Category Archives: birds

  I have been watching hummingbirds in an attempt to get pictures of the female Black-chinned and the female Calliope. It has been unsuccessful so far. However, I did spot an unusual feature on a Black-chinned male: evidence of a … Continue reading →

  I mentioned earlier (blog.kootenay-lake.ca/?p=34474) that we get three hummingbirds: rufous, black-chinned and calliope. In the last few days I have seen males of each of these birds. They migrate here before the females do. The gorget (throat) of many … Continue reading →

  The Bufflehead is our smallest diving duck and the two sexes look different. It is primarily a somewhat uncommon winter bird here for it breeds farther north. I got some pictures of the male flying. This is with wings … Continue reading →

  Now after a few days of having a male Rufous Hummingbird, the female has arrived. On a good year, we also may expect to see male and female Black-chinned Hummingbirds and Calliope Hummingbirds. So, more may be coming. A … Continue reading →

  In past few days, I have seen a Great Blue Heron a couple of times. I had not seen one here since last August for it is migratory and only appears here in spring and summer to breed. Alas, … Continue reading →

  This is a smattering of April pictures that were not previously posted. This is a Say’s Phoebe. It winters far to the south, but migrates north to the Okanagan in the summer to breed. It generally avoids the Kootenays. … Continue reading →

  Around here, the Killdeer is a migrant. It is usually here in the spring and summer. Indeed, there have been a few observations of it here for nearly a month, but, to my knowledge, these are the first pictures … Continue reading →

  Turkey Vultures are migrants that come here to breed from mid-March to mid-September, having wintered well to our south.  For years, I only saw them soaring as they scanned the ground for carrion to eat. Certainly, they did find … Continue reading →

  It appears that April 12 was the day that Ospreys arrived at Kootenay Lake this year. Here are shots of a pair that turned up at Harrop. Osprey were apparently also seen around Nelson. One male Osprey sits on … Continue reading →