Category: Project 366

Project 366 – Post No. 177 – Merlin

What is Project 366? Read more here!

Last time I saw a Merlin was in Camrose during the AB Big Day even on May 4, so when I spotted one perched high up on a dead branch above the Heritage Wetland Park ponds it was a nice treat. It did not stay put for long. After a few minutes it took off, circled the tree tops, scared the bejesus out of a flock of crows and landed high up in another tree. A Pileated Woodpecker caught the Merlin’s attention. It took off again, this time aiming directly for the woodpecker. An adult Pileated Woodpecker is far too big for a Merlin to take down, but I guess it found the woodpecker irritating and scared it into flight. For a few seconds the two were circling each other in the air before each one landed on a new tree. I guess they realized that none of them was really going to scare the other one away so they just accepted each other’s differences. This is the closest I have ever seen a Merlin, but I still had to zoom in all the way to over 1600 mm to get close enough for a positive identification. The picture quality is certainly not stellar but it serves its purpose as far as identification goes. It was not until I came home and was able to cross-reference my picture against field guides that I was 100% sure that it was a Merlin. The Nikon P1000 is a bit of a double edged sword. On one hand, at 1600 mm zoom very few camera setups would be able to get this close, and those that would would be far more unwieldy and expensive. On the other hand, while the 1600 mm is about half of P1000 optical zoom capabilities, the image quality will suffer at this focal length, specially if the camera is hand held.

Merlin (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) at Whitemud Ravine. September 15, 2019. Nikon P1000, 1613mm @ 35mm, 1/500, f/6.3, ISO 160

May the curiosity be with you. This is from “The Birds are Calling” blog (www.thebirdsarecalling.com). Copyright Mario Pineda.

Project 366 – Post No. 176 – Belted Kingfisher

What is Project 366? Read more here!

The Heritage Wetlands is noticeably absent of bird life this time of year as most birds have already left for their southerly overwintering grounds. Today was my lucky day, however. A lonesome Belted Kingfisher was putting in substantial effort looking for its next meal. It was so focused on looking for fish that it did not notice me sneaking up on it as it was perched on the handrail of a wooden boardwalk. Its Lifer #165 and my 116th species on my AB Big Year list. There are 114 species of kingfishers worldwide, but the Belted Kingfisher is the only species found in North America. It is a top predator in both lakes and and along the coast. They can be found in Alberta between April and end of October and spend the winter south of Canada in the United Stated, the Caribbean and throughout Central America. They are funky looking birds with a shaggy crest and a big bill. It was an unexpected find and I spend a long time observing it as it was fishing for its next meal.

May the curiosity be with you. This is from “The Birds are Calling” blog (www.thebirdsarecalling.com). Copyright Mario Pineda.

Project 366 – Post No. 175 – Fall foliage

What is Project 366? Read more here!

The fall colors are now coming in with full force. Officially the first day of fall in the Northern Hemisphere is on Monday September 23, in three days. So the timing of the changing colors of the leaves is pretty good. Last year we were hit with the first snow on the last day of summer. There is currently no snow in the forecast, but things are definitely cooling so anything is possible I assume. The bird diversity has decline noticeably. The ponds and lakes are eerily empty and one can start feeling the fall in the air. It is a bit melancholic that what once was is not gone and we are standing at the door step of a long dark and cold winter. On a more cheerful note, winter will bring with it new denizens of the frozen wilds. The snowy owls, the Bohemian Waxwings, Redpolls, and Pine Siskins.

May the curiosity be with you. This is from “The Birds are Calling” blog (www.thebirdsarecalling.com). Copyright Mario Pineda.

Project 366 – Post No. 174 – Rose hip harvesting

What is Project 366? Read more here!

Lots of people harvest what nature has to offer, most often in the form of hunting or fishing. I have, however, not encountered many people that harvest wild plants or parts of wild plants. Recently we met a gentleman down by the creek that was harvesting Chokeberry for himself and his family. He told us that people these days, specially in the cities, do not harvest wild plants, berries, fruit or mushrooms. So we thought, let’s try something new and the other day we went out down to the creek to harvest some rose hips. I am well-familiar with rose hips as it is commonly consumed in Europe, where I grew up. I have never, however, harvested my own rose hips so this was a new experience for me. Rose hips felt like a safe choice as there is nothing else around that could me mistaken for rose hips. Berries can be trickier and mushrooms are definitely beyond my comfort zone at this point.

May the curiosity be with you. This is from “The Birds are Calling” blog (www.thebirdsarecalling.com). Copyright Mario Pineda.

Project 366 – Post No. 173 – Red Squirrel at the creek

What is Project 366? Read more here!

The American Red Squirrel loves to munch on seeds, particularly sunflower seeds when these are provided by their human subjects. Sunflower seeds do not occur naturally in the Whitemud Ravine but people distribute sunflower seeds by the bags along the trails so there is always plenty to go around. A diet that predominantly is based on seeds is sometimes referred to as seed predation or granivory. The Red Squirrels are opportunistic and will incorporate a range of food items into their diet such as fruit , berries and fungi. This fella that we encountered along the trail was to busy munching on sunflower seeds to really care about our presence. The light in the picture allows one to clearly see the typical dark band across the bushy tail.

Red Squirrel (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus) at Whitemud Ravine. September 15, 2019. Nikon P1000, 470mm @ 35mm, 1/60, f/5, ISO 800

May the curiosity be with you. This is from “The Birds are Calling” blog (www.thebirdsarecalling.com). Copyright Mario Pineda.

Project 366 – Post No. 172 – Common Mergansers

What is Project 366? Read more here!

Over the summer the Whitemud Creek has been quiet when it comes to waterfowl. Maybe it is the constant strong current but it seems that most water fowl prefer more still water for their day to day business. The other day, however, as we were down buy the creek harvesting rose hips we came across half a dozen Common Mergansers hanging out on the banks for the creek. I am not sure what brought them there, but it was a welcomed sight. After a while sitting on the shoreline they went into the creek and started going back and forth, sort-of aimlessly. As mergansers migrate south in the fall, one possibility is that they are starting to get together to prepare for their migration to their overwintering habitats.

Common Mergansers (Mergus merganser) at Whitemud Creek. September 15, 2019. Nikon P1000, 935mm @ 35mm, 1/500, f/5.6, ISO 140

May the curiosity be with you. This is from “The Birds are Calling” blog (www.thebirdsarecalling.com). Copyright Mario Pineda.

Project 366 – Post No. 171 – Fireweed seed fuzz

What is Project 366? Read more here!

The Fireweed (Chamaenerion angustifolium) have matured and the flowers have have turned into long thin stalked brown seed pods that have splitting at the tip. The two half’s of the seed pod then curl backwards and releasing numerous small seeds that have long white hairs attached to catch the wind. When all the pods have opened the top of the plant looks like a fuzzy mess. A single fireweed can produce up to 80000 seeds. The fuzz was used by native peoples as fibre for weaving and for padding. For example, Salish people wove fireweed with the down of mountain goat wool for making blankets. The seed are also an excellent fire starter.

Fireweed seed fuzz at Whitemud Ravine. September 15, 2019. Nikon P1000,
347mm @ 35mm, 1/1000, f/4.5, ISO 100

May the curiosity be with you. This is from “The Birds are Calling” blog (www.thebirdsarecalling.com). Copyright Mario Pineda.

Project 366 – Post No. 170 – Rose hip bounty

What is Project 366? Read more here!

It was a beautiful sunny Sunday morning and we had made our way to Whitemud Ravine south of Snow Valley to Look for some rose hips. I was not sure about the timing as some online resources claim one should wait with harvesting rose hips until after the first frost as they are supposedly sweeter that way. They appear ripe, however, with some of them starting to turn to soft and mush so we decided to try out both versions; harvest some before the first frost and then compare these to rose hips harvested after the first frost. There is certainly no shortage of rose hips along the trails so I think there will be plenty left to harvest later in the season. We ended up with about two cups of rose hips. We washed them, pinched off the old rose petals and now have them out to dry. Once they have dried up a bit we will try making rose hip tea.

Rose Hip bounty at Whitemud Ravine. September 15, 2019. Nikon P1000, 67
84mm @ 35mm, 1/800, f/3.5, ISO 100

May the curiosity be with you. This is from “The Birds are Calling” blog (www.thebirdsarecalling.com). Copyright Mario Pineda.

Project 366 – Post No. 169 – Lichen fungal tree-some

What is Project 366? Read more here!

The prevailing view of lichens for the last 150 years or so has been that they a composite organism resulting from a mutually beneficial relationship between a fungus and an algae. It turns out that recent research from the University of Alberta (which is in my neck of the woods) has found that this relationship is more complex than previously thought. Researchers found that a lichen may be made up of up to three different fungi and that no two lichens necessarily have the same mix of fungal partners. Most lichens are rather plain looking, not particularly flashy and are easily overlooked. What this research shows is how little we know and understand about nature that is right under our noses. One could easily spend an entire lifetime understanding and studying nature that is right outside ones doorstep without needing to go to any more exotic locations.

May the curiosity be with you. This is from “The Birds are Calling” blog (www.thebirdsarecalling.com). Copyright Mario Pineda.

Project 366 – Post No. 168 – Perennial Sow Thistle

What is Project 366? Read more here!

The Identification Guide for Alberta Invasive Plants has nearly 90 species listed. Twenty one of the species have yellow flowers. The other flower colours include white, purple, pink, red, green, blue and orange. Today’s invasive plant is the Perennial Sow Thistle (Sonchus arvensis), a member of the sunflower family. It has yellow, dandelion-like flowers that are grouped in loose clusters at the ends of stem. Like most invasive species in Alberta it was introduced to North America from Europe and Asia. It reproduces prolifically through underground rhizomes and wind dispersed seeds. Apparently a single plant can produce up to 13000 seeds and each seed can remain viable for 3-6 years. Along the Whitemud Creek there are still large stands of flowering Perennial Sow Thistle

Perennial Sow Thistle (Sonchus arvensis) at Whitemud Ravine. September 9, 2019. Nikon P1000, 67mm @ 35mm, 1/60, f/3.5, ISO 100

May the curiosity be with you. This is from “The Birds are Calling” blog (www.thebirdsarecalling.com). Copyright Mario Pineda.