Category Archives: commentary

Two mammals

Posted on February 7, 2018 by Alistair

A glance along the list of recent postings (to the right) might lead one to suspect that this blog is classist: biased towards Class Aves; discriminating against Class Mammalia. The list shows many postings about birds, but only a few … Continue reading →

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Speeding hare

Posted on January 17, 2018 by Alistair

I did not realize how amazingly fast a hare can run. I watched two dogs chase a hare across a snow-covered field. The dogs were vastly outclassed. Now, I am not a fan of dogs running free in the … Continue reading →

Posted in commentary, mammals | 4 Comments

Kaslo views

Posted on January 14, 2018 by Alistair

Cameras were made for Kaslo. This picturesque village sits on a delta with its toes in Kootenay Lake and its head against the Selkirk Mountains. Its homes and historical buildings are well maintained, and the SS Moyie is a … Continue reading →

Posted in commentary, scenes | 4 Comments

High-key redpolls

Posted on January 7, 2018 by Alistair

There is an unusual form of lighting found in the natural world: the whiteout. When fog blankets a field of snow, the diffuse light leaves no shadows on nearby objects and the horizon vanishes between snow and fog. Enveloped … Continue reading →

Posted in birds, commentary | 4 Comments

Jus wanna be me

Posted on January 6, 2018 by Alistair

Going my own way.

Posted in birds, commentary | 3 Comments

Perching imbalance

Posted on September 25, 2017 by Alistair

I have long heard the question: Why don’t birds in a flock collide? It is an odd question in that it does not ask if they collide, but why they don’t collide. The short answer is: They do collide, … Continue reading →

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Menu addition

Posted on September 1, 2017 by Alistair

My father’s Shaeffer fountain pen. Essays, has been added to the above menu bar. As the linked page notes: Sometimes a series of blog postings congeals into an essay. The page links to PDFs of recent ones. Some of these … Continue reading →

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Mach bands

Posted on August 31, 2017 by Alistair

Local wildfire smoke from this grim season had all but vanished when more flowed in from the south. As uncomfortable as it is, the smoke provides the hazy air that easily enables the identification of Mach bands. Mach bands … Continue reading →

Posted in commentary, scenes | 3 Comments

By continuing to…

Posted on August 20, 2017 by Alistair

Satire often gains its effect by joining disparate ideas. So it was that when I encountered: • The government of BC’s recent (partial) ban on hunting grizzlies; • A CBC story that told of the thrill of killing a … Continue reading →

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Smoke colour

Posted on August 15, 2017 by Alistair

Having one’s home on a wildfire Evacuation Alert is a stressful experience — but, it would be worse having one’s home on a wildfire Evacuation Order. Portraits of Local Wildlife: My presentation is this evening. The fire prompting the … Continue reading →

Posted in commentary, weather | 1 Comment