Anne Elliott's photos with the keyword: Wild Turkey

Hope someone at Flickr will fix the commenting problem that has been going on for days now! Unfortunately, with the US Thanksgiving holiday, the issue won't be fixed anytime soon. Today, 22 November 2018, is Thanksgiving Day for Americans. I had not intended posting any photos this morning, but when I realized that the next few photos to upload from our Ontario and Quebec trip were of Wild Turkeys, I thought it appropriate to edit and post some this morning. Happy Thanksgiving to all Americans, wherever you happen to be living at the moment. 9 Fun Facts about Turkeys: www.audubon.org/news/9-fun-facts-about-turkeys Day 4 of our holiday was 10 May 2018. We had a ridiiculously early start to the day, as we had been told that American Woodcocks (Scolopax minor) tend to gather in and around the hotel parking lot. That information was just too good to ignore, so I think it was sometime after 4:00 am that we were out there, searching. As it turned out, in vain, though we did hear two individuals vocalizing in the dark bushes across the road. The American Woodcock is "a small chunky shorebird species found primarily in the eastern half of North America. Woodcocks spend most of their time on the ground in brushy, young-forest habitats, where the birds' brown, black, and gray plumage provides excellent camouflage." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_woodcock This last day was spent at Pt Pelee, walking a few trails including at The Tip again. We also drove to The Onion Fields, just north of Pt Pelee, between Hillman Marsh and Pt Pelee, where we had a great sighting - a very, very distant male Snowy Owl, sitting way out in a field, next to a white post!! Awful photos, but will eventually post one of them, just for the record. I have added Anne B's ebird list for Day 4 in a comment box below. As always, I did not manage to see every species, but was happy to see at least some of them! The next morning, 11 May, we had to do the very long drive from Pelee to Toronto, where we caught a plane to Quebec City, arriving there at 2:45 pm. From there, we had a long drive east to reach the small village of Tadoussac on the St. Lawrence Seaway. There, we would be staying for a week at the summer 'cabin' of one of our group of friends. For a more detailed account of our trip east, see www.flickr.com/photos/annkelliott/45038233955/in/datepost...

Hope someone at Flickr will fix the commenting problem that has been going on for days now! Unfortunately, with the US Thanksgiving holiday, the issue won't be fixed anytime soon. Today, 22 November 2018, is Thanksgiving Day for Americans. I had not intended posting any photos this morning, but when I realized that the next few photos to upload from our Ontario and Quebec trip were of Wild Turkeys, I thought it appropriate to edit and post some this morning. Happy Thanksgiving to all Americans, wherever you happen to be living at the moment. 9 Fun Facts about Turkeys: www.audubon.org/news/9-fun-facts-about-turkeys Day 4 of our holiday was 10 May 2018. We had a ridiiculously early start to the day, as we had been told that American Woodcocks (Scolopax minor) tend to gather in and around the hotel parking lot. That information was just too good to ignore, so I think it was sometime after 4:00 am that we were out there, searching. As it turned out, in vain, though we did hear two individuals vocalizing in the dark bushes across the road. The American Woodcock is "a small chunky shorebird species found primarily in the eastern half of North America. Woodcocks spend most of their time on the ground in brushy, young-forest habitats, where the birds' brown, black, and gray plumage provides excellent camouflage." From Wikipedia. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_woodcock This last day was spent at Pt Pelee, walking a few trails including at The Tip again. We also drove to The Onion Fields, just north of Pt Pelee, between Hillman Marsh and Pt Pelee, where we had a great sighting - a very, very distant male Snowy Owl, sitting way out in a field, next to a white post!! Awful photos, but will eventually post one of them, just for the record. I have added Anne B's ebird list for Day 4 in a comment box below. As always, I did not manage to see every species, but was happy to see at least some of them! The next morning, 11 May, we had to do the very long drive from Pelee to Toronto, where we caught a plane to Quebec City, arriving there at 2:45 pm. From there, we had a long drive east to reach the small village of Tadoussac on the St. Lawrence Seaway. There, we would be staying for a week at the summer 'cabin' of one of our group of friends. For a more detailed account of our trip east, see www.flickr.com/photos/annkelliott/45038233955/in/datepost...

Hope all my American friends will be lucky enough to enjoy a turkey (or equivalent such as vegetarian) dinner tomorrow, 22 November 2018, the US Thanksgiving. There is so much to be thankful for, though of course more so for some people than others - thinking of all the devastation and loss in California. A special Happy Thanksgiving to all those US servicemen and women (and their families, who also make so many sacrifices), who risk their lives on a daily basis, in order to keep the rest safe and free. Happy Thanksgiving (tomorrow),to all Americans, whatever part of the world you are living in. Our Canadian Thanksgiving was on 8 October this year. This photo was taken on 6 September 2018, which turned out to be a much longer day than I had planned! In the very early hours of the morning, I happened to check the weather forecast just out of interest, and saw that rain is expected on about six of the coming days (if it actually happens). Decided then and there that I had better get out for a drive, just in case. My intention had been to just drive some of the roads east of the city, getting out there via 22X, which is definitely not a drive I like to do. On a previous trip, I had made two mistakes along this complcated highway, and ended up on Stoney Trail going north and, on the return trip, I was in the wrong lane and ended up heading far, far south of the city on the worst major highway. The latter happened again and, like on the previous drive, I ended up going to the Saskatoon Farm. Fortunately, I was in time to get an afternoon meal there and have a wander around the grounds taking photos. I love this place. There were certain things I wanted to go and see again on this day, including a few old barns and sheds. I was also hoping that I might just come across a beautiful hawk or two within camera reach. I even finally got to take photos of a few shorebirds. Throw in a butterfly or two and the odd flower, and I was happy. On this trip, I really wanted to make myself use the Nikon P900 a lot, though this one was taken with my old Panasonic FZ200. I always take a few of the same photos with my Panasonic and Canon point-and-shoots, too, as I am not yet used to the P900. One of my concerns about the latter is that it seems to blow out the white in an image, from what I have seen in quite a few other people's photos - didn''t seem too bad. My other - and main - concern is focus. I still have not been able to stand in front of a flower/something small at various distances, and zoom in. All I see in the viewfinder is a coloured blur. The other cameras don't do this, and I've been doing it easily for many years. Hope I can sort this out! I guess it's just a case of experimenting. So far, apart from this major issue, I think I am liking how the P900 takes photos.

Just a quick glimpse of this Wild Turkey as we set off early morning on our first day at Pt Pelee, for a day of birding. We saw more Turkeys during our four days at Pt Pelee, and managed to get better photos of them. My plan had been to post a number of photos today, but then I decided to just post the next three in more or less the order in which they were taken. I have a lot of images that I want to add to my albums for this holiday, many of poor quality or of little interest to others. Maybe I can add more tonight, when most people are probably off Flickr. I will try and add the occasional better photo as I go along! Please bear with me. Four friends (four of the six friends with whom I went to Trinidad & Tobago in March 2017) and I left Calgary airport on 6 May 2018 and flew to Toronto, Ontario, Canada. There, we rented a van and did the long drive to Point Pelee for four whole days of birding. We stayed at the Best Western Hotel, which is close to Point Pelee National Park. It fills up very quickly (with birders) and our rooms were booked months ago. Our four days walking at Point Pelee were interesting and I, for sure, saw various things I had never seen before, including my very first Raccoon : ) Various friends had told me that the Warblers at Pelee were fantastic - so many and numerous species, and so close. Have to disagree with the "closeness" when we were there! I don't have binoculars as a camera(s) is enough for me to carry around, so I know I missed all sorts of birds. Though my Warbler count was lower than my friends' counts, I was happy to at least get a few distant photos of some species. So many of my shots are awful, but I will still post some of them, just for the record of seeing them. Some photos are so bad that I doubt anyone can ID them. We covered several different trails at Pelee, and also drove to a few places somewhat further afield, such as Hillman Marsh. If you are unfamiliar with this Conservation Area, just wait till you see a photo of the old barn that was there. I couldn't believe my eyes! I was in so much pain that I wasn't sure if I would be able to walk across a grassy area to take a few photos. However, it was so unusual and beautiful, that I reckoned I could try and move forward inch by inch - and crawl (ha, ha) if necessary. Another place we enjoyed was Rondeau National Park. One amazing and totally unexpected sighting just outside Pelee was a very distant male Snowy Owl sitting in a fieldl!! We walked every single day that we were at Pelee and the areas mentioned above, seeing not just birds, but a frog/toad, snakes that we suspect were mating, several Painted turtles, a few plants (including both white and red Triliums, that I had never seen growing wild before, and a couple of Jack in the Pulpit plants). The Friends of Point Pelee have food available that one can buy. They also have a shuttle bus that one can take from the Visitor Centre all the way to the southern tip of Pelee, which is the most southern part of Canada. They also have birding walks each day (there is a charge). On 9 May, we spent the morning from 6:00 am to 11:00 am on a birding walk at Pelee with guide, Tom Hince, whom we had contacted while we were still in Calgary. At the end of our stay at Point Pelee, we had to drive all the way back to Toronto, from where we flew to Quebec airport. From there, we had a four-hour drive to Tadoussac on the coast of the St. Lawrence Seaway. This is such a delightful, small place and in a beautiful setting. One of our friends, Anne B, and her husband have a summer cabin further along the cliff from the few stores and port. She had invited the four of us to go with her from Pelee to spend a week at her beautiful home. What an absolute treat this was! We were able to meet some of her relatives, too, who also have built cabins out there. We were looked after so well, and we were able to see and photograph all sorts of birds and other things. We made several trips to see different places, including the Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Area, where we were able to see endless thousands of Snow Geese. Breathtaking! We also had two boat trips from Tadoussac - one was a whaling trip, where we saw very, very distant Beluga and Minke Whales. The Belugas looked almost like the white wave crests - but they were Belugas. The other boat trip was to the Brandy Pot Islands, inhabited by thousands of Razorbills and Common Murres, which were new birds for us, and Double-crested Cormorants that were nesting in tree tops. That long boat trip (in a tiny boat named Juno) started off in the rain and dark clouds and it was soooo cold! Thermal underwear, layers of fleece and toque and gloves were needed. This day was arranged through a contact of Anne's and it was so much enjoyed! Of course, we anchored a distance away from the island and sat there and ate our sandwiches and took endless photos. Think I had better stop typing! As I add more photos, I can add bits of extra information. We only arrived home fairly early two evenings ago. Still so tired, especially as I was up at any time from 4:45 am to 6:00 am each morning, many hours earlier than I usually get up, being such a dreadful night owl! Anne, I can't thank you enough for organizing this holiday for us all and for inviting us to spend a week at your cabin. You worked so hard and it was so much appreciated by each and every one of us. Thank you for doing all the many hours of driving, too! Janet and Anne, thank you so much for compiling the lists of birds seen each day at various locations, and posted to ebird. These entries will be a huge help while I try and sort out where we were and when, and what species we saw. Miss your cookies and muffins, Janet, that you kindly made for us in Tadoussac, to go along with the wonderful meals that Anne planned and made for us : )

Friend, Gayle, made an appointment to go to the Cochrane Ecological Institute Centre tthree days ago, on 9 December 2017, and invited me to go along, too. I had longed to visit and, a few years ago, two friends and I were all set to go, but a major storm prevented us from going. It made an interesting morning, going on a tour of the grounds with our guide, Lisa Dahlseide. I know Lisa in connection with the Weaselhead Natural Area in Calgary and it was so nice to see that she was going to be our leader for this walk. She has such a wealth of knowledge and her personality is very much a "people person", including doing a lot of work with young children and nature. As well as being a busy mother of three young children, she is part time Naturalist with Weaselhead/Glenmore Park Preservation Society and the Education Director for the Cochrane Ecological Institute. Unfortunately, I was too busy being distracted by taking photos of things, that I missed a lot of the explanations for the animals/birds that we saw. I always think that I will be able to find information once I get home and get on the Internet, but that doesn't always happen. "Wildlife" that we saw including several (4?) Bison that had originally been brought up from Waterton years ago; deer; several Wild Turkeys; two Great Horned Owls; and a pair of birds that I have never seen before - White Pheasants. I missed the explanation for these Pheasants, unfortunately. After our visit to the Centre, we drove to Cochrane for an enjoyable lunch. Took a while to drive round looking for somewhere to eat - I had no idea that Cochrane had grown so much. Thanks so much, Gayle, for a different kind of day! Much enjoyed and appreciated. vimeo.com/225317099 "The CEI (Cochrane Ecological Institute) is a family founded, charitable organization devoted to breeding endangered species for reintroduction, wildlife rescue, rehabilitation, and release, educating the public, monitoring habitat and species, and developing non intrusive wildlife survey methods. The CEI was founded (1971) by Miles and Beryl Smeeton and is now run by their daughter, Clio Smeeton. Miles and Beryl Smeeton were internationally known sailors, mountaineers, and explorers. The Smeetons initiated the swift fox reintroduction program in Canada in 1972, six years before the species was declared extirpated in Canada. All animals held at the CEI are destined for reintroduction. They are not maintained for public exhibit, trade, or sale. Over the 26 years of its existence the CEI has also been an integral part of the Canadian Wildlife Service's Trumpeter swan (Cygnus bucinnator) and wood bison (B.b.athabascae) reintroduction programs, as well as playing a key role in the Canadian swift fox reintroduction program. The CEI is unique in that it holds the world's longest established (1972), largest (20 pairs), and only captive breeding colony of swift fox. These animals are bred solely for reintroduction as part of the CEI's ecosystem restoration program. Internationally, as species and habitat vanish, the concept of ecosystem restoration through the reintroduction of indigenous flora and fauna, is gaining greater and greater prominence. The preservation of habitat without those species, which made that habitat a viable whole, is a sterile exercise." From the CEI's website. www.ceinst.org/about-us.html "Cochrane Ecological Institute's Swift Fox Reintroduction programs began in 1972 under the direction of Beryl and Miles Smeeton. Since that time 0ver 800 Swift fox were reintroduced to the Canadian Prairie. This has resulted in the Species being downlisted by the Canadian Government from Extirpated to Endangered. In 1998 the CEI was invited by the Blackfeet Tribal Fish and Wildlife Department, Browning, Montana to join in a partnership to start the first swift fox re-introduction in the USA on the Blackfeet Tribal Lands. Defenders of Wildlife also became partners in this project and the first swift foxes were released on Blackfeet land in the fall of 1998.This program continued until 2003. The CEI was requested to design and implement a Swift Fox reintroduction program on Blood reserve lands in Alberta Canada in 2003. This resulted in only a 2 year program because of complications resulting from permitting problems and the new Species at Risk Act in Canada." From the CEI website.

"The CEI (Cochrane Ecological Institute) is a family founded, charitable organization devoted to breeding endangered species for reintroduction, wildlife rescue, rehabilitation, and release, educating the public, monitoring habitat and species, and developing non intrusive wildlife survey methods. The CEI was founded (1971) by Miles and Beryl Smeeton and is now run by their daughter, Clio Smeeton. Miles and Beryl Smeeton were internationally known sailors, mountaineers, and explorers. The Smeetons initiated the swift fox reintroduction program in Canada in 1972, six years before the species was declared extirpated in Canada. All animals held at the CEI are destined for reintroduction. They are not maintained for public exhibit, trade, or sale. Over the 26 years of its existence the CEI has also been an integral part of the Canadian Wildlife Service's Trumpeter swan (Cygnus bucinnator) and wood bison (B.b.athabascae) reintroduction programs, as well as playing a key role in the Canadian swift fox reintroduction program. The CEI is unique in that it holds the world's longest established (1972), largest (20 pairs), and only captive breeding colony of swift fox. These animals are bred solely for reintroduction as part of the CEI's ecosystem restoration program. Internationally, as species and habitat vanish, the concept of ecosystem restoration through the reintroduction of indigenous flora and fauna, is gaining greater and greater prominence. The preservation of habitat without those species, which made that habitat a viable whole, is a sterile exercise." From the CEI's website. www.ceinst.org/about-us.html "Cochrane Ecological Institute's Swift Fox Reintroduction programs began in 1972 under the direction of Beryl and Miles Smeeton. Since that time 0ver 800 Swift fox were reintroduced to the Canadian Prairie. This has resulted in the Species being downlisted by the Canadian Government from Extirpated to Endangered. In 1998 the CEI was invited by the Blackfeet Tribal Fish and Wildlife Department, Browning, Montana to join in a partnership to start the first swift fox re-introduction in the USA on the Blackfeet Tribal Lands. Defenders of Wildlife also became partners in this project and the first swift foxes were released on Blackfeet land in the fall of 1998.This program continued until 2003. The CEI was requested to design and implement a Swift Fox reintroduction program on Blood reserve lands in Alberta Canada in 2003. This resulted in only a 2 year program because of complications resulting from permitting problems and the new Species at Risk Act in Canada." From the CEI website. Friend, Gayle, had made an appointment to go to this Centre yesterday, 9 December 2017, and invited me to go along, too. I had longed to visit and, a few years ago, two friends and I were all set to go, but a major storm prevented us from going. Made an interesting morning yesterday, going on a tour of the grounds with our guide, Lisa Dahlseide. I know Lisa in connection with the Weaselhead Natural Area and it was so nice to see that she was going to be our leader for this walk. She has such a wealth of knowledge and her personality is very much a "people person", including doing a lot of work with young children and nature. As well as being a busy mother of three young children, she is part time Naturalist with Weaselhead/Glenmore Park Preservation Society and the Education Director for the Cochrane Ecological Institute. Unfortunately, I was too busy being distracted by taking photos of things, that I missed a lot of the explanations for the animals/birds that we saw. I always think that I will be able to find information once I get home and get on the Internet, but that doesn't always happen. "Wildlife" that we saw including several (4?) Bison that had originally been brought up from Waterton years ago; the deer; several Wild Turkeys; a Great Horned Owl that is unable to be released and, apparently, does not have the right personality for being trained as a Wildlife Ambassador; and a pair of birds that I have never seen before - White Pheasants. I missed the explanation for these Pheasants, unfortunately. After our visit to the Centre, we drove to Cochrane for an enjoyable lunch. Took a while to drive round looking for somewhere to eat - I had no idea that Cochrane had grown so much. Thanks so much, Gayle, for a different kind of day! Much enjoyed and appreciated.

Ha, I almost titled this: "Remember my face while you eat your turkey dinner"! This Turkey lives at the Saskatoon Farm, SE of Calgary. I'm never sure whether to call this bird a Wild Turkey or just a Turkey. Took this shot on 8 September 2017, knowing that Thanksgiving was coming up. I find it hard to put the two together - the naked, frozen bird that you see in the supermarket, and this huge, magnificently-feathered, living creature : ) Hope this doesn't spoil your appetite! Here in Canada, it is our Thanksgiving long weekend, with tomorrow, Monday 9 October 2017, being the official Thanksgiving Day. Some people choose to celebrate on the Sunday (today) and others on the Monday (tomorrow). I wanted to wish all Canadians a Happy Thanksgiving, no matter what part of the world you are living in or serving in. We have so much to be thankful for every day in this country, even in difficult or sad times! A special thank you to those service people and their families, who make so many sacrifices for the rest of us, too, sometimes the ultimate sacrifice. I am very thankful for what you all do for the rest of us. Have a happy and safe time, everyone, whether you are fortunate enough to get together with family or spend the time quietly by yourself. On the day I took this photo, I decided on the spur of the moment, to drive south to the Saskatoon Farm. I wasn't sure what I would be doing that weekend and wanted to make sure I went there to buy a few of their vegetables and fruit. I knew that a weekend would be a much busier time and definitely wanted to avoid that. I also wanted to photograph a few of their beautiful Artichoke flowers before they were all past their prime. These flowers were very popular with the bees, which was so good to see. As usual, I wandered round the grounds with my camera, catching one of the cats, one of the dogs, and a few of the chickens, an old tractor, as well as flowers. I never return home with an empty memory card when I visit this place. Unfortunately, it was a smoky day (what's new?) with the air quality rating an unpleasant High Risk level. In fact, I almost turned back before I was half way there. This interesting place is maybe a 25-minute drive SE from the southern edge of Calgary. You can collect your own Saskatoon berries in season, look around their outside green houses, and their inside gift shop full of unusual things, and buy special baking, jams, teas and so on. They also have a restaurant that offers great food. www.saskatoonfarm.com/ We had snow this morning, 8 October 2017 - all five minutes of it : ) I don't mind that kind of snow. Our temperature shortly before noon is 3C (windchill -3C).

Another day of snow today, 10 October 2016. Needed something colourful to post and thought I'd add this Wild Turkey that I photographed a few weeks ago, at the Saskatoon Farm. Our temperature this morning is -2C (windchill -6C) and tomorrow morning, it's forecast to be -7C (windchill -11C). Looks like we should be having sunshine for a few days, though, which makes all the difference. Here in Canada, it is our Thanksgiving long weekend, with today, Monday 10 October 2015, being the official Thanksgiving Day. Some people choose to celebrate on the Sunday (yesterday) and others on the Monday (today). Have a happy and safe time, whether you are fortunate enough to get together with family or friends, or spend the time quietly by yourself. On 21 September 2016, I left home in sunshine, but by the time I reached my destination south of the city, at the Saskatoon Farm, it was overcast and dreary. This interesting place is maybe a 20-minute drive SE from the southern edge of Calgary. You can collect your own Saskatoon berries in season, look around their outside green houses, and their inside gift shop full of unusual things, and buy special baking, jams, teas and so on. They also have a restaurant that offers great food - I had a delicious meal of quiche and sweet potato fries. www.saskatoonfarm.com/

Saturday, 21 November 2015, turned out to be a fun day for a group of us, driving SW of the city into the rolling hills to look for birds. We started off ‘well’, when our driver reversed into another birder’s car right there in the parking lot where we met. The crunch sounded really bad, but thankfully damage was very minimal! Our drive took us south to the Millarville area, where we were hoping that we might just see Wild Turkeys, a Gyrfalcon or a Northern Hawk Owl. No luck with the last two, but we were lucky enough to see a number of distant Wild Turkeys at two different locations. Just couldn't get a good shot of any of them, especially when they were moving about through the trees. I had had a look for these months ago, when people were reporting seeing them, but I wasn't able to find any. I think we did just as well, if not better, with mammals than bird species, seeing several beautiful male deer and a couple of distant Coyotes. Then, later on, we were amazed to see a group of three Moose and just a short distance along the road, a group of five Moose. To see even one lone Moose is exciting, but to see eight in one day was amazing and most unusual. Unfortunately, they were all too far away to get even half-decent shots, but I may post one sometime, just for the record. Towards the end of our trip, a friend asked what I was going to be doing afterwards and when I said I had no plans, invited me to go along with him and his friend to look for Great Gray Owls and Snowy Owls. I said I would just grab my backpack from the car I had been riding in, By the time I had got my things out, I happened to turn round to go to their car, when I discovered there were no cars left!! Thank goodness my original drive was still there, as the vehicle I was going to transfer into was way down the road! My friend had forgotten me, lol! When he suddenly realized it, he had stopped and was either going to turn around or back up and had instead gone into the snow-covered ditch. Impossible to get out, so he was going to have to get a ride with someone else till he could reach a place where cell phone service was available and then call for a tow truck. I'm so glad I wasn't in his vehicle - can't help but wonder if my added weight might have caused his car to roll over, lol! And so I returned to the city with my original friends - safe and thankful. Thanks so much for driving for the day, Andrew - much appreciated! To my other friend, who shall remain anonymous (lol), I do hope it didn't take too long for your car to be rescued! This is the final report/list from the leaders of the trip - rather long, but I did want to add it, to jog my own memory: "On Saturday November 21, seventeen birders headed out in mild sunny weather to look for uncommon birds in the Calgary area. We headed south of the city first to check a possible Gyrfalcon spot, then to the Millarville area for Wild Turkeys, Sharp-tailed Grouse, and Northern Hawk-Owl. Our first stop was just south of Lloyd Lake (Red Deer Lake), a little SW of Spruce Meadows. A Gyrfalcon had been seen hunting Rock Pigeons in the area about ten days ago. It took a while to find the correct location, but with a tip from a local resident (who saw the falcon three days prior) we found the grain silos on 226 Avenue just where it starts to turn to the SW. There were only about a dozen pigeons there, and no Gyrfalcon, but the location is worth checking again. We thought we may have seen the bird sitting on a fence post to the south, but when we got closer it proved to be a Rough-legged Hawk, our only one of the day. Next we went just SW of Millarville, where last winter Wild Turkeys frequented a farmyard on RR35. They had been reported once this fall. Also in the area last year were Sharp-tailed Grouse, and a Northern Hawk-Owl on RR40. We found the Wild Turkeys at a farm on Twp 203, which connects RR34 and RR35. We watched them from a distance for a while, then did a slow drive-by, and the birds moved back from the road and eventually out of sight. There appeared to be seven turkeys. After driving a loop around RR 34 and 35, we again found turkeys at a farm on RR35 just south of Twp 203. There were nine birds at this location, but the spot was no more than 1 km from where we saw the other group, and it seems likely that it was the same flock. This might be the only Wild Turkey flock within the 80-km Calgary Count Circle. Next we drove south about 1.5 km to Twp 202, the north on RR40. A Northern Hawk-Owl was seen on this road frequently last winter. At one point I thought we found one, but it was a Gray Jay sitting at the top of a spruce tree. Back in Calgary, we stopped at the canoe club in North Glenmore Park to check the reservoir. A Pacific Loon had been seen there by Jim St. Laurent on Friday afternoon (November 20). We didn't see it, though there were still waterfowl on the remaining open water. Below is the eBird trip summary. eBird Checklist Summary for: Nov 21, 2015, 8:54 AM to Nov 21, 2015, 3:54 PM Number of Checklists: 4 Number of Taxa: 21 Checklists included in this summary: (1): Calgary--Weaselhead Natural Area Date: Nov 21, 2015, 9:09 AM (2): (Gyrfalcon Spot) CA-AB-227101-227199 1119 Dr W - 50.8410x-114.1780 - Nov 21, 2015, 10:33 AM Date: Nov 21, 2015, 10:33 AM (3): (SW of Millarville) CA-AB-370201-370225 272 St W - 50.7079x-114.3940 - Nov 21, 2015, 12:07 PM Date: Nov 21, 2015, 12:07 PM (4): Calgary--North Glenmore Park Date: Nov 21, 2015, 2:19 PM 402 Canada Goose -- (2),(4) 8 Mallard -- (4) 11 Bufflehead -- (4) 150 Common Goldeneye -- (4) 1 Common Merganser -- (4) 1 Ring-necked Pheasant -- (2) 9 Wild Turkey -- (3) 1 Eared Grebe -- (4) 1 Sharp-shinned/Cooper's Hawk -- (1) 2 Bald Eagle -- (1),(3) 1 Rough-legged Hawk -- (2) 11 Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) -- (2) 1 Northern Shrike -- (2) 2 Gray Jay -- (3) 1 Blue Jay -- (1) 9 Black-billed Magpie -- (1),(2),(3),(4) 9 Common Raven -- (1),(2),(3) 7 Black-capped Chickadee -- (1),(3),(4) 9 Pine Grosbeak -- (3) 1 House Finch -- (1) 40 White-winged Crossbill -- (1),(3)

Saturday, 21 November 2015, turned out to be a fun day for a group of us, driving SW of the city into the rolling hills to look for birds. We started off ‘well’, when our driver reversed into another birder’s car right there in the parking lot where we met. The crunch sounded really bad, but thankfully damage was very minimal! Our drive took us south to the Millarville area, where we were hoping that we might just see Wild Turkeys, a Gyrfalcon or a Northern Hawk Owl. No luck with the last two, but we were lucky enough to see a number of distant Wild Turkeys at two different locations. Just couldn't get a good shot of any of them, especially when they were moving about through the trees. I had had a look for these months ago, when people were reporting seeing them, but I wasn't able to find any. I think we did just as well, if not better, with mammals than bird species, seeing several beautiful male deer and a couple of distant Coyotes. Then, later on, we were amazed to see a group of three Moose and just a short distance along the road, a group of five Moose. To see even one lone Moose is exciting, but to see eight in one day was amazing and most unusual. Unfortunately, they were all too far away to get even half-decent shots, but I may post one sometime, just for the record. Towards the end of our trip, a friend asked what I was going to be doing afterwards and when I said I had no plans, invited me to go along with him and his friend to look for Great Gray Owls and Snowy Owls. I said I would just grab my backpack from the car I had been riding in, By the time I had got my things out, I happened to turn round to go to their car, when I discovered there were no cars left!! Thank goodness my original drive was still there, as the vehicle I was going to transfer into was way down the road! My friend had forgotten me, lol! When he suddenly realized it, he had stopped and was either going to turn around or back up and had instead gone into the snow-covered ditch. Impossible to get out, so he was going to have to get a ride with someone else till he could reach a place where cell phone service was available and then call for a tow truck. I'm so glad I wasn't in his vehicle - can't help but wonder if my added weight might have caused his car to roll over, lol! And so I returned to the city with my original friends - safe and thankful. Thanks so much for driving for the day, Andrew - much appreciated! To my other friend, who shall remain anonymous (lol), I do hope it didn't take too long for your car to be rescued! This is the final report/list from the leaders of the trip - rather long, but I did want to add it, to jog my own memory: "On Saturday November 21, seventeen birders headed out in mild sunny weather to look for uncommon birds in the Calgary area. We headed south of the city first to check a possible Gyrfalcon spot, then to the Millarville area for Wild Turkeys, Sharp-tailed Grouse, and Northern Hawk-Owl. Our first stop was just south of Lloyd Lake (Red Deer Lake), a little SW of Spruce Meadows. A Gyrfalcon had been seen hunting Rock Pigeons in the area about ten days ago. It took a while to find the correct location, but with a tip from a local resident (who saw the falcon three days prior) we found the grain silos on 226 Avenue just where it starts to turn to the SW. There were only about a dozen pigeons there, and no Gyrfalcon, but the location is worth checking again. We thought we may have seen the bird sitting on a fence post to the south, but when we got closer it proved to be a Rough-legged Hawk, our only one of the day. Next we went just SW of Millarville, where last winter Wild Turkeys frequented a farmyard on RR35. They had been reported once this fall. Also in the area last year were Sharp-tailed Grouse, and a Northern Hawk-Owl on RR40. We found the Wild Turkeys at a farm on Twp 203, which connects RR34 and RR35. We watched them from a distance for a while, then did a slow drive-by, and the birds moved back from the road and eventually out of sight. There appeared to be seven turkeys. After driving a loop around RR 34 and 35, we again found turkeys at a farm on RR35 just south of Twp 203. There were nine birds at this location, but the spot was no more than 1 km from where we saw the other group, and it seems likely that it was the same flock. This might be the only Wild Turkey flock within the 80-km Calgary Count Circle. Next we drove south about 1.5 km to Twp 202, the north on RR40. A Northern Hawk-Owl was seen on this road frequently last winter. At one point I thought we found one, but it was a Gray Jay sitting at the top of a spruce tree. Back in Calgary, we stopped at the canoe club in North Glenmore Park to check the reservoir. A Pacific Loon had been seen there by Jim St. Laurent on Friday afternoon (November 20). We didn't see it, though there were still waterfowl on the remaining open water. Below is the eBird trip summary. eBird Checklist Summary for: Nov 21, 2015, 8:54 AM to Nov 21, 2015, 3:54 PM Number of Checklists: 4 Number of Taxa: 21 Checklists included in this summary: (1): Calgary--Weaselhead Natural Area Date: Nov 21, 2015, 9:09 AM (2): (Gyrfalcon Spot) CA-AB-227101-227199 1119 Dr W - 50.8410x-114.1780 - Nov 21, 2015, 10:33 AM Date: Nov 21, 2015, 10:33 AM (3): (SW of Millarville) CA-AB-370201-370225 272 St W - 50.7079x-114.3940 - Nov 21, 2015, 12:07 PM Date: Nov 21, 2015, 12:07 PM (4): Calgary--North Glenmore Park Date: Nov 21, 2015, 2:19 PM 402 Canada Goose -- (2),(4) 8 Mallard -- (4) 11 Bufflehead -- (4) 150 Common Goldeneye -- (4) 1 Common Merganser -- (4) 1 Ring-necked Pheasant -- (2) 9 Wild Turkey -- (3) 1 Eared Grebe -- (4) 1 Sharp-shinned/Cooper's Hawk -- (1) 2 Bald Eagle -- (1),(3) 1 Rough-legged Hawk -- (2) 11 Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon) -- (2) 1 Northern Shrike -- (2) 2 Gray Jay -- (3) 1 Blue Jay -- (1) 9 Black-billed Magpie -- (1),(2),(3),(4) 9 Common Raven -- (1),(2),(3) 7 Black-capped Chickadee -- (1),(3),(4) 9 Pine Grosbeak -- (3) 1 House Finch -- (1) 40 White-winged Crossbill -- (1),(3)

This is a Wild Turkey, but I saw it (and several others) strolling around at the Calgary Zoo a few days ago. I had never seen one on top of a building or on top of a fence before, either. Though their faces may not be particularly photogenic or beautiful (to some people), the colours and patterns in their feathers are spectacular. When I photographed Wild Turkeys in the wild, I was not able to get this close with my camera.

This is one of the Wild Turkeys that are free to roam the Calgary Zoo. If you are lucky, you might find them wandering along the path, as I was, on 3rd February 2009. Taken with the very first model of Panasonic I bought. I have seen these birds in the wild a couple of times, way south of Calgary a few years ago, but couldn't get close photos like this.

This Wild Turkey might not be the most handsome of birds (especially that face), but he definitely has an amazing set of feathers. He and several others are free to roam the Calgary Zoo. Taken on 3rd February 2009. I have seen Wild Turkeys in the wild, way south of Calgary, but my photos were distant ones taken from a friend's car a few years ago.

Hope all my American friends will be lucky enough to enjoy a turkey (or equivalent such as vegetarian) dinner tomorrow, the US Thanksgiving. There is so much to be thankful for, though of course more so for some people than others. A special Happy Thanksgiving to all those US servicemen and women (and their families, who also make so many sacrifices), who risk their lives on a daily basis, in order to keep the rest safe and free. Happy Thanksgiving (tomorrow), everyone! Please drive safely if you are on the roads. Our Canadian Thanksgiving was on October 10th. This image shows a Wild Turkey that lives at the Calgary Zoo, free to roam wherever he pleases. He looks such a character with that amazing face and neck : ) He and I happened to pass each other on the path : ) Taken on 3rd February 2009. Can't remember if I've seen Wild Turkeys in the wild just the one time or twice, way south of Calgary, several years ago, but my photos were very distant.

Not so sure about those caruncles on the head, but I love the feathers, that have a bronze look to them. This Wild Turkey lives at the Zoo with a group of others and was roaming around freely. In the wild, these birds are rare to uncommon year-round. I have seen a group of around 50 south of Calgary, on two occasions.

These Wild Turkeys were seen at the same site as a year ago - 17 kms south of Chain Lakes, south of Calgary. There were about 50 of them. This is the only place I have ever seen Wild Turkeys, other than at the Zoo. Such spectacular feathers! A friend had very generously invited me to go along with him today, exploring the area south of the city, in the Porcupine Hills, Foothills and Nanton area. The weather was incredible and the scenery breath-taking! Everything from flat grassland, to rolling hills and the Foothills, to the mountains. And "they" said this was going to be the most severe winter in 15 years! We saw: 2 Golden Eagles 50 Wild Turkeys, approx. 1 Northern Shrike 4 American Dippers Eurasian Collared Doves, several Snow Buntings, 1 flock 1 Great Horned Owl 1 Rough-legged Hawk 2 Gray Jays Rock Doves (Pigeons) Common Raven, many Chickadees Downy Woodpecker 1 White-breasted Nuthatch Magpies, plenty House Sparrows Mule Deer White-tailed Deer 1 Moose 1 Coyote

These Wild Turkeys were seen at the same site as a year ago - 17 kms south of Chain Lakes, south of Calgary. There were about 50 of them. This is the only place I have ever seen Wild Turkeys, other than at the Zoo. Such spectacular feathers! Wild Turkeys are rare to uncommon in Alberta year-round. They were introduced to the Porcupine Hills. A friend had very generously invited me to go along with him yesterday, exploring the area south of the city, in the Porcupine Hills, Foothills and Nanton area. The weather was incredible and the scenery breath-taking! Everything from flat grassland, to rolling hills and the Foothills, to the mountains. Hmm ... I see there are some problems with Flickr at the moment, which is presumably why only one of five photos would upload just now.

This is a Wild Turkey, which happens to live at the Zoo. We do sometimes see such birds in the wild, though I have only seen them once. The colours and patterns are stunning.