Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: New Year's Day Bird Count

Finally, there is a break in the extreme cold weather here, after maybe 10 or 12 days of temperatures that plunged as low as windchills of -43C on some of the days. This cold spell coincided with all the Christmas Bird Counts and yesterday's annual New Year's Day Count in Fish Creek Park. They have been brutally cold days, with quite a few people dropping out. Yesterday, only 8 of the 13 people who had said they were going, showed up. Today, 2 January 2018, the temperature just after noon is only -1C (windchill -3C). Of course, the birds had far more sense than the humans - the birds were hiding in sheltered places and my groups sightings were few and far between. A total of 7 species was the final total for my group for three hours of walking in the park. I suspect that at least some of the birds were up the cliff, eating at the feeders of all the houses that edge the park. Winter boots that say they work for temperatures down to -40C were struggling to keep toes warm yesterday. Our cameras stopped working, in protest of being subjected to such cold. It was a different kind of cold yesterday, maybe a damp cold. Most of our walking was through the trees, but part way when we did emerge, we found blue sky and sunshine. I love seeing the snow that has fallen along the top of the bridge railings. This is one of the maybe dozen photos my camera was able to take and one of only two or three that actually turned out. Definitely not a photographer's ideal morning, lol. After the count, everyone usually gathers at Tim Horton's, but this year, our usual Tim's was closed for some reason. The closest alternative was the nearby McDonald's. Only a few people turned up, but it was so enjoyable to sit and chat with friends over hot coffee and French fries (or some other equally unhealthy food).

Finally, there is a break in the extreme cold weather here, after maybe 10 or 12 days of temperatures that plunged as low as windchills of -41C or -43C on some of the days. This cold spell coincided with all the Christmas Bird Counts and yesterday's annual New Year's Day Count in Fish Creek Park. They have been brutally cold days, with quite a few people dropping out. Yesterday, only 8 of the 13 people who had said they were going, showed up. Today, 2 January 2018, the temperature just after noon is only -1C (windchill -3C). Of course, the birds had far more sense than the humans - the birds were hiding in sheltered places and my groups sightings were few and far between. A total of 7 species was the final total for my group for three hours of walking in the park. I suspect that at least some of the birds were up the cliff, eating at the feeders of all the houses that edge the park. Winter boots that say they work for temperatures down to -40C were struggling to keep toes warm yesterday. Our cameras stopped working, in protest of being subjected to such cold. It was a different kind of cold yesterday, maybe a damp cold. Most of our walking was through the trees, but part way when we did emerge, we found blue sky and sunshine. I love seeing the snow that has fallen along the top of the bridge railings. Out of maybe a dozen photos my camera was able to take, only two or three actually turned out. Definitely not a photographer's ideal morning, lol. After the count, everyone usually gathers at Tim Horton's, but this year, our usual Tim's was closed for some reason. The closest alternative was the nearby McDonald's. Only a few people turned up, but it was so enjoyable to sit and chat with friends over hot coffee and French fries (or some other equally unhealthy food).

This is such an awful shot, but I am posting it as a record of almost the only photo taken of any birds on yesterday's Fish Creek Park's New Year's Day Bird Count. There were four of these Grosbeaks together and not too far away. The rest of this species were way off in the distance. "These plump finches dwarf every other finch in the trees and nearly every bird that lands on the feeder. The grayish bodies of Pine Grosbeaks are decked out in pinkish reds on males and yellows on females. They easily crush seeds and nip off tree buds and needles with their thick and stubby bill. They breed in open spruce, fir, and pine forests, but they drop in on feeders in winter, especially in the East when they sometimes irrupt outside of their normal range." From AllABoutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Pine_Grosbeak/id Finally, there is a break in the extreme cold weather here, after maybe 10 or 12 days of temperatures that plunged as low as windchills of -41C or -43C on some of the days. This cold spell coincided with all the Christmas Bird Counts and yesterday's annual New Year's Day Count in Fish Creek Park. They have been brutally cold days, with quite a few people dropping out. Yesterday, only 8 of the 13 people who had said they were going, showed up. Today, 2 January 2018, the temperature just after noon is only -1C (windchill -3C). Of course, the birds had far more sense than the humans - the birds were hiding in sheltered places and my group's sightings were few and far between. A total of 7 species was the final total for my group for three hours of walking in the park. I suspect that at least some of the birds were up the cliff, eating at the feeders of all the houses that edge the park. Winter boots that say they work for temperatures down to -40C were struggling to keep toes warm yesterday. Our cameras stopped working, in protest of being subjected to such cold. It was a different kind of cold yesterday, maybe a damp cold. Most of our walking was through the trees, but part way when we did emerge, we found blue sky and sunshine. I love seeing the snow that has fallen along the top of the bridge railings. Out of maybe a dozen photos my camera was able to take, only two or three actually turned out. Definitely not a photographer's ideal morning, lol. After the count, everyone usually gathers at Tim Horton's, but this year, our usual Tim's was closed for some reason. The closest alternative was the nearby McDonald's. Only a few people turned up, but it was so enjoyable to sit and chat with friends over hot coffee and French fries (or some other equally unhealthy food).

Two days ago, on 1 January 2016, I took part in the annual Fish Creek Provincial Park New Year's Day Bird Count. Unlike all the other recent Counts, this one was just half a day. It was SO cold when we all arrived at the parking lot, despite "only" being -12C (the rest of the cold must have been the windchill). The sun was shining and we had a very enjoyable walk from Bebo Grove to Bridge #6. Other participants covered other areas of the park. Shortly after starting our walk, we had a group of five beautiful White-tailed Deer run through our area and bound across the path ahead of us. I was able to get a few photos, but they had a horrible blue tinge to them. Managed to improve this one so that it was fit to post. After the Count, quite a few of the participants, me included, gathered at a Tim Horton's to hand in their lists and to chat over coffee and lunch about what had been seen. Always makes for an enjoyable time. This is our leader's final list of bird species seen in Fish Creek Provincial Park on the New Year's Day Bird Count, 2016. My group had divided up into three small groups, so each group may not have seen every species listed. Fish Creek Prov. Park New Years Day Bird Count, Bebo Grove to Raven Rocks, Bridge #6. 0900-1215, 01Jan2016. Sunny, W. wind 15kph, -12 to -3°c. Fish Creek 98% frozen. 30 cm snow on ground. Best birds on our territory were the two Mountain Chickadees that Josias Grest has been seeing and feeding since 23Dec. Best Count area bird was a Hermit Thrush, first ever. It was at the Stormwater outlet, about ¼ km W of Macleod Trail, on the S side of Fish Creek, where we have seen American Dipper, Song Sparrow, Wilsons Snipe and Killdeer in past winters. Below is the list and numbers seen on our area today. 1. Canada Goose-16 2. Sharp-shinned Hawk-1 3. Merlin-1 4. Great Horned Owl-1 5. Downy Woodpecker-15 6. Hairy Woodpecker-1 7. Northern Flicker-1 8. Pileated Woodpecker-1 9. Northern Shrike-1 10. Black-billed Magpie-20 11. Common Raven-23 12. Black-capped Chickadee-130 13. MOUNTAIN CHICKADEE-2 14. Boreal Chickadee-13 15. Red-breasted Nuthatch-27, including Bob the white-headed leucistic individual. 16. White-breasted Nuthatch-1 17. Brown Creeper-2 18. Townsends Solitaire-2 19. Bohemian Waxwing-2500+ 20. Pine Grosbeak-20 21. White-winged Crossbill-80 22.PINE SISKIN-1 Red Squirrel-7+ Eastern Gray Squirrel-1 White-tailed Deer-5"

Yesterday, 1 January 2016, I took part in the annual Fish Creek Provincial Park New Year's Day Bird Count. Unlike all the other recent Counts, this one was just half a day. It was SO cold when we all arrived at the parking lot, despite "only" being -12C (the rest of the cold must have been the windchill). The sun was shining and we had a very enjoyable walk. This photo shows part of the group at Raven Rocks, walking along the frozen creek. Normally, I never walk on any water source that is frozen - I just never trust it, ha! Looks pretty solid in this shot, doesn't it? Well, myself and another birder found out otherwise, when the ice layer cracked and one foot disappeared into empty space below! Birding can be dangerous, lol! We were looking for a Townsend's Solitaire that can sometimes be found in that area. After the Count, quite a few of the participants, me included, gathered at a Tim Horton's to hand in their lists and to chat over coffee and lunch about what had been seen. Always makes for an enjoyable time. This is our leader's final list of bird species seen in Fish Creek Provincial Park on the New Year's Day Bird Count, 2016. We had divided up into three groups, so each group may not have seen every species listed. "Fish Creek Prov. Park New Years Day Bird Count, Bebo Grove to Raven Rocks, Bridge #6. 0900-1215, 01Jan2016. Sunny, W. wind 15kph, -12 to -3°c. Fish Creek 98% frozen. 30 cm snow on ground. Best birds on our territory were the two Mountain Chickadees that Josias Grest has been seeing and feeding since 23Dec. Best Count area bird was a Hermit Thrush, first ever. It was at the Stormwater outlet, about ¼ km W of Macleod Trail, on the S side of Fish Creek, where we have seen American Dipper, Song Sparrow, Wilsons Snipe and Killdeer in past winters. Below is the list and numbers seen on our area today. 1. Canada Goose-16 2. Sharp-shinned Hawk-1 3. Merlin-1 4. Great Horned Owl-1 5. Downy Woodpecker-15 6. Hairy Woodpecker-1 7. Northern Flicker-1 8. Pileated Woodpecker-1 9. Northern Shrike-1 10. Black-billed Magpie-20 11. Common Raven-23 12. Black-capped Chickadee-130 13. MOUNTAIN CHICKADEE-2 14. Boreal Chickadee-13 15. Red-breasted Nuthatch-27, including Bob the white-headed leucistic individual. 16. White-breasted Nuthatch-1 17. Brown Creeper-2 18. Townsends Solitaire-2 19. Bohemian Waxwing-2500+ 20.Pine Grosbeak-20 21. White-winged Crossbill-80 22.PINE SISKIN-1 Red Squirrel-7+ Eastern Gray Squirrel-1 White-tailed Deer-5"

Yesterday, 1 January 2016, I took part in the annual Fish Creek Provincial Park New Year's Day Bird Count. Unlike all the other recent Counts, this one was just half a day. It was SO cold when we all arrived at the parking lot, despite "only" being -12C (the rest of the cold must have been the windchill). The sun was shining and we had a very enjoyable walk. This previous photo shows part of the group at Raven Rocks, walking along the frozen creek. Normally, I never walk on any water source that is frozen - I just never trust it, ha! Looks pretty solid in that shot, doesn't it? Well, myself and another birder found out otherwise, when the ice layer cracked and one foot disappeared into empty space below! Birding can be dangerous, lol! We were looking for a Townsend's Solitaire that can sometimes be found in that area. Shortly after, we spotted a very distant bird that looked like it might be a Shrike, but then we weren't sure as it was so far away. Turned out that it was a Northern Shrike, a bird that I hadn't seen for ages, so I was very happy, even though this photo is rather pathetic. Though it looks a small, innocent bird, it has the nasty habit of impaling its prey on branches or barbed-wire. "The bird's two most conspicuous behaviours – storing food animals by impaling them on thorns, and using exposed tree-tops or poles to watch the surrounding area for possible prey." "A predatory songbird, the Northern Shrike breeds in taiga and tundra and winters in southern Canada and the northern United States. It feeds on small birds, mammals, and insects, sometimes impaling them on spines or barbed wire fences." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Shrike/id en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_grey_shrike After the Count, quite a few of the participants, me included, gathered at a Tim Horton's to hand in their lists and to chat over coffee and lunch about what had been seen. Always makes for an enjoyable time. This is our leader's final list of bird species seen in Fish Creek Provincial Park on the New Year's Day Bird Count, 2016. We had divided up into three groups, so each group may not have seen every species listed. "Fish Creek Prov. Park New Years Day Bird Count, Bebo Grove to Raven Rocks, Bridge #6. 0900-1215, 01Jan2016. Sunny, W. wind 15kph, -12 to -3°c. Fish Creek 98% frozen. 30 cm snow on ground. Best birds on our territory were the two Mountain Chickadees that Josias Grest has been seeing and feeding since 23Dec. Best Count area bird was a Hermit Thrush, first ever. It was at the Stormwater outlet, about ¼ km W of Macleod Trail, on the S side of Fish Creek, where we have seen American Dipper, Song Sparrow, Wilsons Snipe and Killdeer in past winters. Below is the list and numbers seen on our area today. 1. Canada Goose-16 2. Sharp-shinned Hawk-1 3. Merlin-1 4. Great Horned Owl-1 5. Downy Woodpecker-15 6. Hairy Woodpecker-1 7. Northern Flicker-1 8. Pileated Woodpecker-1 9. Northern Shrike-1 10. Black-billed Magpie-20 11. Common Raven-23 12. Black-capped Chickadee-130 13. MOUNTAIN CHICKADEE-2 14. Boreal Chickadee-13 15. Red-breasted Nuthatch-27, including Bob the white-headed leucistic individual. 16. White-breasted Nuthatch-1 17. Brown Creeper-2 18. Townsends Solitaire-2 19. Bohemian Waxwing-2500+ 20.Pine Grosbeak-20 21. White-winged Crossbill-80 22.PINE SISKIN-1 Red Squirrel-7+ Eastern Gray Squirrel-1 White-tailed Deer-5"

This is where a few of us ended up yesterday afternoon, on the east side of the Bow River. The morning was the New Year's Day Bird Count for Fish Creek Park and then, in the afternoon, we could choose whether to go or not to look for any less common sightings that had been reported in the morning. A Snow Goose had been seen in this area but, despite a really careful look for it in the afternoon until it got dark (!), it was not to be seen. The sunlight was pretty at this moment, and I always love to see someone wearing a bright, cheery jacket in winter time.