Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: explore2014July25

There are a number of Wild European Rabbits in Calgary, and this is just one of them. Seen on 23 July 2014, when I went on a botany walk at the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area. Right next to this area is a Cemetery - funny, I do tend to see Rabbits in cemeteries, either these Wild European Rabbits, which come in all sorts of colours, or the White-tailed Jackrabbits. The town of Canmore, near Banff, in Banff National Park, has had a problem with these Wild European Rabbits. They attract Coyotes and other wildlife into the town. They were going to do something about this problem, but I don't know if they ever did.

At long last, I got out for a botany walk two days ago, 23 July 2014. Having been to this location several times before, I knew it was a short, easy, flat trail, and that I could go as far as I wanted and then turn back early, which is what I did. The main thing I wanted to see were the Nodding /Musk Thistles, as these are my favourite species of Thistle. They are called a "weed", but I love to see them. The sun was unfortunately in the wrong direction, so I was only able to get a handful of shots, but better than nothing. After a volunteer shift that day, I wasn't too far away from the Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area, where the walk was going to be held. With a couple of hours to "kill", I spent them at the Reader Rock Garden, which was just a few minutes' drive away from the botany walk location. At the Erlton / Roxboro Natural Area, I found this pair of tiny Spotted Asparagus Beetles (Crioceris duodecimpunctata), on an Asparagus plant. The colourful beetles are 1/4 of an inch long, and they are pests of Asparagus plants. The Erlton/Roxboro Natural Area is located on the east side of the Elbow River above the southwest community of Roxboro. It was completed in 1996. This is one of the richest areas in Calgary for wildlowers, but unfortunately, many non-native plants and shrubs have taken over much of the area - such as Caragana, Goat's-beard, Baby's Breath, and Yellow Clematis. I think I heard that 90% of the area is now weed-covered, which is such a great pity. Some of the plants, such as Baby's Breath, were introduced into the area by someone throwing a discarded cemetery bouquet of flowers from a grave site, over the fence and into the Natural Area. Incredible how just one small action like this can devastate a whole natural area.

This little Burrowing Owl was one of five birds of prey that were at an exhibit a few days ago. Thought I'd post this close-up shot first, but I do have photos showing the whole bird that I may post sometime. We do have Burrowing Owls in the wild in Alberta, but not just around Calgary, and I've never seen one (though I'd love to). It is an Endangered species. The sunlight was so harsh on this little owl, so a few of the details are a bit blown out. Practically impossible to get a shot of this owl looking forward, as it's little head was turning from side to side all the time. Thanks so much to the people down at the Coaldale Bird of Prey Centre (near Lethbridge, down towards the Canada/US border) for bringing these birds of prey for us to see! As usual, I'll use the description from other photos from this day that I have already posted. Just ignore if you happen to have read it already : ) ""As a result of its ENDANGERED Species status in 1995, it has the focus of a variety of conservation efforts. Operation Burrowing Owl and other projects involving habitat preservation with landowners have been created. Populations are monitored by Fish and Wildlife departments. They have been reintroduced into the British Columbia interior, where it was extirpated. Outlook would improve if larger areas of habitat were preserved and harmful pesticides were banned in all areas of their range. Numbers could increase if an increased tolerance to burrowing mammals develops (i.e. badgers) – provides homes for the Burrowing Owl. Outlook: perilous." From burrowingowl.com. burrowingowl.com/visit/index.php en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Burrowing_Owl On 20 July 2014, I plucked up courage to do a drive that I’d never done before. I had been that route once before that I can think of, when I carpooled with others. A good part of the drive was in familiar territory, but I’d never driven the last part of the journey myself. I had met my youngest daughter at 9:00 a.m. and we were both eager to see a display of birds of prey that had been brought up from the Coaldale Birds of Prey Centre. This year, there were fewer birds, but it was great to see any at all. There was a Burrowing Owl, a Barn Owl, a Great Horned Owl (photo posted two days ago), and a Golden Eagle. Another real treat that was an amusing one, was seeing a baby Barn Owl that was just 45 days old (posted yesterday)! This little ball of fluff was acting as a great ambassador, letting young kids get a close view and ask questions, and fall in love with it – and to hopefully, in the future, do everything they can as adults to protect our precious wildlife. The enjoyment of seeing these birds up close reminds one that the reason these birds are not free to live in the wild, is because of some kind of interaction with humans – such as permanent injuries from being hit by a vehicle, pesticide use, or even worse, being shot by a human! This is what happened to “Spirit”, the magnificent Golden Eagle, shot and blinded by someone. This exhibit was our first destination in the park, though on the drive from Calgary, we had stopped at the small McDougall Church at Morley. After seeing and photographing the birds of prey, we then drove to Middle Lake that’s in a different part of the park. We walked the very short distance to the edge of the lake (a photo posted today), but didn't walk around it. From there, we drove to Many Springs Trail and did a very slow walk around the lake, stopping to look at and photograph a few different wildflowers and butterflies. Though slow, it was still further than I should have walked. Certain wildflowers were already finished, including various Orchid species, but there were still plenty of other species to see and enjoy. Even the weather cooperated, though the forecast had been for isolated showers. Not too hot, nice clouds in the sky and lovely to have my daughter’s company for the day.