Ice

After a long warm spell we got some colder weather, and with it some ice and snow.

But at the same time, the "spring" crocuses were blooming.

Pine Siskins

The birds at the feeder have gone through an interesting progression. First it was a "development" of House Finches, easily identified by their red color. Then a "banditry" of Chestnut-backed Chickadees. And now a "company" of Pine Siskins. Plus the occasional House Sparrow and Spotted Towhee. The towhees are a little big for the feeder perches so they mostly sit nearby and gaze longingly at all that food.

At first I wasn't sure what they were. They looked like small sparrows but none of the sparrows in my bird guide had yellow on the wings. I looked at "small" local birds but didn't see them. It wasn't till I looked at "extra small" birds that I found them. Pine Siskins are in the finch family. There were lots of them and the ones that weren't competing over the feeder perched in the nearby magnolia tree, where I could photograph them through the window. A window isn't ideal, but with a little work on the computer they're reasonable. This shot shows the yellow and the notched tail.

Another identifying feature is the heavy streaking.

They are puffed up to stay warm in these photos. They are actually slimmer birds. Pine Siskins can survive in colder weather than other songbirds due to their higher metabolism.

Birds

This time of year I'm mostly taking photographs of birds. Our recent spell of good weather helped. Victoria had the longest winter sunny dry spell in 85 years.

This cormorant was fishing at Ogden point. I wasn't sure what kind it was at first, but I think it's a juvenile Double-crested Cormorant.

It might only be a juvenile, but it had found a good school of fish.

A heron nearby was probably catching some of the same fish.

If there's nothing more exotic, there are always the gulls.

There have been quite a few Hooded Mergansers hanging around.

and Common Mergansers

and occasionally Red-breasted Mergansers

This one had to scramble to avoid any of her "friends" stealing her fish.

I was watching for the Harlequin Ducks but they were scarce until last week.

In Saskatoon I saw mostly Black-capped Chickadees. Here it's more Chestnut-backed Chickadees. Lately they've discovered the bird feeder. I'd like to get better photos but they don't tend to sit still for long.

A Great Blue Heron has taken to sitting in a tree behind our place.

The birds have mostly ignored these berries till now - they must not be as tasty. But with most of the others gone, they are starting to eat them.

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