3 December 2020

 eBird data:  https://ebird.org/checklist/S77021206

Weather:  9 am 3C calm wind,  11:30  4C SSE 5kph, rainy

Tide:  10 am 4.8 m

 It was an uninviting morning, chilly, foggy, and grey, and the forecast was for rain.  I was late getting myself out the door.

In fact, despite the driech appearance, it wasn't too bad out, at first, and there was a fairish representation of birds along the path.  The pond was unoccupied, but very still.  The remaining leaves made a lovely reflection.



There was what I think was an argument between a steller's jay and a pileated woodpecker further on.  I'm pretty sure about the woodpecker, even though they sound quite a bit like a northern flicker and both are well represented in the woods.  That particular bit of forest seems to be favoured by the woodpecker.  There's no question at all about the jay.  

It was quite near high tide, and there were new flooded areas in the fields, noisy with mallards.  They are loud ducks.  There are lots of wigeons, but they mostly just squeak, and the occasional group of mergansers kind of chortle.  None of the other waterfowl are particularly noticeable.  Eagles, of course, make a rather silly loud twittering.  I'm told a film producer insisted on dubbing red-tail hawk shrieks in lieu of the twittering when he filmed eagles because he thought they sounded so sissified.  And ravens?  You name it, they do it--squawk, croak, a noise rather like a marimba, barking, meowing, crooning.  Ravens seem to have a sense of sport.  It's fun to watch them fly.  They do abrupt dives, barrel rolls, loop-the-loops,  and I'd swear they look smug about it all. 

I digress.  The day was dark but not dull.  Across the Strait, the mountains were highlighted.




....And having taken those three pictures, I was ready to sit on my bench, drink coffee, and count ducks.  It began to rain, not torrential, but enough that I was pretty sure I'd be soaked if I stayed out my usual four hours.  I have a "rain sleeve" for my camera, and my binoculars are guaranteed waterproof...erm...here's hoping.  Still, enough is enough.   I gave up on the bench and coffee, and headed home.  Tomorrow is another day, and the weather forecast is more optimistic.



 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

8-10 August

Image
  I find myself wondering if I'm becoming a party poop in my old age.  My home, across from a community park, near the sea and an estuary, is a delightful place to live--most of the time.  August is the exception.  It's not the climate, although we do get a few toasty days, but the annual Beachfest, which attracts hordes of visitors.  The nadir of the event is the Rock the Park weekend, when there's incessant VERY LOUD pop music.  In previous years, I've found it hard to escape and  tiresome.   This year, I decided to spend the weekend at Cluxewe, my favourite campground, up-Island by Port McNeill.  It was a good choice. I left early Friday morning, driving north by the Oceanside Route--there's a faster inland highway, but the slower route is pleasant and has good spots to stop, eat lunch, enjoy the view.  It's consistent with a decision to seek quiet.   I knew Cluxewe would be busy, but it's set up in such a way that it h...
Read more

6 July

Image
  Summer has definitely arrived in the Hamilton Forest and Wetlands.   The distinctively warm light on the vegetation signals the change. The huckleberries are ripening, and are more abundant than I've seen in past years. The very durable foamflower continues to bloom. Although described as common, ghost pipe hasn't been evident in the Forest for the past three years.  This year there is an abundant patch of it near the path. Pojar and MacKinnon file ghostpipes under their heading, "Oddballs," and indeed they are.  As the photos show, the plant has no chlorophyll, gaining its nourishment from mycelium beneath the ground.  It typically appears in a spell of warm weather after a rain--not so in this case--it's been warm and dry.  They seem to be abundant this year; reports and photos are appearing throughout the region. This big trillium is fruiting, its flowering completed.   Two other, smaller, younger, trilliums are visible in the photo abov...
Read more

Two days up-Island

Image
  A somewhat fleeting trip up-Island to explore Alert Bay and attend the T'sasala Cultural Group's final public performance of the season.  There was a lot to see in that brief time. We made our way up, first along the Island Highway, then shifted to the Inland Island Highway to avoid the traffic of Courtenay and Campbell River.  Past Campbell River the highway narrows, and there are many signs warning drivers of elk and other wildlife on the highway.  We didn't see any elk, and the highway was, for the most part, sparsely travelled.  It appeared as though the tourist season is waning. I had misread the ferry schedule from Port McNeill to Alert Bay, but as is often the case, the ferry itself was running late.   We were able to spend time at the dock, where we admired the view across Broughton Strait of Mount Waddington and the Coast Range. We were also impressed by the drinking fountain along the quay, which accommodates both humans and dogs. Arriving ...
Read more