Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: 26 November 2016

My apologies, everyone, for changing the upload time for this image. Flickr (or whoever) changed this MAIN photo to number three posted this morning. Thanks for letting me know, Bonnie, just when I came back to my computer and saw that my third photo (decorated silos) had more comments. That almost always means that my photos are being seen NOT in the order in which I wanted and posted them. The silos were posted just for the record, which is why I slipped them in at third place. On 26 November 2016, friends and I were so very lucky. On a walk in Fish Creek Park, we found not only an owl, but two owls, and different species - this Great Horned Owl and a teeny, popcan-sized Northern Pygmy-owl. It had been almost two years since I last saw a Northern Pygmy-owl. That one, also, had been seen in Fish Creek Park. On 26 November, it was near the top of a very tall tree, so my photos were fully zoomed and cropped and posted just for the record. The Great Horned Owl, however, was seen nice and low and out in the open. The bird was large and fairly pale, so we think it was probably a female. After taking a few photos through the trees, we continued our walk and I was able to get a few shots from a different angle, just before she closed her eyes and went to sleep. Then, the following day, 27 November 2016, I decided I would go back to the park and meet different friends and hope to be able to at least show them where we had seen the Great Horned Owl the previous day. Amazingly, there she was, sitting in exactly the same place, out in the open. We continued our walk, talking about seeing owls, when I suddenly stopped and grinned. I had spotted a second owl (a bit smaller and darker, so a male) so far away in the distance, through a mass of trees. No idea how I saw it, as it was so well camouflaged. After a long look, a couple of my friends still weren't able to find it, it was so well hidden. This bird was beautiful, with lovely colour on his face. After our walk, some of us called in at Tim Horton's for coffee. I always enjoy this, just as much as the walk itself. Thanks, Janet, Bernie and Stephen for a rewarding afternoon! Will add our leader's list of bird species seen, in a comment box below. We split into two groups, as so often happens, so not everyone saw everything on the list. My group only saw one Northern Pygmy-owl, not two.

On 26 November 2016, friends and I were so very lucky. On a walk in Fish Creek Park, we found not only an owl, but two owls, and different species - a Great Horned Owl and a teeny, popcan-sized Northern Pygmy-owl. It had been almost two years since I last saw a Northern Pygmy-owl. That one, also, had been seen in Fish Creek Park. On 26 November, it was near the top of a very tall tree, so my photos were fully zoomed and cropped and I posted one just for the record. The Great Horned Owl, however, was seen nice and low and out in the open. The bird was large and fairly pale, so we think it was probably a female. After taking a few photos through the trees, we continued our walk and I was able to get a few shots from a different angle, just before she closed her eyes and went to sleep. The forest was so quiet, with so few birds. This little Black-capped Chickadee gave me a chance for a couple of quick photos, as did a Red-breasted Nuthatch. I go on so few walks, and tend not to take many photos of our more common little birds. “A bird almost universally considered “cute” thanks to its oversized round head, tiny body, and curiosity about everything, including humans. The chickadee’s black cap and bib; white cheeks; gray back, wings, and tail; and whitish underside with buffy sides are distinctive. Its habit of investigating people and everything else in its home territory, and quickness to discover bird feeders, make it one of the first birds most people learn.” From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black-capped_Chickadee/id "The Black-capped Chickadee is notable for its capacity to lower its body temperature during cold winter nights, its good spatial memory to relocate the caches where it stores food, and its boldness near humans (they can feed from the hand)." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-capped_Chickadee

NOTE to anyone who belongs to the ipernity website (includes me): ipernity will be closing. A great shame, but also frustrating. I have all 12,644 of my images and descriptions on ipernity - exactly the same as on Flickr. No idea where we are supposed to move to now, if anywhere. Does anyone have any ideas for good sites? I seem to read complaints about them all! Hope Flickr keeps going and going and going ..... www.ipernity.com/blog/team/4642052 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Goodness, it's 1:00 in the afternoon and only 10 new photos from Contacts - and five of those are from one friend. Anyone out Christmas shopping, lol? On 26 November 2016, friends and I were so very lucky. On a walk in Fish Creek Park, we found not only an owl, but two owls, and different species - a Great Horned Owl and a teeny, popcan-sized Northern Pygmy-owl. It had been almost two years since I last saw a Northern Pygmy-owl. That one, also, had been seen in Fish Creek Park. On 26 November, it was near the top of a very tall tree, so my photos were fully zoomed and cropped and I posted one just for the record. The Great Horned Owl, however, was seen nice and low and out in the open. The bird was large and fairly pale, so we think it was probably a female. After taking a few photos through the trees, we continued our walk and I was able to get a few shots from a different angle, just before she closed her eyes and went to sleep. The forest was so quiet, with so few birds. This little white-breasted Nuthatch gave me a chance for one quick photo, as did a Black-capped Chickadee. I go on so few walks, and tend not to take many photos of our more common little birds. "A common feeder bird with clean black, gray, and white markings, White-breasted Nuthatches are active, agile little birds with an appetite for insects and large, meaty seeds. They get their common name from their habit of jamming large nuts and acorns into tree bark, then whacking them with their sharp bill to “hatch” out the seed from the inside. White-breasted Nuthatches may be small but their voices are loud, and often their insistent nasal yammering will lead you right to them." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/White-breasted_Nuthatch/id

On 26 November 2016, friends and I were so very lucky. On a walk in Fish Creek Park, we found not only an owl, but two owls, and different species - a Great Horned Owl and a teeny, popcan-sized Northern Pygmy-owl. It had been almost two years since I last saw a Northern Pygmy-owl. That one, also, had been seen in Fish Creek Park. On 26 November, it was near the top of a very tall tree, so my photos were fully zoomed and cropped and I posted one just for the record. The Great Horned Owl, however, was seen nice and low and out in the open. The bird was large and fairly pale, so we think it was probably a female. After taking a few photos through the trees, we continued our walk and I was able to get a few shots from a different angle, just before she closed her eyes and went to sleep. The forest was so quiet, with so few birds. This little Red-breasted Nuthatch gave me a chance for one quick photo, as did a Black-capped Chickadee. I go on so few walks, and tend not to take many photos of our more common little birds. "An intense bundle of energy at your feeder, Red-breasted Nuthatches are tiny, active birds of north woods and western mountains. These long-billed, short-tailed songbirds travel through tree canopies with chickadees, kinglets, and woodpeckers but stick to tree trunks and branches, where they search bark furrows for hidden insects. Their excitable yank-yank calls sound like tiny tin horns being honked in the treetops." From AllABoutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-breasted_Nuthatch/id en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red-breasted_nuthatch

On 26 November 2016, friends and I were so very lucky. On a walk in Fish Creek Park, we found not only an owl, but two owls, and different species - this Great Horned Owl and a teeny, popcan-sized Northern Pygmy-owl. It had been almost two years since I last saw a Northern Pygmy-owl. That one, also, had been seen in Fish Creek Park. On 26 November, it was near the top of a very tall tree, so my photos were fully zoomed and cropped and posted just for the record. The Great Horned Owl, however, was seen nice and low and out in the open. The bird was large and fairly pale, so we think it was probably a female. After taking a few photos through the trees, we continued our walk and I was able to get a few shots from a different angle, just before she closed her eyes and went to sleep. Then, the following day, 27 November 2016, I decided I would go back to the park and meet different friends and hope to be able to at least show them where we had seen the Great Horned Owl the previous day. Amazingly, there she was, sitting in exactly the same place, out in the open. We continued our walk, talking about seeing owls, when I suddenly stopped and grinned. I had spotted a second owl (smaller and darker, so a male) so far away in the distance, through a mass of trees. No idea how I saw it, as it was so well camouflaged. After a long look, a couple of my friends still weren't able to find it, it was so well hidden. A fully zoomed and cropped photo (posted yesterday) shows what a beautiful bird he was - lovely colour on his face. After our walk, some of us called in at Tim Horton's for coffee. I always enjoy this, just as much as the walk itself. Thanks, Janet, Bernie and Stephen for a rewarding afternoon! Will add our leader's list of bird species seen, in a comment box below. We split into two groups, so not everyone saw everything on the list. My group only saw one Northern Pygmy-owl, not two.

I overslept this morning, so I will have to finish my descriptions and tags later this afternoon. I'm going to have to post and run. Yesterday, 26 November 2016, friends and I were so very lucky. On a walk in Fish Creek Park, we found not only an owl, but two owls, and different species - this Great Horned Owl and a teeny, popcan-sized Northern Pygmy-owl. It had been almost two years since I last saw a Northern Pygmy-owl. That one, also, had been seen in Fish Creek Park. Yesterday, it was near the top of a very tall tree, so my photo (3rd photo posted today) was fully zoomed and cropped and posted just for the record. The Great Horned Owl, however, was seen nice and low and out in the open. The bird was large and fairly pale, so we think it was probably a female. After taking a few photos through the trees, we continued our walk and I was able to get a few shots from a different angle, just before she closed her eyes and went to sleep. Will add our leader's list of bird species seen, in a comment box below. We split into two groups, so not everyone saw everything on the list. My group only saw one Northern Pygmy-owl, not two.

I overslept this morning, so I will have to finish my descriptions and tags later this afternoon. I'm going to have to post and run. Yesterday, 26 November 2016, friends and I were so very lucky. On a walk in Fish Creek Park, we found not only an owl, but two owls, and different species - a Great Horned Owl and this teeny, popcan-sized Northern Pygmy-owl. It had been almost two years since I last saw a Northern Pygmy-owl. That one, also, had been seen in Fish Creek Park. Yesterday, it was near the top of a very tall tree, so this photo was fully zoomed and cropped and posted just for the record. I have added two previously posted, much closer images from January 2015, in a comment box below. The Great Horned Owl, however, was seen nice and low and out in the open. The bird was large and fairly pale, so we think it was probably a female. After taking a few photos through the trees, we continued our walk and I was able to get a few shots from a different angle, just before she closed her eyes and went to sleep. Will add our leader's list of bird species seen, in a comment box below. We split into two groups, so not everyone saw everything on the list. My group only saw one Northern Pygmy-owl, not two. "Northern Pygmy Owls are 'sit and wait' predators, that hunt mainly by vision, diving down onto prey on the ground and driving the talons into the prey's throat. They will also attack birds in shrubs, crashing into the hapless victims. Most prey is carried off in the feet to feeding sites. Birds are usually plucked before being consumed. They often eat only the brains of birds and the soft abdomen of insects. One of these little owls can carry prey weighing up to 3 times its own weight. The Northern Pygmy Owl feeds on a wide range of small prey including small mammals, birds, and reptiles and amphibians. Voles make up the bulk of their diet, with birds comprising most of the rest (mainly songbirds, but as large as a California Quail). Other small mammals include shrews, mice, chipmunks, bats, moles, young rabbits, and weasels. Insects may be very important when they are most abundant. Other prey taken are toads, frogs and small lizards and snakes. During winter, surplus prey is cached in a cavity, often in large quantities. Summer caches are usually much smaller. Pellets are very small, averaging about 3cm long. They are formed only occasionally as these owls don't consume large amounts of fur, feathers, or bone. The pellets tend to fall apart shortly after ejection." From OwlPages. www.owlpages.com/owls.php?genus=Glaucidium&species=ca... www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Northern_Pygmy-Owl/id en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_pygmy_owl