Who is ready for Spring? Flowers, birds, and I.

Knowing that I was already two days behind in my "annual spring check-up at the Arboretum" (see my 2014 and 2015 posts) because of my busy work schedule, I decided to finish work earlier today so that I can go find the flowers afterwards.

The flowers seemed to bloom right on the calendar date (regardless of the type of winter we had) and when I got there this afternoon, most of the flowers appear pretty old already.  Sadly, there were no pollinators visiting the flowers.

This was the best image of the blooming Crocus sp. that I photographed.

Spring is here because of flowers and pollinators

Last night, I was planning where to go today and considered taking the bus to Stony Swamp, a natural area southwest of Ottawa where photos of interesting animals are frequently shared on Facebook, such as Black-backed Woodpecker during the winter, porcupines, frogs, etc.  But the thought of the trip taking almost two hours, while it is located 15.6 km west of where I live, is kind of ridiculous (Ottawa transit system is quite poor compare to the Metro Vancouver transit system).  Anyways, I decided to walk to the bus station (via Sawmill Creek Constructed Wetland) and visit the Arboretum in the end.

Little did I know I would see several interesting things today.

First was this pair of Ring-necked Ducks (Aythya collaris) - first of the year!

Getting a taste of spring in BC

While most parts of Canada are under deep snow and freezing temperatures, the west coast has been experiencing springlike conditions.  My mother and I went for a drive/walk to West Dyke Trail this morning to do some bird-watching.

View from West Dyke Trail with Snow Goose (Chen caerulescens) scattered across the land.  I took this image with my new phone (Xiaomi HM Note 1W) which has pretty good camera capability (13 megapixels).

Dominion Arboretum, Ottawa

I traveled to the (Dominion) Arboretum this afternoon to see what the recent warm Spring weather has brought to us in terms of wild fauna and flora.  It was my first time traveling by O-Train and to the Arboretum, and I must say I am quite impressed by train, especially since it only took me about 25 minutes from where I live to the Arboretum.

Map of the Arboretum

Pretty good birding afternoon at Garry Point

I thought it would be colder today, apparently not. Maybe because I had another sweater and a warmer pants on. Nonetheless, it was another beautiful day out.

The first birds I saw were four Killdeers in this field sticking their bills into the water.

Making up for the cloudy days...

I totally forgot what I did for the last four days now. This is what happened when it's cloudy and I ended up staying indoors most of the times.

Well, I better make up for the missing days by going outside to enjoy this beautiful Friday.

Blue sky and white puffy clouds.

Biking to Terra Nova

When I was pedaling towards the dyke this afternoon, for some reason, I felt so out of shape. Maybe it was because I was moving against the wind or maybe I just need to work out more regularly.

Anyways, today was relatively sunny with blue skies.

Some announcements & enjoying the blue cloudless day

What is going on with me lately, you may ask. Well, yesterday I received an HP Photosmart D5460 Printer as a winning prize from a photo contest I submitted to. But seeing how I already have two printers (one becomes a fax machine and one is currently in use), I may sell it and use that money to go towards buying a DSLR for myself. So if you're interested, let me know. Otherwise, I might turn it into a photo printer (which it is) and start to print some of my photos.

In addition, the Ontario job that I applied/phone-interviewed for went through, and so I'll be spending 4+ months in Carden, Ontario in the summer - which I am quite excited and nervous about since this will be actually my first time away from home for an extended period of time (interning and working in Taiwan doesn't really count). But I am also excited to be a part of an important program and the opportunity to see other parts of Canada and its wildlife.

But that's not for another two months, so I need to stop worrying (about food, housing, laundry, travel, etc) and enjoy the nice weather we have today.

Beautiful cloudless blue sky.

Snow Geese at Terra Nova Natural Area.

More Snow Geese at Terra Nova Rural Park.

I feel calm and peaceful everytime I come here.

Mr. Gadwall, as well as American Wigeons, a Scaup, and some Hooded Mergansers were found in the slough.

Flowering Crocuses.

Nice view.

Heard and then saw these two Bald Eagles. Then they flew back to the nest.

One Bald Eagle was inside and one was outside the nest. Then suddenly the eagle outside the nest took off - leaving me with a dark dark photo because I didn't have time to change the settings. But thanks to the wonderful computer technology, I was able to clean it up and produce the image above. Not bad at all, if I say so myself.

That's all for today. Cheers!

365 days ago (2009-02-16) ...
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Relatively Sunny Sunday

The gray and drizzling weathers in the last couple of days in January really dampened my desire and plans to use my bus pass for an extended day trip. So, off to the dyke I go again!

A Northern Harrier swooped by across from me.

Female Northern Harrier

House Finch


Saw a flock of House Sparrows today


A lonely Great Blue Heron.

This male harrier flew by near the heron and stopped on a log. By the time I tried to take a picture, it was off again.


Saw Snow Geese transferring from one field to the next - avoiding obstacles on the way.


Follow the leader


Landing

Panoramic view of Snow Geese...and with more coming.


Saw the Gadwells, Mallards, and a pair of female Hooded Mergansers at the slough today. But it was the budding Pussy Willows that caught my attention.


Almost like an insect undergoing metamorphosis.

The Fraser River - clouds blurring the line between sea and sky.

Stranded Gull.


Looking back at the slough.

Trees.






A pair of Bald Eagles near the trees.


Clouds breaking.


Many people visited the dyke today to enjoy the relatively sunny Sunday.


Crocus flowering - about 3 weeks ahead of last year's time.


Another look at the sky.

The Sun being blocked by clouds.

365 days ago (2009-01-31) ...
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Photographing dragonflies during lunchtime

In two days, my 6-week internship will officially be over and what a strange feeling it is. I started one month before the actual internship and will stay for at least two more months afterwards, so to me, this job is not over yet. Not when there's still data to be gathered, organized, and analyzed.

Anyways, I spent most of the time today working on my PowerPoint presentation to be presented this Friday. Then during lunchtime, I went outside and ate alone when everyone brought their own homecooked lunch boxes. While crossing TBG, it gave me the opportunity to reflect on some of the first memories of the garden and how surprising the biodiversity is in it.

Entrance to TBG

However, it was extremely hot during lunch hours, so very few animals were photographed - except these cooperating dragonflies.

Scarlet Basker (Urothemis signata yiei)

Red Percher (Neurothemis ramburii ramburii)

There were some late crocus flowers blossoming after the first beautiful wave of pink flowers along the path.
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A rather unimpressive day with photos to share

It wasn't rainy today but the gray sky really dampened my mood. Still, a bike ride out really clears one's mind because you focus on your surroundings rather than your thoughts. Nevertheless, I got some pretty interesting photos to share with everybody.

Caught this Great Blue Heron in a rather awkward posture.

Another Great Blue Heron. This time in a strange location.

Af first, I found this Northern Pintail napping. But me looking at it for too long caused it to wake up and walk back to the pond. Sorry. But I like this photo because I caught its right leg in mid-air.

Some signs of Spring.

I can't believe how difficult it was to photograph a crow close-up. The camera seems to have trouble focusing on a dark object. I ended up focusing on the branch and that worked.

A Double-crested Cormorant about to enter the breeding stage as seen by the white tufts behind the eyes.

This Black-capped Chickadee sat patiently an arm's length away from me - allowing me to take these rather good pictures.

Saw the adult Bald Eagle again today as I biked back home. However, no eagle was observed inside the nest.
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