Just got back Wednesday, December 28th from Boundary Bay near Ladner. What a great trip! Got there kind of early after taking the first ferry out of Departure Bay. I had to wait an hour or so before my camera could get enough light to take decent pictures but it was worth the wait.
I have been hoping for quite a long time that the Snowy Owls would some day return so that I could get better pictures of them. This winter my hopes have turned to reality as nearly 30 Snowy Owls have graced the shores of Boundary Bay. It's been close to six years since the last Snowys were seen there as 2006 was the last big flight year for these magnificent creatures.
There aren't too many people first thing in the morning and that makes it a whole lot easier to get a close up shot as the owls are right in near the dike resting on logs and stumps.
If you are patient you can get some pretty close and personal shots without ever leaving the dike and even a couple of flight shots as several birds take to hunting all at the same time. Later on in the day there are more people so you only get the odd bird coming in close as they jossle over their hunting teritory.
There were other raptor scecies there too such as Harriers and Short-Eared Owls which all added to the photographic enjoyment of the day. A good time was had by all and there were lots of other fellow photographers to talk to and new friends to make.
Thanks for tuning in and take care until my next blog entry.


Happy New Year and good light,

Steve

The Return of "Dragon Slayer"

Hey Everyone,
Hope you are enjoying your summer - what's left of it. As per usual I have neglected to make more frequent entries into the blog. I have however been updating my photo site on a more regular basis. Apart from the odd bit of action at Buttertubs Marsh not too much is happening right now. The Merlin Hawks are always a treat to watch during Dragon Fly season. This year I have been trying for more flight and burst shots of the birds as they jump off of the branches in pusuit of their elusive meal. There are days when the activity picks right up and you can find many different types of hawks at Buttertubs. Last week I had three Merlins, a Coopers Hawk, and a Sharp Shinned Hawk all jousting for positions at the same time. You don't often see the Coopers Hawk as although he is bigger he tends to be somewhat more timid when it comes to the camera lens. I haven't been treated to much activity in the way of Owls lately. Since the nesting season is over it has been harder to find them as the smaller birds are less concerned about them being close to their nest or trying to eat the young ones. This means that there is less mobbing and so the owls can rest undetected until you blunder into them unexpectedly.


I guess the next major thing on the agenda birding wise will be the September hawk migration at Beechy Head near Victoria. Hopefully we can get some good pics to post here and on my photo site for people to tune in and see.
Thanks for tuning into my blog and following my site.

Until next time take care and good light,

Steve

Cottle Lake Blues

Hi There,
Just came back today from another visit to Cottle Lake in Linley Valley. Lots going on there but a very challenging environment for photography. All of the birds there seem spooked about making a close appearance. In the past it has always been a real Tanager Town and home for the Black-Headed Grosbeaks. This year is no exception apart from the fact that you can't get within 150 feet of them. Lots of Tanagers in the alder trees and Grosbeaks singing from a distance but not one picture with any real clear composition. You can often hear Tanagers and Grosbeaks before you see them and the air is filled with song most of the time.
I must have spent close to three hours today in silence waiting for an opportunity for a photo with no luck. I may need to change my methods or try to find another location. It would seem that most of these neo-tropical birds each have their own personality. Two years ago at Neck Point I found a Tanager nest and was able to photograph the parents as they fed their young from about 20 to 30 feet away. The nest was right next to the path and only about 10 feet off of the ground. I didn't realize at the time that this was something very rare and not often repeated. Another time last summer that I managed to get close was when the immature Tanager was branching close to the ground. The male adult followed it in order to feed the chick and I was then able to get a couple of full frame shots. This was short lived as the chick kept changing branches every half an hour or so.
I will include a couple of pictures in this post that I got last week. I must appologize for these photos as they are not up to my usual standards. These are only suitable for display as small thumbnail images on the blog as they are quite a large crop. Certainly not the lighting or composition that I have been after the past few weeks. I'm not sure if these birds are different from the ones that I see there now but they came quite a bit closer than this week's visitors.
Until my next installment. Take care and happy birding,
Steve

Neck Point Killer Whales

Hi There,
I was out doing my usual rounds today. I started off at Cottle Lake in hope of getting a close up shot of some tanagers. Just too many people coming and going with their dogs and lots of people on their morning jog. It was extremely hard to get enough quiet time for a photo. I did have a mated pair of tanagers in my sights at one point but they were scared away before I could get set up. After nearly three hours of similar situations and much frustration I set out for Neck Point to see what was happening there. The scene was just the opposite of what it normally was as it was very quiet with only 3 or 4 cars in the parking lot. I had heard on the rare bird alert that there might be some great horned owls about so I set my hopes on that. It had been a nice day but now the rain was threatening. As I climbed up towards the upper viewing platforms I noticed that the aircraft from CFB Comox was on maneuvers again and so I started watching it through the lens of my camera.

Shortly afterward I caught something out of the corner of my eye and jerked my head over to see a pod of killer whales coming in fairly close to shore from my left hand side. You can often see them farther out in the straight doing their thing with breaching and jumping but not so close up as this. I managed to get off a few shots from up on the ridge but I figured that if the tide was out that I would be really close if I got to Neck Point itself. I started running full tilt with all of my gear but by the time I got there they had already passed the point and were on their way towards Piper's Lagoon. Talk about fast swimmers! Anyway, you could say that I really got my exercise on this shoot.

Take care until next time and good wildlife shooting,

Steve

Barred Owl Bonanza

Hi Everyone,

Just thought that I had better get another entry into the blog before you thought I had forgotten you. Well, spring is well under way and many of the birds that had been south for the winter have returned. We had a great run with the Bluebirds out at Piper's Lagoon this year with the two males that hang around for almost three weeks! They haven't been seen for quite a while and have probably headed north for breeding.

Along with all of the birds coming back has been the start of the nesting season. Many birds have already fledged their first broods and have started on a second brood already. Must have been quite a challenge what with the slow start to the warmer weather. The large forest Owls such as the Great Horned and Barred Owl have finished their nesting and are now either hunting as individuals or are hunting with their newly fledged young in tow. Lots of Barred Owls in particular. At least I seem to be running into them where ever I go lately.

The activity at Cottle Lake has picked up a bit and I was scoping out a Western Tanager there the other day. Kind of hard to see all the birds now what with the heavy leaf cover but if you are patient you can get the odd glimpse of a real gem. The Tanagers are still hawking bugs at the tops of the maple trees so it will be a bit of time before they come down where we can get a good shot of them. Usually by mid June when the green caterpillars come out in the alder trees and they are busy feeding their young is the best time. You can see them at nearly eye level and on the odd occasion right down on the ground. Hopefully by my next post I will have some good close up photos of them.
Take care and thanks for tuning in,

Steve

Blue Skies Bluebird

Hi Everybody,
Up to about three or four days ago I was freezing my butt off and it felt more like mid winter instead of getting later in the spring. But just yesterday and today the weather has taken a dramatic change for the better. It seems a funny thing but along with the blue skies have come the Bluebirds. To be more specific Mountain Bluebirds. They seem to show up in the strangest places. I have one question. If they are supposed to be "Mountain Bluebirds" how come we see them almost exclusively by the ocean?

Up until yesterday I had never seen a Mountain Bluebird first hand and only dreamed of getting one in front of my lens. I had heard reports of them only to follow up by making the trip to where they were seen and then be disappointed. That all changed when I took my family to Piper's Lagoon for a walk in the warm spring sun. I didn't take the camera because I couldn't see dragging it along just to photograph the same local birds that I had made part of my picture collection many times over. You should have seen me high tail it back to the car when I caught a glimpse of this guy. Chances are that he is just a transient on his way up north and is resting here temporarily until he gets himself fattened up for the rest of his journey.

It's quite hard to describe the beauty of one of these birds but I think that the best part is the variety of their shades of blue. Depending on the angle of light the bird can take on all kinds of different blues from something near a robin's egg blue to nearly a dark indigo and every shade in between - really amazing! Another astonishing thing was how tame he seemed to be. Even the Towhees were more spooked about people than he was.

Still looking forward to the other exotic birds such as the Black Headed Gross Beaks ,Western Tanagers and of course the Orioles. If the Bluebirds are any indication it should be a great season coming up for these kind of birds.

Take care until next time,

Steve

Spring has Sprung

Hello again,
Well, it's been quite busy the past couple of weeks what with new birds returning to the area and the herring run going on. Got a few great pictures of Stellar Sea Lions this year with herring in their mouth etc. at Neck Point Park. Lots of sea birds joining in on the festivities as well with everything from Surf Scoters to Eagles. I haven't been down to get pictures of the large rafts of ducks yet but I was quite active last week when all of the Sea Lions were most plentiful. Here is a picture of some of them resting after a large feed of fish.

I have also been visiting Buttertubs Marsh more frequently in the attempt to get better pictures of some of the spring time birds such as Yellow Rump Warblers. They can be hard to find at first but once you know what you are looking for you can see them all over the place. The Yellow Rumps tend to look dark against the white of the sky so I can see how people could mistake them for chikadees or bushtits. Once you are initiated however it is quite easy to pick them out as their call tends to give them away before you even see them.

Can't wait for that time of year that is coming up soon where the Western Tanagers and Black Headed Gros Beaks return. They tend to give a real splash of color after all of that brown and drab that we come to get used to in the winter around here.

Take care until next time,

Steve

A Change of Scenery

Hi there,
Once again it's been a while since I made an entry into the blog. I didn't want to seem too repetitious as most of my photography entailed going to Nanaimo River Estuary in a vain attempt to get good pictures of the Short-Eared Owls.

It got to be a bit of a circus there for a while with lots of photographers from all over the island coming to try their luck with these elusive little fellows. On several occaisions I ran into people using lures to entice the owls or sometimes tempt the Northern Shrikes to come a bit closer. Not exactly my cup of tea as the birds have to try hard only to end up catching a leather pouch or immitation mouse rather than the real thing. Eventually the owls got smart and now hunt mainly at night. During the day they roost in one of several hiding places throughout the estuary. Needless to say I haven't been getting the shots of them like at the beginning of the season. Time to take a break and go elsewhere.



It is pretty bleak and dark these days at Buttertubs Marsh but if you are lucky you can find the odd "diamond in the rough". I did just that last week when I was able to get quite close to a drake Hooded Merganser. These guys normally swim in the opposite direction when approched for photography. He was forced to fish in the last open water in the marsh near the storm drain under the large oak trees at the front corner of the marsh. All of the water foul and their major food source (small minnows), seemed to be compressed into a twenty foot open patch of water just off of the path. This made for some great shots as they seemed more intent on their meal rather than being bothered by someone taking their picture.


Also this past week I have tried going up island to Deep Bay for some shots of the water foul and shore birds there. Out on the point is a great place as the Cormorants and Sand Pipers are constantly flying by. Of course there are the regulars such as the Buffle Head and Golden Eye ducks too. My favorite of all of the birds there has to be the Longtail Duck. They seem so unusual with their black and pink bills and puppy dog faces not to mention their wonderful long sweeping tails. It can be a bit of a challenge to get good pictures because they don't always come in close but it is a nice change. It's always better to visit Deep Bay in good weather as the wind and rain can really whistle around the point and get you soaked and cold in no time. My best shots of Longtails are on a sunny day when all of their colors really stand out in contrast with the blue of the water there.

Take care and happy birding,

Steve