Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: Robin-sized

THIS IS NOT MY MAIN PHOTO POSTED TODAY!!! Flickr is messed up again and is changing the order in which my photos are seen by (some) people! That is why I started numbering my three daily photos some time ago, with #01 being my main photo. I was wondering why so few people left a comment on my intended main images. Thanks so much, Bonnie, for letting me know (again)! I think this will be my last Varied Thrush image. None of the photos are good, but, as I'm not likely to see this beautiful bird again, I did want to make sure I could find the photos easily again (thanks to Flickr). This photo, and half a dozen similar shots, looked reasonable when I quickly checked them in my camera after taking them. However, when I went to edit them on my computer, I discovered just how bad they came out : ( Even though this gorgeous male Varied Thrush suddenly came out into a more open spot for just a few seconds, I was standing in amongst the trees and the light was not good. My camera was fully zoomed, so the closeness of this sighting took me off guard. Ha, looks best in thumbnail size. Oh, well, at least I was fortunate enough to see this bird - my first time ever seeing one - and to get at least a few photos, even if very poor quality. This bird spent all its time deep within the conifer trees and a tangle of dark undergrowth. If the bird was on the ground and happened to move into slightly better light for a split second, it was mostly hidden by endless tiny branches. A difficult bird to photograph, not to mention almost impossible to find in the first place. "The Varied Thrush’s simple, ringing song gives a voice to the quiet forests of the Pacific Northwest, with their towering conifers and wet understories of ferns, shrubs, and mosses. Catch a glimpse of this shy bird and you’ll see a handsome thrush with a slaty gray back and breast band set against burnt-orange breast and belly. Common in the Cascades, Northern Rockies, and Pacific Coast, Varied Thrushes forage for insects in summer and switch to berries and seeds in winter. Varied Thrushes hop on the ground or low in shrubs and trees. They eat mainly insects and other arthropods in the summer and switch to nuts and fruit in fall and winter. On breeding territories, male Varied Thrushes sit on exposed perches to sing their haunting, trilling songs" From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Varied_Thrush/id

Today, 8 March 2016, is International Women's Day. We have come a long way, but so much still remains to be done before every woman and girl around the world lives in equality, with all her rights, and no longer living in poverty. This photo, and half a dozen similar shots, looked reasonable when I quickly checked them in my camera after taking them. However, when I went to edit this one on my computer, I discovered just how bad they came out : ( Even though this gorgeous male Varied Thrush suddenly came out into a more open spot for just a few seconds, I was standing in amongst the trees and the light was not good. My camera was fully zoomed, so the closeness of this sighting took me off guard. Ha, looks best in thumbnail size. Oh, well, at least I was fortunate enough to see this bird - my first time ever seeing one - and to get at least a few photos, even if very poor quality. This bird spent all its time deep within the conifer trees and a tangle of dark undergrowth. If the bird was on the ground and happened to move into slightly better light for a split second, it was mostly hidden by endless tiny branches. A difficult bird to photograph, not to mention almost impossible to find in the first place. "The Varied Thrush’s simple, ringing song gives a voice to the quiet forests of the Pacific Northwest, with their towering conifers and wet understories of ferns, shrubs, and mosses. Catch a glimpse of this shy bird and you’ll see a handsome thrush with a slaty gray back and breast band set against burnt-orange breast and belly. Common in the Cascades, Northern Rockies, and Pacific Coast, Varied Thrushes forage for insects in summer and switch to berries and seeds in winter. Varied Thrushes hop on the ground or low in shrubs and trees. They eat mainly insects and other arthropods in the summer and switch to nuts and fruit in fall and winter. On breeding territories, male Varied Thrushes sit on exposed perches to sing their haunting, trilling songs" From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Varied_Thrush/id

Afternoon, 27 February2016 - it's actually SNOWING! I'd almost forgotten what snow looks like, our winter has been so mild : ) This photo, and half a dozen similar shots, looked reasonable when I quickly checked them in my camera after taking them. However, when I went to edit this one last night, I discovered just how bad they came out : ( Even though this gorgeous male Varied Thrush suddenly came out into a more open spot for just a few seconds, I was standing in amongst the trees and the light was not good. Ha, looks best in thumbnail size. Oh, well, at least I was fortunate enough to see this visiting bird and to get at least a few photos, even if very poor quality. This bird spent all its time deep within the conifer trees and a tangle of dark undergrowth. If the bird was on the ground and happened to move into slightly better light for a split second, it was mostly hidden by endless tiny branches. A difficult bird to photograph, not to mention almost impossible to find in the first place. "The Varied Thrush’s simple, ringing song gives a voice to the quiet forests of the Pacific Northwest, with their towering conifers and wet understories of ferns, shrubs, and mosses. Catch a glimpse of this shy bird and you’ll see a handsome thrush with a slaty gray back and breast band set against burnt-orange breast and belly. Common in the Cascades, Northern Rockies, and Pacific Coast, Varied Thrushes forage for insects in summer and switch to berries and seeds in winter. Varied Thrushes hop on the ground or low in shrubs and trees. They eat mainly insects and other arthropods in the summer and switch to nuts and fruit in fall and winter. On breeding territories, male Varied Thrushes sit on exposed perches to sing their haunting, trilling songs" From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Varied_Thrush/id

This photo was taken yesterday, 25 February 2016, when I called in at Fish Creek Park to see if I could get a better photo or two of the beautiful Varied Thrush that has been hanging around the area. The bird was there, but spent pretty much all its time deep within the conifer trees and a tangle of dark undergrowth. If the bird was on the ground and happened to move into slightly better light for a split second, it was mostly hidden by endless tiny branches. Most of the time, the view was far worse than in this photo : ) However, the Thrush did spend a few seconds on one of the mainly hidden fallen trees and two of us were lucky enough to see it without any branches in the way. Managed to get my best photos of this bird and will be posting one of them soon. When I say 'best', I mean that the bird was close and clear, but the light still wasn't good and the photos are rather grainy, unfortunately. Such a gorgeous bird and a real privilege to see it while it is here. "The Varied Thrush’s simple, ringing song gives a voice to the quiet forests of the Pacific Northwest, with their towering conifers and wet understories of ferns, shrubs, and mosses. Catch a glimpse of this shy bird and you’ll see a handsome thrush with a slaty gray back and breast band set against burnt-orange breast and belly. Common in the Cascades, Northern Rockies, and Pacific Coast, Varied Thrushes forage for insects in summer and switch to berries and seeds in winter. Varied Thrushes hop on the ground or low in shrubs and trees. They eat mainly insects and other arthropods in the summer and switch to nuts and fruit in fall and winter. On breeding territories, male Varied Thrushes sit on exposed perches to sing their haunting, trilling songs" From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Varied_Thrush/id

Of course, I would love to have had this bird closer, out in the open with a lot more light and no tangle of tiny branches in the immediate background, but I was still absolutely thrilled to finally see a Varied Thrush! This had been in the top three birds on my Wish List for quite a few years, but on the very rare occasion that one has been seen in Calgary, I was never there when it was seen. I got just two photos that were not really blurry - this one and one I posted a few days ago. I haven't had a chance to go back to the park to see if I can see it again. Six days ago, on 16 February 2016, I was on a birding walk in Fish Creek Park, that turned out to be longer and more fast-paced than I can manage. By the end, I was in such pain, but knew that I just had to go further when friend, Phil (from England), offered to take three or four of us back to near the beginning of our walk, to look again for this glorious bird. We had not been able to find it when we had tried earlier in the morning. Phil is a superb birder and we are always so lucky when he spends two or three months over here before going back to England for a few months. After waiting to see if the bird would appear, the others decided to leave. I followed Phil around a corner to look at the back of the trees we had been viewing - and there it was! Quite a distance away, but it was there! I couldn't believe my eyes. Can't thank you enough, Phil!! Now I have to decide which bird should be number 1 on my Wish List - perhaps the White-tailed Ptarmigan. "The Varied Thrush’s simple, ringing song gives a voice to the quiet forests of the Pacific Northwest, with their towering conifers and wet understories of ferns, shrubs, and mosses. Catch a glimpse of this shy bird and you’ll see a handsome thrush with a slaty gray back and breast band set against burnt-orange breast and belly. Common in the Cascades, Northern Rockies, and Pacific Coast, Varied Thrushes forage for insects in summer and switch to berries and seeds in winter. Varied Thrushes hop on the ground or low in shrubs and trees. They eat mainly insects and other arthropods in the summer and switch to nuts and fruit in fall and winter. On breeding territories, male Varied Thrushes sit on exposed perches to sing their haunting, trilling songs." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Varied_Thrush/id The list of species seen, compiled by our leader: FFCPPSoc. Birding, Bebo Grove to Shannon Terrace, FCPP, Calgary, 0915-1215, Tue16Feb2016. Mostly sunny, N wind 15kph, -3 to 10°C. Two groups; 1. Canada Goose- flock heard 2. Downy Woodpecker-6 3. Hairy Woodpecker-5 4. American Three-toed Woodpecker-1 5. Northern Flicker-1 6. Pileated Woodpecker-2+, seen three times at different locations 7. Blue Jay-3 8. Black-billed Magpie-2 9. Common Raven-7 10. Black-capped Chickadee-30 11. Boreal Chickadee-6 12. Red-breasted Nuthatch-12 13. Brown Creeper-2 14. Golden-crowned Kinglet-1 15. Townsend’s Solitare-1 16. American Robin-1, seen by Phil Q. 17. Varied Thrush-2 (1 m. seen, another heard) 18. Bohemian Waxwing-1 19. Pine Grosbeak-6 20. White-winged Crossbill-1 21. Common Redpoll-7 22. Pine Siskin-20 Red Squirrel-15 White-tailed Deer-6

Of course, I would love to have had this bird closer, out in the open with a bt more light and no tangle of tiny branches in the immediate background, but I was absolutely thrilled to finally see a Varied Thrush! This had been in the top three birds on my Wish List for quite a few years, but on the very rare occasion that one has been seen in Calgary, I was never there when it was seen. Two days ago, on 16 February 2016, I was on a birding walk in Fish Creek Park, that turned out to be longer and more fast-paced than I can manage. By the end, I was in such pain, but knew that I just had to go further when friend, Phil (from England), offered to take three or four of us back to near the beginning of our walk, to look again for this glorious bird. We had not been able to find it when we had tried earlier in the morning. Phil is a superb birder and we are always so lucky when he spends two or three months over here before going back to England for a few months. After waiting to see if the bird would appear, the others decided to leave. I followed Phil around a corner to look at the back of the trees we had been viewing - and there it was! Quite a distance away, but it was there! I couldn't believe my eyes. Can't thank you enough, Phil!! Now I have to decide which bird should be number 1 on my Wish List - perhaps the White-tailed Ptarmigan. "The Varied Thrush’s simple, ringing song gives a voice to the quiet forests of the Pacific Northwest, with their towering conifers and wet understories of ferns, shrubs, and mosses. Catch a glimpse of this shy bird and you’ll see a handsome thrush with a slaty gray back and breast band set against burnt-orange breast and belly. Common in the Cascades, Northern Rockies, and Pacific Coast, Varied Thrushes forage for insects in summer and switch to berries and seeds in winter. Varied Thrushes hop on the ground or low in shrubs and trees. They eat mainly insects and other arthropods in the summer and switch to nuts and fruit in fall and winter. On breeding territories, male Varied Thrushes sit on exposed perches to sing their haunting, trilling songs." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Varied_Thrush/id The list of species seen two days ago, compiled by our leader: FFCPPSoc. Birding, Bebo Grove to Shannon Terrace, FCPP, Calgary, 0915-1215, Tue16Feb2016. Mostly sunny, N wind 15kph, -3 to 10°C. Two groups; 1. Canada Goose- flock heard 2. Downy Woodpecker-6 3. Hairy Woodpecker-5 4. American Three-toed Woodpecker-1 5. Northern Flicker-1 6. Pileated Woodpecker-2+, seen three times at different locations 7. Blue Jay-3 8. Black-billed Magpie-2 9. Common Raven-7 10. Black-capped Chickadee-30 11. Boreal Chickadee-6 12. Red-breasted Nuthatch-12 13. Brown Creeper-2 14. Golden-crowned Kinglet-1 15. Townsend’s Solitare-1 16. American Robin-1, seen by Phil Q. 17. Varied Thrush-2 (1 m. seen, another heard) 18. Bohemian Waxwing-1 19. Pine Grosbeak-6 20. White-winged Crossbill-1 21. Common Redpoll-7 22. Pine Siskin-20 Red Squirrel-15 White-tailed Deer-6