Description: A stunning statement of yellows and blacks, this handsome male Cape May Warbler has captivated photographers and nature lovers with his unexpected presence at Mill Lake Park in Abbotsford, BC. His unusual appearance in the Pacific Northwest is made even more so by the fact that we are barely 3 weeks into winter when this boreal songbird -- who normally winters southward to as far as Mexico -- has chosen, instead, to do so here in Canada. Nevertheless, he has fit right in among the equally vibrant yellow mahonia flowers, from which he sips tasty nectar, eats petals, and feasts on a steady diet of insects and grubs in the same shrubs and nearby trees.
Description: This Long-Eared Owl, unlike the others of its kind, was sleeping in the surprising warmth of a mid-winter sunset. Completely at ease with the trio of photographers enthralled by the wonder of its presence, this nocturnal hunter napped the afternoon away, rarely opening those golden eyes to stare briefly past our lenses, and perhaps, into the souls of its observers.
Description: Looking like an overgrown painted cockatiel with tri-colored mascara, this elusive and exotic African native unwittingly gave the photographer (me) an amazing look at the dazzlingly flamboyant colors of its feathers as it bathed in the waterfall, and returned my curiosity with its own on least a few occasions.
Description: Nature spared no expense when it came to the Mandarin Duck, and this male, dressed to his finest breeding nines, is no exception. In his flight to freedom, this gorgeous escapee from an Oregon farm found his Eden at Burnaby Lake's Piper Spit, and in the company of many Wood Duck cousins.
Description: Of the 40 or so Dark-Eyed Juncos who visit the backyard in the fall and winter, there is the odd nonconformist -- in this case, a Cassiar Dark-Eyed Junco -- an intergrade Slate-Colored X Oregon. Slate-Coloreds are common in the east and the Oregons are the "de factos" Juncos out west -- so this hybrid (perched on the pear tree, keeping warm on our first snowy winter day!) was probably the result of a mating between both species where their breeding ranges overlapped. Photographed in South Delta, British Columbia, Canada during the Polar Vortex of 2016.
Description: When the light of the winter sun hits the head of the adult male Bufflehead just right, his feathers iridesce, becoming a beautiful rainbow. North America's small diving ducks are always a treat to watch, and at North Vancouver's Ambleside Park, an unusually high count of 40 of these normally more retiring ducks was swimming very close to shore.
Description: Fall migration brings thousands and thousands of Snow Geese to the shores of Metro Vancouver every year, and 2017 produced a bumper crop of these migratory birds -- a stunning spectacle to witness. Among the vibrant and calling sea of white that seemed to blanket the high tides from dawn to dusk, outnumbering the usually omnipresent and overwhelming numbers of gulls, crows, and wintering ducks at this time of the year, we also saw 5 rare blue morph Snow Geese. Photographed on a sunny afternoon in October 2017 at Boundary Bay Regional Park, British Columbia, Canada.
Description: It's not a Pacific Northwest winter unless you see the strikingly colored Varied Thrush. One of my favorite backyard birds, and a highly elusive one at that, this usually flighty and secretive songbird was uncharacteristically nonchalant about the lens pointed at him from above.
Description: On a very memorable Boxing Day 2017, a dozen of these enchanting but highly reclusive songbirds were frequenting the trees and vocalizing near the Burnaby Lake Nature House at Piper Spit. None seemed particularly concerned about the presence of photographers, and I daresay some of the subjects even worked the cameras with their pretty poses!
Description: That's no baby -- she's a lady! Looking deceptively like a baby duck, this full grown Bufflehead hen struck the perfect pose for me at one of the inner ponds at the Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary. Curious "sentries" like this one will often detach themselves from the flock to satisfy their curiosity about those lenses pointed in their direction. There was just enough afternoon sunlight left to reflect the blue skies in the waters, paint a catchlight in this Bufflehead's eyes, and cast a soft glow on her face.
Description: An itch to go outside on a sunny afternoon in mid-February 2015 led me to my second meeting with that migratory bird, a handsome Eurasian Wigeon, catching a bit of sun (and throwing me a come hither look in this photo) at the local pond. This small European duck pops up occasionally on the coast during Pacific Northwest winters, usually mingling with other flocks of its much more numerous American cousins, but the gold and cream head feathers of the male Eurasians makes them easily identifiable.
Description: The rounder the bird, the cuter it is! This adult songbird was all fluffed up for the sub-zero temperatures that hit Metro Vancouver during the 2018 Great Backyard Bird Count weekend. Taken at the dyke entrance to Boundary Bay Regional Park in Tsawwassen, British Columbia, Canada.
Description: The smallest and perhaps most strikingly colored falcon found in North America. In the avian kingdom, where females are often dressed in drab hues, the slate grey and barred, copper orange plumage of the female American Kestrel give her a dazzling beauty to rival that of her male counterpart.
Description: If the legendary celestial phoenix had an earthly form, it would have to be this creature. Golden Pheasants are showstoppers, wherever you see them. In their natural environment, these shy creatures seek the underbrush in the day and roost high in trees at night. As with most birds in the avian kingdom, the males are the ones who dress to impress, and this uncharacteristically bold fellow is no exception. This is the red gold variant.
Description: The red eyes on this large sparrow are mesmerizing and can best be described as eerie; and the black, white, reddish-brown plumage it wears all year round are "power colours". Photographed at Stanley Park's Lost Lagoon on a chilly afternoon in late November 2015. Featured in Cornell Lab of Ornithology's second adult coloring book, "Backyard Birds and Blossoms."
Description: Seeing the smallest woodpecker in North America (usually the female) on the backyard suet feeder isn't unusual. Seeing this male (busy whittling wood here) and his female (unseen, but preening herself nearby) on the pear tree just when we got a spot of sunshine over the Great Backyard Bird Count 2017 (Feb 17-20) weekend, was!
Description: A Short-Eared Owl surveys its hunting grounds for opportunistic Northern Harriers who would not hesitate to take advantage of the fruit of its hunting prowess. Sudden gusts of wind fluff this hunter's head feathers, revealing the short ear tufts for which this owl is named. Photographed in Metro Vancouver, BC, Canada, on a late afternoon in late November 2017.
Description: Who, me? This American Red Squirrel (one of many we would encounter!) put on an energetic (and vocal) show and dance for me at the friends of a friends' cottage over the 150th Canada Day long weekend in early July 2017. The moment he realized that a long lens was trained on him, however, he was the picture of innocence, and struck this pose. He was the odd man man with the regular songbirds at the seed feeders. Curiously, he didn't climb the suet feeder while I was there (although he could have chosen to), but ate from the fallen seed on the ground.
