Lake after spending time at the Saskatoon Farm. We both still managed to get a few photos and, today, the colourful ones are most welcome, as we have yet another gloomy day. I think it must have rained again last night, as I can see there are puddles out there.<br /> <br /> Our day started with a delicious breakfast at the Farm, after which we walked around the grounds. I always enjoy seeing the farm cats and dogs wandering about, inside and outside. Visitors are not allowed to bring dogs, which means that the farm animals can roam in peace. <br /> <br /> The gardens have not yet been planted with flowers - just as well, as I noticed that there was a risk of frost on two recent nights. There are flowers blooming in the greenhouses, though.<br /> <br /> Our next destination was Frank Lake, where we hoped to see at least a few birds. It was very quiet, with little to photograph - not the best time of the day. Two Eared Grebes were swimming near the blind, but what a challenge they were! Non stop swimming and constantly changing direction, fast. I think I ended up with a couple of photos that might be sharp enough to post - the rest have been deleted. A Yellow-headed Blackbird, perched on a cattail, was swaying in and out of the viewfinder.<br /> <br /> It felt really good to get out, as I have been spending so much time going through all the images from our trip to South Texas. It did feel a little strange to be driving, as I have barely been out the last few weeks.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49057314 tag:ipernity.com,2019-05-16,doc-49057314 Thu, 16 May 2019 18:37:42 +0000 2019-03-25T09:22:44-06:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49057314"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/73/14/49057314.b3b564da.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Yes, I know, I posted too many similar photos of the Green Jay this morning. After trying to decide which one I preferred, I ended up posting them all. They are such beautiful birds - the Northern Cardinals, too - and I will probably never see either species again after this holiday. When we saw them this day, there was a lot of puffing-up of feathers, competing with each other.<br /> <br /> We had an early start as usual on Day 7 of our 13-day birding trip to South Texas, 19-31 March 2019. Leaving our hotel, La Quinta Inn & Suites in Mission, we drove to the Bentsen - Rio Grande Valley State Park / World Birding Centre.<br /> <br /> "As part of the World Birding Center, Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park is a world-class destination for bird-watching. The Rio Grande Valley hosts one of the most spectacular convergences of birds on earth with more than 525 species documented in this unique place. Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park alone has an impressive list of 358 species recorded within the park’s boundaries. Birders have a chance to see migratory birds during their yearly migrations over the valley including flocks of thousands of hawks from the park’s Hawk Tower in the spring and fall.... Over seven miles of trails offer a variety of opportunities to encounter wildlife inside the park."<br /> <br /> <a href="https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/bentsen-rio-grande-valley" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/bentsen-rio-grande-valley</a><br /> <br /> In the afternoon, we drove roughly 32 miles east to the Estero Llano Grande State Park, arriving there at about 1:00 pm, and spent two and a half hours looking for birds.</div> Day 7, Northern Cardinal male <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49057314"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/73/14/49057314.b3b564da.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Yes, I know, I posted too many similar photos of the Green Jay this morning. After trying to decide which one I preferred, I ended up posting them all. They are such beautiful birds - the Northern Cardinals, too - and I will probably never see either species again after this holiday. When we saw them this day, there was a lot of puffing-up of feathers, competing with each other.<br /> <br /> We had an early start as usual on Day 7 of our 13-day birding trip to South Texas, 19-31 March 2019. Leaving our hotel, La Quinta Inn & Suites in Mission, we drove to the Bentsen - Rio Grande Valley State Park / World Birding Centre.<br /> <br /> "As part of the World Birding Center, Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park is a world-class destination for bird-watching. The Rio Grande Valley hosts one of the most spectacular convergences of birds on earth with more than 525 species documented in this unique place. Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park alone has an impressive list of 358 species recorded within the park’s boundaries. Birders have a chance to see migratory birds during their yearly migrations over the valley including flocks of thousands of hawks from the park’s Hawk Tower in the spring and fall.... Over seven miles of trails offer a variety of opportunities to encounter wildlife inside the park."<br /> <br /> <a href="https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/bentsen-rio-grande-valley" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/bentsen-rio-grande-valley</a><br /> <br /> In the afternoon, we drove roughly 32 miles east to the Estero Llano Grande State Park, arriving there at about 1:00 pm, and spent two and a half hours looking for birds.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49044502 tag:ipernity.com,2019-05-10,doc-49044502 Fri, 10 May 2019 18:13:35 +0000 2019-03-24T12:39:07-06:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49044502"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/45/02/49044502.e0a2ec41.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="240" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Sorry for posting SO many photos today! I think it's the only way I will ever get through all the images from this Texas trip.<br /> <br /> On Day 6 of our birding holiday in South Texas, 24 March 2019, we left our hotel in Kingsville, South Texas, and started our drive to Mission, where we would be staying at La Quinta Inn & Suites for three nights. On the first stretch of our drive, we were lucky enough to see several bird species, including a Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Hooded Oriole, Red-tailed Hawk, Crested Caracara, Harris's Hawk, Pyrrhuloxia male (looks similar to a Cardinal) and a spectacular Scissor-tailed Flycatcher. I'm not sure if this stretch is called Hawk Alley.<br /> <br /> We had a long drive further south towards Mission, with only a couple of drive-by photos taken en route (of a strangely shaped building that turned out to be a deserted seed storage building). Eventually, we reached our next planned stop, the National Butterfly Centre. This was a great place, my favourite part of it being the bird feeding station, where we saw all sorts of species and reasonably close. Despite the name of the place, we only saw a few butterflies while we were there. May have been the weather or, more likely, the fact that I was having so much fun at the bird feeding station. We also got to see Spike, a giant African Spurred Tortoise. All the nature/wildlife parks that we visited in South Texas had beautiful visitor centres and usually bird feeding stations. And there are so many of these parks - so impressive!<br /> <br /> <a href="https://nationalbutterflycenter.org/nbc-multi-media/in-the-news/184-spike-is-turning-11" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">nationalbutterflycenter.org/nbc-multi-media/in-the-news/1...</a><br /> <br /> "Ten years ago, the North American Butterfly Association broke ground for what has now become the largest native plant botanical garden in the United States. This 100-acre preserve is home to Spike (who thinks he is a butterfly) and the greatest volume and variety of wild, free-flying butterflies in the nation. In fact, USA Today calls the National Butterfly Center, in Mission, Texas, 'the butterfly capitol of the USA'." From the Butterfly Centre's website.<br /> <br /> The Centre is facing huge challenges, as a result of the "Border Wall". The following information is from the Centre's website.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/about-nbc/maps-directions/9-national-butterfly-center/258-border-wall-information" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/about-nbc/maps-directions...</a><br /> <br /> "No permission was requested to enter the property or begin cutting down trees. The center was not notified of any roadwork, nor given the opportunity to review, negotiate or deny the workplan. Same goes for the core sampling of soils on the property, and the surveying and staking of a “clear zone” that will bulldoze 200,000 square feet of habitat for protected species like the Texas Tortoise and Texas Indigo, not to mention about 400 species of birds. The federal government had decided it will do as it pleases with our property, swiftly and secretly, in spite of our property rights and right to due process under the law."<br /> <br /> "What the Border Wall will do here:<br /> 1) Eradicate an enormous amount of native habitat, including host plants for butterflies, breeding and feeding areas for wildlife, and lands set aside for conservation of endangered and threatened species-- including avian species that migrate N/S through this area or over-winter, here, in the tip of the Central US Flyway.<br /> <br /> 2) Create devastating flooding to all property up to 2 miles behind the wall, on the banks of the mighty Rio Grande River, here.<br /> <br /> 3) Reduce viable range land for wildlife foraging and mating. This will result in greater competition for resources and a smaller gene pool for healthy species reproduction. Genetic "bottlenecks" can exacerbate blight and disease.<br /> <br /> IN ADDITION:<br /> <br /> 4) Not all birds can fly over the wall, nor will all butterfly species. For example, the Ferruginous Pygmy Owl, found on the southern border from Texas to Arizona, only flies about 6 ft in the air. It cannot overcome a 30 ft vertical wall of concrete and steel.<br /> <br /> 5) Nocturnal and crepuscular wildlife, which rely on sunset and sunrise cues to regulate vital activity, will be negatively affected by night time flood lighting of the "control zone" the DHS CBP will establish along the wall and new secondary drag roads. The expansion of these areas to vehicular traffic will increase wildlife roadkill.<br /> <br /> 6) Animals trapped north of the wall will face similar competition for resources, cut off from native habitat in the conservation corridor and from water in the Rio Grande River and adjacent resacas. HUMANS, here, will also be cut off from our only source of fresh water, in this irrigated desert.</div> Day 6, Northern Cardinal male <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49044502"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/45/02/49044502.e0a2ec41.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="240" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Sorry for posting SO many photos today! I think it's the only way I will ever get through all the images from this Texas trip.<br /> <br /> On Day 6 of our birding holiday in South Texas, 24 March 2019, we left our hotel in Kingsville, South Texas, and started our drive to Mission, where we would be staying at La Quinta Inn & Suites for three nights. On the first stretch of our drive, we were lucky enough to see several bird species, including a Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Hooded Oriole, Red-tailed Hawk, Crested Caracara, Harris's Hawk, Pyrrhuloxia male (looks similar to a Cardinal) and a spectacular Scissor-tailed Flycatcher. I'm not sure if this stretch is called Hawk Alley.<br /> <br /> We had a long drive further south towards Mission, with only a couple of drive-by photos taken en route (of a strangely shaped building that turned out to be a deserted seed storage building). Eventually, we reached our next planned stop, the National Butterfly Centre. This was a great place, my favourite part of it being the bird feeding station, where we saw all sorts of species and reasonably close. Despite the name of the place, we only saw a few butterflies while we were there. May have been the weather or, more likely, the fact that I was having so much fun at the bird feeding station. We also got to see Spike, a giant African Spurred Tortoise. All the nature/wildlife parks that we visited in South Texas had beautiful visitor centres and usually bird feeding stations. And there are so many of these parks - so impressive!<br /> <br /> <a href="https://nationalbutterflycenter.org/nbc-multi-media/in-the-news/184-spike-is-turning-11" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">nationalbutterflycenter.org/nbc-multi-media/in-the-news/1...</a><br /> <br /> "Ten years ago, the North American Butterfly Association broke ground for what has now become the largest native plant botanical garden in the United States. This 100-acre preserve is home to Spike (who thinks he is a butterfly) and the greatest volume and variety of wild, free-flying butterflies in the nation. In fact, USA Today calls the National Butterfly Center, in Mission, Texas, 'the butterfly capitol of the USA'." From the Butterfly Centre's website.<br /> <br /> The Centre is facing huge challenges, as a result of the "Border Wall". The following information is from the Centre's website.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/about-nbc/maps-directions/9-national-butterfly-center/258-border-wall-information" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/about-nbc/maps-directions...</a><br /> <br /> "No permission was requested to enter the property or begin cutting down trees. The center was not notified of any roadwork, nor given the opportunity to review, negotiate or deny the workplan. Same goes for the core sampling of soils on the property, and the surveying and staking of a “clear zone” that will bulldoze 200,000 square feet of habitat for protected species like the Texas Tortoise and Texas Indigo, not to mention about 400 species of birds. The federal government had decided it will do as it pleases with our property, swiftly and secretly, in spite of our property rights and right to due process under the law."<br /> <br /> "What the Border Wall will do here:<br /> 1) Eradicate an enormous amount of native habitat, including host plants for butterflies, breeding and feeding areas for wildlife, and lands set aside for conservation of endangered and threatened species-- including avian species that migrate N/S through this area or over-winter, here, in the tip of the Central US Flyway.<br /> <br /> 2) Create devastating flooding to all property up to 2 miles behind the wall, on the banks of the mighty Rio Grande River, here.<br /> <br /> 3) Reduce viable range land for wildlife foraging and mating. This will result in greater competition for resources and a smaller gene pool for healthy species reproduction. Genetic "bottlenecks" can exacerbate blight and disease.<br /> <br /> IN ADDITION:<br /> <br /> 4) Not all birds can fly over the wall, nor will all butterfly species. For example, the Ferruginous Pygmy Owl, found on the southern border from Texas to Arizona, only flies about 6 ft in the air. It cannot overcome a 30 ft vertical wall of concrete and steel.<br /> <br /> 5) Nocturnal and crepuscular wildlife, which rely on sunset and sunrise cues to regulate vital activity, will be negatively affected by night time flood lighting of the "control zone" the DHS CBP will establish along the wall and new secondary drag roads. The expansion of these areas to vehicular traffic will increase wildlife roadkill.<br /> <br /> 6) Animals trapped north of the wall will face similar competition for resources, cut off from native habitat in the conservation corridor and from water in the Rio Grande River and adjacent resacas. HUMANS, here, will also be cut off from our only source of fresh water, in this irrigated desert.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49044518 tag:ipernity.com,2019-05-10,doc-49044518 Fri, 10 May 2019 18:18:32 +0000 2019-03-24T12:14:45-06:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49044518"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/45/18/49044518.1046b3a3.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Sorry for posting SO many photos today! I think it's the only way I will ever get through all the images from this Texas trip.<br /> <br /> On Day 6 of our birding holiday in South Texas, 24 March 2019, we left our hotel in Kingsville, South Texas, and started our drive to Mission, where we would be staying at La Quinta Inn & Suites for three nights. On the first stretch of our drive, we were lucky enough to see several bird species, including a Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Hooded Oriole, Red-tailed Hawk, Crested Caracara, Harris's Hawk, Pyrrhuloxia male (looks similar to a Cardinal) and a spectacular Scissor-tailed Flycatcher. I'm not sure if this stretch is called Hawk Alley.<br /> <br /> We had a long drive further south towards Mission, with only a couple of drive-by photos taken en route (of a strangely shaped building that turned out to be a deserted seed storage building). Eventually, we reached our next planned stop, the National Butterfly Centre. This was a great place, my favourite part of it being the bird feeding station, where we saw all sorts of species and reasonably close. Despite the name of the place, we only saw a few butterflies while we were there. May have been the weather or, more likely, the fact that I was having so much fun at the bird feeding station. We also got to see Spike, a giant African Spurred Tortoise. All the nature/wildlife parks that we visited in South Texas had beautiful visitor centres and usually bird feeding stations. And there are so many of these parks - so impressive!<br /> <br /> <a href="https://nationalbutterflycenter.org/nbc-multi-media/in-the-news/184-spike-is-turning-11" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">nationalbutterflycenter.org/nbc-multi-media/in-the-news/1...</a><br /> <br /> "Ten years ago, the North American Butterfly Association broke ground for what has now become the largest native plant botanical garden in the United States. This 100-acre preserve is home to Spike (who thinks he is a butterfly) and the greatest volume and variety of wild, free-flying butterflies in the nation. In fact, USA Today calls the National Butterfly Center, in Mission, Texas, 'the butterfly capitol of the USA'." From the Butterfly Centre's website.<br /> <br /> The Centre is facing huge challenges, as a result of the "Border Wall". The following information is from the Centre's website.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/about-nbc/maps-directions/9-national-butterfly-center/258-border-wall-information" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/about-nbc/maps-directions...</a><br /> <br /> "No permission was requested to enter the property or begin cutting down trees. The center was not notified of any roadwork, nor given the opportunity to review, negotiate or deny the workplan. Same goes for the core sampling of soils on the property, and the surveying and staking of a “clear zone” that will bulldoze 200,000 square feet of habitat for protected species like the Texas Tortoise and Texas Indigo, not to mention about 400 species of birds. The federal government had decided it will do as it pleases with our property, swiftly and secretly, in spite of our property rights and right to due process under the law."<br /> <br /> "What the Border Wall will do here:<br /> 1) Eradicate an enormous amount of native habitat, including host plants for butterflies, breeding and feeding areas for wildlife, and lands set aside for conservation of endangered and threatened species-- including avian species that migrate N/S through this area or over-winter, here, in the tip of the Central US Flyway.<br /> <br /> 2) Create devastating flooding to all property up to 2 miles behind the wall, on the banks of the mighty Rio Grande River, here.<br /> <br /> 3) Reduce viable range land for wildlife foraging and mating. This will result in greater competition for resources and a smaller gene pool for healthy species reproduction. Genetic "bottlenecks" can exacerbate blight and disease.<br /> <br /> IN ADDITION:<br /> <br /> 4) Not all birds can fly over the wall, nor will all butterfly species. For example, the Ferruginous Pygmy Owl, found on the southern border from Texas to Arizona, only flies about 6 ft in the air. It cannot overcome a 30 ft vertical wall of concrete and steel.<br /> <br /> 5) Nocturnal and crepuscular wildlife, which rely on sunset and sunrise cues to regulate vital activity, will be negatively affected by night time flood lighting of the "control zone" the DHS CBP will establish along the wall and new secondary drag roads. The expansion of these areas to vehicular traffic will increase wildlife roadkill.<br /> <br /> 6) Animals trapped north of the wall will face similar competition for resources, cut off from native habitat in the conservation corridor and from water in the Rio Grande River and adjacent resacas. HUMANS, here, will also be cut off from our only source of fresh water, in this irrigated desert.</div> Day 6, Northern Cardinal male / Cardinalis cardinalis <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/49044518"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/45/18/49044518.1046b3a3.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Sorry for posting SO many photos today! I think it's the only way I will ever get through all the images from this Texas trip.<br /> <br /> On Day 6 of our birding holiday in South Texas, 24 March 2019, we left our hotel in Kingsville, South Texas, and started our drive to Mission, where we would be staying at La Quinta Inn & Suites for three nights. On the first stretch of our drive, we were lucky enough to see several bird species, including a Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Hooded Oriole, Red-tailed Hawk, Crested Caracara, Harris's Hawk, Pyrrhuloxia male (looks similar to a Cardinal) and a spectacular Scissor-tailed Flycatcher. I'm not sure if this stretch is called Hawk Alley.<br /> <br /> We had a long drive further south towards Mission, with only a couple of drive-by photos taken en route (of a strangely shaped building that turned out to be a deserted seed storage building). Eventually, we reached our next planned stop, the National Butterfly Centre. This was a great place, my favourite part of it being the bird feeding station, where we saw all sorts of species and reasonably close. Despite the name of the place, we only saw a few butterflies while we were there. May have been the weather or, more likely, the fact that I was having so much fun at the bird feeding station. We also got to see Spike, a giant African Spurred Tortoise. All the nature/wildlife parks that we visited in South Texas had beautiful visitor centres and usually bird feeding stations. And there are so many of these parks - so impressive!<br /> <br /> <a href="https://nationalbutterflycenter.org/nbc-multi-media/in-the-news/184-spike-is-turning-11" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">nationalbutterflycenter.org/nbc-multi-media/in-the-news/1...</a><br /> <br /> "Ten years ago, the North American Butterfly Association broke ground for what has now become the largest native plant botanical garden in the United States. This 100-acre preserve is home to Spike (who thinks he is a butterfly) and the greatest volume and variety of wild, free-flying butterflies in the nation. In fact, USA Today calls the National Butterfly Center, in Mission, Texas, 'the butterfly capitol of the USA'." From the Butterfly Centre's website.<br /> <br /> The Centre is facing huge challenges, as a result of the "Border Wall". The following information is from the Centre's website.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/about-nbc/maps-directions/9-national-butterfly-center/258-border-wall-information" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/about-nbc/maps-directions...</a><br /> <br /> "No permission was requested to enter the property or begin cutting down trees. The center was not notified of any roadwork, nor given the opportunity to review, negotiate or deny the workplan. Same goes for the core sampling of soils on the property, and the surveying and staking of a “clear zone” that will bulldoze 200,000 square feet of habitat for protected species like the Texas Tortoise and Texas Indigo, not to mention about 400 species of birds. The federal government had decided it will do as it pleases with our property, swiftly and secretly, in spite of our property rights and right to due process under the law."<br /> <br /> "What the Border Wall will do here:<br /> 1) Eradicate an enormous amount of native habitat, including host plants for butterflies, breeding and feeding areas for wildlife, and lands set aside for conservation of endangered and threatened species-- including avian species that migrate N/S through this area or over-winter, here, in the tip of the Central US Flyway.<br /> <br /> 2) Create devastating flooding to all property up to 2 miles behind the wall, on the banks of the mighty Rio Grande River, here.<br /> <br /> 3) Reduce viable range land for wildlife foraging and mating. This will result in greater competition for resources and a smaller gene pool for healthy species reproduction. Genetic "bottlenecks" can exacerbate blight and disease.<br /> <br /> IN ADDITION:<br /> <br /> 4) Not all birds can fly over the wall, nor will all butterfly species. For example, the Ferruginous Pygmy Owl, found on the southern border from Texas to Arizona, only flies about 6 ft in the air. It cannot overcome a 30 ft vertical wall of concrete and steel.<br /> <br /> 5) Nocturnal and crepuscular wildlife, which rely on sunset and sunrise cues to regulate vital activity, will be negatively affected by night time flood lighting of the "control zone" the DHS CBP will establish along the wall and new secondary drag roads. The expansion of these areas to vehicular traffic will increase wildlife roadkill.<br /> <br /> 6) Animals trapped north of the wall will face similar competition for resources, cut off from native habitat in the conservation corridor and from water in the Rio Grande River and adjacent resacas. HUMANS, here, will also be cut off from our only source of fresh water, in this irrigated desert.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48979390 tag:ipernity.com,2019-05-06,doc-48979390 Mon, 06 May 2019 17:27:25 +0000 2019-03-24T12:39:32-06:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48979390"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/93/90/48979390.6de9f6c5.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Flickr has either changed something, or it's just not working like it was until fairly recently. Others have been saying the same thing.<br /> <br /> On Day 6 of our birding holiday in South Texas, 24 March 2019, we left our hotel in Kingsville, South Texas, and started our drive to Mission, where we would be staying at La Quinta Inn & Suites for three nights. On the first stretch of our drive, we were lucky enough to see several bird species, including a Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Hooded Oriole, Red-tailed Hawk, Crested Caracara, Harris's Hawk, Pyrrhuloxia male (looks similar to a Cardinal) and a spectacular Scissor-tailed Flycatcher. I'm not sure if this stretch is called Hawk Alley.<br /> <br /> We had a long drive further south towards Mission, with only a couple of drive-by photos taken en route (of a strangely shaped building). Eventually, we reached our next planned stop, the National Butterfly Centre. This was a great place, my favourite part of it being the bird feeding station, where we saw all sorts of species and reasonably close. Despite the name of the place, we only saw a few butterflies while we were there. May have been the weather or, more likely, the fact that I was having so much fun at the bird feeding station. We also got to see Spike, a giant African Spurred Tortoise. All the nature/wildlife parks that we visited in South Texas had beautiful visitor centres and usually bird feeding stations. And there are so many of these parks - so impressive!<br /> <br /> <a href="https://nationalbutterflycenter.org/nbc-multi-media/in-the-news/184-spike-is-turning-11" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">nationalbutterflycenter.org/nbc-multi-media/in-the-news/1...</a><br /> <br /> "Ten years ago, the North American Butterfly Association broke ground for what has now become the largest native plant botanical garden in the United States. This 100-acre preserve is home to Spike (who thinks he is a butterfly) and the greatest volume and variety of wild, free-flying butterflies in the nation. In fact, USA Today calls the National Butterfly Center, in Mission, Texas, 'the butterfly capitol of the USA'." From the Butterfly Centre's website.<br /> <br /> The Centre is facing huge challenges, as a result of the "Border Wall". The following information is from the Centre's website.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/about-nbc/maps-directions/9-national-butterfly-center/258-border-wall-information" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/about-nbc/maps-directions...</a><br /> <br /> "No permission was requested to enter the property or begin cutting down trees. The center was not notified of any roadwork, nor given the opportunity to review, negotiate or deny the workplan. Same goes for the core sampling of soils on the property, and the surveying and staking of a “clear zone” that will bulldoze 200,000 square feet of habitat for protected species like the Texas Tortoise and Texas Indigo, not to mention about 400 species of birds. The federal government had decided it will do as it pleases with our property, swiftly and secretly, in spite of our property rights and right to due process under the law."<br /> <br /> "What the Border Wall will do here:<br /> 1) Eradicate an enormous amount of native habitat, including host plants for butterflies, breeding and feeding areas for wildlife, and lands set aside for conservation of endangered and threatened species-- including avian species that migrate N/S through this area or over-winter, here, in the tip of the Central US Flyway.<br /> <br /> 2) Create devastating flooding to all property up to 2 miles behind the wall, on the banks of the mighty Rio Grande River, here.<br /> <br /> 3) Reduce viable range land for wildlife foraging and mating. This will result in greater competition for resources and a smaller gene pool for healthy species reproduction. Genetic "bottlenecks" can exacerbate blight and disease.<br /> <br /> IN ADDITION:<br /> <br /> 4) Not all birds can fly over the wall, nor will all butterfly species. For example, the Ferruginous Pygmy Owl, found on the southern border from Texas to Arizona, only flies about 6 ft in the air. It cannot overcome a 30 ft vertical wall of concrete and steel.<br /> <br /> 5) Nocturnal and crepuscular wildlife, which rely on sunset and sunrise cues to regulate vital activity, will be negatively affected by night time flood lighting of the "control zone" the DHS CBP will establish along the wall and new secondary drag roads. The expansion of these areas to vehicular traffic will increase wildlife roadkill.<br /> <br /> 6) Animals trapped north of the wall will face similar competition for resources, cut off from native habitat in the conservation corridor and from water in the Rio Grande River and adjacent resacas. HUMANS, here, will also be cut off from our only source of fresh water, in this irrigated desert.</div> Day 6, Cardinal male, National Butterfly Centre, South Texas <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48979390"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/93/90/48979390.6de9f6c5.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Flickr has either changed something, or it's just not working like it was until fairly recently. Others have been saying the same thing.<br /> <br /> On Day 6 of our birding holiday in South Texas, 24 March 2019, we left our hotel in Kingsville, South Texas, and started our drive to Mission, where we would be staying at La Quinta Inn & Suites for three nights. On the first stretch of our drive, we were lucky enough to see several bird species, including a Golden-fronted Woodpecker, Hooded Oriole, Red-tailed Hawk, Crested Caracara, Harris's Hawk, Pyrrhuloxia male (looks similar to a Cardinal) and a spectacular Scissor-tailed Flycatcher. I'm not sure if this stretch is called Hawk Alley.<br /> <br /> We had a long drive further south towards Mission, with only a couple of drive-by photos taken en route (of a strangely shaped building). Eventually, we reached our next planned stop, the National Butterfly Centre. This was a great place, my favourite part of it being the bird feeding station, where we saw all sorts of species and reasonably close. Despite the name of the place, we only saw a few butterflies while we were there. May have been the weather or, more likely, the fact that I was having so much fun at the bird feeding station. We also got to see Spike, a giant African Spurred Tortoise. All the nature/wildlife parks that we visited in South Texas had beautiful visitor centres and usually bird feeding stations. And there are so many of these parks - so impressive!<br /> <br /> <a href="https://nationalbutterflycenter.org/nbc-multi-media/in-the-news/184-spike-is-turning-11" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">nationalbutterflycenter.org/nbc-multi-media/in-the-news/1...</a><br /> <br /> "Ten years ago, the North American Butterfly Association broke ground for what has now become the largest native plant botanical garden in the United States. This 100-acre preserve is home to Spike (who thinks he is a butterfly) and the greatest volume and variety of wild, free-flying butterflies in the nation. In fact, USA Today calls the National Butterfly Center, in Mission, Texas, 'the butterfly capitol of the USA'." From the Butterfly Centre's website.<br /> <br /> The Centre is facing huge challenges, as a result of the "Border Wall". The following information is from the Centre's website.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/about-nbc/maps-directions/9-national-butterfly-center/258-border-wall-information" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.nationalbutterflycenter.org/about-nbc/maps-directions...</a><br /> <br /> "No permission was requested to enter the property or begin cutting down trees. The center was not notified of any roadwork, nor given the opportunity to review, negotiate or deny the workplan. Same goes for the core sampling of soils on the property, and the surveying and staking of a “clear zone” that will bulldoze 200,000 square feet of habitat for protected species like the Texas Tortoise and Texas Indigo, not to mention about 400 species of birds. The federal government had decided it will do as it pleases with our property, swiftly and secretly, in spite of our property rights and right to due process under the law."<br /> <br /> "What the Border Wall will do here:<br /> 1) Eradicate an enormous amount of native habitat, including host plants for butterflies, breeding and feeding areas for wildlife, and lands set aside for conservation of endangered and threatened species-- including avian species that migrate N/S through this area or over-winter, here, in the tip of the Central US Flyway.<br /> <br /> 2) Create devastating flooding to all property up to 2 miles behind the wall, on the banks of the mighty Rio Grande River, here.<br /> <br /> 3) Reduce viable range land for wildlife foraging and mating. This will result in greater competition for resources and a smaller gene pool for healthy species reproduction. Genetic "bottlenecks" can exacerbate blight and disease.<br /> <br /> IN ADDITION:<br /> <br /> 4) Not all birds can fly over the wall, nor will all butterfly species. For example, the Ferruginous Pygmy Owl, found on the southern border from Texas to Arizona, only flies about 6 ft in the air. It cannot overcome a 30 ft vertical wall of concrete and steel.<br /> <br /> 5) Nocturnal and crepuscular wildlife, which rely on sunset and sunrise cues to regulate vital activity, will be negatively affected by night time flood lighting of the "control zone" the DHS CBP will establish along the wall and new secondary drag roads. The expansion of these areas to vehicular traffic will increase wildlife roadkill.<br /> <br /> 6) Animals trapped north of the wall will face similar competition for resources, cut off from native habitat in the conservation corridor and from water in the Rio Grande River and adjacent resacas. HUMANS, here, will also be cut off from our only source of fresh water, in this irrigated desert.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48951670 tag:ipernity.com,2019-05-02,doc-48951670 Thu, 02 May 2019 17:48:41 +0000 2019-03-23T09:52:26-06:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48951670"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/16/70/48951670.7d566f74.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="240" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">As Wikipedia states, "Most flycatchers are rather drab, but the vermilion flycatcher is a striking exception. It is a favorite with birders." It was such a treat to see this small, vibrant passerine, even though it was way off in the distance!<br /> <br /> This was a really special full day, from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm, on 23 March 2019, Day 5 of our 13-day birding holiday in South Texas. Before we left Calgary, we had booked a tour at the 825,000 acre King Ranch and we were greatly looking forward to it. <br /> <br /> The area we explored was way south on the ranch land, called the Norias Division. The driver of the van/mini-bus was Barb, who did a great job of finding 47 bird species for us, and also trying to find a tiny Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl. We also bumped into Barb's boss a couple of times and he went off in search of an owl. Almost at the end of our great day, he managed to find a pair of them! A man, originally from Holland, but now living in Houston, had travelled all the way to the King Ranch, hoping most of all to see one of these beautiful owls. The rest of us had actually seen one of these owls on our Trinidad & Tobago trip in 2017. He joined us for the day and, needless to say, he was delighted that his sought-after species was successful. The owls were far away, so photos (to be posted later) are very distant, but what a gorgeous pair of little owls they were. Everyone was thrilled to bits. Many thanks to Tom (?) for searching and searching!<br /> <br /> "In 1853, Captain Richard King purchased a creek-fed oasis in the Wild Horse Desert of South Texas, sparking generations of integrity, preservation, and innovation.<br /> <br /> King Ranch now covers 825,000 acres—more land than the state of Rhode Island. Over the course of over 160 years, King Ranch led some of the first cattle drives, developed the Santa Gertrudis and Santa Cruz breeds of cattle, bred the finest Quarter Horses, and produced champion Thoroughbreds—all under its iconic Running W® brand.<br /> <br /> Today’s King Ranch is a major agribusiness with interests in cattle ranching, farming (citrus, cotton, grain, sugar cane, and turfgrass), luxury retail goods, and recreational hunting."<br /> <br /> <a href="https://king-ranch.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">king-ranch.com/</a><br /> <br /> Some of the species we were already familiar with, but new birds included the amazing Scissor-tailed flycatcher, Vermilion Flycatcher, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, and Bronzed Cowbird. I was really hoping that we might see a Green Jay, and I was in luck. <br /> <br /> A variety of wildflowers, a mushroom (Ink-cap or similar), a beautiful moth, and several deer added to our enjoyment. We were also very lucky to see a Javelina/Collared Peccary travelling fast through the bushes. Another sighting that was as fleeting as could possibly be were half a dozen Nilgai Antelope.<br /> <br /> "Texas is home to more free-range nilgai antelope than their native country of India. Originally stocked on the King Ranch in the 1930’s, these sporty game animals quickly took hold and are currently free- ranging on a handful of large private properties in lower South Texas." From link below.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.wildlifesystems.com/nilgai-antelope.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.wildlifesystems.com/nilgai-antelope.html</a><br /> <br /> For me, I think the highlight of the day was when I happened to spot a tiny Texan Horned Lizard / Phrynosoma cornutum. A few years ago, I had been so disappointed to miss a trip to SE Alberta to see a Horned Lizard. At the King Ranch, we were standing still for some reason, when something caught my eye near my shoes. I thought a small piece of dead, faded plant had blown in. Then it moved again, still not far from my feet. Couldn't believe my eyes!! What an interesting creature - it actually can shoot blood from small protuberances by its eyes when it feels threatened! Will post photos later, when I get to them.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_horned_lizard" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_horned_lizard</a><br /> <br /> We had lunch outside and were visited by a beautiful, curious White-tailed Deer. Several others were also seen while we were driving around the ranch land.<br /> <br /> A good day, for sure, and we appreciated the effort that Barb and her boss put into searching for various species.</div> Day 5, Vermilion Flycatcher / Pyrocephalus rubinus, King Ranch, Norias Division, South Texas <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48951670"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/16/70/48951670.7d566f74.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="240" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">As Wikipedia states, "Most flycatchers are rather drab, but the vermilion flycatcher is a striking exception. It is a favorite with birders." It was such a treat to see this small, vibrant passerine, even though it was way off in the distance!<br /> <br /> This was a really special full day, from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm, on 23 March 2019, Day 5 of our 13-day birding holiday in South Texas. Before we left Calgary, we had booked a tour at the 825,000 acre King Ranch and we were greatly looking forward to it. <br /> <br /> The area we explored was way south on the ranch land, called the Norias Division. The driver of the van/mini-bus was Barb, who did a great job of finding 47 bird species for us, and also trying to find a tiny Ferruginous Pygmy-Owl. We also bumped into Barb's boss a couple of times and he went off in search of an owl. Almost at the end of our great day, he managed to find a pair of them! A man, originally from Holland, but now living in Houston, had travelled all the way to the King Ranch, hoping most of all to see one of these beautiful owls. The rest of us had actually seen one of these owls on our Trinidad & Tobago trip in 2017. He joined us for the day and, needless to say, he was delighted that his sought-after species was successful. The owls were far away, so photos (to be posted later) are very distant, but what a gorgeous pair of little owls they were. Everyone was thrilled to bits. Many thanks to Tom (?) for searching and searching!<br /> <br /> "In 1853, Captain Richard King purchased a creek-fed oasis in the Wild Horse Desert of South Texas, sparking generations of integrity, preservation, and innovation.<br /> <br /> King Ranch now covers 825,000 acres—more land than the state of Rhode Island. Over the course of over 160 years, King Ranch led some of the first cattle drives, developed the Santa Gertrudis and Santa Cruz breeds of cattle, bred the finest Quarter Horses, and produced champion Thoroughbreds—all under its iconic Running W® brand.<br /> <br /> Today’s King Ranch is a major agribusiness with interests in cattle ranching, farming (citrus, cotton, grain, sugar cane, and turfgrass), luxury retail goods, and recreational hunting."<br /> <br /> <a href="https://king-ranch.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">king-ranch.com/</a><br /> <br /> Some of the species we were already familiar with, but new birds included the amazing Scissor-tailed flycatcher, Vermilion Flycatcher, Ladder-backed Woodpecker, and Bronzed Cowbird. I was really hoping that we might see a Green Jay, and I was in luck. <br /> <br /> A variety of wildflowers, a mushroom (Ink-cap or similar), a beautiful moth, and several deer added to our enjoyment. We were also very lucky to see a Javelina/Collared Peccary travelling fast through the bushes. Another sighting that was as fleeting as could possibly be were half a dozen Nilgai Antelope.<br /> <br /> "Texas is home to more free-range nilgai antelope than their native country of India. Originally stocked on the King Ranch in the 1930’s, these sporty game animals quickly took hold and are currently free- ranging on a handful of large private properties in lower South Texas." From link below.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://www.wildlifesystems.com/nilgai-antelope.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.wildlifesystems.com/nilgai-antelope.html</a><br /> <br /> For me, I think the highlight of the day was when I happened to spot a tiny Texan Horned Lizard / Phrynosoma cornutum. A few years ago, I had been so disappointed to miss a trip to SE Alberta to see a Horned Lizard. At the King Ranch, we were standing still for some reason, when something caught my eye near my shoes. I thought a small piece of dead, faded plant had blown in. Then it moved again, still not far from my feet. Couldn't believe my eyes!! What an interesting creature - it actually can shoot blood from small protuberances by its eyes when it feels threatened! Will post photos later, when I get to them.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_horned_lizard" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_horned_lizard</a><br /> <br /> We had lunch outside and were visited by a beautiful, curious White-tailed Deer. Several others were also seen while we were driving around the ranch land.<br /> <br /> A good day, for sure, and we appreciated the effort that Barb and her boss put into searching for various species.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48420378 tag:ipernity.com,2019-04-01,doc-48420378 Mon, 01 Apr 2019 16:34:21 +0000 2019-03-24T12:57:34-06:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48420378"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/03/78/48420378.a7e7878b.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Yesterday evening, 31 March 2019, four friends and I arrived back in Calgary after an amazing 13-day birding trip to southern Texas! This morning, I grabbed four photos to give an idea of what kinds of things we saw - four of my better photos, I should add : ) As usual, for me, it was not a trip to photograph just birds, but to capture anything else of interest, of beauty. This included flowers, insects, a few fungi, wild animals, and so on. As always, I missed quite a few of the birds that were seen by my friends. They are excellent birders and spend so much time birding and taking photos, and so are able to spot and capture the tiniest, fastest of birds. I am happy to have seen every bird that I did see! Everything from Whooping Cranes down to a small Yellow-throated Warbler. Unlike on our trip to Ontario and Quebec last year, we were thrilled to see Northern Cardinals close enough to photograph this holiday.<br /> <br /> Right now, I can't remember names of places, and I have a huge amount of getting organized with where and when I saw most things. However, I just wanted to let you know I am home, feeling back to being motivated to take photos again, after totally losing interest the last few weeks before we left on this exciting trip.<br /> <br /> I used both my old Canon SX60 and my less old Nikon P900 on this trip. The advantage of the P900 is that it has GPS and automatically loads on the map on Flickr. It may not always give an accurate location, but hopefully it will be close enough. Part way through the holiday, it looked like the Canon was taking somewhat better photos than the newer Nikon, so I was using the Canon as my main camera.<br /> <br /> First things first, though - I need a mug of coffee and some breakfast before I download the rest of my images to my computer. Such a mixed bag - some reasonable shots and others just about as bad as they could possibly be, but will post them on Flickr for the record. Once again, I will post photos in very roughly the order in which they were taken, to help give me a much better idea of just where we went and what we saw and when.</div> Day 6, Northern Cardinal male, southern Texas <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48420378"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/03/78/48420378.a7e7878b.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">Yesterday evening, 31 March 2019, four friends and I arrived back in Calgary after an amazing 13-day birding trip to southern Texas! This morning, I grabbed four photos to give an idea of what kinds of things we saw - four of my better photos, I should add : ) As usual, for me, it was not a trip to photograph just birds, but to capture anything else of interest, of beauty. This included flowers, insects, a few fungi, wild animals, and so on. As always, I missed quite a few of the birds that were seen by my friends. They are excellent birders and spend so much time birding and taking photos, and so are able to spot and capture the tiniest, fastest of birds. I am happy to have seen every bird that I did see! Everything from Whooping Cranes down to a small Yellow-throated Warbler. Unlike on our trip to Ontario and Quebec last year, we were thrilled to see Northern Cardinals close enough to photograph this holiday.<br /> <br /> Right now, I can't remember names of places, and I have a huge amount of getting organized with where and when I saw most things. However, I just wanted to let you know I am home, feeling back to being motivated to take photos again, after totally losing interest the last few weeks before we left on this exciting trip.<br /> <br /> I used both my old Canon SX60 and my less old Nikon P900 on this trip. The advantage of the P900 is that it has GPS and automatically loads on the map on Flickr. It may not always give an accurate location, but hopefully it will be close enough. Part way through the holiday, it looked like the Canon was taking somewhat better photos than the newer Nikon, so I was using the Canon as my main camera.<br /> <br /> First things first, though - I need a mug of coffee and some breakfast before I download the rest of my images to my computer. Such a mixed bag - some reasonable shots and others just about as bad as they could possibly be, but will post them on Flickr for the record. Once again, I will post photos in very roughly the order in which they were taken, to help give me a much better idea of just where we went and what we saw and when.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48287588 tag:ipernity.com,2019-03-13,doc-48287588 Wed, 13 Mar 2019 02:46:26 +0000 2017-09-05T14:21:09-06:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48287588"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/75/88/48287588.40a8efaf.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="183" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">No time to get out with my camera at the moment, so I have added another three photos from my archives. I am adding the description from a previously posted photo taken on the same day.<br /> <br /> "Ran out of time and energy yesterday to choose and edit any photos to post this morning. Decided to do it this evening, instead. Also, I overslept this morning and had to dash out to meet friends for a three-hour walk in Fish Creek Park (saw 2 Northern Pygmy-owls, but they were both SO far away!), and would not have had time to post. Just realized that I probably won't have time tonight to look for and edit photos for tomorrow morning. Wouldn't surprise me if I oversleep again, which would not be good, as I have a very early start tomorrow and must not be late for when a friend picks me up.<br /> <br /> My daughter and I had a such a great day on 5 September 2017. She had a free day, so we decided to drive north-east of the city and visit the Pioneer Acres Museum. The day started off with seeing three perched Swainson's Hawks, which were a bonus. We had passed the colourful old truck and tractor displayed on tall posts, to indicate Pioneer Acres, on various occasions and this time, we actually turned off the highway and went to the museum. What an amazing collection of old farming equipment, some standing outdoors and many others in large sheds. Have to say that I am always attracted to old, rusty things, and there was no shortage of these, either. <br /> <br /> "Pioneer Acres is operated by a team of volunteer members who, in many cases, have extended their golden years of retirement, performing the duties necessary to meet the club's objectives. These include work to collect, restore, maintain and demonstrate the artifacts which were used by the pioneers of early Alberta.<br /> <br /> The end result is that present and future generations have the opportunity to glimpse into our pioneering past through the artifacts on display and demonstrated. Younger members of the club also learn the care, maintenance and operation of these living artifacts." From link below.<br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.pioneeracres.ab.ca/member.aspx" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.pioneeracres.ab.ca/member.aspx</a><br /> <br /> While we were walking round the grounds, visiting each massive shed in turn, my daughter spotted a Plains Garter Snake, and waved me over to see it. She also saw several birds running round behind one of the sheds, and when I went to check, I found there were four Gray Partridge running off in the distance. A distant Jackrabbit completed our wildlife sightings, first noticed when it was standing tall and upright on its back legs in 'freeze mode'. My mind wandered to Alice in Wonderland : )<br /> <br /> Though we did not do a tour of the inside of the "Long" House, we found it an impressive building, complete with a few Sunflowers, Hollyhock and other flowers in the garden, and a tall, metal windmill.<br /> <br /> "The "Long" House was built in 1914 by John Thomas on a farm just northwest of Irricana, Alberta. It has been lived in by three generations of the Long Family since 1914. The house was donated to Pioneer Acres, moved to our location, and restored to 1929 status." From the Pioneer Acres website. <br /> <br /> There is also an old schoolhouse on the Museum site. "The Crown School, built in 1905, was located west of Three Hills on Highway 583. It closed in 1953 and was bought by the district of Allingham for use as a community league. In 1996, the building was relocated to Pioneer Aces of Alberta Museum." From the Alberta Teachers' Association website.<br /> <br /> After spending a long time walking round the grounds, we decided to drive through Irricana itself in order to get back to the highway. I had seen photos on the Internet of three murals there - sunflowers, crayons, and a view of the old grain elevators that had once stood nearby - and I wanted to go and see them. All near each other, as this town only has a few streets. I had never been to Irricana before and I was impressed with what a delightful place it is, full of brightly coloured murals, and well kept. One of the outer roads had many flower beds along the edge, watered with well water, looking most attractive.<br /> <br /> I had asked my daughter if she was interested in calling in at the Silver Springs Botanical Gardens in NW Calgary, if there was time after our drive east. I had planned the drive ahead of time, partly because I had also seen a photo somewhere on the Internet of a rather nice old barn that I really wanted to find. We were not disappointed, though it was a shame to see that the cupola had fallen from the roof since that photo was taken. I had never driven through the town of Airdrie before, but did the "drive" on Google Earth the night before and it looked straightforward enough. <br /> <br /> Returning to the city via Cochrane, my daughter told me how to get to Silver Springs. I had never driven there before, but I had been there with a friend last year, I think on 1 October, and thoroughly enjoyed these meticulously kept gardens. We were just too hot and tired to see every inch of the garden, but finished off with photographing sunflowers and enjoying the American Goldfinches that were feeding on them, before we continued on our way.<br /> <br /> A great day, despite the heat and smoke from the B.C. and Alberta wildfires (distant low visibility, too). Thanks so much, Rachel - hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. We drove 256 km (used about half a tank of gas, or less). I was absolutely tired out from the heat and driving unfamiliar roads."</div> Farm with sheep and a donkey <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48287588"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/75/88/48287588.40a8efaf.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="183" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">No time to get out with my camera at the moment, so I have added another three photos from my archives. I am adding the description from a previously posted photo taken on the same day.<br /> <br /> "Ran out of time and energy yesterday to choose and edit any photos to post this morning. Decided to do it this evening, instead. Also, I overslept this morning and had to dash out to meet friends for a three-hour walk in Fish Creek Park (saw 2 Northern Pygmy-owls, but they were both SO far away!), and would not have had time to post. Just realized that I probably won't have time tonight to look for and edit photos for tomorrow morning. Wouldn't surprise me if I oversleep again, which would not be good, as I have a very early start tomorrow and must not be late for when a friend picks me up.<br /> <br /> My daughter and I had a such a great day on 5 September 2017. She had a free day, so we decided to drive north-east of the city and visit the Pioneer Acres Museum. The day started off with seeing three perched Swainson's Hawks, which were a bonus. We had passed the colourful old truck and tractor displayed on tall posts, to indicate Pioneer Acres, on various occasions and this time, we actually turned off the highway and went to the museum. What an amazing collection of old farming equipment, some standing outdoors and many others in large sheds. Have to say that I am always attracted to old, rusty things, and there was no shortage of these, either. <br /> <br /> "Pioneer Acres is operated by a team of volunteer members who, in many cases, have extended their golden years of retirement, performing the duties necessary to meet the club's objectives. These include work to collect, restore, maintain and demonstrate the artifacts which were used by the pioneers of early Alberta.<br /> <br /> The end result is that present and future generations have the opportunity to glimpse into our pioneering past through the artifacts on display and demonstrated. Younger members of the club also learn the care, maintenance and operation of these living artifacts." From link below.<br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.pioneeracres.ab.ca/member.aspx" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.pioneeracres.ab.ca/member.aspx</a><br /> <br /> While we were walking round the grounds, visiting each massive shed in turn, my daughter spotted a Plains Garter Snake, and waved me over to see it. She also saw several birds running round behind one of the sheds, and when I went to check, I found there were four Gray Partridge running off in the distance. A distant Jackrabbit completed our wildlife sightings, first noticed when it was standing tall and upright on its back legs in 'freeze mode'. My mind wandered to Alice in Wonderland : )<br /> <br /> Though we did not do a tour of the inside of the "Long" House, we found it an impressive building, complete with a few Sunflowers, Hollyhock and other flowers in the garden, and a tall, metal windmill.<br /> <br /> "The "Long" House was built in 1914 by John Thomas on a farm just northwest of Irricana, Alberta. It has been lived in by three generations of the Long Family since 1914. The house was donated to Pioneer Acres, moved to our location, and restored to 1929 status." From the Pioneer Acres website. <br /> <br /> There is also an old schoolhouse on the Museum site. "The Crown School, built in 1905, was located west of Three Hills on Highway 583. It closed in 1953 and was bought by the district of Allingham for use as a community league. In 1996, the building was relocated to Pioneer Aces of Alberta Museum." From the Alberta Teachers' Association website.<br /> <br /> After spending a long time walking round the grounds, we decided to drive through Irricana itself in order to get back to the highway. I had seen photos on the Internet of three murals there - sunflowers, crayons, and a view of the old grain elevators that had once stood nearby - and I wanted to go and see them. All near each other, as this town only has a few streets. I had never been to Irricana before and I was impressed with what a delightful place it is, full of brightly coloured murals, and well kept. One of the outer roads had many flower beds along the edge, watered with well water, looking most attractive.<br /> <br /> I had asked my daughter if she was interested in calling in at the Silver Springs Botanical Gardens in NW Calgary, if there was time after our drive east. I had planned the drive ahead of time, partly because I had also seen a photo somewhere on the Internet of a rather nice old barn that I really wanted to find. We were not disappointed, though it was a shame to see that the cupola had fallen from the roof since that photo was taken. I had never driven through the town of Airdrie before, but did the "drive" on Google Earth the night before and it looked straightforward enough. <br /> <br /> Returning to the city via Cochrane, my daughter told me how to get to Silver Springs. I had never driven there before, but I had been there with a friend last year, I think on 1 October, and thoroughly enjoyed these meticulously kept gardens. We were just too hot and tired to see every inch of the garden, but finished off with photographing sunflowers and enjoying the American Goldfinches that were feeding on them, before we continued on our way.<br /> <br /> A great day, despite the heat and smoke from the B.C. and Alberta wildfires (distant low visibility, too). Thanks so much, Rachel - hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. We drove 256 km (used about half a tank of gas, or less). I was absolutely tired out from the heat and driving unfamiliar roads."</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48219260 tag:ipernity.com,2019-03-07,doc-48219260 Thu, 07 Mar 2019 16:55:29 +0000 2019-03-05T13:55:03-07:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48219260"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/92/60/48219260.33b70dfb.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="182" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">After all the stress the last eight days over a photo of me being posted on Facebook, I was absolutely desperate to get out for a few hours the day before yesterday, 5 March 2019, even though I really didn't feel like going. After losing so many hours of sleep the past few days, I would happily have climbed back into bed instead, even more so once I hit the highway south. There were so many huge semi-trailer trucks and at times they seemed to be in competition with each other. I don't remember it usually being this bad.<br /> <br /> Anyway, I headed south-east of the city, though I would have loved to go east instead. The whole Facebook mess has left me feeling like I shouldn't go in that direction, though, needless to say, plenty of people are still going out there. <br /> <br /> The weather was beautiful and milder than the last 6 or 7 weeks of deep-freeze. First of all, I did the usual drive around Frank Lake - and saw nothing. After driving a few roads north of there, I again saw no birds, other than four Magpies. Feeling totally uninspired and my heart just wasn't into it at all, I ended up calling in at the Saskatoon Farm on the way home. <br /> <br /> A plate of delicious quiche, a few potato wedgies, fruit salad and a much-needed cup of coffee were so welcome. After that, I asked if the huge greenhouse was open. When I tried to get in, I couldn't and had to ask someone to drag the extremely heavy door. Someone must have closed it sometime, as when I went to leave, after spending time with two pigs, lots of chickens, turkeys, domestic Helmeted Guineafowl, two bunnies and lots of House Sparrows, I couldn't budge the sliding door. Same thing with the other three doors. It was ages before someone heard my banging on the door and I was so thankful when a young man turned off his snow-clearing machine and yanked the door open. I told him that I had visions of having to sleep there overnight! Does anyone know if I murdered 100 people in a previous life, lol???</div> Welcome colour <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48219260"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/92/60/48219260.33b70dfb.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="182" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">After all the stress the last eight days over a photo of me being posted on Facebook, I was absolutely desperate to get out for a few hours the day before yesterday, 5 March 2019, even though I really didn't feel like going. After losing so many hours of sleep the past few days, I would happily have climbed back into bed instead, even more so once I hit the highway south. There were so many huge semi-trailer trucks and at times they seemed to be in competition with each other. I don't remember it usually being this bad.<br /> <br /> Anyway, I headed south-east of the city, though I would have loved to go east instead. The whole Facebook mess has left me feeling like I shouldn't go in that direction, though, needless to say, plenty of people are still going out there. <br /> <br /> The weather was beautiful and milder than the last 6 or 7 weeks of deep-freeze. First of all, I did the usual drive around Frank Lake - and saw nothing. After driving a few roads north of there, I again saw no birds, other than four Magpies. Feeling totally uninspired and my heart just wasn't into it at all, I ended up calling in at the Saskatoon Farm on the way home. <br /> <br /> A plate of delicious quiche, a few potato wedgies, fruit salad and a much-needed cup of coffee were so welcome. After that, I asked if the huge greenhouse was open. When I tried to get in, I couldn't and had to ask someone to drag the extremely heavy door. Someone must have closed it sometime, as when I went to leave, after spending time with two pigs, lots of chickens, turkeys, domestic Helmeted Guineafowl, two bunnies and lots of House Sparrows, I couldn't budge the sliding door. Same thing with the other three doors. It was ages before someone heard my banging on the door and I was so thankful when a young man turned off his snow-clearing machine and yanked the door open. I told him that I had visions of having to sleep there overnight! Does anyone know if I murdered 100 people in a previous life, lol???</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48211172 tag:ipernity.com,2019-03-06,doc-48211172 Wed, 06 Mar 2019 06:56:06 +0000 2019-03-05T13:20:43-07:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48211172"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/11/72/48211172.d9b6824f.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="182" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">After all the stress the last five or so days over a photo of me being posted on Facebook, I was absolutely desperate to get out for a few hours today, even though I really didn't feel like going. After losing so many hours of sleep the past few days, I would happily have climbed back into bed instead, even more so once I hit the highway south. There were so many huge semi-trailer trucks and at times they seemed to be in competition with each other. I don't remember it being this bad before.<br /> <br /> Anyway, I headed south-east of the city, though I would have loved to go east instead. The whole Facebook mess has left me feeling like I shouldn't go and see the owls another time, though, needless to say, plenty of people are still going out there. <br /> <br /> The weather was beautiful and milder than the last 6 or 7 weeks of deep-freeze. First of all, I did the usual drive around Frank Lake - and saw nothing. After driving a few roads north of there, I again saw no birds, other than four Magpies. Feeling totally uninspired and my heart just wasn't into it at all, I ended up calling in at the Saskatoon Farm on the way home. <br /> <br /> A plate of delicious quiche, a few fries, fruit salad and a much-needed cup of coffee was so welcome. After that, I asked if the huge greenhouse was open. When I tried to get in, I couldn't and had to ask someone to drag the extremely heavy door. Someone must have closed it sometime, as when I went to leave, after spending time with two pigs, lots of chickens, turkeys, Helmeted Guineafowl, two bunnies and lots of House Sparrows, I couldn't budge the sliding door. Same thing with the other three doors. It was ages before someone heard my banging on the door and I was so thankful when a young man turned off his snow-clearing machine and yanked the door open. I told him that I had visions of having to sleep there overnight! Does anyone know if I murdered 100 people in a previous life, lol???</div> A &#039;new&#039; barn <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/48211172"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/11/72/48211172.d9b6824f.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="182" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">After all the stress the last five or so days over a photo of me being posted on Facebook, I was absolutely desperate to get out for a few hours today, even though I really didn't feel like going. After losing so many hours of sleep the past few days, I would happily have climbed back into bed instead, even more so once I hit the highway south. There were so many huge semi-trailer trucks and at times they seemed to be in competition with each other. I don't remember it being this bad before.<br /> <br /> Anyway, I headed south-east of the city, though I would have loved to go east instead. The whole Facebook mess has left me feeling like I shouldn't go and see the owls another time, though, needless to say, plenty of people are still going out there. <br /> <br /> The weather was beautiful and milder than the last 6 or 7 weeks of deep-freeze. First of all, I did the usual drive around Frank Lake - and saw nothing. After driving a few roads north of there, I again saw no birds, other than four Magpies. Feeling totally uninspired and my heart just wasn't into it at all, I ended up calling in at the Saskatoon Farm on the way home. <br /> <br /> A plate of delicious quiche, a few fries, fruit salad and a much-needed cup of coffee was so welcome. After that, I asked if the huge greenhouse was open. When I tried to get in, I couldn't and had to ask someone to drag the extremely heavy door. Someone must have closed it sometime, as when I went to leave, after spending time with two pigs, lots of chickens, turkeys, Helmeted Guineafowl, two bunnies and lots of House Sparrows, I couldn't budge the sliding door. Same thing with the other three doors. It was ages before someone heard my banging on the door and I was so thankful when a young man turned off his snow-clearing machine and yanked the door open. I told him that I had visions of having to sleep there overnight! Does anyone know if I murdered 100 people in a previous life, lol???</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/47970736 tag:ipernity.com,2019-01-07,doc-47970736 Mon, 07 Jan 2019 04:36:05 +0000 2019-01-05T12:11:38-07:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/47970736"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/07/36/47970736.0b5a4aaf.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">The trees at the very edge of the roads were quite visible, but practically everything else disappeared in a dense fog that caught me by surprise yesterday, 5 January 2019. I had hoped to finally drive east of the city on 4 January, after already waiting a couple of months to get out east and northeast. Then I saw in the weather forecast that it was going to be a very windy day on 4th January, so my plans changed. When I checked the forecast around midnight, we were supposedly going to have sun with some cloud yesterday morning, clearing to a nice sunny afternoon. Yeah, right!! The thick fog had developed way before I left the eastern edge of the city and, though I was so tempted to turn around and head for home, I kept going, hoping that the fog would clear further east. Just the opposite! Most of the drive was in very poor visibility, barely able to see the road I was on and not seeing cars in the distance. Once my eyes looked further than the fences along the road edges, I could barely see anything at all, just dense fog. A far cry from an ideal day for looking for Snowy Owls! Everything was a pale grey or white and I would never have been able to see a distant owl and would barely be able to see an owl perched high up on a power pole. After roughly almost five hours of dangerous driving conditions and 235 km travelled, I just had to give up and head for home. <br /> <br /> I did manage to find a few odds and ends to photograph, but nothing too inspiring. Post-processing turned white photos into images that had some colour and detail - not at all how things looked in reality. I added a touch of filter to this photo, to bring out a few more details.</div> Old red barn on a foggy day <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/47970736"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/07/36/47970736.0b5a4aaf.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">The trees at the very edge of the roads were quite visible, but practically everything else disappeared in a dense fog that caught me by surprise yesterday, 5 January 2019. I had hoped to finally drive east of the city on 4 January, after already waiting a couple of months to get out east and northeast. Then I saw in the weather forecast that it was going to be a very windy day on 4th January, so my plans changed. When I checked the forecast around midnight, we were supposedly going to have sun with some cloud yesterday morning, clearing to a nice sunny afternoon. Yeah, right!! The thick fog had developed way before I left the eastern edge of the city and, though I was so tempted to turn around and head for home, I kept going, hoping that the fog would clear further east. Just the opposite! Most of the drive was in very poor visibility, barely able to see the road I was on and not seeing cars in the distance. Once my eyes looked further than the fences along the road edges, I could barely see anything at all, just dense fog. A far cry from an ideal day for looking for Snowy Owls! Everything was a pale grey or white and I would never have been able to see a distant owl and would barely be able to see an owl perched high up on a power pole. After roughly almost five hours of dangerous driving conditions and 235 km travelled, I just had to give up and head for home. <br /> <br /> I did manage to find a few odds and ends to photograph, but nothing too inspiring. Post-processing turned white photos into images that had some colour and detail - not at all how things looked in reality. I added a touch of filter to this photo, to bring out a few more details.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/47959454 tag:ipernity.com,2019-01-06,doc-47959454 Sun, 06 Jan 2019 03:49:20 +0000 2019-01-05T09:44:12-07:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/47959454"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/94/54/47959454.34106ed9.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="181" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">The trees at the very edge of the roads were quite visible, but practically everything else disappeared in a dense fog that caught me by surprise today, 5 January 2019. I had hoped to finally drive east of the city yesterday, after already waiting a couple of months. Then I saw in the weather forecast that it was going to be a very windy day, so my plans changed. When I checked the forecast around midnight last night, we were supposedly going to have sun with some cloud this morning, clearing to a nice sunny afternoon. Yeah, right!! The thick fog had developed way before I left the eastern edge of the city and, though I was so tempted to turn around and head for home, I kept going, hoping that the fog would clear further east. Just the opposite! Most of the drive was in very poor visibility, barely able to see the road I was on and not seeing cars in the distance. Once my eyes looked further than the fences along the road edges, I could barely see anything at all, just dense fog. A far cry from an ideal day for looking for Snowy Owls! Everything was a pale grey or white and I would never have been able to see a distant owl and would barely see an owl perched high up on a power pole. After roughly almost five hours of dangerous driving conditions and 235 km travelled, I just had to give up and head for home. <br /> <br /> I did manage to find a few odds and ends to photograph, but nothing too inspiring. Post-processing turned white photos into images that had some colour and detail - not at all how things looked in reality.</div> Red barn through the fog <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/47959454"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/94/54/47959454.34106ed9.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="181" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">The trees at the very edge of the roads were quite visible, but practically everything else disappeared in a dense fog that caught me by surprise today, 5 January 2019. I had hoped to finally drive east of the city yesterday, after already waiting a couple of months. Then I saw in the weather forecast that it was going to be a very windy day, so my plans changed. When I checked the forecast around midnight last night, we were supposedly going to have sun with some cloud this morning, clearing to a nice sunny afternoon. Yeah, right!! The thick fog had developed way before I left the eastern edge of the city and, though I was so tempted to turn around and head for home, I kept going, hoping that the fog would clear further east. Just the opposite! Most of the drive was in very poor visibility, barely able to see the road I was on and not seeing cars in the distance. Once my eyes looked further than the fences along the road edges, I could barely see anything at all, just dense fog. A far cry from an ideal day for looking for Snowy Owls! Everything was a pale grey or white and I would never have been able to see a distant owl and would barely see an owl perched high up on a power pole. After roughly almost five hours of dangerous driving conditions and 235 km travelled, I just had to give up and head for home. <br /> <br /> I did manage to find a few odds and ends to photograph, but nothing too inspiring. Post-processing turned white photos into images that had some colour and detail - not at all how things looked in reality.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/47959444 tag:ipernity.com,2019-01-04,doc-47959444 Fri, 04 Jan 2019 06:41:13 +0000 2018-12-29T12:58:55-07:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/47959444"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/94/44/47959444.0df31444.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">No more Llama photos (till next year) and no more red barn photos from this Bird Count. Promise! I didn't want to be posting any of these in between photos taken in Quebec last May, so now they are out of the way.<br /> <br /> I am adding these eight photos late tonight. All of the photos were taken on 29 December 2018, when four of us (using just one car) took part in the annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count for the Cochrane Wildlife Reserve area. I'm not sure why it's called Wildlife Reserve, as it consists of regular back roads and farms just like on our other Counts. The area our group covered was right on the east edge of the count circle.<br /> <br /> One of my absolute favourite things to photograph on this annual Count are the Llamas at one of the farms. This farmer has seven of these large, amusing animals, and they are always one of the highlights of this Count for me. Most of these animals were given to him by other farmers who no longer wanted them. <br /> <br /> "Llamas appear to have originated from the central plains of North America about 40 million years ago. They migrated to South America and Asia about 3 million years ago. By the end of the last ice age (10,000–12,000 years ago) camelids were extinct in North America. As of 2007, there were over 7 million llamas and alpacas in South America and, due to importation from South America in the late 20th century, there are now over 100,000 llamas and 6,500–7,000 alpacas in the US and Canada." From Wikipedia.<br /> <br /> Another of my favourite (very welcoming) farms to stop at had a beautiful, old dog named Fang, who sadly died this year. They have a "newer" dog who had just had leg surgery. Apparently, this Anatolian Shepherd is an amazing dog with the owner's young children. Three cats are also at the farm, but I didn't see any of them on this trip. The enthusiastic landowners work so hard in the area of native plants, growing various species in their greenhouses. Steven Tannas was excited to show us some of his new additions, too - pigs and sheep. I love pigs, but was totally unprepared to see large pigs that were covered in curly fur! His four pigs are called Mangalitsa pigs (also called Mangalica or Mangalitza) - I think three of them are Swallow-bellied Mangalica (black and blonde) and one is a Red Mangalica (reddish-brown). They are being fed left-over, expired grocery store vegetables, so were busily munching on a variety of nutritious squash. Apparently, babies are striped. <br /> <br /> "The Mangalica (also Mangalitsa or Mangalitza) is a Hungarian breed of domestic pig. It was developed in the mid-19th century by crossbreeding Hungarian breeds from Szalonta and Bakony with the European wild boar and the Serbian Šumadija breed. The Mangalica pig grows a thick, woolly coat similar to that of a sheep. The only other pig breed noted for having a long coat is the extinct Lincolnshire Curly-coated pig of England." From Wikipedia.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://modernfarmer.com/2014/03/meet-mangalitsa-hairy-pig-thats-kobe-beef-pork/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">modernfarmer.com/2014/03/meet-mangalitsa-hairy-pig-thats-...</a><br /> <br /> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mangalica" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mangalica</a><br /> <br /> Steven runs Tannas Conservation Services Ltd.. One of their projects is the rough fescue (native grass) restoration project, which has been very successful over the past 7+ years. Check the links below to discover all the other things that Steven's work involves: <br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.tannasenvironmental.com/about-us/our-history.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.tannasenvironmental.com/about-us/our-history.html</a><br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.tannasenvironmental.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.tannasenvironmental.com/</a><br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.nativeplantproducer-esrs.com/About-Us.htm" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.nativeplantproducer-esrs.com/About-Us.htm</a><br /> <br /> A nearby farm, which is also included in our area, has two beautiful old, red barns and I was longing to see these again. Unfortunately, no one was home, but I did get the chance to take four or five shots as we drove past them. I always wish we could find someone home, so that I could ask permission to get out of the car and take a few photos. Have to remember that this IS a bird count, not a barn count, so I feel very lucky to get any photos of any barns : )<br /> <br /> The weather was so beautiful, with the temperature starting off at 0C and later getting up to about PLUS 8C. It was heavily overcast till noon and then brightened up and turned into a glorious afternoon. The Count last year (December 2017) was just the opposite, with a bitterly cold temperature of -23C. <br /> <br /> A huge thank-you to the various landowners who were kind enough to allow us to wander round their farmyards. These visits make our day so much more interesting and rewarding! So many delightful people. One of our stops is especially welcoming each year - with coffee and cookies ready waiting, not to mention the use of a washroom, which is always greatly appreciated, <br /> <br /> Thank you, Dave, for being willing to drive the four of us all day. Without drivers, these counts just would not be able to take place, so it is appreciated so much.</div> A quick drive-by shot <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/47959444"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/94/44/47959444.0df31444.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">No more Llama photos (till next year) and no more red barn photos from this Bird Count. Promise! I didn't want to be posting any of these in between photos taken in Quebec last May, so now they are out of the way.<br /> <br /> I am adding these eight photos late tonight. All of the photos were taken on 29 December 2018, when four of us (using just one car) took part in the annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count for the Cochrane Wildlife Reserve area. I'm not sure why it's called Wildlife Reserve, as it consists of regular back roads and farms just like on our other Counts. The area our group covered was right on the east edge of the count circle.<br /> <br /> One of my absolute favourite things to photograph on this annual Count are the Llamas at one of the farms. This farmer has seven of these large, amusing animals, and they are always one of the highlights of this Count for me. Most of these animals were given to him by other farmers who no longer wanted them. <br /> <br /> "Llamas appear to have originated from the central plains of North America about 40 million years ago. They migrated to South America and Asia about 3 million years ago. By the end of the last ice age (10,000–12,000 years ago) camelids were extinct in North America. As of 2007, there were over 7 million llamas and alpacas in South America and, due to importation from South America in the late 20th century, there are now over 100,000 llamas and 6,500–7,000 alpacas in the US and Canada." From Wikipedia.<br /> <br /> Another of my favourite (very welcoming) farms to stop at had a beautiful, old dog named Fang, who sadly died this year. They have a "newer" dog who had just had leg surgery. Apparently, this Anatolian Shepherd is an amazing dog with the owner's young children. Three cats are also at the farm, but I didn't see any of them on this trip. The enthusiastic landowners work so hard in the area of native plants, growing various species in their greenhouses. Steven Tannas was excited to show us some of his new additions, too - pigs and sheep. I love pigs, but was totally unprepared to see large pigs that were covered in curly fur! His four pigs are called Mangalitsa pigs (also called Mangalica or Mangalitza) - I think three of them are Swallow-bellied Mangalica (black and blonde) and one is a Red Mangalica (reddish-brown). They are being fed left-over, expired grocery store vegetables, so were busily munching on a variety of nutritious squash. Apparently, babies are striped. <br /> <br /> "The Mangalica (also Mangalitsa or Mangalitza) is a Hungarian breed of domestic pig. It was developed in the mid-19th century by crossbreeding Hungarian breeds from Szalonta and Bakony with the European wild boar and the Serbian Šumadija breed. The Mangalica pig grows a thick, woolly coat similar to that of a sheep. The only other pig breed noted for having a long coat is the extinct Lincolnshire Curly-coated pig of England." From Wikipedia.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://modernfarmer.com/2014/03/meet-mangalitsa-hairy-pig-thats-kobe-beef-pork/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">modernfarmer.com/2014/03/meet-mangalitsa-hairy-pig-thats-...</a><br /> <br /> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mangalica" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mangalica</a><br /> <br /> Steven runs Tannas Conservation Services Ltd.. One of their projects is the rough fescue (native grass) restoration project, which has been very successful over the past 7+ years. Check the links below to discover all the other things that Steven's work involves: <br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.tannasenvironmental.com/about-us/our-history.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.tannasenvironmental.com/about-us/our-history.html</a><br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.tannasenvironmental.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.tannasenvironmental.com/</a><br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.nativeplantproducer-esrs.com/About-Us.htm" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.nativeplantproducer-esrs.com/About-Us.htm</a><br /> <br /> A nearby farm, which is also included in our area, has two beautiful old, red barns and I was longing to see these again. Unfortunately, no one was home, but I did get the chance to take four or five shots as we drove past them. I always wish we could find someone home, so that I could ask permission to get out of the car and take a few photos. Have to remember that this IS a bird count, not a barn count, so I feel very lucky to get any photos of any barns : )<br /> <br /> The weather was so beautiful, with the temperature starting off at 0C and later getting up to about PLUS 8C. It was heavily overcast till noon and then brightened up and turned into a glorious afternoon. The Count last year (December 2017) was just the opposite, with a bitterly cold temperature of -23C. <br /> <br /> A huge thank-you to the various landowners who were kind enough to allow us to wander round their farmyards. These visits make our day so much more interesting and rewarding! So many delightful people. One of our stops is especially welcoming each year - with coffee and cookies ready waiting, not to mention the use of a washroom, which is always greatly appreciated, <br /> <br /> Thank you, Dave, for being willing to drive the four of us all day. Without drivers, these counts just would not be able to take place, so it is appreciated so much.</div> Anne Elliott https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/47959440 tag:ipernity.com,2019-01-04,doc-47959440 Fri, 04 Jan 2019 06:38:22 +0000 2018-12-29T12:57:32-07:00 nobody@ipernity.com (Anne Elliott) <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/47959440"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/94/40/47959440.b133ff4c.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">No more Llama photos (till next year) and no more red barn photos from this Bird Count. Promise! I didn't want to be posting any of these in between photos taken in Quebec last May, so now they are out of the way.<br /> <br /> I am adding these eight photos late tonight. All of the photos were taken on 29 December 2018, when four of us (using just one car) took part in the annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count for the Cochrane Wildlife Reserve area. I'm not sure why it's called Wildlife Reserve, as it consists of regular back roads and farms just like on our other Counts. The area our group covered was right on the east edge of the count circle.<br /> <br /> One of my absolute favourite things to photograph on this annual Count are the Llamas at one of the farms. This farmer has seven of these large, amusing animals, and they are always one of the highlights of this Count for me. Most of these animals were given to him by other farmers who no longer wanted them. <br /> <br /> "Llamas appear to have originated from the central plains of North America about 40 million years ago. They migrated to South America and Asia about 3 million years ago. By the end of the last ice age (10,000–12,000 years ago) camelids were extinct in North America. As of 2007, there were over 7 million llamas and alpacas in South America and, due to importation from South America in the late 20th century, there are now over 100,000 llamas and 6,500–7,000 alpacas in the US and Canada." From Wikipedia.<br /> <br /> Another of my favourite (very welcoming) farms to stop at had a beautiful, old dog named Fang, who sadly died this year. They have a "newer" dog who had just had leg surgery. Apparently, this Anatolian Shepherd is an amazing dog with the owner's young children. Three cats are also at the farm, but I didn't see any of them on this trip. The enthusiastic landowners work so hard in the area of native plants, growing various species in their greenhouses. Steven Tannas was excited to show us some of his new additions, too - pigs and sheep. I love pigs, but was totally unprepared to see large pigs that were covered in curly fur! His four pigs are called Mangalitsa pigs (also called Mangalica or Mangalitza) - I think three of them are Swallow-bellied Mangalica (black and blonde) and one is a Red Mangalica (reddish-brown). They are being fed left-over, expired grocery store vegetables, so were busily munching on a variety of nutritious squash. Apparently, babies are striped. <br /> <br /> "The Mangalica (also Mangalitsa or Mangalitza) is a Hungarian breed of domestic pig. It was developed in the mid-19th century by crossbreeding Hungarian breeds from Szalonta and Bakony with the European wild boar and the Serbian Šumadija breed. The Mangalica pig grows a thick, woolly coat similar to that of a sheep. The only other pig breed noted for having a long coat is the extinct Lincolnshire Curly-coated pig of England." From Wikipedia.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://modernfarmer.com/2014/03/meet-mangalitsa-hairy-pig-thats-kobe-beef-pork/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">modernfarmer.com/2014/03/meet-mangalitsa-hairy-pig-thats-...</a><br /> <br /> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mangalica" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mangalica</a><br /> <br /> Steven runs Tannas Conservation Services Ltd.. One of their projects is the rough fescue (native grass) restoration project, which has been very successful over the past 7+ years. Check the links below to discover all the other things that Steven's work involves: <br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.tannasenvironmental.com/about-us/our-history.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.tannasenvironmental.com/about-us/our-history.html</a><br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.tannasenvironmental.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.tannasenvironmental.com/</a><br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.nativeplantproducer-esrs.com/About-Us.htm" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.nativeplantproducer-esrs.com/About-Us.htm</a><br /> <br /> A nearby farm, which is also included in our area, has two beautiful old, red barns and I was longing to see these again. Unfortunately, no one was home, but I did get the chance to take four or five shots as we drove past them. I always wish we could find someone home, so that I could ask permission to get out of the car and take a few photos. Have to remember that this IS a bird count, not a barn count, so I feel very lucky to get any photos of any barns : )<br /> <br /> The weather was so beautiful, with the temperature starting off at 0C and later getting up to about PLUS 8C. It was heavily overcast till noon and then brightened up and turned into a glorious afternoon. The Count last year (December 2017) was just the opposite, with a bitterly cold temperature of -23C. <br /> <br /> A huge thank-you to the various landowners who were kind enough to allow us to wander round their farmyards. These visits make our day so much more interesting and rewarding! So many delightful people. One of our stops is especially welcoming each year - with coffee and cookies ready waiting, not to mention the use of a washroom, which is always greatly appreciated, <br /> <br /> Thank you, Dave, for being willing to drive the four of us all day. Without drivers, these counts just would not be able to take place, so it is appreciated so much.</div> Boldly red <p class="who"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/home/293827">Anne Elliott</a> has posted:</p><p class="preview"><a href="https://www.ipernity.com/doc/293827/47959440"><img src="https://cdn.ipernity.com/200/94/40/47959440.b133ff4c.240.jpg?r2" width="240" height="180" alt=""/></a></p><div class="description">No more Llama photos (till next year) and no more red barn photos from this Bird Count. Promise! I didn't want to be posting any of these in between photos taken in Quebec last May, so now they are out of the way.<br /> <br /> I am adding these eight photos late tonight. All of the photos were taken on 29 December 2018, when four of us (using just one car) took part in the annual Audubon Christmas Bird Count for the Cochrane Wildlife Reserve area. I'm not sure why it's called Wildlife Reserve, as it consists of regular back roads and farms just like on our other Counts. The area our group covered was right on the east edge of the count circle.<br /> <br /> One of my absolute favourite things to photograph on this annual Count are the Llamas at one of the farms. This farmer has seven of these large, amusing animals, and they are always one of the highlights of this Count for me. Most of these animals were given to him by other farmers who no longer wanted them. <br /> <br /> "Llamas appear to have originated from the central plains of North America about 40 million years ago. They migrated to South America and Asia about 3 million years ago. By the end of the last ice age (10,000–12,000 years ago) camelids were extinct in North America. As of 2007, there were over 7 million llamas and alpacas in South America and, due to importation from South America in the late 20th century, there are now over 100,000 llamas and 6,500–7,000 alpacas in the US and Canada." From Wikipedia.<br /> <br /> Another of my favourite (very welcoming) farms to stop at had a beautiful, old dog named Fang, who sadly died this year. They have a "newer" dog who had just had leg surgery. Apparently, this Anatolian Shepherd is an amazing dog with the owner's young children. Three cats are also at the farm, but I didn't see any of them on this trip. The enthusiastic landowners work so hard in the area of native plants, growing various species in their greenhouses. Steven Tannas was excited to show us some of his new additions, too - pigs and sheep. I love pigs, but was totally unprepared to see large pigs that were covered in curly fur! His four pigs are called Mangalitsa pigs (also called Mangalica or Mangalitza) - I think three of them are Swallow-bellied Mangalica (black and blonde) and one is a Red Mangalica (reddish-brown). They are being fed left-over, expired grocery store vegetables, so were busily munching on a variety of nutritious squash. Apparently, babies are striped. <br /> <br /> "The Mangalica (also Mangalitsa or Mangalitza) is a Hungarian breed of domestic pig. It was developed in the mid-19th century by crossbreeding Hungarian breeds from Szalonta and Bakony with the European wild boar and the Serbian Šumadija breed. The Mangalica pig grows a thick, woolly coat similar to that of a sheep. The only other pig breed noted for having a long coat is the extinct Lincolnshire Curly-coated pig of England." From Wikipedia.<br /> <br /> <a href="https://modernfarmer.com/2014/03/meet-mangalitsa-hairy-pig-thats-kobe-beef-pork/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">modernfarmer.com/2014/03/meet-mangalitsa-hairy-pig-thats-...</a><br /> <br /> <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mangalica" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mangalica</a><br /> <br /> Steven runs Tannas Conservation Services Ltd.. One of their projects is the rough fescue (native grass) restoration project, which has been very successful over the past 7+ years. Check the links below to discover all the other things that Steven's work involves: <br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.tannasenvironmental.com/about-us/our-history.html" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.tannasenvironmental.com/about-us/our-history.html</a><br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.tannasenvironmental.com/" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.tannasenvironmental.com/</a><br /> <br /> <a href="http://www.nativeplantproducer-esrs.com/About-Us.htm" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">www.nativeplantproducer-esrs.com/About-Us.htm</a><br /> <br /> A nearby farm, which is also included in our area, has two beautiful old, red barns and I was longing to see these again. Unfortunately, no one was home, but I did get the chance to take four or five shots as we drove past them. I always wish we could find someone home, so that I could ask permission to get out of the car and take a few photos. Have to remember that this IS a bird count, not a barn count, so I feel very lucky to get any photos of any barns : )<br /> <br /> The weather was so beautiful, with the temperature starting off at 0C and later getting up to about PLUS 8C. It was heavily overcast till noon and then brightened up and turned into a glorious afternoon. The Count last year (December 2017) was just the opposite, with a bitterly cold temperature of -23C. <br /> <br /> A huge thank-you to the various landowners who were kind enough to allow us to wander round their farmyards. These visits make our day so much more interesting and rewarding! So many delightful people. One of our stops is especially welcoming each year - with coffee and cookies ready waiting, not to mention the use of a washroom, which is always greatly appreciated, <br /> <br /> Thank you, Dave, for being willing to drive the four of us all day. Without drivers, these counts just would not be able to take place, so it is appreciated so much.</div> Anne Elliott