Kananaskis Country (or K Country as it is often called) is a
recreational area west of Calgary. For
visitors to Calgary with limited time, it is the closest mountain area to the
city – just a 45 minute drive to the west.
It is a multi-use area which means logging and oil exploration are
on-going. However, the birding and
wildlife viewing can be quite good.
Kananaskis Country as seen from the Elpoca Viewpoint |
This morning, Ray, Mike and I headed to K Country for a
leisurely morning outing. Ray and Mike
had a couple of catch-up birds to find, I was looking to get some photos and we
had a team target – American Pika.
We started off on Sibbald Trail and headed straight for the
wetlands. Mike needed Alder Flycatcher
and they are usually quite common.
However, today, its cousin, Willow Flycatcher, was the common bird but
we eventually found an Alder for Mike.
Can you tell the two flycatchers apart?
Any differences you see are probably due to differences in
lighting, shooting angle or pose of the bird.
According to Kenn Kaufman in his book, “Field Guide to Advanced Birding”,
the two are virtually impossible to tell apart visually, even in the hand. For the record, the one on the top is an
Alder Flycatcher and on the bottom is a Willow Flycatcher. I was much closer to the Willow, thus the
photo shows more detail. I got even closer to an inquisitive juvenile Gray Jay.
Gray Jay (juvenile) |
While flycatcher watching, we also saw a couple of
sapsuckers, one a “good” Yellow-bellied and the other had a bit of Red-naped in
him. The Yellow-bellied was another
catch-up bird for Mike. We were looking
for a MacGillivray’s Warbler for Ray but didn’t find one. There were a lot of Northern Waterthrush
calling and one posed briefly in nice lighting.
Northern Waterthrush |
We then drove to Highwood Pass to look for the pika. On the road up to the pass, there is a “rock
glacier” and this is where the pikas live.
American Pika habitat |
I expected that we would need to carefully scope the rocks to
find one but, just as we started up a short trail, Ray called out, “I’ve got
one”. The American Pika ran between Ray
and me, posed for a photo, and then ran up into the rocks. If only all mammals were as cooperative!
American Pika |
On the way home, we made a couple of more stops, the final
one at Mt. Lorette Ponds. This is a
beautiful spot and a reliable site for Townsend’s Warblers. We saw many of these warblers in BC but the
trees are much taller there so it is always a treat to get good views.
Townsend's Warbler |
Tomorrow, the four of us will head to eastern Alberta to find
five target birds and hopefully, a couple of good mammals.
Exquisite photos, Brian. I am behind on reading all of the posts but am so enjoying your Big Year. What fun!
ReplyDelete