On the day before Valentine’s Day, GROWLS (Gabriola Rescue of Wildlife Society) held a wonderful event in celebration of Bald Eagles. Aptly-named Love is in the Air: An Eagle Affair, the day included a tour of eagle nests and a talk by provincial biologist Ian Moul about the Gabriola Eagle …
I don’t know how long he’d been in the garden room. Maybe hours. Busy in the house, I’d decided to take a break and work on the 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle my grandkids had left for me to finish, just that morning. (It’s a bit of an addiction.) As soon …
How are your raptor identification skills? These photos were taken in Calgary, AB in late August and those are all the clues you get. Can you identify this beautiful bird? Leave your best guess and reasons for it in the comments. Bonus points if you can identify what this bird …
With only 28 days until the first day of Spring, and given the record snowfall and deep, bitter cold that has gripped us here in Alberta this year, I don’t think it’s really that premature of me to wish our winter visitors a fond farewell. Don’t get me wrong. I …
Back in early August, I was invited by Gus Yaki to go on a little excursion around south-eastern Alberta. Our ultimate goal was to join a Nature Calgary trip to the area around Manyberries in search of Alberta’s only lizard species, the Greater Short-horned Lizard. Along the way we planned …
Posted By Bob Lefebvre Last week I was in one of our large Calgary parks, and there was a pair of Swainson’s Hawks. There was a stiff wind from the south, so I was able to get pictures as they soared almost motionless over my head. One of the birds …
The Great Backyard Bird Count, which takes place annually in February, is a great way for people to get involved in the citizen science aspect of birding. I’m always keeping an eye on the birds in my yard anyway, so for the GBBC I just count the numbers of little …
A new report by the Raptor Population Index (RPI) Project shows that the majority of the 26 species of migratory raptors across North America are either recovering or in stable condition. RPI is a cooperative partnership among four leading raptor and conservation organizations: Bird Studies Canada, Hawk Migration Association of North America, …
Local nature photographer Duane Starr has taken a series of outstanding pictures of a magnificent Golden Eagle. He says he came across a bird sitting on a rock on a small hill next to the road. Just as he stopped, it took off and flew towards him about 100′ in …
Juvenile raptor identification is a wonderful challenge, isn’t it? What do you think – did I have a Cooper’s Hawk or a Sharp-shinned Hawk in my backyard? Peruse the photos, make your decision and leave a comment below. It will be interesting to read what folks have to say about …