Yesterday it was -30°C (-22°F) in Calgary - all day long. Today it had warmed up to a balmy -23°C (-10°F) by late afternoon so I headed out for a brisk walk around Inglewood Bird Sanctuary to see how the birds were making out with the weather. I snapped a few photos (click to enlarge as usual!) along the river and enjoyed the company of friendly chickadees.
 |
| A huddle of Canada Geese settling down for the night |
 |
| This Northern Flicker landed quite nearby and then hopped on to another nearby rock. Why?.... |
 |
| ...even in the coldest weather a bird's got to drink! |
 |
| More riverside geese with Common Goldeneye in the background. |
I ended up finding ten species in the forty-five minutes that I was able to handle the cold:
- Canada Goose
- Mallard
- Common Goldeneye
- Bald Eagle
- Northern Flicker
- Hairy Woodpecker
- Black-billed Magpie
- Black-capped Chickadee
- Bohemian Waxwing
- European Starling
It's remarkable how many birds seem so utterly unfazed by even the coldest weather - if you've got the clothing, go out and see what you can find!
It's amazing to watch diving ducks at that temperature, surrounded by slushy chunks of floating ice. I have also seen Muskrats going in and out of the river at -25 C, acting as if it were a warm summer day. So it's not just birds than can handle it!
ReplyDeleteGreat flicker photo and I like the foggy background for the geese!
ReplyDeleteThanks Larry - it was REALLY cold but worthwhile. Enjoying your blog BTW particularly the birding by bus post - to me the travel adventure (even on a local scale) is a great part of birding.
ReplyDelete