Winter in Algonquin: Spruce Bog Boardwalk (part 2)
January 31st, 2017
We were not long past the parking lot when the high point of my trip happened: the sight of male Evening Grosbeaks gathered on the boardwalk railing, their burnt-gold bodies blazing against the snowy backdrop.
1680x1050 wallpaper
We have a small, remnant population of Evening Grosbeaks near Ottawa, in the area of Larose Forest. But they're difficult to find in the wild. (In winter they show up at the feeders of people who live adjacent to the forest. I envy those people!) They were once much more common.
Almost immediately after the grosbeaks was my very first male Spruce Grouse. I had searched high and low for them the last two times I went to Algonquin, with no luck. And it's anyone's guess whether I would have seen this one without help. Just like the female Spruce Grouse Michael and I found in Cape Breton, he was up in a spruce tree noshing on needles and making no sound. He regarded the gaggle of bird-watchers with an unruffled air.
1680x1050 wallpaper
A look at that pretty face:
Another point of interest at the spruce bog was a lone Boreal Chickadee, in with a group of familiar Black-Capped Chickadees, coming to birdseed that someone had scattered on the ground. Note the brown cap and the almost chestnut-colored flanks, as compared to Black-Capped's black cap and buffy flanks.
(More to come)
January 31st, 2017
We were not long past the parking lot when the high point of my trip happened: the sight of male Evening Grosbeaks gathered on the boardwalk railing, their burnt-gold bodies blazing against the snowy backdrop.
1680x1050 wallpaper
We have a small, remnant population of Evening Grosbeaks near Ottawa, in the area of Larose Forest. But they're difficult to find in the wild. (In winter they show up at the feeders of people who live adjacent to the forest. I envy those people!) They were once much more common.
Almost immediately after the grosbeaks was my very first male Spruce Grouse. I had searched high and low for them the last two times I went to Algonquin, with no luck. And it's anyone's guess whether I would have seen this one without help. Just like the female Spruce Grouse Michael and I found in Cape Breton, he was up in a spruce tree noshing on needles and making no sound. He regarded the gaggle of bird-watchers with an unruffled air.
1680x1050 wallpaper
A look at that pretty face:
Another point of interest at the spruce bog was a lone Boreal Chickadee, in with a group of familiar Black-Capped Chickadees, coming to birdseed that someone had scattered on the ground. Note the brown cap and the almost chestnut-colored flanks, as compared to Black-Capped's black cap and buffy flanks.
(More to come)
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Mike
January 31st, 2017 at 5:16 pm
The grouse looks very festive!
The chickadee, on the other hand, looks cute but defiant.