Back to the birds - Winterlude 2023 - CycleBlaze

January 11, 2024

Back to the birds

So that was interesting.   After a post with one or more humans in every photo though, I think it’s time to let a few other species share the limelight.  First, there’s this charming photo that arrived in the morning mail of our favorite service dog in training, Levi: 

Lyle offers this explanation for what’s going on here: “It’s part of the Goofy Puppy Cuteness module 🐾. Essential training, it causes you to love them and continue to feed them.”
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Bill ShaneyfeltIt's face looks a little tired...
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10 months ago
Scott AndersonTo Bill ShaneyfeltGroan!! What a retread of a joke, Bill.
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10 months ago

Lyle also expresses his sympathies for the fearsome cold spell we’ve been dealing with down here, barely mentioning that their own low tonight up in Canmore is expected to be -40.

No biking today.  It’s not forty below or anything like that, but high winds and midday rain and hail are enough to deter Susan and Team Anderson.  Our day starts with having breakfast over at Susan’s warmer and more comfortable apartment, followed by an important phone call to check in with a dear friend.  After that we all marked time for several hours until the squall passed and then made the most of the few remaining hours of daylight: Rachael and Susan went for a walk through downtown, and I drove back to Sweetwater.

I didn’t really expect to find much in these weather conditions, especially since I’ve already seen most of the birds I can hope to find here this winter.  So it was a great surprise to come home with three new species.  I wasn’t that excited by my first starling of the year, but the orange-crowned warbler and especially the green heron were great finds.

Tomorrow though, back on the bikes!

#65: Orange-crowned warbler. I was thinking this was a lifetime first, but I see I spotted one here last spring too.
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Another Wilson’s snipe, or more probably the same bird I saw in a different part of the park last week.
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It looks like it’s snowing, but it’s a blizzard of cattail fluff.
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#65: Green heron. This is another species I knew was out here and was hoping to see with a little luck.
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Yup, this bird again. I just liked how luminous it looked with the light shining through its windblown feathers.
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Yawn, another yellow-rumpled warbler.
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Steve Miller/GrampiesThe warbler looks like it's thinking "yawn, another human with a camera".
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10 months ago
A different look every time I’ve been out here.
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Common goldeneye. I saw this bird a week or two ago but got a much better look this time.
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Lesser goldfinch.
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Weather is changing fast. It should be clear again in the morning. I wonder if we’ll see any fresh snow up there?
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