The truth is – I didn’t really know much about birds until
about a year ago. I signed up for Fall Birding with Friends of Fish Creek Park
at the end of last year, and that’s how it all began.
That first outing at Carburn Park was a revelation. OK, so I
may have been able to tell you what a Chickadee was, but other than that I was
pretty clueless. I started to learn.
 |
| Black-capped Chickadee |
 |
| White-breasted Nuthatch |
 |
| Northern Flicker |
I started paying attention to the birds in my own
neighbourhood. So, that’s a House Sparrow!
 |
| Captivated Birdwatcher |
 |
| House Sparrow |
Other birds kept stopping by. How had I never noticed these beauties
before?
 |
| Dark-eyed Junco |
 |
| Pine Siskins |
 |
| White-crowned Sparrows |
 |
| Cedar Waxwing |
And one of my favourite "yard birds": the ever flitting and oh, so small Ruby-crowned Kinglet.
 |
| Ruby-crowned Kinglet |
The weekly outings with the birding group kept delivering
delight after delight. We have Great Blue Herons in Calgary? And who is this
sweet little shorebird – a Killdeer! And is that a Pterodactyl or a Pileated
Woodpecker?
 |
| Great Blue Heron |
 |
| Killdeer |
 |
| Pileated Woodpecker |
Back to Fish Creek for even more. I’d be lucky if I had ever
caught a fleeting glimpse of a Blue Jay before, and here they were. Amazing what
a pair of binoculars and an ever-patient birding leader will produce.
 |
| Blue Jays |
 |
| Common Goldeneye |
 |
| Hooded Merganser |
 |
| Belted Kingfisher |
 |
| Black-backed Woodpecker |
So I decided to go it alone. I ventured to a park a little
closer to home that was known to house more than a bird or two. Baker Park solo
without a leader. The highlight of the day was when I heard a Boreal Chickadee. I had learned to differentiate their call
from that of the Black-capped. I scoured the thick Spruce boughs with my
binoculars but couldn’t catch a glimpse. Just then it flitted across the path
and landed on a branch right beside me.
 |
| Boreal Chickadee |
Winter came and so did the Common Redpolls. They feasted at my feeders in large numbers all winter long.
 |
| Common Redpoll |
Last, but not least, it was the owls. I have lived in my
neighbourhood for almost ten years. Never before had I noticed an owl - or
anything other than Crows, Magpies, and Chickadees, really. And last winter – 2
owls. Each within 500 metres of my home!
The first was on a snowy morning, just a few days before
Christmas. I was out on my daily dog walk/bird count. Just halfway around the
stormwater pond I notice a lump in the trees.
I stood frozen in place, in awe of the Great Horned Owl.
Valentine’s Day brought another gift. I was headed home after
dropping my daughter off at her bus stop. A cacophony in the Spruce tree beside
the path stopped me in my tracks. The Magpies and Chickadees were unrelentingly
harassing something. I had learned enough in my birding course to stop and see
what it was. Sure enough, a little owl. A Northern Saw-whet this time. I was an
audience of one for the drama unfolding over several minutes.
 |
| Northern Saw-whet Owl |
Finally, the more regular local residents prevailed. The
Northern Saw-whet was chased away by a lowly Black-capped Chickadee.
 |
| Northern Saw-whet Owl Fleeing the Scene |
 |
| Black-capped Chickadee chases Northern Saw-whet Owl |
Comments
Post a Comment