This was yet another great sighting yesterday morning, 26 October 2013, when I was on a three-hour birding walk with friends in Fish Creek Park. The other creature seen was a beautiful Mink. On our way back to the parking lot, this large Mule Deer buck came through the bushes to fairly close to where we were standing. It watched us for a few seconds, turned and retraced its steps. Normally, when I see a buck, I find they tend to move off away from me, but it's rutting season and behaviour is different, so people need to be on guard. Looks like yesterday was a good day for a walk - it started off rather chilly but by noon was up to about 13C - but there is a Snowfall Warning in effect for Southern Alberta for today. "Snowfall amounts of 10 to 15 cm are expected by Sunday evening for most areas although the foothills could see local amounts over 20 cm." I am so not ready for this! This morning, we have blowing snow and it looks so cold and miserable out there. A great day for staying home with a mug of steaming coffee!
Tags: Calgary Alberta Canada Fish Creek Park Votier's Flats nature animal wild animal wildlife Deer male buck antlers head shot front/side view autumn fall colours colourful beauty in nature Mule Deer
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Winter is still officially a few weeks away, but that doesn't stop Old Man Winter from paying us an unwelcome visit : ) Taken on 29 October 2013, during a bird walk in Fish Creek Park, around the Shannon Terrace and Bebo Grove areas. I think this snow-covered fence was near the parking lot at the Educational Centre at Shannon Terrace.
Tags: Calgary Alberta Canada Fish Creek Park Shannon Terrace nature woodland landscape scenery trees seasons fall autumn like winter
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Usually, I prefer a nice, plain background for a shot like this, but I was out of luck on 7 November 2013. Saw this little Red-breasted Nuthatch male when I went with friends for a birding walk in the Bow Valley Ranche and Burnsmead areas of Fish Creek Park.
No Contacts' new photos have appeared on my home page in the last 5 hours - apparently, others are having this problem, too.
An interesting concept, by a 19-year-old, of how to clean up the world's oceans:
youtu.be/ROW9F-c0kIQ
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Tags: Calgary Alberta Canada Fish Creek Park S of Bow Valley Ranche nature ornithology avian bird birds Nuthatch Red-breasted Nuthatch
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A very grainy photo, but will still post it : ) Saw this White-tailed Deer (or is it a Mule Deer??) feeding on dead leaves and twigs when I was out for a walk with a small group of friends this afternoon, 10 November 2013. A cold day today, and I had to push myself really hard to leave the warmth of home, but only a few fine snowflakes were seen. We started off in Fish Creek Park at the Bow Valley Ranche, and then we walked over to Burnsmead. Surprisingly, we were unable to find either of the two Great Horned Owls today. However, we saw a couple of distant juvenile Bald Eagles who seemed to be fighting over a fish that one had caught. We warmed up afterwards over hot coffee at Tim Horton's - always most enjoyable.
"White-tailed deer are not grazers. They don't eat grass and hay like elk or cattle. Even though you may see a whitetail feeding in a grassy field, if you could look closer you would find that it is not eating the grass.
During the summer, deer eat tender broadleaf plants such as clover or alfalfa which grow near the ground, often among taller grasses. That's why whitetails may appear to be eating grass, even though they are not. Whitetails also like to eat various types of wildflower plants.
In the fall, when nuts and acorns fall from the trees, whitetails will be right there feeding on them. Deer love nuts and acorns. Whitetails like acorns from all the different types of oak trees, but their favorite is the white oak acorns.
In winter, when the lush growth of spring and summer vegetation is over, whitetails feed on the tips of branches of small trees and bushes. Willow bushes that grow near water produce tender branches which whitetails love to eat in the winter.
In addition to the whitetail's natural browse there are many agricultural crops they love to eat. Whitetails are true opportunists when it comes to garden crops. They love carrots, sugar beets, tomatoes, cabbage, squash and other garden vegetables. People who live out in deer country sometimes have a real problem keeping the deer from eating up their vegetable gardens. Farmers who plant large fields of com often find the deer living right in the middle of their crops. The tall corn offers thick cover where deer can hide, as well as a favorite food source! Deer love to live in the cornfields, and they get fat eating com all day long. That's why some of the biggest-bodied whitetails come from corn-growing country. Other grains like wheat, oats and barley also attract white-tailed deer. When the grain ripens in the fall, you can bet whitetails will be close by. Another crop deer love is soybeans.
White-tailed deer also love to eat the same kinds of fruit humans enjoy. Pears, apples, persimmons and plums are deer favorites."
www.buckmasters.com/what-do-deer-eat.aspx
Tags: Calgary Alberta Canada Fish Creek Park Burnsmead nature animal wild wild animal wildlife Deer feeding eating dead leaves head shot side view close-up bushes FZ200 annkelliott Anne Elliott
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Took this macro shot of a White-breasted Nuthatch yesterday morning, 7 November 2013, when I went on a three-hour bird walk with friends. We started off by the Bow Valley Ranche, where we managed to find only one of the two Great Horned Owls that hang out in that area, and then walked over to the Bow River as far as Burnsmead, and then back to the Ranche. Pretty well all the birds we saw were way off in the distance, so no good for photos, but we did get a close look at this little Nuthatch male. Overcast weather, so a rather grainy image even with no cropping.
www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/white-breasted_nuthatch/id
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White-breasted_Nuthatch
Tags: Calgary Alberta Canada Fish Creek Park S of Bow Valley Ranche nature ornithology avian bird birds male songbird Nuthatch White-breasted Nuthatch Sitta carolinensis Sittidae Sitta
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