Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: Black-crowned Night-heron

Yesterday, 20 July 2018, I no choice but to get out for a while. My place is unbearable on so many summer days and, at the moment, I dare not open any windows in case my house mouse (mice?) finds another tiny space to get in. All this week, I have been getting to sleep around 4:00 or 4:30 am, because of hearing the moving, "cracking" sounds inside my bedroom walls. The one night, from 2:00 am till around 3:30 am, I just sat on my bed, watching, as it sounded like there was something actually in my room. Sure enough, after half an hour, the mouse appeared around the hinged edge of my open bedroom door and darted out across the landing, heading for my computer room. Lack of sleep, which is the absolute last thing I need, is really getting to me and is stopping me from getting out on any day drives. The stress of having this most unwelcome rodent(s) in my house is so draining. So, yesterday, mid-afternoon, I was desperate to get away from it all and do just a short drive SE of the city. I think this was only the second time I had driven down there this year - it only takes maybe half an hour. There is so much endless construction going on in the south part of the city (well, in all parts of the city) and I discovered yesterday that roads had been changed. Not a good feeling! Huge overpasses are being built in every direction, mainly as part of the Ring Road around the city. When I reached the area I wanted to explore, I pulled over to check for any birds. Practically nothing, until I noticed a whitish bird perched on a very distant fence post. "Gull" was what first came to mind, but when I zoomed in on my camera, I was delighted to find that it was a Black-crowned Night-heron. I have added a previously posted close-up of one of the beautiful birds, in a comment box below. Later on, I was feeling even more grateful to have seen this bird, as there was practically nothing else to be seen. It had turned out to be a very hot, hazy day, with very strong winds. At the blind, there was one Ruddy Duck swimming by and immediately disappearing. One American Coot was in the reeds with a baby. Several distant Yellow-headed Blackbirds, a Tern, a distant Western Grebe being followed by a growing youngster (who could barely keep up with her thanks to the very choppy, wind-blown water), and a sprinkling of shorebirds were the only other things I saw. The glorious colour of Canola fields was what I was really hoping for on this trip. A photogenic old barn, sitting in a field of gold, was also what I was hoping to find. I did manage to find a very distant old shed and so was able to get a shot or two. Though the smell of Canola really is not pleasant, I find that just driving through a yellow landscape is wonderful, even on a very windy day. Then it was time to return home. Back to reality, back to heat and stuffy air - and the dreaded house mouse!

On 18 July 2016, I had a wonderful day out NE of the city with my daughter. The last time I actually drove eastwards was about seven months ago, when I was shooting Short-eared Owls near the end of January. The last time (also the first time) I had ever driven out as far as Drumheller was on 29 September 2014. So, my daughter and I had a great time exploring the roads between Calgary and Drumheller. There were a handful of things or places we wanted to check out, but many things were total surprises. We knew we wanted to see fields, yellow fields full of canola as far as the eye could see. No disappointment there, as we took in the gorgeous colour and the perhaps not so pleasant smell of this crop. When we were driving through regular, green landscapes, it all seemed so 'ordinary' after being treated to vibrant gold. As well as canola fields, we also knew of a particular grain elevator and nearby old barn that we were keen to see. There was also an old, two-storey house in a hilly setting that we knew would have to be photographed from a great distance, but we were curious about it. There was also a small wetland that I wanted to drive by, just in case there was something to see. How glad we were that we went, as this Black-crowned Night-heron was posing nicely on a post out in the open. This was the first time I had ever seen one close, so it made my day. At least, an adult - in October 2015, I had seen a gorgeous juvenile in Fish Creek Park. Continuing on our way, we stopped to take a couple of quick shots of an Eastern Kingbird and then my daughter spotted a dark patch just above ground level, hidden in the bushes. It turned out to be an Eastern Kingbird's nest, with what looked like three large babies in it. No idea how she caught sight of this, but it was a treat to see. Soon after this, we stopped to photograph a beautiful red barn and then stopped again to photograph a Western Kingbird. This is not a bird I normally see, so i was very happy to catch sight of this one. A short drive further, we spotted a shorebird standing on a fence post - and then a second one a few posts away. At first, we thought maybe they were Wilson's Snipe, but then realized that they were something different - two beautiful Upland Sandpipers. I had seen one a number of years ago, but it was too far away for a photo. These are uncommon in Alberta. It was a pretty good day for hawks, too - so much so, that I got a gentle reminder from my daughter that I didn't need to photograph EVERY hawk we saw, lol. We had other places and other things that we wanted to get to. As well as birds and beautiful scenery, we saw several old barns, including a special small shed/granary. Each year, the farmer allows the graduating class from the local high school to decorate this old building in any way they wish. A fun idea and it certainly adds a splash of colour. I was absolutely fascinated to read a little bit of history from someone who was a contact of mine on Flickr two or three years ago. Her Grandmother was apparently born in this house/shed. It was later converted to a granary and now, of course, has become the canvas for local students. One of our main goals was to visit the old grain elevator at Sharples. I had wanted to visit there for quite a while and finally, we made it. Unfortunately, the elevator and nearby barn were in shadow, but it was great to see both old structures. We also passed another old elevator when we were driving along the road north of the river, on the way to Drumheller. This, needless to say, meant another stop for photos. A great day of fun, seeing and photographing such a variety of things. Beautiful weather and, best of all, a day spent with my daughter. Thanks so much, Rachel - glad you felt up to a day out, but sorry you got so many mosquito bites!

I posted a similar photo a few weeks ago and at the time of posting, I couldn't decide which of two images to upload. Decided to post the other one today, as I will probably never get such a great sighting of a Black-crowned Night-heron again. On 18 July 2016, I had a wonderful day out NE of the city with my daughter. The last time I actually drove eastwards was about six months ago, when I was shooting Short-eared Owls near the end of January. The last time (also the first time) I had ever driven out as far as Drumheller was on 29 September 2014. A few times, I had been fairly close when I went on several botany trips out that way, but when you are carpooling, you can't just go wherever you want. So, my daughter and I had a great time exploring the roads between Calgary and Drumheller. There were a handful of things or places we wanted to check out, but many things were total surprises. We knew we wanted to see fields, yellow fields full of canola as far as the eye could see. No disappointment there, as we took in the gorgeous colour and the perhaps not so pleasant smell of this crop. When we were driving through regular, green landscapes, it all seemed so 'ordinary' after being treated to vibrant gold. As well as canola fields, we also knew of a particular grain elevator and nearby old barn that we were keen to see. There was also an old, two-storey house in a hilly setting that we knew would have to be photographed from a great distance, but we were curious about it. There was also a small wetland that I wanted to drive by, just in case there was something to see. How glad we were that we went, as this Black-crowned Night-heron was posing nicely on a post out in the open. This was the first time I had ever seen one close, so it made my day. At least, an adult - in October 2015, I had seen a gorgeous juvenile in Fish Creek Park. Continuing on our way, we stopped to take a couple of quick shots of an Eastern Kingbird and then my daughter spotted a dark patch just above ground level, hidden in the bushes. It turned out to be an Eastern Kingbird's nest, with what looked like three large babies in it. No idea how she caught sight of this, but it was a treat to see. Soon after this, we stopped to photograph a beautiful red barn and then stopped again to photograph a Western Kingbird. This is not a bird I normally see, so i was very happy to catch sight of this one. A short drive further, we spotted a shorebird standing on a fence post - and then a second one a few posts away. At first, we thought maybe they were Wilson's Snipe, but then realized that they were something different - two beautiful Upland Sandpipers. I had seen one a number of years ago, but it was too far away for a photo. These are uncommon in Alberta. It was a pretty good day for hawks, too - so much so, that I got a gentle reminder form my daughter that I didn't need to photograph EVERY hawk we saw, lol. We had other places and other things that we wanted to get to. As well as birds and beautiful scenery, we saw several old barns, including a special small shed/granary. Each year, the farmer allows the graduating class from the local high school to decorate this old building in any way they wish. A fun idea and it certainly adds a splash of colour. I was absolutely fascinated to read a little bit of history from someone who was a contact of mine on Flickr two or three years ago. Her Grandmother was apparently born in this house/shed. It was later converted to a granary and now, of course, has become the canvas for local students. One of our main goals was to visit the old grain elevator at Sharples. I had wanted to visit there for quite a while and finally, we made it. Unfortunately, the elevator and nearby barn were in shadow, but it was great to see both old structures. We also passed another old elevator when we were driving along the road north of the river, on the way to Drumheller. This, needless to say, meant another stop for photos. A great day of fun, seeing and photographing such a variety of things. Beautiful weather and, best of all, a day spent with my daughter. Thanks so much, Rachel - glad you felt up to a day out, but sorry you got so many mosquito bites!

One very lucky sighting, to say the least! This beautiful Black-crowned Night-heron just happened to be sitting on a wooden post fairly near the road when my daughter and I reached this wetland. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw it, as the closest one I had ever seen was a juvenile that was in Fish Creek Park last year, October 2015. On 18 July 2016, I had a wonderful day out NE of the city with my daughter. The last time I actually drove eastwards was about six months ago, when I was shooting Short-eared Owls near the end of January. The last time (also the first time) I had ever driven out as far as Drumheller was on 29 September 2014. A few times, I had been fairly close when I went on several botany trips out that way, but when you are carpooling, you can't just go wherever you want. So, my daughter and I had a great time exploring the roads between Calgary and Drumheller. There were a handful of things or places we wanted to check out, but many things were total surprises. We knew we wanted to see fields, yellow fields full of canola as far as the eye could see. No disappointment there as we took in the gorgeous colour and the perhaps not so pleasant smell of this crop. When we were driving through regular, green landscapes, it all seemed so 'ordinary' after being treated to vibrant gold. As well as canola fields, we also knew of a particular grain elevator and nearby old barn that we were keen to see. There was also an old, two-storey house in a hilly setting that we knew would have to be photographed from a great distance, but we were curious about it. There was also a small wetland that I wanted to drive by, just in case there was something to see. How glad we were that we went, as this Black-crowned Night-heron was posing nicely on a post out in the open. This was the first time I had ever seen one close, so it made my day. At least, an adult - in October 2015, I had seen a gorgeous juvenile in Fish Creek Park. Continuing on our way, we stopped to take a couple of quick shots of an Eastern Kingbird and then my daughter spotted a dark patch just above ground level, hidden in the bushes. It turned out to be an Eastern Kingbird's nest, with what looked like three large babies in it. No idea how she caught sight of this, but it was a treat to see. Soon after this, we stopped to photograph a beautiful red barn and then stopped again to photograph a Western Kingbird. This is not a bird I normally see, so i was very happy to catch sight of this one. A short drive further, we spotted a shorebird standing on a fence post - and then a second one a few posts away. At first, we thought maybe they were Wilson's Snipe, but then realized that they were something different - two beautiful Upland Sandpipers. I had seen one a number of years ago, but it was too far away for a photo. These are uncommon in Alberta. It was a pretty good day for hawks, too - so much so, that I got a gentle reminder form my daughter that I didn't need to photograph EVERY hawk we saw, lol. We had other places and other things that we wanted to get to. As well as birds and beautiful scenery, we saw several old barns, including a special small shed/granary. Each year, the farmer allows the graduating class from the local high school to decorate this old building in any way they wish. A fun idea and it certainly adds a splash of colour. I was absolutely fascinated to read a little bit of history from someone who was a contact of mine on Flickr two or three years ago. Her Grandmother was apparently born in this house/shed. It was later converted to a granary and now, of course, has become the canvas for local students. One of our main goals was to visit the old grain elevator at Sharples. I had wanted to visit there for quite a while and finally, we made it. Unfortunately, the elevator and nearby barn were in shadow, but it was great to see both old structures. We also passed another old elevator when we were driving along the road north of the river, on the way to Drumheller. This, needless to say, meant another stop for photos. A great day of fun, seeing and photographing such a variety of things. Beautiful weather and, best of all, a day spent with my daughter. Thanks so much, Rachel - glad you felt up to a day out, but sorry you got so many mosquito bites!

All three photos posted this morning were taken yesterday, 18 July 2016, on a wonderful day out NE of the city. The last time I actually drove eastwards was about six months ago, when I was shooting Short-eared Owls near the end of January. The last time (also the first time) I had ever driven out as far as Drumheller was on 29 September 2014. A few times, I had been fairly close when I went on several botany trips out that way, but when you are carpooling, you can't just go wherever you want. So, my daughter and I had a great time exploring the roads between Calgary and Drumheller. There were a handful of things or places we wanted to check out, but many things were total surprises. We knew we wanted to see fields, yellow fields full of canola as far as the eye could see. No disappointment there as we took in the gorgeous colour and the perhaps not so pleasant smell of this crop. When we were driving through regular, green landscapes, it all seemed so 'ordinary' after being treated to vibrant gold. As well as canola fields, we also knew of a particular grain elevator and nearby old barn that we were keen to see. There was also an old, two-storey house in a hilly setting that we knew would have to be photographed from a great distance, but we were curious about it. There was also a small wetland that I wanted to drive by, just in case there was something to see. How glad we were that we went, as the Black-crowned Night-heron was posing nicely on a post out in the open. This was the first time I had ever seen one close, so it made my day. These birds are uncommon in Alberta. The bird in my second photo was with another similar bird perched just a few fence posts away from it. Both had their backs to us (of course!) but I did get a better view of the other bird, which I will post in the next few days. I think they were both Upland Sandpipers, uncommon in Alberta, and a bird that I had only ever seen once, way out east of the city years ago and too far away for photos. "Black-crowned Night-Herons are stocky birds compared to many of their long-limbed heron relatives. They’re most active at night or at dusk, when you may see their ghostly forms flapping out from daytime roosts to forage in wetlands. In the light of day adults are striking in gray-and-black plumage and long white head plumes. These social birds breed in colonies of stick nests usually built over water. They live in fresh, salt, and brackish wetlands and are the most widespread heron in the world." From AllAboutBirds". www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black-crowned_Night-Heron/id As well as birds and beautiful scenery, we saw several old barns, including the old house/barn in my main photo posted today. Each year, the farmer allows the graduating class from the local high school to decorate this old building in any way they wish. A fun idea and it certainly adds a splash of colour. I was absolutely fascinated to read a little bit of history from someone who was a contact of mine on Flickr two or three years ago. Her Grandmother was apparently born in this house/barn. It was later converted to a granary and now, of course, has become the canvas for local students. One of our main goals was to visit the old grain elevator at Sharples. I had wanted to visit there for quite a while and finally, we made it. Unfortunately, the elevator and nearby barn were in shadow, but it was great to see both old structures. We also passed another old elevator when we were driving along the road north of the river, on the way to Drumheller. This, needless to say, meant another stop for photos. A great day of fun, seeing and photographing such a variety of things. Beautiful weather and, best of all, a day spent with my daughter. Thanks so much, Rachel - glad you felt up to a day out, but sorry you got so many mosquito bites!

..... who is the fairest of them all? One enclosure at the Calgary Zoo has a boardwalk over water and I love seeing the Mandarin Ducks, Herons, and so on. When I was there yesterday, I watched the pair of Black-crowned Night-herons change place on their nest. The one that left the nest flew and perched on the fence about three feet away from me. Can't imagine how much fun it will be when they have their young ones! I had only ever seen a handful of these birds before, in the wild, and always at a very great distance, so it was great seeing them at such close quarters yesterday. This is rather a "messy" photo, but I just liked seeing the two birds together for a moment.

Wish I could see a Black-crowned Night-heron this close in the wild! They are always SO far away. The pair of these birds at the Calgary Zoo are nesting and, while I was there two afternoons ago, they changed place on the nest and the one leaving the nest flew and perched on the wooden railings that I was standing by, only two or three feet away from me. That was quite a feeling! During breeding season, the bird has two white plumes trailing down from the crown. These white plumes are present for most of the year, but they are most noticeable during breeding season. The male gathers the nesting material and the female builds the nest.

Wish I could see a Black-crowned Night-heron this close in the wild! They are always SO far away. The pair of these birds at the Calgary Zoo is nesting and, while I was there a few afternoons ago, they changed place on the nest and the one leaving the nest flew and perched on the wooden railings that I was standing by, only two or three feet away from me. That was quite a feeling! During breeding season, the bird has two white plumes trailing down from the crown - you can just see a bit of them in the lower, right corner. These white plumes are present for most of the year, but they are most noticeable during breeding season. The male gathers the nesting material and the female builds the nest.