Sunday 4 May 2008

Turner Valley Bird Watching

Recently, when Kerri's working on the weekend I drop her off at work and head 40kms south to Turner Valley then west along Sheep River. For what is predominantly a farming area, there is an incredible amount of wildlife.
There are always Mule Deer, sometimes Elk and Moose, the occasional skittish coyote and an amazing array of bird life.
I've seen an array of water birds including a number of different ducks that I've never seen before,
Canadian geese and Swans.
Many of the fence posts have little bird boxes that seem to attract swallows & Bluebirds.
You never go too far into the provincial parks without seeing woodpeckers either. I'd never seen a woodpecker before and quickly realized their pecking was incredibly noisy.
There are also many hawks and the occasional eagle. 
The Swainson's hawk above was quite happy to pose for the camera until it saw a snack and took off. The raptors are magnificent creatures and inspire awe when they're in flight.