Birding in British Columbia – Page 79 – CrazyM Bird & Nature Photography

Osprey

Happy Canada Day!

Last year on this day when visiting the Osprey nest there were chicks and lots of activity. As I had not been out in a while I stopped by today,

… and was saddened to see the nest empty. It would appear this pair will not be successful in raising any young this year. This will be the third season in the six I have been watching this Osprey pair it has happened.

One of the adult birds was present on an old snag overlooking the nest,

… busy eating a fish. Hopefully they will return again next year with better results.

Barn Swallow

Something else has been keeping us busy of late,

… a new kitten. Now that he is feeling right at home, hopefully a little normalcy will return to our lives.

With this in mind I managed my first outing in a couple of weeks. I made my way out to Reifel to help out on the trails. The beautiful long weekend weather must have drawn people elsewhere as there were not the usual Sunday crowds. It was quiet on the birding front as well. Fortunately I did manage to find some action along the outer dyke.

Some recently fledged Barns Swallows were lined up along a branch,

… and still being fed by the adult birds. Always fun to capture this activity and I was fortunate to get all four juveniles with their mouths open at the same time.

Cooper’s & Swallow Nest

The day got better as it progressed and this afternoon’s walk was back to the North 40. No sign of the Bullock’s Oriole today, but while checking for them a familiar “pek pek” got my attention. It was coming from a tree behind me, one frequently used as a staging area by the Cooper’s Hawk pair.

The adult male Cooper’s Hawk was on a branch inside the tree with prey in its talons. I could not make out what it had before he flew off towards the nesting area.

With nest on the mind, I made my way to an area where I had previously seen some Tree Swallow activity and suspected there was a nest.

It did not take long after arriving before I could see the adults arriving and feeding the young in the nest.

While you can only see two here, I could make out at least three at one time. They look to be a good size and crowded in there, so it will probably not be long before they fledge.

One other fun shot from this afternoon,

… was this Squirrel stretched down the trunk of a tree eating leaves.