Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: Ribes oxyacanthoides

The day before yesterday, 3 May 2015, I met up with a group of birding friends in South Glenmore Park. We walked east towards the "point" and beyond. In places, the air close to the Reservoir was thick with Midges! Thank goodness they weren't Mosquitoes! These insects are a staple in the diet of fish (Trout) at all stages - also for the Swallows in the area. Happened to notice this Wild Gooseberry that was blooming along the edge of the path. I'm not sure if it is Canada/Northern Gooseberry, Ribes oxyacanthoides, which I've seen elsewhere in Calgary. I didn't know until a few minutes ago that there was more than one kind of wild Gooseberry. I think it has to be Ribes oxyacanthoides, as the stem was covered with numerous soft prickles, with a few stouter prickles at leaf nodes. Not a huge number of birds that afternoon and most were the far side or in the centre of the Glenmore Reservoir. However, 25 species were seen - will add the list compiled by leaders, Janet and Bernie, posted mainly to help my own memory: 1. Common Loon - 1 heard 2. Horned Grebe - 40+ 3. Red-necked Grebe - 40+ 4. Western Grebe - 60+ 5. Canada Goose - 4 6. Mallard - 12 7. American Wigeon - 10 8. Lesser Scaup - 2 9. Common Goldeneye - 35 10. Bufflehead - 32 11. Swainson's Hawk - 2 12. American Coot - 2 13. Bonaparte's Gull - 3 14. Franklin's Gull - 35+ 15. California Gull - 12 16. Northern Flicker - 1 17. Black-billed Magpie - 5 18. American Crow - 15 19. Common Raven - 8 + 2 young in nest 20. Tree Swallow - 2 21. Rough-winged Swallow - 2 22. Black-capped Chickadee - 2 23. American Robin - 6 24. Yellow-rumped Warbler - 1 Myrtle 25. House Sparrow - 2+ Five of us went to the Good Earth cafe after the walk and, as always, coffee and a chat were most enjoyable. Thanks for the good walk, Janet and Bernie!

Gooseberry leaves are very small but, oh, what a vivid colour they turn in the fall. They are one of my favourite kinds of leaf. I used to tell myself that they were my imitation Maple leaves, but now I have seen a REAL Maple! Gooseberry berries are reddish purple. I felt very honoured when I was asked if I would be willing to let this image be used on Harvard University's website, ARKive. www.arkive.org/hawthorn-leaved-gooseberry/ribes-oxyacanth... "A vast treasury of wildlife images has been steadily accumulating over the past century, yet no one has known its full extent - or indeed its gaps - and no one has had a comprehensive way of gaining access to it. ARKive will put that right, and it will be an invaluable tool for all concerned with the well-being of the natural world." Sir David AttenboroughWildscreen Patron

As we don't have Maple trees here, the lowly Wild Gooseberry has to serve as a substitute for me when it comes to glorious red leaves in the fall. This prickly stemmed shrub grows up to 2 metres tall and I always love to see the small, brilliant red leaves at this time of year. Came across this bush just a few minutes after passing bear scat (full of berries) on the ground. Judging by its appearance, it must have been deposited by a BIG bear, LOL! Bears seem to be being seen in a number of places at the moment, including a Black Bear that walked into my local hospital a few days ago and another that went into someone's open garage after a bag of garbage. Makes me a little nervous when I go off for a walk :)