I wasn’t sure I had taken enough photos of birds this fall to warrant a post, but it seems that I had more than I thought. My trips were limited to early in the fall and the end of December, so there are drastic differences in the backgrounds of some of the photos.
The smallest birds, the Downy Woodpecker, European Starling and the Flicker provided the most colour. At the other end of the size spectrum, this American Bald Eagle stood out nicely against the green of the trees in early September.
In contrast, gulls are definitely not colourful. These two Mew Gulls made it into the post because their normal migration routes don’t bring them to the Calgary area. It was a big deal when the juvenile was spotted on the Bow River one weekend, and again when the adult showed up at the Inglewood Irrigation Canal the next week.
In addition to the gulls, there was an assortment of ducks. The Wood Ducks seem to have their own log in the middle of the pond at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary. On two occasions this fall a variety of other ducks congregating in the same place. This female Northern Shoveler is a drab-looking creature compared to her male counterpart . Of course, the dull brown water doesn’t show her off very well. The same is true of the female Northern Pintail, although she is an elegant bird regardless of her background.
Another of my favourite ducks, the Common Goldeneye, showed up in a group that also included a Lesser Scaup and some Redhead Ducks, all mingling in one spot on the river.
Finally, just because he stood out so beautifully in the early morning light against the snow on the frozen pond, this White-tailed Buck finishes off the September to December post.
