An Interesting Post About House Sparrows... no, really.

Not much time for blogging or birding this week, due to report cards.  I did manage to head out with a group to look for Northern Flying Squirrels on Friday night but we dipped out and settled for a Ruffed Grouse, feeding just a few yards away in near darkness.  If you are looking for some bird-related reading check out this very interesting article about House Sparrows on the Smithsonian Magazine website.  These birds are extraordinarily widespread and Calgary has the dubious distinction of the highest Christmas Bird Count total in North America, so it behooves us to learn a little about them even if they aren't everyone's favourite bird.

The ubiquitous House Sparrow, Passer domesticus, on our feeder

A fairly terrible photo of the aforementioned Ruffed Grouse, Bonasa umbellus.  This is a 1/2 second exposure, f4 at 300mm with ISO 3200 - it was REALLY dark!