Esquimalt Lagoon

The Fort Rodd Hill and Fisgard Lighthouse National Historic Site is directly adjacent to the Esquimalt Lagoon Nature Sanctuary. The above photo was taken from Fort Rodd Hill looking towards the lagoon. The stream in the foreground is the tidal flow into and out of the lagoon.

Fox Sparrow

If you're not a bird-watcher you're probably surprised that there are so many kinds of sparrow and that they are so distinctive if you look at them a little closely. Here's another, a Fox Sparrow photographed near Esquimalt Lagoon.

White-crowned Sparrow

When I read about the weather being experienced by our friends in the eastern part of the continent I resolve not to complain about our current weather. I thought it might be interesting to non-bird-watching visitors to see some of our other sparrows. I posted a photo of a Savannah Sparrow on Saturday. Pictured above is a White-crowned Sparrow photographed singing his heart out at Esquimalt Lagoon a few years ago.

Elegance!

While out at Esquimalt Lagoon the other day I was pleased to see some Northern Pintail ducks. A fellow birder once described these ducks as "elegant" and I always think of that when I see them. What class! They are definitely the Saville Row of plumage. I didn't have my bird lens with me on Tuesday so I am sharing these photos I took in February 2014.

Royal Roads

If you were looking at yesterday's scene and turned 180 degrees you would see the scene pictured above. This is the Royal Roads anchorage, so called because it lies between Albert Head and Victoria, both named after members of the British royal family. I believe those large ships lying offshore are waiting for a chance to visit the Esquimalt graving docks that are capable of servicing such enormous craft. The cairn and plaque pictured below give a little history of Royal Roads.

Esquimalt Lagoon

It was a bright, windy day today so I went out to Esquimalt Lagoon. It was even windier out there. You can see in this photo all the seagulls are grounded and facing the same direction. That's what they do when it's really windy. The cairn on the right memorializes another big wind over one hundred years ago. We'll have a look at that tomorrow.

Esquimalt Lagoon

Here's another scene I have not visited since the early summer and now the leaves are turning on the far side of Esquimalt Lagoon where Hatley Castle is just visible. I wanted to try out some new extension tubes that enable one to use an ordinary lens as if it were a macro and shoot close-ups. To the right is a sample - there's lots of this Gumweed (Grindelia integrifolia) growing all along the shore of the lagoon,

Esquimalt Lagoon

Yesterday's photo of the lighthouse was taken from the eastern end of Esquimalt Lagoon looking eastward. From the same spot here is the view looking west down the length of the lagoon.

Best of 2015 - 3

In this year-end retrospective series, we've seen some local birds (one of my main interests) and some urban scenery (yesterday's photo), but as well as being a beautiful city, Victoria is surrounded by beautiful landscapes. Here are a couple of examples. Above is a shot from August 2015 of Esquimalt Lagoon. Below is another of my favorite views - one that I have photographed many times. It is Saxe Point Park, photographed in July 2015.

Esquimalt Lagoon Beach

Usually when I am out at Esquimalt Lagoon I end up photographing the lagoon itself or the birds that are in its sanctuary. The other shore of the spit that makes the lagoon, the ocean shore, tends to have more dogs and less birds so I rarely walk over there. However, it's a nice long beach enjoyed by many people. In the photo above we are looking west with the mountains of the Olympic Peninsula in the far distance on the left.

Esquimalt Lagoon - Late summer

I often find late summer landscapes to be a bit frowsy - everything is worn out, blown and gone to seed - but at Esquimalt Lagoon on Sunday it just seemed that the green of spring and summer grasses had been refined and smelted into gold.

Red-winged Blackbird

One of the signs of spring I enjoy most is the song of the Red-winged Blackbird. It may be territorial but to me it sounds like a love song. Maybe it's both. Yesterday morning near Esquimalt Lagoon I wandered into a group singing contest. About twenty males (one is pictured above) flitted around in the nearby blackberry brambles, all emitting piercing lovelorn warbles. There were lots of females around too and their disapproving chut chut chuts were like a counterpoint to the males' songs. It is sometimes claimed that Red-winged Blackbirds are the most numerous North American bird, numbering as many as 250 million pairs in good years. Head out to your nearest swamp or cattail marsh and you'll surely find some.

Sparrows

In the same bit of woods near Esquimalt Lagoon where I photographed the woodpecker and hummingbird in yesterday's post I had a nice encounter with two kinds of sparrow. Above is one of our commoner species, usually singing his heart out, a Song Sparrow. This one looks to be in a pensive mood. Below is a Fox Sparrow.

Birds

Spring is not only a time for a cascade of wildflowers but is also a very exciting time for watching birds. This is a time when there is a lot of movement from migrating birds heading north. And resident birds are becoming more active and visible as they don mating colors and engage in flirting behaviours. The two birds pictured to day are year round residents here but for some reason I don't see so much of them in the winter (probably because I spend too much time indoors when it's cold outside). Above is a Downy Woodpecker and to the left is an Anna's Hummingbird. Both were photographed a few days ago near Esquimalt Lagoon.

Black Turnstone and Brewer's Blackbird

While I was out at Esquimalt Lagoon I was so focused on the Goldeneye and the Pintail ducks that I almost didn't see these little Black Turnstones and the female Brewer's Blackbird (far right). The saying is "Birds of a feather flock together" and it certainly seems to be true most of the time. However, I've begun to notice that sometimes there will be quite a mixture of species hanging out together. In the case above I think it was just chance that the Turnstones and the Blackbirds were intermixed since they were both feeding on the same bit of shoreline. But in the city here I have often noticed robins flying and feeding with starling flocks during the winter. In our back yard, the House Finches and House Sparrows don't seem to mind sharing the feeder and nearby roosts but both are quite intolerant of any Chickadees that try to share.

My First Hybrid

I've mentioned before that one of the challenges faced by a novice birder like myself is that many birds look different in different seasons and at various stages of their lives. However, there is a further though rarer challenge and that is that some species of birds interbreed occasionally and produce hybrids that may bear some of the characteristics of both parent species. Above is an example. There are two species of Goldeneye Ducks, the Common Goldeneye and the Barrow's Goldeneye. Differences in head shape, size and plumage distinguish the two species. However, occasionally they interbreed and produce a hybrid such as can be seen in the photo above. The hybrid is second from the left. He bears the teardrop-shaped white cheek patch characteristic of the Barrow's Goldeneye but the black and white pattern on his back is much closer to the Common Goldeneyes that surround him than is usual with the Barrow's Goldeneyes. Below is a photo of some Barrow's Goldeneyes for comparison. Note particularly the bird on the far right of the photo as he is the only male.

The Elegant, Dapper Northern Pintail

I can't think of a better photo to start the New Year with than this neatly attired, spotless and immaculately groomed Northern Pintail Duck as seen recently on the clear blue waters of Esquimalt Lagoon. Below is his mate, more demure but equally attractive.

Esquimalt Lagoon

Sunday morning walks on Esquimalt Lagoon are one of my most favorite things in the world. - Fern

Winter Visitors 5

While out at Esquimalt Lagoon I was lucky to see some Black Turnstones (Arenaria melanocephala). These shorebirds are coming south from their nesting grounds in Alaska. They may stay around here but many move further south, even as far as Mexico, for the winter months. Smart birds!

Winter Visitors 4

Birds who spend the winter here don't all come to rest in the Inner Harbour. Esquimalt Lagoon is another favorite wintering site so I went out there on the weekend to see who has arrived. Above is a duck that always impresses me with its elegance and neatness. It always looks as if it just came from the cleaners. This is a male Northern Pintail (Anas acuta). This is not a diving duck like the Mergansers or Buffleheads featured in the last few weeks. This is a dabbling duck, preferring to find its food in shallow water. Mallards and Widgeons are two other examples of dabbling ducks.