The Marsh Wren is a secretive bird that hides in the tall grass and brush of marshes, so it is not easy to see. While it has been spotted at different times throughout the year, the most frequently local observations of it are made in late September and early October. And that is when I saw it, today.
True to its name, the Marsh Wren was seen on the edge of a marsh perched inconspicuously in a Red Osier Dogwood, a plant that similarly favours a marshy setting.
Here is more evidence (in addition to the Red-tailed Hawk seen two days ago) that the raptors are on the move. I am accustomed to seeing a few Merlins in the spring, but saw none this year, so this is my first of 2012.
This is the time of year that raptors leave northern BC and flow across our area as they head south for the winter. The Red-tailed Hawk, seen perched on a snag this morning, was probably just passing through.
In about a half hour midday yesterday, Derek Kite and I saw three species of grebes and one of loons. Superficially, each of these birds looks like a duck, but none is. At this time of the year, each is in its eclipse plumage and so looks somewhat different than the striking breeding plumage of summer.
This Horned Grebe was seen in the distance and against the light.
The Red-necked Grebe made for a much easier shot.
Western Grebes have returned to the Lake and will be with us during the fall.
We saw five different Common Loons. Here are a couple of them.
Finally, a lagniappe for those of us who remember the drinking-duck toy (albeit this is a grebe).
Often when taking a picture of mammals or birds, one does have a moment or two to compose. This can even be true with a bird in flight if one has been able to anticipate the action.
It is not always possible to have such a luxury. Sometimes a burst of action seen out of the corner of one’s eye prompts a grab shot—one that requires an instant push of the button with only the chance to point the camera approximately. Usually such shots are worthy of being deleted, but now and then, the results are interesting. Occasionally, they are acceptable.
Two of yesterday’s grab shots fit the latter categories: interesting, acceptable.
An aerial scrap between a raven and (what I think is) a Red-tailed Hawk is seen in silhouette.
More satisfying is this grab shot of a Great Blue Heron that had appeared suddenly from behind trees.
The season is changing, and with it come the migrants: birds that bred farther to the north, and so were absent from here all summer. They now reappear as they move through our area to head south for the winter.
Today, I saw two of these migrants: a Northern Shrike and a White-throated Sparrow. I posted a picture of a Northern Shrike as it headed north in April, but this sparrow was new to me.
This Northern Shrike is a juvenile (hatched this year). Shrikes are songbirds that behave as if they were hawks; they use their hooked bill to tear their prey.
This White-throated Sparrow was seen this morning at Kokanee Creek Provincial Park.
Odonata is the order of insects that includes damselflies and dragonflies. Odonata, which as adults live only one to two months, indulge in perhaps the most conspicuous copulation of any insect. September is the time when a casual walk through fields or mashes reveals dozens of them mating, always in their characteristic wheel formation. Last year’s posting on this topic, sex in the park, only showed dragonflies. Below are examples of both dragonfly mating and damselfly mating.
Saffron-winged meadowhawks are dragonflies. The male (red, on top) has grasped the female by the back of her head. Characteristic of dragonflies, she holds onto his abdomen and swings her abdomen up to receive sperm.
Spotted spreadwings are damselflies. The male (blueish, on top) has grabbed the female by the neck. Characteristic of damselflies, she has grabbed her own abdomen when she swung her abdomen up to him to receive sperm. This version of the wheel position looks rather like a heart.
The rather wet spring has protected us from most forest fires this summer, although there have been a few minor ones. At the moment, there is small fire in the Purcell Mountains (adjacent to Sphinx Mountain) on the east side of the Lake. As seen from the West Arm, the Sun appears orange as it rises through the smoke. People in industrial settings may be used to such colours, but given the normal clarity of the atmosphere around here, we are not. The event is illustrated, not with a picture of the Sun, itself, but with one of the Sun’s reflection on the rippled waters.
Velvet is the soft downy skin that covers a deer’s antlers when they are growing. A month ago, I posted a picture of this same buck in velvet. In late summer, the velvet dries and peals, and while it does so, the antlers look quite shaggy. The velvet will soon be gone.
Early this morning, a white-tailed buck displayed velvet hanging in tatters from its antlers.
Herons and kingfishers are both long-billed birds that will stand in one spot and watch for fish to capture. Yet, they have apparently adopted different fishing strategies, and this makes one easy to observe and the other difficult.
A heron’s strategy seems to be to wait for a fish to come to it—it is the model of patience. A kingfisher’s strategy seems to be to actively search for fish—if it sees nothing at one place, it quickly looks elsewhere.
This morning a male Belted Kingfisher stayed in one spot long enough for a picture, but not much longer.
