Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: explore2014February03

On 10 January 2014, I had to remove my vehicle from the parking lot for the whole day, so that snow removal people could remove some of the snow and ice. I decided that if I drove over to the west of the city and went for a walk, that would kill a few hours. A Great Gray Owl had recently been reported, so I knew I needed to keep my eyes open. Shortly after I started, I passed someone who had just seen the owl about 20 minutes earlier, so I felt hopeful that it was still there. Further into the park, several other people gradually appeared, and it's always useful to have extra pairs of eyes. Eventually, it was spotted, hidden within the trees - well hidden! While I was there, it flew along the outer edge of the trees and then in among the trees, giving us some good views each time. I've posted my "better" photos already, so this and any further ones are just odds and ends. It's always fascinating to watch how focused these owls are when hunting - it did catch a Meadow Vole and flew up to a broken tree stump deep within the trees to feed on it. A few other attempts were made, but when it landed, it was out of sight, so I don't know if it caught some other prey or not. I was exhausted by the time I got home, mainly from walking through the deep snow. So glad I was "forced" out of my home, though, otherwise I wouldn't have made the effort to drive across the city. We don't normally get Great Gray Owls within Calgary - I think one was reported something like 17 years ago - so this was an absolute treat. The owl was seen on several days over a period of maybe 10 days or so, but I don't think it has been seen since then, so presumably it has moved on. Always a shame when this happens and lots of people still hadn't had the chance to see it - but that's birding for you! This one may be a juvenile. A friend sent me the following information that she had received from Gus Yaki, a well-known Naturalist in the city. When asked about the possibility of the food supply having run out, he did not think the owl was feeding well because it was hunting during mid-day. It should have been hunting at dawn and dusk and sleeping during the day. He said they have excellent hearing. Also, he said he has not seen many small mammal tracks at this location and apparently the Meadow Voles have to surface to allow carbon dioxide to exit from their tunnels. He also said the owls see in ultraviolet which causes mouse urine to shine so they would see that." Thank you for passing on this interesting information, Bonnie.

Couldn't quite catch the feeling at this particular moment, but it gives a hint of what the light was like along with the blowing snow (which you can see over the distant hay bales). It was, in fact, quite beautiful, at least to see from the warmth inside the car. The day before yesterday, 31 January 2014, I was out all day on this fun and enjoyable birding trip north of the city, with superb birder, Phil. The weather forecast turned out to be far from accurate and we found ourselves driving the backroads with snow swirling over the roads and in some places, you couldn't see where the sky ended and the earth began. Everywhere and everything was white. Winter outside the city is so very different from facing icy roads and heavy traffic in the city, with roads edged in piles of dirty brown snow that has been cleared from the roads and just won't melt. Out in the countryside, winter has a pure, clean beauty, and we both loved the simplicity of the white landscape. Neither of us knew this area, east of Highway 22, though I may have been driven in some parts on a birding trip or two a few years ago. It's an area that is way beyond my driving comfort zone, so this was real treat for me. The cold, windy weather must have kept the birds taking shelter, though Phil did find a Great Horned Owl and, on the way back to the city, a Merlin. Lots of Ravens about and a few Sparrows and Pigeons, but no Snow Buntings or Horned Larks. I was just happy seeing the wintry countryside and a number of beautiful old barns. The shapes of these seem so different from barns that I see south of the city. Several white barns, too, as well as the more usual red ones. Thanks so much for a great day, Phil - much appreciated!