Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: explore2014May03

Some of the old wooden barns that scatter the prairies are in such a bad state, unfortunately. This one was photographed SE of Calgary, on 14 April 2014, when I went driving the backroads for the day with my youngest daughter. You could say we are back to winter yet again. There must be around 8" of snow on my fence this morning - and it's still snowing! I decided not to go on a birding day out today, east of the city, as I wasn't sure what any of the roads would be like. I had half expected the trip to be cancelled. Not sure I can even go out very locally, as I don't think I'll be able to lift my arms high enough to clear all the snow off my car, with my painful arms and shoulder. It's quite the winter wonderland, though. We are now into the eighth month of snow!!!!

Posted just for the record - and because it makes me smile, remembering how much noise these very tiny Boreal Chorus Frogs make. They sound very much like someone running their fingers along a comb, over and over again. There is a temporary patch of water near the pathway in South Glenmore Park and we stopped to see if we could see even just one tiny frog. This one was eventually cleverly spotted (photo is 48x zoom plus cropped) and I caught it in full croak : ) "Alberta’s smallest frog measures a mere 2 – 4 cm. It varies in colour from dark brown to green with three dark stripes or lines of broken spots on its back and a white upper lip. It is more often heard than seen and the males mating calls in spring are quite loud. Their trill is similar to the sound made by dragging a thumbnail over the teeth of a stiff plastic comb. Breeding occurs between April and June, with males calling as soon as ponds are ice-free." www.albertaparks.ca/media/123451/amphibians.pdf