A request for wild birds for a bird blog had me rifling through older products this morning. I am by no means a birdwatcher, but I will snap a photo or two of them if I have my camera ready and they sit still for longer than a second or two! All of these birds were photographed in and around our home in southern British Columbia.
Here are a few that I submitted, along with the required paragraph of text for your viewing pleasure.
Two young Mallard ducklings nuzzle eachother affectionately. Their reflections and lilypads are seen on the water surface of a shallow community pond. These wild birds are the most recognizeable and well known breed of duck, with chicks hatching from late April to late May. After about two months, ducklings usually have full-grown feathers and are already flying.
Each year robins build nests underneath our balconies, and in spring we have many chirping birds and mamma robins collecting worms from our garden. This baby robin had just fallen out of its nest (or been pushed out?) and couldn't yet fly. We picked it up and moved it out of harm's way into taller grass so it wouldn't be preyed on.
White Crowned Song Sparrows are the most abundant and widespread wild bird in backyards and small shrubbed areas across North America. They are also one of the easiest birds to identify. The white-crowned sparrow sings with a high whistle and buzz call that may be heard at any time of day and even into the night, particularly when males are singing to claim territory.
This is a pair of Gilded Flickers, a small woodpecker type bird. They were at the top of a tall pole doing some form of territorial or mating ritual dance, bobbing their heads and swaying back and forth for several minutes before flying away.
This is a Great Blue Heron, quiety watching for small insects and minnows from its perch on a log in a grassy meadow nature reserve. Hundreds of these magnificent birds nest in the reserve and another wild bird sanctuary nearby, and they are often seen hunting near rivers, creeks and streams, and lakes.
This Horned Owl was injured along a roadside and nursed back to health at a large bird rescue. Unable to be reintroduced into the wild, it is now captive and used for educational presentations by the local Zoo. Here it feeds on a young baby chick for lunch!
