White-tailed Ptarmigan

I was watching my every step as I made my way down a steep slope, on what was an animal trail made by hoofed mammals. I was a few minutes in when I heard a sound of a bird flying near me. I stopped with both feet well placed. I looked to my right. A few meters away, a White-tailed Ptarmigan was looking at me and a second one, who had taken to the air, had landed a couple of meters from the first. It was the first week of October and both birds had started the process of going from their summer grey and brown feather colours to pure white for the winter. As they do in October.

These high elevation birds spend their summer above the timberline, where during warmer weather they have many options for various vegetation and insects. During the winter, they do not fly south, but instead have adapted to the winter by molting their feathers to white to blend in with their snowy surroundings and losing some altitude. They have feathers on their feet to be able to walk in the lightest of snow and to get away from the cold. They borrow under the snow and are also great for roosting.

Back to the two birds on the side of a steep slope. With the hopes of getting a few pictures of both. I slowly turned my back toward them and placed my pack on the ground to get the camera out. Way too many times, the bird take-off just when you are about to point the camera at them. But this time when I slowly faced them again, both were still there. I squatted to get the beautiful glow coming off trees from below, where I was heading, as the background for this image. A couple of minutes later, I was all packed and started my way down. Not a minute passed when I heard a loud sound of a large descending bird. Three ptarmigan who were out of my view took to the air for safety some forty meters in front of me and the same did the two I left behind, but in the opposite direction. Soon the reason came into my view. About fifty meters in front of me, at eye level, was a Golden Eagle in the air. I did not even bother getting the camera out this time. A few seconds after the eagle saw me, it was out of there. With a smile on my face, I watched my steps again as I made my way to the sun-covered bottom. With the future technology, we’ll get the image of the eagle downloaded from my head.

Canada Jay

During the winter of 2018, the common name for the Gray Jay went back to Canada Jay, thanks to a 9-to-1 vote by the American Ornithological Society. The same society but different members had taken away the name Canada Jay in 1957 and it was replaced with Gray Jay. Canada Jay is mainly found in Canada, residing across the country year around. It’s also sometimes called a camp robber. Find out why by eating near them. The jay itself doesn’t seem to care what we call it, it’s too busy looking for its next meal.

One reason it can live so far north throughout the winter is because of its ability to store food. It uses its sticky saliva to glue food to tree branches above the height of the coming snow. As well, the Canada Jay is helped during the cold temperatures by its thick, fluffy plumage, which can cover legs and feet. Even its nostrils are helped by feathers.  It’s a close relative, the Siberian Jay, which can be found in northern Eurasia. Together they form a ring around the Northern Hemisphere. 

On a sunny afternoon, when I came across this jay, it was too busy looking for its natural food surrounded by larch trees. My chocolates were well hidden in my backpack as I took pictures of it.

Feather

I was sitting back on the rocks in an alpine meadow watching marmots and pikas. After 45 minutes, a small plane that was going in circles above me went away. Soon after, I started enjoying the surrounding sights and sounds. The marmots were gaining weight for the coming hibernation season, and the pikas were busy storing food for the winter. I heard a warning call from pikas, about 150 meters away from me a Prairie Falcon was trying to catch breakfast. Unsuccessful, it decided to fly off. Soon after, I heard a sound as if something was coming down on me and then flying by me. It was a Golden Eagle. It flew to the top of the cliffs in front of me, about 200 meters from where I was sitting. It shook its body, and two feathers took to the air from it. One went straight down and the other was pushed by the light breeze toward me. With its light weight and surface area, it slowly made its way down with the blue sky in the background. It landed some forty meters from me among the quartzite rocks.

Northern Rough-winged Swallow

This Northern Rough-winged Swallow is one of the six species that can be spotted in Banff NP. So named because of the small hooks or points found on the leading edges of their outer wing feathers. Swallows slender, streamlined body and long, pointed wings allow them great manoeuvrability and endurance in the sky. Which is needed as most of their diet consists of eating insects caught in the air. The rough-winged swallow in the image was doing just that, along with a few other species. With both wings fully open along with the tail, it almost came to a complete stop to change direction toward an insect it was trying to catch. Swallows' body shapes allow them to be very efficient flyers, their metabolic rate can be up to 72 percent lower than other birds of the same size. They have great lateral and frontal vision to track prey. The form and structure of their eyes have evolved similar to that of raptors, providing them with great vision. They have short bills, which does not matter. With their strong jaws and wide gape, they can easily catch their prey. 

Every year I take up the challenge of trying to get their pictures in flight. You have to stay calm and be ready to enjoy the journey. Lot of pictures are going to be taken with very few keepers. As always, I looked for patterns as up to 30 swallows of a few different species flew back and forth over the wetland, catching insects. I would prefocus at a certain distance, when one would get into that space, I would pan my camera trying to get it in focus and then keep taking their pictures until I lost them in the frame. And repeat again and again and again. Nature photography is a very calming experience for me. With so many variables in play while trying to take pictures of the swallows flying, you can’t help but be in the moment.

Sandhill Crane

I was trying to get into a position to get a picture of a Lewis’s Woodpecker, a rare sighting in Banff National Park. I had only seen one once before and I was trying to see if I could get at least one good picture of the species. Just as I was ready to get a good picture, it would move as it searched for food. It was not moving away from me, but kept going to the other side of a fallen tree.

All of sudden I heard loud calls from a Sandhill Crane, also a rare bird during spring in Banff, according to the new Banff NP Birding Checklist. The intense calls went on for more than a minute, coming from the other side of the trees that were beside. After several minutes, still trying to get a good picture, the woodpecker flew where I could not follow. I decided now it was time to look for the crane.

I walked through the woods and about 40 meters away was the crane. It was moving and I kept my distance, moved parallel to it. I have seen Sandhill Cranes in Banff several times. But, I was still waiting for a good picture. Unlike the experience with the Lewis’s Woodpecker, I got the picture I wanted. As well an out of focus male Bufflehead Duck in the background.  And later I learned from friends the reason for all those calls had to do with two coyotes that were in the area. This large bird with a wingspan of two meters was not going to let the coyotes get anywhere near it.

Long-billed Dowitcher

It was the second time in my life I had seen a Long-billed Dowitcher, the day before was the first. But during my second encounter, it was my day off and I was going to get a picture worthy of this beautiful shorebird with a long bill.

 This species breeds in tundra lowlands and foothills in wet sedge meadows. When we’re lucky, we get a rare look when one or two do a stop over in Banff NP on their migration route from southern to northern North America. Their long bill comes in handy as they forage for food in water that’s less than 7 cm deep.

 The conditions were perfect. I was alone and could take my time to get the pictures I wanted without the two dowitchers that ended up spending a few days in the Bow Valley, being scared off. There was enough light to show their colours, but there was a slight breeze to create ripples in the water. I was far enough from them to behave normally. I lay down on the grass next to the water to get a better background, to hide the ripples and to get them to pop in the picture from their surroundings. Then I waited for them to get into the right spot. They kept busy foraging for food, even after I got the picture and walked away slowly from the area.

Golden-crowned Sparrow

Birding is never a quick walk. To be able to listen and see as much as one can, it involves slowly moving at nature’s pace. And a sparrow can never be just a sparrow. In Banff NP along we can see as many as 20 different types of sparrows. And a few others that don’t have a sparrow in their name, but are part of the same family. When most people think of a sparrow, they are thinking of the House Sparrow. A European species that was introduced to North America in the 1850s. Spotted just about anywhere humans reside.

 But in the spring and summer we get to see many other types of sparrows. Like the white-crowned, song, lincoln’s, savannah, white-throated, chipping, clay-coloured, and the Fox Sparrow to name a few. So when birding and you see what looks to be a sparrow moving on the trail looking for food. You want to stop and make sure you identify them. In my case, a few weeks back, it was the Golden-crowned Sparrow among the White-crowned Sparrows. It was not calling, just moving at the edge of the trail and flew up to perch on the willow branch as I stepped closer. I don’t get to see this species that often. I slowly moved, so as not to scare it away, but at the same time I had to act fast as hikers were coming my way on the trail. Just as I got the rare picture, the hikers unaware of the sparrow came through and the bird went into hiding. The memory and the pictures will do until perhaps next year I see one again passing through the area.

Eurasian Collard Dove

Every birding season there are a lot of frustrated birders, having problems identifying birds. And to think you’re getting out to enjoy nature and have some time to relax. But, learning to identify birds requires the same effort as mastering any other subject. If Malcolm Gladwell is correct about his “10,000-hour rule”, then 10, 000 hours are required birding to become a good birder. After that you know your birds inside out. Let’s say we have four good months of birding and you put in four hours at a time, and can get out two times a week if not retired. That can take 78 years to become an expert. But of course, you can get out in the evening or an hour or two before work. As well, there is some good birding to be had outside the birding season. But, not everyone wants to be an expert, most want enough knowledge to enjoy their walks. Where they are able to identify fair numbers of birds in their local area. Not everyone has enough time to become a good birder, not even a fair birder.

In the end, what I’m trying to convey is that people should go easy on themselves. If you are out there to enjoy the social aspect of birding, then there will always be a limit to how fast you learn. All the good birders I know became so by spending a lot of time alone in the field with a pair of binoculars and possibly a good guide book. I know of one birder friend who could hear the bird, but ended up spending nearly an hour or more trying to see it. He will never forget what LeConte’s Sparrow looks and sounds like for the rest of his life.  If you’re birding with a large group, it’s great for socializing, but not ideal for becoming a good birder. In a group, you never end up putting in the time to listen and look at the markings to identify the bird. Someone is always there to help fill in the blanks. Books, apps, websites, and birding groups are great aids for birding. But to get good, you have to spend a lot of time just walking with nature. Either way, have fun, no matter how you want to be birding. The more fun you have, the more you want to be outside. And that’s the most important goal.

Bald Eagle

The Bald Eagle’s eyeball is almost the same size as the human eye. Given their smaller heads compared to ours, the eyeballs fill most of their skulls. While most of us have 20/20 vision, eagles have an amazing 20/5 vision. That is, they can see a subject as clearly as we can from five feet away from a distance of 20 feet. We have a peripheral vision of 180 degrees, with eagle eyes fixed in their sockets, angled 30 degrees, and have a 340-degree visual field of view.  The eagles move their heads every five seconds to the left and right or straight ahead.  But after they locate their prey, they look straight ahead and dive for the kill. As well, to make it easier for the eagle to spot their prey. They are also able to spot a rabbit from as far as 3.2 km away. Like all birds, they also have much superior colour vision than we do. Able to see more vivid colours, better able to discriminate between more shades, and can also see ultraviolet light. This comes in handy when being able to detect UV-reflecting urine trails of a small prey. These and other vision features help them find food in extreme conditions to survive, and are able to see me before I even know that they are in the area.

Great Gray Owl

As the “The Teddy Bears Picnic” song goes, “If you go down in the woods today, you’re sure of a big surprise”. And I was when I came across the big guy, M122, last month. I saw fresh tracks going across my path. When I looked down the slope to my right. There he was slowly moving in the woods through the deep snow. He’s challenged by moving through deep snow, as we would be. With his lower height, he walks next to the trees when he can, where the snow is less thanks to the branches above. As well, trees being darker, heat is radiated from them. Which helps the snow melt under the canopy first. 

Been up since the middle of March and having to deal with a deep snowpack for a few months, every bit helps to conserve energy for the big guy. For wildlife, energy is money, and the goal is to save as much as possible until it’s needed. That could be escaping a predator or dealing with a bigger competitor. For M122, he might use his savings when there is a chance of catching prey or chasing competition away. But, one thing he does not have to worry about is being chased away. You just have to look at him to see he is good at saving.

But sometimes it pays not to be efficient. A Washington State University study was able to find the optimal speed of a bear at 4.2 kilometers an hour in a lab. But on the landscape it was calculated to be 2.2 kilometers an hour. It was concluded, the bears might forgo efficiency to take in the landscape and to forage for food. As well, it was learned from the same study that bears prefer slopes that were 10 percent grade or less. If the slope is steeper, they go up in a switchback pattern to maintain their grade preference. Plus, more opportunities to come across food. 

Oh yeah, there’s another mammal that prefers the same grade as the bears, us humans. The bears will take full advantage of the hiking trails when they come across one. Not only do many of our hiking trails have their preferred grade, they also have no trees and shrubs coming across their path. There’s a small chance for one to come across a bear while hiking. But, it’s always good to have bear spray all year on the trails and even more so during the bear-aware season.

Red-breasted Nuthatch

Standing dead trees or dead parts of trees play an important role in the ecosystem, including providing places for nests for various birds. One of those birds are the nuthatches, which are one of the few non-woodpeckers that excavate their own nest cavities. With the Red-breasted Nuthatch, both of their sexes will help to build a nest, but the female will do more than the male. But the males will feed the females while the females work on the nest. Aspen trees, with their softer wood, are their preferred tree for nest building when available. The cavity can be up to 20 centimeters deep, taking up to 18 days to excavate. For the bed inside the nest, various materials can be used, including grass, bark strips, and pine needles and lined with fur, feathers and fine grasses and bark stripes. Both sexes will apply conifer resin to the entrance, sometimes with a piece of bark. It’s thought that this is done to keep out predators. The nuthatch avoids the resin by diving straight through the hole. With the resin, the home is ready for the family with a security measure.

Bohemian Waxwing

There are three species of waxwings in the world, lucky us, we get to see two of them. Cedar Waxwing and, more so during the fall and winter, the Bohemian Waxwing. They love fruits, no matter if it’s in your backyard or in the wild. During fall and winter, the Bohemian Waxwings will find it, if it’s out there. As for their name; “bohemian” describes their wandering ways in search of food. The availability of which might change from year to year. They have red waxy wing tips and yellow on other wings, it’s the reason they are called waxwings. Waxy tips are a result of their diet, carotenoid pigments found in the fruit waxwings eat. From my firsthand experience of eating lots of fruits, this does not work on humans. Unless it ends up in our ears? In case you’re wondering, we don’t. 

The waxwings in the picture were five of a 250 plus strong ear-full, a group of waxwing is called “ear-full” and a “museum” of waxwings. I found them enjoying juniper berries, as well as some kinnikinnick berries. All while being harassed by two brave Townend’s Solitaires.  With a kilometer and half left for my hike one afternoon, I came across them on a south facing section of the trail. With little to no snow, the fruits were exposed for the waxwing to consume. Spent over half an hour surrounded by them and their high-pitched trills. 

Mallard Ducks

After I took pictures of the sunset, I packed up, and I started to make my way home. I was fifty meters into my walk when I noticed something was flying. Turning my head, I noticed it was five Mallard Ducks. I’m pretty sure they were the same ones I have been seeing in the area since last summer. They were born last summer, and they had decided to spend their first winter in the Canadian Rockies. They had survived a couple of cold spells, including the long one in December and early January. Either a predator got them into the air or perhaps they were moving to the bigger open water area for safety during the night. After they had made one circle, I thought it was too late to get their picture with the remaining sunset colours. But they decided to make one more circle, and this time I was ready with the camera in hand. As they started to descend, I got a picture of them and the warm colours of the sunset.

Clark's Nutcracker

The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) was created in 1977. An advisory panel to the Minister of Environment and Climate Change Canada, made up of wildlife biology experts from various backgrounds across Canada. They assign risk categories to flora and fauna included in its current mandate. In 2003, COSEWIC was established as an advisory body for the Species at Risk Act (SARA). When the official list of wildlife species at risk is established, the federal government will take COSEWIC designations into consideration. Thereby, wildlife species qualify for legal protection and recovery under the Species at Risk Act.

 Currently, limper pine has no status under SARA, but has an endangered status under COSEWIC as of November 2014. A pathogen by the name White Pine Blister Rust, Mountain Pine Beetle and climate change are the reasons behind this status. At the current rate of a one percent decline in its population per year, two thirds of mature individuals will be gone over the next 100 years.

 Education and conservation work are taking place to help the limper pine population. A keystone species that provides high-fat food sources through its pine nuts for small mammals, bears, and birds, including the Clark’s Nutcracker. This species has a mutually beneficial relationship with limber pine. Nutcrackers can collect as many as 35,000 seeds and carry and cache them in the ground as far as 10 kilometers away. Not all get consumed by the nutcrackers; some are taken by other animals, and the remaining may take root, resulting in new limber pine trees.

American Dipper

The birds got it all figured out how not to get a frostbite on their legs and feet. Feathers help to maintain core body temperature, their legs and feet are mostly tendons and bones with some muscle or nerve tissue. Therefore, avoiding the high cost of keeping the legs and feet the same temperature as the core. The blood is supplied all the way to the foot, using a countercurrent heat exchange system. Cool blood returns from the foot traveling through veins surrounding the arteries that are sending warm blood from the body to the foot. The cool blood is warmed before reaching the body. Just enough heat reaches the foot to prevent it from freezing. The way this network of arteries is wired from the heart to the feet is called rete mirable or “wonderful net”. 

Another way to keep the legs and the feet warm is by perching and covering them with their feathers. As well, we have all seen this, by standing on one leg while the other is tucked into their feathers. Switching between the two as needed. So if you see a waterfowl standing on one leg on the ice on a cold winter day, let them be and go home, do a tree pose and then enjoy your favorite hot chocolate.

Pine Grosbeak

One of the birds I look for in late fall and winter is the Pine Grosbeaks. Bringing some colour to the cold days. These robin size finches have greyish bodies, topped by pinkish red for the males and yellow on the females. With their thick bills, they can easily crush seeds and remove tree buds and needles of the spruce trees. Pine Grosbeaks tend to eat lots of plants, but to make it easier for the nestlings to consume food, the adults regurgitate a mixture of vegetables and insects. They are found across Canada, but can vary in size and small colour difference. They can be tame, making it a bit easier to get their picture. On a late cold frosty morning, I saw two males and one female. They were slowly moving toward me as they fed. Even with them being tame, I stayed put to get them close enough to get this picture of a male on a frosty branch. Bringing colour to an overcast day.

American Three-toed Woodpecker

This nonmigratory American Three-toed Woodpecker will be one of the bird species spotted during the 2021 Christmas Bird Count. Yes!! On Saturday, December 18 the famous Bow Valley Christmas Bird Count will be taking place in and around the towns of Banff and Canmore. Pop over to the Bow Valley Naturalists site https://bowvalleynaturalists.org/event/2021-bow-valley-christmas-bird-count/ to learn how you can participate. And if you live elsewhere, not to worry. The first count started in 1900, today over 2000 take place throughout the Western Hemisphere between December 14 and January 5. If you reside in my favorite country, you can pop over to Birds Canada website  https://www.birdscanada.org/bird-science/christmas-bird-count/ , to find a count  near you.

Due to COVID-19, certain social aspects of the day will not be taking place again this year. The pot luck dinner and the ever so popular demonstrations of how adult birds feed their offspring. Always a challenge getting volunteers playing the offspring role. I guess next time we’ll have to use regurgitated chocolate instead.

Yellow-rumped Warbler

In October, I don’t get too many opportunities to get bird pictures until spring. So, on a cool, sunny morning when I heard a few Ruby-crowned Kinglets. Down went the backpack and out came the camera. Thinking I would have a few minutes before the kinglets moved on, I ended up spending a couple of hours that morning taking pictures. They were busy looking for food among the balsam poplar trees, which still had their golden leaves. The rubies were joined by few Golden-crowned Kinglets, as well with a Yellow-rumped Warbler, three to four White-crowned Sparrow, one Golden-crowned Sparrow, a couple of Mountain Chickadees and late to the party but still appreciated, one Downy Woodpecker. The goal was simple that morning, to get pictures of any one of the birds among the fall leaves. It can be challenging trying to get decent pictures with the small birds moving among the leaves, but the payoff was worth it. I kept the Sun behind me and the birds in front of me as I moved back and forth, taking pictures of the bird that was visible. The sparrows were spending time on the ground among the fallen leaves, while the others moved from branch to branch looking for insect related food. The conditions were great for the type of pictures I wanted, time passed quickly as I kept busy taking pictures before the birds moved on.

Red-winged Blackbird

One of the birds I enjoy observing are the Red-winged Blackbirds, especially the males.  It seems half of their time is spent defending their territories. Not just from other members of their own species, but they will go after many others, no matter the size difference. From members of the crow family, raptors, Great Blue Heron and others. More than a few times I have seen them accelerate and make contact with much larger birds in the air. In many cases, those larger birds are simply flying by, that makes no difference to the male blackbirds.  Stay out of their territory.

As in this image, they will show off their red shoulder field marks, to keep their rivals away and to attract females. The males are able to hide the red epaulettes, to look less dominant. Making it easier to intrude on other male’s territory and be less combative. With the Red-winged Blackbird, you don’t have to go far to locate them during the spring and summer. Even though their population has declined the last forty years, they are one of the most abundant birds in the wild. I’m already looking forward to them returning next year.

Common Raven

The summer is not yet over, already it’s one for the history books. Thanks to the record temperatures, wildfire smoke and one of the best summers for mosquitoes in a while. I have been coming to work very early, hoping to catch the mosquitoes resting as I walk to work. The plan has not fully worked, still having to deal with the few blood thirsty females. While the male mosquitoes go after flower nectar, sap, honeydew and anything else with sugar, the females to quench their thirst and to get the protein they need to produce their eggs, need our blood.  Some of the things mosquitoes have a greater attraction to are people with O type blood, beer consumers, those wearing dark-colored clothes and I think my chocolate rich blood.

 Being out early, I have been watching some pretty surreal sunrises with the wildfire smoke. A few weeks back, the Sun was rising when I saw a Common Raven on the very top of one of the belvederes of the bathing pavilion at the Cave and Basin NHS.  I crossed my fingers the raven would stay in place, as I quickly moved into place to have the raven between me and the Sun. I got the picture just as the raven was calling out. Probably calling out to tell me to get the picture before it was too late as the mosquitoes were making a beeline toward me.