Marsh Diaries Part 14

I’m pretty sure I broke a new personal record for the number of pictures taken last weekend.

After record high temperatures, a cool front pushed the smoke from forest fires in British Columbia across the Rocky Mountains. A haze covered the entire province for a few days, and the sun rarely managed to poke through.

Friday evening, as I was walking along the lake wondering what on earth we were doing there in the smoke, I realized the willows, cattails and shrubs were just full of little bitty birds flitting in and out. There were LBJ’s everywhere, with a good handful of LYJ’s thrown in as well.

I immediately commenced the binocular/camera/binocular/camera shuffle, trying to a) find them in the first place and b) manage to take a picture while they were still (relatively) in one place.

The campground has grass planted next to it, but they’ve left a natural area closer to the lake shore which borders the cattails. A mass of natural plants going to seed and thick willows provide a mecca for the smaller birds in the fall. Attempting to get pictures of these busy little birds in the vegetation reminded me of those 3D puzzles you were supposed to stare at until you saw the picture. Once I got my photos up on the computer, looking at image after image of willows, shrubs and plants trying to locate the bird in the shot made my eyes water. A case in point..

One of the busy little brown jobs turned out to be a marsh wren. Finally! I knew they were out there, but hadn’t managed to actually see one this year.

After waiting the entire summer, one of the residents of Empidonax Woods finally came out and let me get a good look at him. Yep, that’s a flycatcher all right…

As I was frantically chasing all the little birds, I noticed the eastern kingbird kept putting himself in front of me. He was posing so nicely I felt duty bound to take (another) picture of him.

The sun finally came out on Saturday, and I spent some time watching four prairie falcons lazily floating overhead in the clear blue sky. One of them went into a spectacular dive over the lake, pulled up at the last minute and rejoined the others. Falcon playtime. That was a binocular not a camera moment, and it was glorious to see.

There was a new visitor on the lake last weekend. A lone western grebe spent a few hours fishing in the shallows, and looking photogenic against the cattails. I was so happy to see a bird that actually sat still I took far too many pictures before I realized what I was doing.

And of all things, a bird I never expected to see out there was a red-breasted nuthatch. I took way too many pictures of these birds too before I saw what they were.

By Saturday evening I was determined not to take any more pictures, but was keeping my binoculars handy. I saw a couple of birds going up and down the trunk of the poplar tree right by the trailer and thought the red-breasted nuthatches were at it again, but I’d just have a quick look. And saw a black and white warbler. Not the best time to give up on the camera – and that was a life bird!

Shorebirds are on the move now, and small flocks of them kept circling the lake and calling, usually when I was inside the trailer. For the first time this year, we didn’t see any white pelicans, but the barn swallows, bank swallows, robins, orioles and blackbirds are still there.

I haven’t forgotten about the LYJ’s, but at this point, I have absolutely no idea what they were. I’ll have to spend some time going fuzzy eyed looking at vegetation pictures. Next week I’ll do a little yellow jobs post, after I’ve had some time to mutter over the bird books a bit.

Perhaps the best indication that the seasons are changing though, was fact I only had to put out three moths.

New Birds Added to the List This Trip:

• Red-breasted nuthatch
• Marsh wren
• Black and white warbler
• Western grebe