More riverbank birds & some similar Sparrows

I had a great time at the river a week or so ago, finally getting a real nice look at a Swamp Sparrow, having heard the call and going to investigate.
It was quite the labor of love, as the only decent vantage point to view this species was sat, crouched down in a row of thorny shrubs that left quite a few scratches. There were also flies out already that didn't mind getting in my face either. No Mosquitoes yet thankfully !
Once I'd satisfied myself that I was out of the Sparrows sight and was not harassing it in anyway, I enjoyed the show as it went to and from the various dead cat-tail stalks collecting heaps of the fluffy stuff off the heads.
The Swamp Sparrow has longer legs than other Sparrows in its genus allowing them to wade in the water and catch aquatic insects.

Swamp Sparrow :





The Chipping Sparrow is quite a common backyard bird and can be identified by its rusty cap and trilling call.
These can sometimes be confused with the American Tree Sparrow ( see my last update ) but definitely lack the latters beautiful singing voice.
This 'Chipper' was at Buena Vista park last week :



Another bird that could maybe be confused with the Swamp Sparrow from some angles, is the Song Sparrow. These will be often found next to water and can be identified by the streaked breast and long rounded tail, but lack the reddish cap on the head. They also sing throughout much of Spring and Summer, living up to their name.



Yet another similar looking bird is the Lincoln's Sparrow that will feature in a future update with some other recent migrants that visited the backyard this Spring.

It's always a thrill to see a Loon, and I managed to get fairly close to this one that was enjoying the sunny day at the river last week :




Here's another Osprey that I saw from high up on a trail along Cosmopolitan Park.I had a feeling it was coming in to land and finally found it sat in a tree with its meal.



And lastly, this second Osprey was seen soaring over Gabriel Dumont Park on the way home :

Grouse , Kestrels and more...

Its been a great Spring so far, kind of long in coming, but now the weather seems to have gotten a lot warmer, I've been going out at every opportunity.
Plants are growing , butterflies are now winging their way across our backyard and the sound of birdsong is all around us.
My species list for the year is already nearing 150 and there's still more to come !

Here are some recent images taken on various trips in the countryside :

Sharp-tailed Grouse - This was taken on a magical morning last week at a local lek where there were around 30 of these Grouse, all trying to win the prize of a female mate. The two Males in this photo ran at each other like battering rams!



American Kestrel - On a recent drive I must have seen over 30 of these birds, mostly Males and only a few females. In the first photo I caught one just before it took off:




Yellow-bellied Sapsucker - this male was near Blackstrap Lake:



Wilson's Snipe - This newly arrived shorebird was foraging along an old highway slough:



Killdeer - Taken along the same stretch of highway:



Ruffed Grouse - I'm more used to seeing these up North, so its always a pleasure when you find one at a provincial park only half an hours drive away. The male here was drumming on this log to attract a mate:



Red Squirrel - This little guy was chattering away on a low branch at Pike Lake :

Riverbank Hike Part Three

Here are some more photos from a few recent walks around the river .

Yellow-bellied Sapsucker :

This colorful Woodpecker only showed up last week . I think the Males are one of the best looking birds we have in Saskatchewan.







American Tree Sparrow :

I've noticed these cheerful little Sparrows grouping up now as they prepare to head North and breed . The Chipping Sparrows which look fairly similar but lack the dark breast spot and pretty song are now starting to arrive and will take their place for awhile.



Hooded Merganser :

This female lacks the striking Black and White colors of the Male but is still an attractive bird in its own right.



Yellow-rumped Warbler ( Myrtle Race ):

Even though the left-over berries are from last year, they will still sustain these little Warblers until more insects start appearing.





American White Pelican :

I never tire of watching these large birds effortlessly glide along over the weir.



Northern Flicker ( Yellow-shafted ) :

While investigating a sound coming from atop a tree I nearly stepped on this Woodpecker as he was sunbathing. Not moving, I actually thought he was injured, and held him in my hands for a fraction of a second, and was all set to take him to the nearby animal clinic, until it suddenly took off and landed in a nearby tree and started pecking away, acting completely normal.



American Kestrel :

Here is the same male from my last update. I had to climb down a steep hill to get this image of him with the weir as a backdrop.



Hermit Thrush :

These shots were taken last week when they were more numerous. It won't be long now before the Swainson's & Gray-cheeked Thrushes arrive...




Osprey :

I have probably seen more Osprey this year than I ever have in my life. I must have seen close to 25 already just over 3 recent walks along the river
The light was not optimal for this shot, but it still shows the impressive wingspan.

Riverbank Hike Part Two

Well, it looks like this latest series of photos from the river may stretch to 3 or even 4 parts as it seems I took more photos than I thought.
Unfortunately last week's weather was nothing but grey skies, but that didn't put me off, as sometimes you can have some nice surprises in even the worst of conditions...

Eastern Phoebe :
I watched as this little Flycatcher would fly off for awhile then return to its perch along the edge of the water bobbing its tail. I hid and waited in some bushes for over 20 minutes while it was gone and got my knees very wet and muddy in the process, but was rewarded when back he came to that favorite perch :



Hermit Thrush :
The night before I went out, it had snowed, so the next day it was still pretty cold out, hence why this little Thrush is all fluffed up :



American Kestrel :

This handsome male hunted near the Weir for about 30 minutes.



Ring-billed Gull :





Richardson's Ground Squirrel :

Our little 'Gopher' was not expecting to see snow in April ...



Osprey :

This is the prime time to see this impressive Hawk as they follow the river. Hopefully I can get some in better light another time ...





Kildeer :

Its always easy to tell if these birds are around as they are very loud ...



Black-billed Magpie :

I stood and watched this bird from about a meter away as it completely ignored me and gorged itself on what looked like a House Sparrow. This is one of the tamer images ...

Riverbank Hike Part One

This update will be in two parts, with part two to come later as there are many photos :

Starting out at 8am on Friday I hiked around the riverbank, beginning at the Weir, then across the CN Bridge, past the Mendel, over the University Bridge,into Cosmopolitan Park, Rotary Park and finally finishing up at Gabriel Dumont Park.

Here's what I saw ( not in order of appearance )
* = new for the year
Fox Sparrow* - 1 rusty colored bird scratching leaf litter in Cosmo Park. White-throated Sparrow* - 1 at Rotary Park.
American Tree Sparrow - 2 by the Train Bridge and 1 in Rotary Park.
House Sparrow - 6 in various locations.
House Finch - 4 in Cosmo Park.
Dark-eyed Junco - 3 near the Weir and 10 in Cosmo Park.
American Robin - 35 pretty much everywhere.
American Crow - 3 by the weir.
Common Raven - 2 over the river.
Red-breasted Nuthatch - 1 by the Mendel and 2 at Gabriel Dumont Park.
Black-capped Chickadee - 11 scattered in various locations.
Merlin - 8 in various locations , including 2 courting near the Mendel.
Red-tailed Hawk - 1 flying over the river.
American White Pelican* - 5 near Goose Island.
Double-crested Cormorant* - a flock of 23 on Goose Island.
Mallard - 5 on the river.
Gadwall - 1 bird on the west side of Goose Island.
Canada Goose - 120 pretty much everywhere.
Cackling Goose - 5 near Goose Island.
Ring-billed Gull - 75 below the train bridge.
California Gull - 2 by the Weir and 45 more at Gabriel Dumont Park.
Herring Gull - 6 at Gabriel Dumont Park.
Rock Dove - 300 under the Idlwyld Bridge and 50 under the train bridge.

Mammals :

Muskrat - 2
Least Chipmunk - 7
Richardson's Ground Squirrel - 1
Meadow Vole - 1
Jack rabbit - 1

Butterflies :

Milberts Tortoise Shell - 6
Compton Tortoise Shell - 1
Mourning Cloak - 3

Overnight we had a snowfall, combined with freezing rain, so thinking that this freakish weather would have brought some more birds down, I went out again for a few hours on Saturday.
Right off the bat, arriving at the Mendel Art Gallery, I spotted 2 'Myrtle race' Yellow-rumped Warblers looking out of place in the snow.
Heading along down the Meewasin Trail, I found another 7 , and once the day was done, I had a grand tally of 17 of these Warblers, others were on the east side of the river.
Once at the Weir I spotted 2 Killdeer among the rocks.
Looking up, I noticed what at first I thought was a huge gull , then as it got closer it was quite apparent I was staring at an Osprey.
This bird spent a good while hovering and looking down at the water, before finally plummeting down and heading off with a large fish while being chased by a Herring Gull intent on getting a free meal.
Like the Warblers , this was not to be the only Osprey I'd see.
Would you believe I saw a total of 8 of these amazing birds of prey, and all
of these were seen while walking along the lower trail on the east side. This is obviously a great time to see this bird as it follows the Saskatchewan River, and is by far the most I've seen in one day.
A surprise was seeing 2 Tree Swallows zip over the Diefenbaker Center as I rounded a path on my way to the university bridge.
Once at Cosmopolitan Park I was rewarded with 4 Hermit Thrushes (my first for 2008) and another Fox Sparrow (possibly the same one as yesterday)
Before finally heading home, a quick last scan of the river got me a Common Loon that I'd missed during yesterdays marathon trek .

Other species seen:

Ring-billed Gull
Herring Gull
California Gull
Northern Flicker
Black-billed Magpie
Black-capped Chickadee
Common Raven
American Crow
Blue Jay
Dark-eyed Junco
American Tree Sparrow
House Sparrow
House Finch
Song Sparrow ( new for the year )
American Robin
Rock Dove
Mallard
Northern Shoveler
Canada Goose
Cackling Goose
American White Pelican
Double-crested Cormorant

Mammals :

Richardson's Ground Squirrel
Least Chipmunk

Here are the first batch of photos ( click to enlarge )

Fox Sparrow



Yellow-rumped Warbler



Dark-eyed Junco




American Robin



Rabbit



American White Pelican



Red-breasted Nuthatch



California Gulls



Least Chipmunk

Return of the Whooping Cranes

This according to Wikipedia : "As of April 2007 there were about 340 Whooping Cranes living in the wild, and another 145 living in captivity".

We are very lucky in Saskatchewan to play host to a few of these magnificent rare birds every year.
For the past couple of years I've been fortunate to see small groups of this Crane ( the tallest bird in North America) as they pass through our province and graze in the crop fields feeding mainly on waste grain.

Yesterday I had another chance to see this bird. There were 3 reported in the area of St.Denis.
This hilly region seems to be a favorite spot for this bird and its smaller cousin the Sandhill Crane and also many Geese.

Friends of ours were already at the location and kindly showed us the exact spot the birds were feeding, saving us the time of scanning the horizon for 3 white 'blobs'.

The Cranes were a good distance away but still gave us excellent views through binoculars and scopes and although the heat haze didn't help for photos much, I still had to get a record of the days sightings and couldn't go home without getting something with the camera.

I went for a more ' scenic ' look to these photos seeing as the birds were so far away. This captures some of the background landscape , and in one picture, the rolling hills :





Other birds seen on the day were as follows :

American Crow - 3
Common Raven - 1
Canada Goose - 300+
Cackling Goose - 10
Snow Goose - 400+
Greater White-fronted Goose - 14
Sandhill Crane - 100
Whooping Crane - 3
Red-tailed Hawk - 3
American Kestrel - 1
Merlin - 1
Great Horned Owl - 2
American Wigeon - 4
Canvasback - 2
Gadwall - 2
Mallard - 12
Northern Pintail - 10
Northern Shoveler - 8
American Coot - 1
Horned Lark - 20
Lapland Longspur - 50
European Starling - 5
Bohemian Waxwing - 45
American Robin - 5
Ring-billed Gull - 12
Rock Dove - 2
House Sparrow - 10

Spring Robins at the Forestry Farm

A few days ago, a friend and I ventured out to the Forestry Farm Park to see what Spring arrivals were coming through.
The morning was somewhat cold and grey as a light sleet had fallen the night before, so we only stayed for an hour or so.
The most obvious birds there were the Robins and Junco's.
Actually I'm surprised at the amount of birdlife at the park seeing as there was a predator amidst...
A Merlin was racing around the sky giving its high-pitched shriek, but this didn't seem to deter the species that were seen:

American Robin - 70
Dark-eyed Juncos - 32
American Tree Sparrow - 1
Northern Flicker - 1
Blue Jay - 2
Canada Geese - 14
Red-breasted Nuthatch - 1
White-breasted Nuthatch - 1
House Finch - 2
Ring-billed Gull - 5
House Sparrow - 15
Merlin - 1

The were also at least 5 Jack Rabbits in the park.

American Robin :