A friend and I spent part of today driving the gravel roads east of the city, including the Irricana and Shepard areas. Snowy Owls had been reported recently, so off we went in the hopes of possibly finding one. Well, we were so lucky, seeing three different ones. This is the first one, then we saw the next one on a fence post way across a field. The third one was perched high up (like the one in the image above) on a tangle of wires, so really not a very beautiful setting : ) Always SO amazing to see a Snowy Owl, especially on a lovely sunny day. Not the sharpest of images because of pointing my camera up towards the sky, but I'll take any image that I manage to get of one of these magnificent owls : )

Tags:   Alberta Canada southern Alberta east of Calgary Irricana area nature ornithology avian bird birds bird of prey wild wildlife fauna owl Snowy Owl Bubo scandiacus white male one bird pole perched perching front view image photograph digital color image square square crop beautiful beauty in nature Panasonic DMC-FZ28 FZ28 Lumix point-and-shoot P1300910 FZ28 annkelliott beautiful_expression Feels Good Excellence AvianExcellence TheNatureConservancy NaturesFinest © Anne Elliott 2009 © All Rights Reserved

© All Rights Reserved

It really is quite something to look into the eyes of a Snowy Owl from just a few feet away. This is the female Snowy at the Calgary Zoo (near the Tigers). Each year, I always hope that maybe they will nest and have young ones like they did in the summer of 2006, but I'm still hoping. The Snowy Owl is the offical bird of Quebec.

Tags:   Calgary Alberta Canada southern Alberta Calgary Zoo nature captive zoo ornithology avian bird birds bird of prey raptor owl female Snowy Owl Bubo scandiacus Strigidae Arctic Owl Great White Owl official bird of Quebec feathers close-up head shot front view eye contact image digital color image horizontal Panasonic DMC-FZ28 FZ28 Lumix point-and-shoot P1370630 FZ28 annkelliott beautiful_expression Feels Good birdshare NaturesFinest #GreatNature

© All Rights Reserved

This beautiful Barred Owl is one of the many injured birds being cared for at the Medicine River Wildlife Centre, north west of Calgary and west of Innisfail. We were so lucky to be able to spend the day on 4th July botanizing the forest and meadows of the area. I still haven't seen this species of owl in the wild.

Some of you may be having the same problems again with trying to type a description under your images. Every time a lowercase f is typed, you are sent straight to "on black" and you lose all your typing. Hope they fix this again soon!

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barred_Owl

Tags:   Alberta Canada southern Alberta north west of Calgary west of Innisfail Medicine River Wildlife Centre nature fauna ornithology avian bird birds bird of prey raptor Owl Barred Owl Strix varia Hoot Owl adult injured rehabilitation front view perched perching feathers detail close-up image photo digital color image square square crop beautiful beauty in nature Panasonic DMC-FZ35 DMC-FZ35 Lumix point-and-shoot P1070953 FZ35 annkelliott Birds of Calgary

© All Rights Reserved

This was Snowy Owl number 3 that a friend and I saw east of the city on 23rd November. A handsome male, though not taken from a very good angle : ) Love those huge, feathered feet.

I grabbed three photos rather quickly this evening and I'm posting a bit late. Had my afternoon volunteer shift today, which was totally, totally exhausting, especially as we are getting so close to Christmas. Managed to drive there despite still feeling a bit dizzy (mainly if I bend my head or turn my head to the side) - I avoided most shoulder checks, using the side mirrors instead! On my way home, I decided to call in at Swiss Chalet take-out for one of their Festive Meals - absolute luxury! I always feel very grateful that I can afford to do this, which too many people are unable to do.

Tags:   Alberta Canada southern Alberta east of Calgary Irricana area nature outdoors ornithology avian bird birds fauna wild wildlife raptor bird of prey Owl Snowy Owl Bubo scandiacus male adult utility pole blue sky perched perching image photograph digital colour image square square crop beautiful beauty in nature Panasonic DMC-FZ28 FZ28 Lumix point-and-shoot P1300928 FZ28 annkelliott beautiful_expression Feels Good Excellence AvianExcellence BirdPerfect © Anne Elliott 2009 © All Rights Reserved

© All Rights Reserved

I happened to come across this photo of a little Burrowing Owl that I hadn't posted, so thought I'd upload today. It was taken on 23rd May 2009 at the Coaldale Birds of Prey Centre, near Lethbridge, Southern Alberta. A delightful place to visit, and they do such a great job of rescuing and, whenever possible, releasing injured birds of prey. Those, whose injuries are too severe for them to be released back into the wild, remain at the Centre to educate children and adults. Such a thrill to see these birds up close.

This Centre is "Canada’s largest birds of prey facility. Situated on a 70-acre wetland area site, the centre is a celebration of nature featuring the hawks, falcons, eagles and owls of Alberta. Throughout the site and along the pathways, a number of birds of prey are sitting on their perches only feet away from visitors. These birds are all in various stages of training and receive lots of exercise in the daily flying programs. At the centre, they have one of North America's largest captive breeding populations for the endangered Burrowing Owl."

www.burrowingowl.com/

It rained a lot overnight and, so far, the day is overcast and lightless. Rain on and off today. I cancelled plans to go forest exploring ... sigh. Temperatures soared to a balmy 8C today and possible snow/frost are in the forecast for later this week. Oh, no : (

Tags:   Alberta Canada southern Alberta near Lethbridge Coaldale Birds of Prey Centre nature wildlife bird Owl Burrowing Owl bird of prey Athene cunicularia endangered front side view close-up square format Olympus C750UZ annkelliott © Anne Elliott 2009 © All Rights Reserved birdshare SuperEco

© All Rights Reserved