Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: 15 June 2017

In the morning of 15 June 2017, I decided to join friends for a botany walk in North Weaselhead. We saw a good variety of species, including a few quite special ones, such as Striped Coralroot and Indian Breadroot. Thanks for a great walk, Barry! We also saw a tiny Ruby-throated Hummingbird. This decorated garbage can took me by surprise. I don't know how long it has been there, but I thought it was quite attractive. Appropriate, too, as I have seen these wildflowers growing just a bit further along the trail. After going for coffee with a couple of the botany people (thanks so much, Peter!), I went home for lunch and then decided to drive SW of the city, in the hope of maybe seeing a Great Gray Owl and/or a Bobolink. No luck with an owl, but, with a lot of patience, I did finally see a Bobolink. I only had very distant views, so managed to get only photos to post for my records. I did better a year ago, but it is early still. It was so nice to bump into Bonnie and her neighbour, Russel(l), on my drive. They mentioned a road that I had never been on before and I decided to give it a try. Such a beautiful road, though I had no idea where I was the whole time. When I got home and checked on Google, I was surprised to see just where I had driven.

When I've had no luck finding the birds that I set out to hopefully find, I know I can usually rely on Mr and/or Mrs. Snipe to be standing on a fence post. These are one of my favourite birds to photograph. This one was seen yesterday evening, 15 June 2017, when I went for a drive SW of the city. "Though the long tradition of “snipe hunt” pranks at summer camp has convinced many people otherwise, Wilson’s Snipes aren’t made-up creatures. These plump, long-billed birds are among the most widespread shorebirds in North America. They can be tough to see thanks to their cryptic brown and buff coloration and secretive nature. But in summer they often stand on fence posts or take to the sky with a fast, zigzagging flight and an unusual “winnowing” sound made with the tail." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Wilsons_Snipe/id According to Fisher and Acorn's book, "Birds of Alberta", "the common Snipe is both secretive and well camouflaged, so few people notice it until it flushes suddenly from a nearby grassy tussock. As soon as the Snipe takes to the air, it performs a series of quick zigzags - an evasive maneuver designed to confuse predators. Because of this habit, Snipes were among the most difficult birds to shoot (in the days when shorebirds were hunted for sport), and skilled sportsmen were known as "snipers" - a term later adopted by the military." youtu.be/Z16CUdX2g5Q Yesterday morning, I decided to join friends for a botany walk in North Weaselhead. We saw a good variety of species, including a few quite special ones, such as Striped Coralroot (orchid) and Indian Breadroot. Thanks for a great walk, Barry! We also saw a tiny Ruby-throated Hummingbird. After going for coffee with a couple of the botany people (thanks so much, Peter!), I went home for lunch and then decided to drive SW of the city, in the hope of maybe seeing a Great Gray Owl and/or a Bobolink. No luck with an owl, but, with a lot of patience, I did finally see a Bobolink. I only had very distant views, so managed to get only photos to post for my records. I did better a year ago, but it is early still. It was so nice to bump into Bonnie and her neighbour, Russel(l), on my drive. They mentioned a road that I had never been on before and I decided to give it a try. Such a beautiful road, though I had no idea where I was the whole time. When I got home and checked on Google, I was surprised to see just where I had driven.

This is one of our small, wild Orchids, Striped Coralroot. It is a native plant and grows in open woods. Grows 15-40 cm tall, June-July. Always a good feeling when we come across a few clumps of this attractive plant. "Corallorhiza striata is a species of orchid known by the common names striped coralroot and hooded coralroot. This flowering plant is native to much of North America, especially Canada and the northern and western United States. It is a member of the coniferous understory flora, where it lives in the layer of decaying plant matter on the ground obtaining nutrients from fungi via mycoheterotrophy. Like other coralroots, it has reduced leaves and no chlorophyll and relies upon its parasitism of the fungi for sustenance. This coralroot has an erect stem which may be red, pink, purple, or yellow-green to almost white. It is mostly made up of an inflorescence of orchid flowers. Each flower is an open array of sepals and similar-looking petals which may be pink or yellowish and have darker pink or maroon stripes. Inside the flower is a column formed from the fusion of male and female parts, which may be spotted with purple or red. The fruit is a capsule one or two centimeters long." en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corallorhiza_striata Yesterday morning, 15 June 2017, I decided to join friends for a botany walk in North Weaselhead. We saw a good variety of species, including a few quite special ones, such as Striped Coralroot and Indian Breadroot. Thanks for a great walk, Barry! We also saw a tiny Ruby-throated Hummingbird. After going for coffee with a couple of the botany people (thanks so much, Peter!), I went home for lunch and then decided to drive SW of the city, in the hope of maybe seeing a Great Gray Owl and/or a Bobolink. No luck with an owl, but, with a lot of patience, I did finally see a Bobolink. I only had very distant views, so managed to get only photos to post for my records. I did better a year ago, but it is early still. It was so nice to bump into Bonnie and her neighbour, Russel(l), on my drive. They mentioned a road that I had never been on before and I decided to give it a try. Such a beautiful road, though I had no idea where I was the whole time. When I got home and checked on Google, I was surprised to see just where I had driven.

Indian Breadroot, a rare, native plant, grows from Alberta to Manitoba south to New Mexico, Arkansas. This species is known locally as Large Indian Breadroot. The shift from Psoralea to Pediomelum is an example of a recent trend of renaming North American genera and species. Belongs to the Fabaceae family and blooms June-July. botanyphoto.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/2006/11/pediomelum_esc... Yesterday morning, 15 June 2017, I decided to join friends for a botany walk in North Weaselhead. We saw a good variety of species, including a few quite special ones, such as Striped Coralroot (orchid) and Indian Breadroot. Thanks for a great walk, Barry! We also saw a tiny Ruby-throated Hummingbird. After going for coffee with a couple of the botany people (thanks so much, Peter!), I went home for lunch and then decided to drive SW of the city, in the hope of maybe seeing a Great Gray Owl and/or a Bobolink. The weather forecast was for good weather, but the clouds were moving in fast. No luck with an owl, but, with a lot of patience, I did finally see a Bobolink. I only had very distant views, so managed to get only photos to post for my records. I did better a year ago, but it is early still. It was so nice to bump into Bonnie and her neighbour, Russel(l), on my drive. They mentioned a road that I had never been on before and I decided to give it a try. Such a beautiful road, though I had no idea where I was the whole time. When I got home and checked on Google, I was surprised to see just where I had driven.

We have two kinds of Goat's-beard - Goat's-beard and Meadow Goat's-beard. The latter has a smaller, brighter shade of yellow flower, and curly leaves. Both are invasive weeds. Similar to the much more common Goat's-beard, Meadow Goat's-beard has bracts that are no longer than the petals. The common Goat's-beard has bracts that extend well beyond the petals. Also, the very narrow leaves of the Meadow Goat's-beard curl. Photographed (macro) in north Weaselhead on 15 June 2017. I will add a previously posted photo of two flowers, one flower from each species, for comparison, in a comment box below. Also a photo showing the curly leaves of Meadow Goat's-beard. Yesterday morning, I decided to join friends for a botany walk in North Weaselhead. We saw a good variety of species, including a few quite special ones, such as Striped Coralroot (orchid) and Indian Breadroot. Thanks for a great walk, Barry! We also saw a tiny Ruby-throated Hummingbird. After going for coffee with a couple of the botany people (thanks so much, Peter!), I went home for lunch and then decided to drive SW of the city, in the hope of maybe seeing a Great Gray Owl and/or a Bobolink. No luck with an owl, but, with a lot of patience, I did finally see a Bobolink. I only had very distant views, so managed to get only photos to post for my records. I did better a year ago, but it is early still. It was so nice to bump into Bonnie and her neighbour, Russel(l), on my drive. They mentioned a road that I had never been on before and I decided to give it a try. Such a beautiful road, though I had no idea where I was the whole time. When I got home and checked on Google, I was surprised to see just where I had driven.

I am posting this photo just as a record of having seen this Bobolink yesterday, 16 June 2017. With a lot of luck, maybe I can get a better shot eventually - with a lot of patience, too! These birds are rarely seen, so it is nice to get any kind of photo. I did fairly well a year ago, luckily. "Perched on a grass stem or displaying in flight over a field, breeding male Bobolinks are striking. No other North American bird has a white back and black underparts (some have described this look as wearing a tuxedo backwards). Added to this are the male’s rich, straw-colored patch on the head and his bubbling, virtuosic song. As summer ends he molts into a buff and brown female-like plumage. Though they’re still fairly common in grasslands, Bobolink numbers are declining." From AllAboutBirds. www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Bobolink/id "The Bobolink inhabits Canada's grassland and agricultural areas from the interior of British Columbia to the east coast. Relative to 1970 levels, this species has shown a large decrease across most of its range, with the exception of the Prairie Potholes Bird Conservation Region where populations have changed little. The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada assessed the Bobolink as Threatened in 2010 (COSEWIC 2010d). This species has been identified as a priority for conservation and/or stewardship in one or more Bird Conservation Region Strategies in Canada." www.ec.gc.ca/soc-sbc/oiseau-bird-eng.aspx?sY=2014&sL=... Yesterday morning, I decided to join friends for a botany walk in North Weaselhead. We saw a good variety of species, including a few quite special ones, such as Striped Coralroot (orchid) and Indian Breadroot. Thanks for a great walk, Barry! We also saw a tiny Ruby-throated Hummingbird. After going for coffee with a couple of the botany people (thanks so much, Peter!), I went home for lunch and then decided to drive SW of the city, in the hope of maybe seeing a Great Gray Owl and/or a Bobolink. No luck with an owl, but, with a lot of patience, I did finally see a Bobolink. I only had very distant views, so managed to get only photos to post for my records. I did better a year ago, but it is early still. It was so nice to bump into Bonnie and her neighbour, Russel(l), on my drive. They mentioned a road that I had never been on before and I decided to give it a try. Such a beautiful road, though I had no idea where I was the whole time. When I got home and checked on Google, I was surprised to see just where I had driven.