Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: Cattails

This was one of the two large ponds on Frances and David Dover's property, visited on 7 August 2015. There were so many Cedar Waxwings in this area. 21 other species of bird were seen during the few hours that we spent on this wonderful property. On 7 August 2015, four of us were extremely fortunate to have the chance to visit the home and highly varied topographic 62-acre property belonging to Frances and David Dover. We felt honoured and privileged to meet and spend time with Frances and David, and also their daughter Carolyn and her husband Clair. A delightful family who welcomed us so warmly into their home and land. This acreage of grassland, forest, rolling hills - and special gardens - is not far from Millarville, SW of Calgary. In fact, it's in an area that I often drive through when I only have time for, or only feel like doing, a short drive. Amazing what little gems exist out there. This is not just a beautiful property, but is very special for various reasons. For one thing, read any history of Alberta and you will find the Dover family, including David's mother, Mary Dover. Second, among the trees and open "lawns", there are Peony flower beds, containing 100-150 heritage Peonies, each one different, that have now multiplied to more than 300 plants. Unfortunately, they bloomed a couple of weeks early this year, and all the flowers had gone to seed. Another open area had a different kind of ground cover - Thyme, which smelled wonderful. If I remember correctly, this was the open space where the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra performed on one occasion! There are two large ponds on the property and another smaller area of water that they hope to turn into a Japanese Garden. There is a total of seven wetland basins, including these. It was while walking around the Japanese Garden that a large brown 'shape' could just be seen through the dense trees - a handsome Moose buck. I will look properly at the four or so photos I just managed to get and will slip one of them into my photostream sometime soon, just for the record, definitely not for the photo quality : ) This was also where a Great Horned Owl was seen flying through the trees by some of us (not me, ha!). There are grassy paths winding through the acreage, up and down hill, that take David seven hours to mow. They are not pristine, velvety paths, but instead, they seem to take nothing away from the wildness of the whole area. One of the animals that have passed through is the Cougar. In fact, several years ago, I saw a video taken on a nearby (or adjacent?) property, where a 'kill' and night-time camera had been set up and a total of six different Cougar individuals were seen! Even the Dover's home is unique and beautiful. It is completely built of concrete (and glass) - floors, walls, ceilings, roof, deck, and so on. A Hummingbird feeder and regular bird feeders, set up on the patio, attract a variety of birds. We sat on the patio after our walk to eat our packed lunches - and to enjoy a delicious Orange Pound Cake that Frances had made for us, along with refreshing Iced Tea - thank you so much for this, Frances! While I was waiting for one of three tiny Calliope Hummingbirds to come back, I was lucky enough to see a little Mountain Chickadee, along with many Pine Siskins. We could also hear a Red-tailed Hawk in the area. Saw a total of 22 bird species. There is just so much I could write about this visit and family. Instead, or for now, I will add several links to more information on the Internet. This was a memorable day for us. Thank you so much, Frances and David, Carolyn and Clair, for being so kind and welcoming us into your home and gardens. books.google.ca/books?id=Tr36Tq_gadcC&pg=PA290&lp... www.westernwheel.com/article/20110727/WHE06/307279983/-1/... David's mother, Mary Dover (her father was A. E. Cross), was "a dynamic and distinguished Calgarian, particularly known for her work with the military during World War II." As well as being an army officer, and an alderman, she was also a preservationist. See the following link. www.albertachampions.org/champions-mary_dover.htm#.VcY1KP... ww2.glenbow.org/search/archivesMainResults.aspx?XC=/searc... glencoe.org/documents/10184/637479/The-History-of-Elbow-P... page 44-45

Another hot day today (getting up to 30C - to feel like 32C - this afternoon). Yesterday was the same, when five of us had the chance to botanize the beautiful 320 acres belonging to philanthropist, Davd Bissett and his wife. This land, roughly half wooded, with several small ponds in the open area, lies SW of Calgary. For anyone not sure what "botanizing" involves, we visit someone's property for the day, listing every single species of plant and tree, bird, insect, fungus, lichen, moss, liverwort, etc. that we find. It is always a win/win situation, as we are lucky enough to have the chance to explore a new area and the landowner receives a highly detailed list of everything found on his land. David Bissett's giving to community causes, especially education, has been a hallmark of his philanthropy. He has donated to a wide range of community cultural organizations, and he has a passion for wildlife conservation. Just one of his endless donations resulted in the creation of the Bissett Wetlands at Heritage Park here in the city, a popular educational destination. calgary.ctvnews.ca/inspired-to-give-1.676279 mtroyal.ca/ProgramsCourses/FacultiesSchoolsCentres/Busine... The heat, and the fact that my camera isn't working properly, took away most of my energy yesterday, but I managed to get a few photos that will be OK to upload. I will try and throw in the occasional bird or animal photo taken on other days in other places, as I know many of you are not really interested in plants : ) Just not getting time to go through my photos these days. Many thanks to Christie, the young woman who looks after this property, for inviting us out for the morning, and for walking the trails with us! Very much appreciated!

This photo was taken on 16 August 2014, SE of Calgary, near Frank Lake. I ended up being out all day, spending three hours in the morning birding with a group of friends at Carburn Park in the city. It's the time of year when the various tiny Warblers are passing through the city again. Then, flickr/birder/photography friend, Pam, asked if I wanted to go SE of the city to the Frank Lake area. We had a fun afternoon, with a few reasonable bird sightings. The clouds were amazing, though somehow I didn't manage to get any good photos of them. Seeing them reflected in the lake was perhaps the best place. There were several Coots and their growing youngsters at the lake - this adult climbed on to these broken Cattail (?) stems, so you can see the size of their huge, lobed feet. Spotted a Mourning Dove along one of the backroads. I don't remember ever seeing a Mourning Dove perched on a fence post before - usually, they are perched on a very high wire when I see them. Thanks, Pam, for suggesting a drive to one of my favourite areas!

A heavily zoomed and cropped image of a beautiful female Red-winged Blackbird, seen down in the south west part of the city on May 31st. Though they lack the vibrant colour of the males, these ladies have great beauty of their own.

Photographed this Yellow-headed Blackbird east of the city when I spent a few hours driving the side roads with a friend. Always nice to see these birds with the stunning, bright yellow head.