Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: rays

Yesterday, 25 September 2017, I spent the day with a friend, travelling south of the city to the Pine Coulee Reservoir and area. I absolutely love the rolling hills scenery in this whole area. I have still never driven it myself, as I know I could very easily get myself totally lost in the middle of nowhere. Most of the birds we saw were far away, needing Tony's spotting scope or at least binoculars, except for a Eurasian Collared-Dove, a Belted Kingfisher and several small birds. Meanwhile, I was enjoying the scenery and anything else that caught my eye. We called in at the Pine Coulee campground and the Willow Creek Provincial Park campground and did a walk at each. Both were deserted and so peaceful. At the Willow Creek Provincial Park campground, the silence was broken by the call of a Belted Kingfisher. There was a bright yellow sign warning that there was a bear in the area, but it was nowhere to be seen. The weather was perfect all day, starting off chilly, but getting up to about 20C in the afternoon, and a sky full of clouds. Thanks so much for the invite, Tony - much appreciated and thoroughly enjoyed! Pure luxury, too, not having to drive. "Located 119kms south of Calgary. 9kms west of Stavely on road #527. Willow Creek Basin Southern Alberta. The campground is situated on the south west shore of Pine Coulee Reservoir and contains 25 campsites for both RV's and tents. Most of the sites are surrounded by willow bushes creating a wind break and some privacy. A few choice sites are located near the lake. Amenities include, group camping, fire pits but no firewood available, dry toilets, water, garbage bins, power, boat launch, and picnic tables. Pine Coulee Reservoir is excellent for water skiing, wind surfing and fishing. Due to the lack of lakes located near Calgary you can expect to see hordes of boaters here during the summer. Boaters should use caution near the southeast end, there are a several large rocks submerged just under the surface that have destroyed many props and claimed a life. The reservoir was created for irrigation and is approximately 18kms long. It holds strong Walleye and Northern Pike populations and there is a public dock located next to campground where you can sit and fish. You'll need a fishing license to try your luck. The well maintained grassy area in the center of the campground is a good spot for astronomers and star gazers." From AlbertaWow. www.albertawow.com/campgrounds/Pine_Coulee/Pine_Coulee_Ca...

It’s very unusual for me to post a black and white photo, but the afternoon clouds two days ago made me think of taking a shot or two in black and white. I think the sun’s rays show up just a tiny bit better when not in colour. Two days ago, on 10 July 2014, I checked the weather forecast before dashing down to the Frank Lake area, SE of the city. Pretty much a spur of the moment thing. The temperature had gone down a few degrees from the unbearably hot day before, and the sun was shining. On the Weather Network, I discovered that there was a weather Alert in effect, possibly huge hailstones and also the possibility of a tornado. Thinking I might get a chance to see some interesting clouds, I decided that I would still go. My destination was Frank Lake and the surrounding area, where I bumped into friend, Greg Wagner, who is extremely knowledgeable about the area and its wildlife, and does an amazing job of recording all his sightings. I saw Eared Grebes with their young ones (quite big now), a few White-faced Ibis and Black-crowned Night Herons (no photos). Did manage to get a few shots of a Sora (thanks for telling me to watch out for them, Greg!). After I'd finished at the blind, Greg took me to various spots around the lake, pointing out places where he had seen interesting things, hoping that they might still be there for me to see. Thanks so much, Greg - I enjoyed this and really appreciated it! One of these was a Western Kingbird - our more common Kingbird is the Eastern, so I was very happy to see a Western. We also passed by a male Great Horned Owl, who was perched on one of the huge pylons (posted yesterday). He and his family seem to be doing well. I used Picmonkey to "frost" the edges of the owl photo, to soften the harsh metal of the pylon. The photo (posted yesterday) was quickly taken from inside the car, using 48x zoom and then cropped. Of course, more natural surroundings would have been nicer, but this family of owls likes to use this pylon : ) The clouds were building up as the hours went by and it did rain just a little when I was driving home. Fortunately, no hail or tornado! The sky looked so dramatic in person, so I was a little disappointed with how my photos turned out. Good enough, though, to remind me of a most enjoyable few hours SE of the city.

Not sure what just happened with Flickr , but when I tried to start uploading today's images, it froze my computer. Somehow, the photos still appeared. Very strange - never had that happen before. I was relieved to see that there is no problem with the sidebar so far today, for me. Parts of yesterday, some of us had a plain black sidebar, so could do nothing, either on our own photostream or certain other people's. Gee, I wonder what will go wrong here today. Took this vibrant photo when wandering round the gardens at the Calgary Zoo on 25 September 2012. Thank you, archives, yet again : ) Hope to have a few new photos to post very soon. It's 0C right now, but it's supposed to soar to a balmy 13C this afternoon., which will feel SO good.

After my volunteer shift today, 16 October 2013, I thought I would go for just a very short drive within city limits to the west. The clouds looked ominous, but I liked the way light was breaking through when I looked westwards towards the distant mountains (out of view in this shot). Only took a handful of shots and I was determined to post one of them for one simple reason. You should see my vehicle now, lol!! One of the rough, gravel backroads was very wet and muddy and I was driving slowly, hoping to not splash up too much mud on to my already dirty car. Along comes an idiot in a huge truck, deliberately picks up speed as he overtakes me, and showers my whole car from top to bottom with mud, ha. So, tomorrow, I have no option but to go and give it a wash, after I've met friends for a morning walk.

On our recent week's trip down to Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park, Wyoming, US, we pulled off at a viewpoint and, as the time for the sun to set was approaching, we decided to stay there and witness sunset over the Grand Teton Range. It's -5C (23F) in Calgary this morning and, though I haven't yet dared to peer through my blinds to see if more snow fell overnight, I've just heard the dreaded sound of snow being shovelled from the sidewalk. I have a three-hour walk, looking for birds, so I have no choice but to scrape the snow and ice off my car before I can go anywhere. And so, winter fun begins .... 6:15 p.m.: it's -4C and I've just noticed that there is a Heavy Snowfall Warning in effect for Calgary, with close to 20 cm of snow from this evening (Monday) to tomorrow evening. I was a bit late getting to my walk this morning - my car door locks had completely frozen, so I had to wait until I could get into my car. Despite being a very overcast, dull morning, it was a very enjoyable walk along the southern edge of Glenmore Reservoir. There were roughly 10,000 birds in view on the Reservoir today, every single one of them no more than black specks in the distance, lol. Useless for photos, but I was so happy to notice after the walk that there was a row of withered, snow-covered Sunflowers along the fence by the parking lot : )

Found this small Earth Star fungus, along with several others, yesterday 26 August 2012, at Shannon Terrace, Fish Creek Park. When fully raised, these fungi can look like little people, with a head and legs. The one in my macro image either has stopped at this stage or else hasn't yet finished being raised from the ground. "The Earth Star is a striking soil fungus, so named because the outer wall of the spore-bearing body splits open into a star. One metaphor refers to the rays standing on their tips, like a ballet dancer standing on their toes. Like other earthstars, the outer, leathery wall (peridium) splits open into the rays of a star, but the rays fold down into "legs" that support the spherical spore case that sits on a short stalk or pedicel. The rays are firmly attached to a clump of mycelium and leaf debris." From "The Amazing Fungi " website. This short video from YouTube (less than a minute) gives an idea of how an Earth Star splits open into a star shape and then rises up from the forest floor. youtu.be/KY6mwnRPiRU

This was taken on the long drive home on Highway 22 on Sunday, from hiking the Small Whaleback - a wonderful area of rolling hills and wildflower meadows that is way down in southern Alberta, off Highway 22 and just before the Oldman River. My photo doesn't even begin to do justice to the amazing sky that we saw. The leader of the group kindly stopped so that I could take a photo or two - thanks, Moya, and sorry that my photos didn't do justice to the absolutely amazing beauty of that spectacular sky.

I think this little Earthstar fungus was an inch and a half to 2" across. They are such fascinating things. Found this one along with quite a few others at Shannon Terrace, Fish Creek Park, on September 17th. "The Earth Star is a striking soil fungus, so named because the outer wall of the spore-bearing body splits open into a star. One metaphor refers to the rays standing on their tips, like a ballet dancer standing on their toes. Like other earthstars, the outer, leathery wall (peridium) splits open into the rays of a star, but the rays fold down into "legs" that support the spherical spore case that sits on a short stalk or pedicel. The rays are firmly attached to a clump of mycelium and leaf debris." From "The Amazing Fungi " website. If you are interested and have the time, this is a very short, time-released video showing how an Earthstar works. www.youtube.com/watch?v=KY6mwnRPiRU "Time lapse Earthstar fungi splitting open and then rising off the forest floor. It raises itself up so that the puff-ball is above the leaf litter and gets a better chance of being struck by raindrops which expels its spores." Filmed by Neil Bromhall copyright www.complete-gardens.co.uk

Nothing brilliantly spectacular but I liked the rays cutting across the sunset sky.