Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: brightly coloured

It was the annual May Species Count on 28 and 29 May 2016, so I had no time for anything else over the weekend. My group's Saturday Count was down in Fish Creek Provincial Park, at Votier's Flats and Shaw's Meadow. On Sunday, our usual small group (six of us in two cars) covered an area SW of the city - which happens to be one of my favourite and most visited areas. We had a great day, stopping at a few wetlands and calling in at Barb Castell's acreage where she usually has amazing birds to show us. Several special species were missing, but we were delighted to watch a teeny Ruby-throated Hummingbird. We were also happy to see seven Rose-breasted Grosbeaks during the day, and a male American Kestrel that caught a frog for supper! This little male American Goldfinch added a nice splash of colour. I don't see them very often and almost always they are far, far away. No owls to be found anywhere, but I did go back the following evening and saw two separate Great Gray Owls in our Count area. I went back again yesterday, 1 June 2016, and found the first owl again. This time, it wasn't pouring with rain, but I was looking into the sun (so a lot of blown-out feathers) and it was very windy. The owl photo I've posted this morning was one of the first photos taken, before the owl flew a few fence posts away, and then I was looking into the sun. It was nice to see the owl hunting, catch a small rodent and then fly to a fence post - wish the lighting had been so much better. On Sunday's Count, we stopped at Brown-Lowery Provincial Park and ate our picnic lunches and then did a short walk to look for Calypso Orchids. I took too long trying in vain to get a sharp photo of a little group of fungi, that I missed the orchids, but that's OK, as I have seen them several times before. After the Count came to an end, I drove a few of the back roads again, taking a few more shots of the Wilson's Snipe - a favourite of mine. I also pulled over to get a couple of shots of a handsome male American Robin. "The count goes May 28-29: Calgary birders have been out in force every May since 1979, contributing to a broad census of the constantly changing patterns of bird distributions in North America. Last year (2015) we found 212 species. The count circle is the same as previous years, extending from Olds to Nanton, and from Exshaw to Standard, and includes a variety of environments." From NatureCalgary. I will add the final list from our leader, Gus Y - 70 bird species seen, wow! "May species count, Terr. #22, Priddis Area: Plummers Rd, from Hwy 22 to #762, SW of Calgary, 0730-1530, Sun. 29May2016. 58 km. Mostly sunny, becoming overcast at noon, S wind, becoming gusty, 10 -20 kph. 13-18°C. Canada Goose-45 Gadwall-2 American Wigeon-6 Mallard-29. Blue-winged Teal-16 Cinnamon Teal-8 Northern Shoveler-3 Green-winged Teal-4 Redhead-6 Ring-necked Duck-12 Lesser Scaup-29 Bufflehead-5 Hooded Merganser-1 f. Ruddy Duck-11 Ring-necked Pheasant-3 Great Blue Heron-1 Swainson’s Hawk-2 Red-tailed Hawk-6 American Kestrel-2 Sora-6 American Coot-10 Killdeer-5 Spotted Sandpiper-8 Wilson’s Snipe-10 Wilson’s Phalarope-4 Black Tern-22 Mourning Dove-1 Ruby-throated Hummingbird-1 Red-naped Sapsucker-1 Black-backed Woodpecker-2 Northern Flicker-3 Western Wood-Pewee-5 Least Flycatcher-6 Easterm Phoebe-1 Easterm Kingbird-1 Gray Jay-2 Clark’s Nutcracker-1 Black-billed Magpie-6 American Crow-4 Common Raven-5 Tree Swallow-86 Cliff Swallow-6 Barn Swallow-2 Black-capped Chickadee-3 Mountain Chickadee-1 Boreal Chickadee-2 Red-breasted Nuthatch-2 House Wren-9 Mountain Bluebird-29 American Robin-13 Gray Catbird-2 European Starling-8 Tennessee Warbler-11 Yellow Warbler-6 Cape May Warbler-1 Chipping Sparrow-8 Clay-coloured Sparrow-13 Savannah Sparrow-4 Song Sparrow-1 Lincoln’s Sparrow-4 White-throated Sparrow-1 Rose-breasted Grosbeak-7 Black-headed Grosbeak-1, or hybrid. Red-winged Blackbird-178 Western Meadowlark-2 Yellow-headed Blackbird-2 Brewer’s Blackbird-7 Brown-headed Cowbird-6 Baltimore Oriole-4 American Goldfinch-5 Richardson’s Ground Squirrel-11 Muskrat-1 Mule Deer-1 White-tailed Deer-4 Boreal Chorus Frog-10+ Green Comma Butterfly-2 Western White-1 Tiger Swallowtail-2 Gus Yaki"

In the evening of 29 June 2015, a small group of us met at 6:30 pm and went SW of the city with Don Stiles, who has been a dedicated Mountain Bluebird Monitor for something like 38 years! It was around 10:00 pm when I arrived home. The light was not good for photos, at least not with my camera, and the later it got and the light faded, the worse they turned out. The last couple of weeks, I’ve noticed that many of my photos are not turning out how I would have expected. There seems to be a somewhat green cast on some of them, too, along with being grainy. I always dread the year and a half mark with any camera I buy – that is when a few things start not working the same. This drive is an annual trip along Don’s Bluebird Route. We get the chance to see Mountain Bluebirds, Tree Swallows and Wrens nesting in various wooden nesting boxes along the country roads. Some boxes have eggs in the nest, others have tiny babies all packed tightly together. One of the boxes had a female Tree Swallow adult in it, too, and, as it hadn't been banded before, Don demonstrated how he carefully puts a metal band around the tiny leg. At the one particular Bluebird box, Mom and Dad were waiting nearby, insects in their beaks ready to feed their babies as soon as we had finished. They are such good parents. Along the route, we saw a few other birds and animals, including this very distant pair of beautiful American Goldfinches, various Blackbirds and a few ducks. We were lucky to see several Elk, too, that were wild Many thanks, as always, Don, for letting us come along with you. It is an evening I look forward to every year, and I could tell how much everyone enjoyed themselves!

This brightly coloured male American Goldfinch was feeding at a net feeder hanging at a campsite. Taken on 19 June 2015, the first day of a three-day trip to Waterton Lakes National Park. Travelling south from Calgary was roughly a three-hour drive, giving us time to do some exploring in the park the rest of the day. I was so lucky to be invited to join friends Sandy and Heide on a three-day trip to Waterton Lakes National Park, from 19-21 (inclusive) June 2015. We met up with other members of the Alberta Native Plant Council for their annual Botany Alberta weekend. Most people who attended stayed at the Crooked Creek Campground, a 5.6 km drive east of the Waterton Park Gate on Highway 5, but my friends and I stayed at the Crandell Mountain Lodge on the edge of Waterton town. The ANPC people had a list of species that they hoped to find, and they were very successful. Our stay down south overlapped the annual Waterton Wildflower Festival, but we came across very few people on our various drives and hikes. Needless to say, I was extremely fortunate to spend three days with people who are very knowledgeable about plants and many other things. This meant that I got to see many wildflower species, including several that were new to me, such as the gorgeous Mariposa Lily. It was one of the flowers that was on my Wish List - and there were hundreds of them to be seen! I had also never seen the spectacular Bear Grass and I was so thrilled that there were still several plants in bloom. Absolutely made my day! The wildflowers were top priority, but I was also so happy to see insects, scenery and even a bit of wildlife that included a very distant female Grizzly with a cub from last year and two Black Bears, one of which was along the Crandell Lake trail at the same time we were there. This was my very first time ever seeing the wildflowers of Waterton - a great experience. Our two main hikes of the weekend were the Bertha Lake Trail as far as the Bertha Falls (on 20 June), and the Crandell Lake Trail (on 21 June). Makes me smile when a described "short, easy hike" in a book or on the Internet turns into a full day of exploration along the trail, taking hours to reach the destination, though returning to the cars in a much shorter time. Our walks/hikes are very slow-paced with endless stops to look at/for plants and to take photos. This makes it possible for me to go along. Crandell Lake from the Crandell Campground trailhead: Return distance 4.0 km (2.4 miles), elevation gain 150 metres (492'), hiking time 1.5 hours (we took all day!). Bertha Falls from the townsite trailhead: Return distance 5.6 km (3.4 miles), elevation gain 150 metres (492'), hiking time 1.5 hours (again, we took all day). For me, this hike felt much further than it was! The wind made photographing plants a real challenge, including the beautiful Mariposa Lilies in the meadow along the Hay Barn road. Trying to catch a quick shot when a flower is blowing in and out of the viewfinder is not easy! Unfortunately, I'm no longer able to get down and take macro shots (my lens needs to be about 4" away from the subject), so my photos have to be telemacro. I've been trying to find an online list of plant species in Waterton Park, but have so far been out of luck. I do have the book, "Wildflowers of Waterton Park" by Jacinthe Lavoie and Ian Wilson, which has an Index of Plant names, but I was hoping to find a list that I could print out. It's going to take me ages to type descriptions for the various photos I'll slowly be posting, and I will no doubt keep adding new bits and pieces over time. There is just so much information I want to add, but my descriptions are already way too long. Also, my photos of quite a few of the plants will be posted for the use of ANPC members and are, unfortunately, really poor images. Need them added to my Waterton Lakes album, so please bear with me : ) Luckily, you don't even need to look at them.

Something tells me that Flickr may just have uploaded my three photos today in the wrong order - again! This Goldfinch shot is supposed to be my main photo, i.e. the very last photo that I posted today. It shows in the correct order when I look at my photostream. Yesterday, 7 June 2015, was a hot day – way too hot for my liking. I was not keen on the idea of being out in the sun for three hours, but neither could I have stayed in my place one more minute - it feels like an oven! Today, the forecast is for 30C this afternoon (later: it's up to 32C!). Decided to join birding friends for a walk at the west end of South Glenmore Park and we had a lovely, leisurely walk, stopping often to look at, or listen to, a variety of birds. I think my favourites were a pair of colourful American Goldfinch (male seen in this photo). It was also fun to see a little Black-capped Chickadee looking out from its nest cavity. There were quite a few species of wildflower as well. Will add Janet and Bernie’s bird list below, for my own memory. Thanks for such an enjoyable afternoon, both of you! A stop afterwards at the Good Earth café was so much appreciated, too. 1. Great Blue Heron - 1 2. Canada Goose - 40 3. Mallard - 5 4. Gadwall - 2 5. Swainson's Hawk - 1 6. Franklin's Gull - 30+ 7. Woodpecker sp. likely Sapsucker - 1 8. Olive-sided Flycatcher -1 9. Least Flycatcher - 12 10. Red-eyed Vireo - 2 11. Black-billed Magpie - 1 12. American Crow - 4 13. Common Raven - 1 14. Tree Swallow - 4 15. Black-capped Chickadee - 2 @nest site. 16. House Wren - 11 17. American Robin - 6 18. Cedar Waxwing - 6 19. Yellow Warbler - 10 20. Chipping Sparrow - 1 21. Clay-coloured Sparrow - 4 22. Baltimore Oriole - 1 23. Red-winged Blackbird - 3 24. Brown-headed Cowbird - 3 25. House Finch - 3 26. American Goldfinch - 5 27. House Sparrow - 2 Least Chipmunk - 1 Muskrat - 1 Yellow Swallowtail Butterfly - 10+ Blue Azure - 1 Alpine sp. Butterfly - 15+

This vibrantly coloured American Goldfinch was seen four mornings ago, on 23 May 2015. The main focus of the trip we went on was someone's property SW of Calgary, a place that we always call in at when we take part in the May Species Count. The Count isn't held till next weekend, so this visit was an extra one - and extra long, too, which was pure delight! I think we spent something like two hours, watching especially Barb's feeder area for some of the birds that have been showing up. We are always thrilled to bits to see the Evening Grosbeaks and the Baltimore Orioles that visit. Though I'm not keen on feeder photos, I still take them, as well as when the birds are in the nearby trees. The Evening Grosbeaks came often to the feeders, giving us the chance to at least get closer shots. All the bird species were very fast-moving, which gave us a challenge for two hours. The Goldfinch and the Pine Siskins also were quick, but not totally impossible to photograph. After our time at Barb's, we went to Brown-Lowery Provincial Park, mainly to look for Calypso Orchids, which we did find. Some people continued walking the trails, others returned home. I did part of the walk, but then went back to where the cars were parked and wandered through the forest around the parking lot. Tennessee Warblers sang continuously but were almost impossible to see. I was happy to find one single Coltsfoot plant - love the tight cluster of white flowers at the top of a tall stem. From Brown-Lowery, we started our journey home, stopping at a couple of wetlands on the way. Even though this was mainly a morning trip, it had started at the meeting place at 7:00 am. Can't remember if it had been three or four nights that week that I had ended up getting only a couple of hours sleep, which really doesn't help! I will add the list compiled by Andrew Hart, who kindly drove three of us around for the morning and early afternoon and then sent us his list that he submitted to ebird. Many thanks for both the ride and the final list, Andrew! "Here is the elist of Birds seen at B. Castell's S of Priddis; Plummers & Priddis Valley Rd.; and Brown-Lowery PP, 23May2015. 24 participants Number of Checklists: 3 Number of Species: 46 Checklists included in this summary: (1): CA-AB-Priddis. Barb Castell Date: May 23, 2015, 7:34 AM (2): CA-Priddis Valley road Date: May 23, 2015, 9:53 AM (3): Brown-Lowery Provincial Park Date: May 23, 2015, 10:28 AM 2 Canada Goose -- (1) 2 American Wigeon -- (1) 1 Mallard -- (1) 3 Blue-winged Teal -- (1) 3 Northern Shoveler -- (1),(2) 3 Green-winged Teal -- (1) 4 Lesser Scaup -- (1) 2 Common Goldeneye -- (1) 1 Swainson's Hawk -- (1) 1 Red-tailed Hawk -- (2) 4 Sora -- (2) 1 Spotted Sandpiper -- (1) 2 Wilson's Snipe -- (1) 7 Wilson's Phalarope -- (2) 1 Mourning Dove -- (1) 1 Rufous Hummingbird -- (1) 1 Red-naped Sapsucker -- (1) 2 Downy Woodpecker -- (1) 1 Hairy Woodpecker -- (1) 2 Least Flycatcher -- (2) 1 Eastern Kingbird -- (2) 1 Blue Jay -- (1) 3 Black-billed Magpie -- (1) 2 American Crow -- (1) 2 Common Raven -- (2) 11 Tree Swallow -- (1),(2) 1 Barn Swallow -- (2) 6 Black-capped Chickadee -- (1),(3) 3 House Wren -- (1),(2) 2 Golden-crowned Kinglet -- (3) 2 Ruby-crowned Kinglet -- (2),(3) 9 Mountain Bluebird -- (1),(2) 6 American Robin -- (1),(2),(3) 4 Tennessee Warbler -- (3) 2 Yellow Warbler -- (1),(2) 8 Clay-colored Sparrow -- (1),(2) 6 Savannah Sparrow -- (1),(2) 1 Lincoln's Sparrow -- (1) 1 White-throated Sparrow -- (1) 1 Dark-eyed Junco -- (3) 23 Red-winged Blackbird -- (1),(2) 3 Brown-headed Cowbird -- (1) 1 Baltimore Oriole -- (1) 17 Pine Siskin -- (1),(3) 5 American Goldfinch -- (1) 5 Evening Grosbeak -- (1),(3)"