This is a collection of April’s images, each of which lacked a posting of its own.
A Tree Swallow couple prepares to do housekeeping.
The Northern Pintail is most often seen in the spring and fall as it migrates past us.
Turkey Vultures arrived from the south in March and stay until early October.
Painted Turtles emerge from hibernation and bask on a loafing log.
A Red-tailed Hawk flies by.
The Columbian Ground Squirrel is finally out of hibernation and looking around.
New life arrives late in the month.
White-crowned Sparrows arrived at the end of April. A few breed here, but most head north.
As the ground thaws, a mastodon carcass emerges from the permafrost — or maybe not.
I see your mastodon tusk… it makes me appreciate all the more the eye you have on nature AND the way you caption as well as capture images.
Mastodon! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
But – are you sure it can’t be a Wooly Mammoth?
Carlo, the straighter tusk (left side of trunk) reveals it to be a mastodon. Plus, I believe we are too far south for the mammoth.
Fair enough! I figured you would have had it figured out.
I like this `goulash…p.s…is also a Vienna Cafe speciality..
Clarify, please, for me, Alistair, Kaslo friend mentioned to me yesterday that the Columbian Ground Squirrel was eating dandelion blossoms in their yard. What is the name of the common tree red tree squirrel here?
Karen, it is just called the red squirrel.
Magnificent images, as always Alistair. Thank you. I heard a white-crowned sparrow biking through town 3 days ago. Made me a tad homesick for my former home of Yellowknife. Sadly, in the 35 years I lived up there, the number of breeding WCSP’s declined precipitously, from being one of the commonest sparrows to one of the rarest.
I didn’t know White crowned sparrows knew how to ride bikes!
The “mastodon” reminds me to tell you I found a Colombian mammoth molar while digging clams in the Salish Sea. A 17 year old molar of a male. Buried slightly in a shoreline peat bog.
I love the Tree swallow couple!
Thank you for sharing,
Tina
That mastadon was masticating so slowly it metastasized into the meadow.