Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: on guard

This poor quality, fully-zoomed photo (Focal Length [35mm format] - 1200 mm with a point-and-shoot camera) shows the single Bighorn Sheep that stood on a very distant craggy point for a long time, waiting for the rest of the herd to safely make their way down the talus slope. The previous photo shows just how far away the animals were when I first spotted them. The animal on the right came down with the rest. The close shot of one of the Sheep that I posted shows the animal that reached the bottom first, turned around to watch until all of them had arrived safely - and then the animal on guard came down. Quite often on their descent, they would stop and feed, and one or other would stop and look back to see how everyone else was doing. Once they reached the road, they began licking the salt from the surface, and they were still on the road when I finally left maybe an hour later. I found the whole thing absolutely fascinating to watch. On 18 August 2017, I made a very last-minute decision (just after midnight) to return to this location. Last year (2016), I had finally made myself do this long drive (293 km), after longing for years to be able to get there on my own. I was determined to go again this summer, and this was the day. I left home a few minutes before 8:00 am and took the scenic back road to Highway 40. Unfortunately, we are still getting the smoke from the British Columbia and Alberta wildfires, so distant shots are not the best. As of yesterday, 19 August 2017, there are 140 wildfires currently burning across B.C., and this year's wildfire season is now officially B.C.’s worst ever wildfire season. However, the landscape on this whole drive is spectacular and I could never tire of it. I would imagine most people drive the whole loop along Highway 40, but my destination was the place where Pikas (or Rock Rabbits) live, keeping my fingers crossed that at least one of them would show up. I was in luck and saw two of them, and managed to get a few photos, though I have taken better photos on previous occasions. While I was standing near the base of the huge talus/scree slope, I started hearing the sound of rocks falling! The first thing that flashed through my mind was that I was not standing in the best place if a rock slide happened, and then I remembered seeing someone's photo of a bear with her two cubs walking across the rocks just above where I was standing. Looking around, I could see nothing - and then, suddenly, I could just make out the tiny silhouette of a Bighorn Sheep on the very top of the very distant ridge, and then several others came along. They ended up passing me on a closer ridge and finally reached the road. What a journey they made in order to get salt off the road surface! It was interesting to watch the reaction of the drivers, too - most slowed right down or stopped, and most people stayed in their vehicles. After calling in again at Highwood House to pick up a much-needed coffee, I carried on with the drive home via various backroads, including the Priddis area. My early morning drive had given me just two birds - a Northern Harrier and some other Hawk. The return drive gave me maybe four Hawks, none of which stayed long enough for a photo. A strange, empty feeling, as two days earlier, friends and I had seen dozens of Hawks during a day's drive.

When I visited the Calgary Zoo on 28 September 2014, I called in to see the Meerkats. As well as this one, which was standing on guard to protect all the rest, there were several young Meerkats playing in their small enclosure, They were almost constantly on the move, providing entertainment for their human audience. "The meerkat or suricate, Suricata suricatta, is a small mammal belonging to the mongoose family. Meerkats live in all parts of the Kalahari Desert in Botswana, in much of the Namib Desert in Namibia and southwestern Angola, and in South Africa. A group of meerkats is called a "mob", "gang" or "clan". A meerkat clan often contains about 20 meerkats, but some super-families have 50 or more members. Meerkats have an average life span of 12–14 years." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meerkat

When I visited the Calgary Zoo on 28 September 2014, I called in to see the Meerkats. As well as this one, which was standing on guard to protect all the rest, there were several young Meerkats playing in their small enclosure, They were almost constantly on the move, providing entertainment for their human audience. "The meerkat or suricate, Suricata suricatta, is a small mammal belonging to the mongoose family. Meerkats live in all parts of the Kalahari Desert in Botswana, in much of the Namib Desert in Namibia and southwestern Angola, and in South Africa. A group of meerkats is called a "mob", "gang" or "clan". A meerkat clan often contains about 20 meerkats, but some super-families have 50 or more members. Meerkats have an average life span of 12–14 years." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meerkat

Yesterday morning, I went on a birding walk with a group of friends, to Fish Creek Park. When owls are seen, they tend to be the highlight of a walk, and yesterday we were able to see six Great Horned Owls, 4 adults and 2 young ones. The owl in this photo is a male, Dad to three young ones. We only saw two of the babies yesterday morning - this was the first time I had seen two. I had only been to see these owls once before. As males always do, they perch and rest in a tree that has a good view of the nest, keeping watch over the female and the babies. Even though this owl looks like he's fast asleep, he will be wide awake in a split second if anything, such as a Canada Goose, threatens the nest. "With its long, earlike tufts, intimidating yellow-eyed stare, and deep hooting voice, the Great Horned Owl is the quintessential owl of storybooks. This powerful predator can take down birds and mammals even larger than itself, but it also dines on daintier fare such as tiny scorpions, mice, and frogs. It’s one of the most common owls in North America, equally at home in deserts, wetlands, forests, grasslands, backyards, cities, and almost any other semi-open habitat between the Arctic and the tropics. Great Horned Owls are nocturnal. You may see them at dusk sitting on fence posts or tree limbs at the edges of open areas, or flying across roads or fields with stiff, deep beats of their rounded wings. Their call is a deep, stuttering series of four to five hoots." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Great_Horned_Owl/id en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_horned_owl

Posting late again today, around noon. Yesterday, 6 October 2014, I managed to get over to the Calgary Zoo again. About a week ago, I had finally visited what used to almost be my 'second home', after not going since before June 2013, when Alberta suffered the devastating effects caused by our Flood of the Century. The Zoo had been under several feet of water, and I couldn't help but try to imagine what it must have looked like. The Zoo folks did such an absolutely incredible job of rescuing and moving so many creatures, large and small - just impossible to even imagine. It felt so good last week and yesterday to be able to wander round and enjoy the animals once again. Interesting how different two visits can be - for example, last week, I had a good view of the new trio of young male Mandrills (monkeys), but yesterday, they were outside in the old African Wild Dog enclosure where it is impossible to see and photograph them. Last week, there was no sign of the amazing "white" black bear, but yesterday I was lucky. You just never know what will be out and what will be hidden. The Meerkats were in their usual place - a number of them are youngsters and they are so funny to watch. There was a very long, empty, cardboard (?) tube in their enclosure and one little one was determined to try and squeeze into it. I really thought it was going to get stuck inside, but each time it managed to back out of it, thank goodness. "The meerkat or suricate, Suricata suricatta, is a small mammal belonging to the mongoose family. Meerkats live in all parts of the Kalahari Desert in Botswana, in much of the Namib Desert in Namibia and southwestern Angola, and in South Africa. A group of meerkats is called a "mob", "gang" or "clan". A meerkat clan often contains about 20 meerkats, but some super-families have 50 or more members. Meerkats have an average life span of 12–14 years." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meerkat Uh, oh, I've just discovered that there is now a Beta version of the Groups page. Hope it is an improvement for those who use Groups a lot.