nature – Page 9 – Ripple Effects

The Rite of Spring: Goldeneyes Courting

From afar, I could only see their amusing act through my camera lens. The male Common Goldeneye would let out a sharp call, stretch his neck straight up, drawing attention, then quickly bend his head far backwards, touching his rump, then snap right back, overcompensating by kicking his orange feet out of the water.

Pardon the inadequate description above. Actually looking at them is hilarious, like watching a bunch of class clowns trying desperately to impress. Here’s the sequence.

A sharp call to draw attention:

Stretch neck straight up:

Bend over backwards:

Snap out of it:

Male synchronized swimming – courting en masse:

As for the females, looks like they are not easily moved, or maybe just feigning indifference:

No matter. Spring is at hand.

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ALL PHOTOS TAKEN BY ARTI OF RIPPLE EFFECTS
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If Winter Comes, Can Spring be Far Behind?

The English poet Percy Bysshe Shelley holds one view common with Balzac Billy, our Alberta Groundhog: an early spring is on its way.

Not to rub it in, but we’ve been enjoying a relatively mild winter, even a record high on Jan. 25, when the temperature reached 17C (63F).

These photos were not taken right on that day, but they all show how our ducks and geese shrugged off the icy river, spread their wings and echoed Balzac Billy’s prediction.

Here they are mass sunbathing:

The Mallards show their true colours:

Compared to the Mallards, the Buffleheads are smaller in size, and are distinctly more playful. Why wait for spring to make a splash?

or try walking on water:

The Common Merganser stands out among the crowd with their long, red beaks and eggshell white lower body with a yellow glow:

But my fave is the female Merganser. I like her roll-out-of-bed hairdo and natural mascara. For some reasons, she makes me think of Lucillle Ball:

Nature’s hourglass, every drip brings us closer to Spring:

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All Photos in this post taken by Arti of Ripple Effects

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Saturday Snapshot Feb. 7: Who’s Afraid of A Little Cold?

Dawn broke cold and misty. At -17C (0F) one would not expect too much activity in the early morning hour. So you can see I was surprised by this large gathering of Canada Geese. There must be a couple hundreds of them.

Nothing has been added to these photos. I quite like the natural sepia look as the sun slowly broke through the mist and heavy clouds.

As I approached nearer, the more insecure ones started to fly away. But there were those who sat tight. Come what may, they enjoyed their hub in the frigid water.

My fingers were frozen stiff and I could feel the intense pain, but I stayed still, seizing the moment. Glad too that they didn’t treat me as an intruder, just another creature more vulnerable to the cold, couldn’t fly or wouldn’t get into the water, totally harmless.

Thanks pals, for the photo op.

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Saturday Snapshot is hosted by West Metro Mommy Reads. CLICK HERE to see what others have posted.

Photos taken by Arti of Ripple Effects.

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And Heaven and Nature Sing

In 2014, I’ve been very fortunate in capturing many wonderful sightings. Some may seem mundane, but once loaded onto my laptop, I was delighted at the results, everyone a unique experience.

Here are some I’d easily give 4 Ripples, like the glowing wings of Canada Geese overhead, flying into the sunset, or two dragonflies in their intimate moment, a squirrel in the morning rays, a Monarch sucking nectar, an Owlet spreading wings, a Pelican taking flight, a pure white weasel in the snow, or the very ‘ordinary’ sunset that recurs every twenty-four hours.

It has been a year full of natural beauty and exclamations. These photos were taken in different circumstances, some I’d to wait quietly for quite a while, others serendipitously, giving witness to the variance of life’s happenstance, the joy of seeing creatures that sing with their mere existence, and the awesome Creator that willed them all into being.

Pelican Takes Flight

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And To All A Merry Christmas!

Saturday Snapshot Dec 6: Porky and Wess

I met them just this week.

Porky the baby porcupine was a serendipitous sighting. He (I assume) was going in circle in the snow, apparently lost or disoriented. Poor guy, I wanted to go up there and give him a big hug but restrained myself. Instead, got these sequences of shots.

Porky from afar. See the circling tracks? They are all Porky’s:

A bit closer in:

So cute and cuddly:

Don’t you want to give him a big hug too?

As for Wess the weasel, we’ve been waiting for her appearance for days like paparazzi. Some set up their huge telephoto lens on tripod and stood in the cold for hours. Our perseverance were rewarded with a quick dash of a photo shoot:

Wess the weasel poking out of her hole:

Donning her designer fur coat. See her long, black-tipped tail? No wonder she’s officially called the Long-tailed Weasel.

Dashing through the snow:

And here are the shots that make us weasel waiters feel all worthwhile. Wess posing for us in her professional style on the white carpet:

Wess posing 2

There they are, Porky and Wess, warming every heart in the cold of day.

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ALL PHOTOS TAKEN BY ARTI OF RIPPLE EFFECTS

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Saturday Snapshot Nov. 29: Brrr… arred

It’s -24C now as I type, and it’s not even winter yet.

I haven’t ventured out to the woods in such temperatures. But I’m happy to report that a few days ago, I made a couple of first-time sightings. The title is a big hint. I’ve posted The Great Horned Owl before, but never this one. This is the first time I see…

A Barred Owl:

Here’s the sequence how it (not sure if she/he) turns its head almost 180 degrees from left to right:

The Barred Owl has been described as ‘handsome’, with ‘soulful’ eyes. I’d say this one looks ghostly, or, a bit like a colourless Russian Doll. It blends so well with the bare branches under the dull, grey sky.

Another first for me is spotting the American Three-toed Woodpecker. It was high up on a spruce tree, so couldn’t actually count the number of toes. But, from its plumage I knew I’d just seen something relatively rare, for us anyway.

I can ID her from her barred ‘laddered’ back, black wings, and the lighter-barred sides. It’s a female because the male would have a yellow cap on his crown. Now that would be more photogenic with a spot of colour in a black-and-white landscape, but I’m glad just the same:

The head is blurry because she was pecking away.

Not a colourful collection of photos but my wish was fulfilled with this part of the woods, sighting two new (for me) species of birds for which I’ve been searching these past weeks, upon tips from other birders. Another amazing evidence of the richness of life in the woods even when shrouded in cold and grey.

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Saturday Snapshot is hosted by West Metro Mommy Reads. CLICK HERE to see what others have posted.

All Photos in this Post Taken by

Arti of Ripple Effects

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Saturday Snapshot November 22: The Woods are Lovely Still

How a couple of weeks have changed the whole landscape. The Boreal forest that’s my neck of the woods has turned into a winter wonderland.

Cattails in the late afternoon light:

Snow may cover the ground, the woods are lovely still, teeming with life.

Official greeter, The Red Squirrel:

Winter’s friendly ambassador. Take a bow:

But this baby deer doesn’t look too happy… of course, where’s mama?

A Red-breasted Nuthatch, beautiful against the evening sun:

A seed in the beak is better than two in the snow:

Seed or no seed, this Pileated Woodpecker is busy pecking up the right tree:

But the most fascinating of all is my discovery of a Snowy Koala, a rare sighting indeed:

I’d rather be Down Under taking photos of his cousins, but this little tree hugger just made my wintry day more bearable.

The woods are lovely, still.

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Saturday Snapshot is hosted by West Metro Mommy Reads. CLICK HERE to see what others have posted.

All Photos in this post taken by Arti of Ripple Effects

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Saturday Snapshot Nov. 8: Those that stay

Not everyone loves hot weather. Sure there are many who migrate to warmer climates, but there are also those who stay here above the 49th Parallel, at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

A walk through the woods in the last couple of days allowed me to check out who my winter friends are. I say friends because, for some of them, they would fly straight to me, greeting and calling. Yes, I know, they all want treats. But hey, not many choose to stay. So, for those that do, they deserve a free lunch.

Here are some of my winter pals. We’re in it together, come snow and storm in the coming weeks and months. The Black-capped Chickadee:

The White-breasted Nuthatch, like the Chickadees, official greeters whenever I visit:

So, a treat for you all:

Female Downy Woodpecker:

The Red Squirrel:

Red Squirel Breakfast time

Of course, there are those who’d want to strike out on their own:

The elusive Blue Jay. Yes I hear their calls all the time, but very hard to actually get a photo:

Here’s a Red-breasted Nuthatch in the evening light:

But my greatest catch is this. From afar, a gigantic furry ball high on a tree:

I thot I thaw a pussy cat, but when he turned his head 180 degrees, almost, then I knew what I thaw was a Great Horned Owl! I’ve followed an Owl Family for a few years now, always thought they fly to warmer places in the winter.

Of course, he didn’t care for my free lunch of sunflower seeds. Looks like he’s captured his prey, keeping it close by his side, uh… looks like a squirrel. His look speaks volumes. I know, I should have brought a bigger lunch:

I can see there are lots of winter birding adventures ahead.

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Saturday Snapshot is hosted by West Metro Mommy Reads. CLICK HERE to see what others have posted.

ALL PHOTOS TAKEN BY ARTI OF RIPPLE EFFECTS

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Here are posts on the Great Horned Owl Family I’ve been stalking every Spring:

The Parents

The Babies

Saturday Snapshot November 1: One Fine Day

Yes, it’s still fall. Other than the snow storm we had in early September, we have been getting relatively fine weather, considering it’s November already.

Just two days ago, it was one fine, fall day. The temperature reached 13C (55F) when I took these photos, which is very warm for us, especially with the sun bursting in full force. Joggers were wearing shorts and T-shirts.

The glorious golden yellow has changed to brown now, and tree branches are bare…

but the sun remains the unwavering source of light and warmth:

and the river as blue as ever, matching the clear, open sky:

Gulls linger, who’d want to fly south with weather like this?

At the pond, these Canada Geese agree. Just hanging out for a while longer:

Too comfy here, this Bonaparte’s Gull is not flying away any time soon:

Nor the Lesser Scaup:

Mrs. Mallard is having so much fun here… I don’t want to go, she yelps:

And I add my voice, don’t leave just yet.

We’re not going anywhere, Dear, Mr. Mallard assures her.

Cool. Let’s get cold together.

*Note: The Mallards are some of the birds I still see in the colder months. With others who stay, they make winter a bit more enjoyable.

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Saturday Snapshot October 18: Unknown Subjects

As a birder who has just barely passed the novice level, my code of operation when I go on nature hikes is to shoot first, ask questions later. Especially for birds, I must point and shoot in the nick of time. When I get home, I’ll have lots of time to find out what it is that I’ve captured.

The resulting effect is… I’ve accumulated many unknown subjects.

Ignorance is no bliss when it comes to appreciating nature. Could you help me then in identifying some of them… You who are living in the warmer south among flowers and trees, birds and bees, fruits and fungi.

First off, what happened to this tree trunk and what are these growing out of it?

And for fruits, I can only identify them by their colours. But I’m sure they all have a name. Here are the red berries:

white berries:

purple berries:

and these orange ones like strings of Christmas lights hanging on the branches,

Here’s a close-up of these succulent orange berries:

What is this creature? A centipede? Name? I can’t make head or tail out of it, which side is which:

Or this unknown bird that I’d stalked but could not get closer before it flew away. It walked most of the time…

Here’s another unidentified flying subject taking off:

Or a name for these fungi:

… knowledge is bliss when it comes to appreciating nature.

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All Photos Taken by Arti of Ripple Effects

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Saturday Snapshot Oct. 11: Shades of Yellow

In last week’s Saturday Snapshot I mentioned that yellow was our fall default colour. Sure I’d like to see more spectacular red, but yellow is by no means a uniform colour. Recently I’ve been savouring the various shades of yellow, a sumptuous visual feast.

A lighter shade of yellow:

Rusty yellow against solid blue:

Wabi-sabi yellow, see the half-fallen tree on top, aftermath of the snow storm:

Faraway yellow in the morning mist:

Close-up yellow back lit:

Yellow against dark green coniferous:

Luminous deciduous delight:

Everywhere I turn, I’m seeing yellow… even kayaks and canoes rise to the occasion:

As a birder, I was delighted to spot a yellow rump amidst yellow leaves:

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Saturday Snapshot is hosted by West Metro Mommy Reads. CLICK HERE to see what others have posted.

ALL PHOTOS TAKEN BY ARTI OF RIPPLE EFFECTS

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Saturday Snapshot Oct. 4: Autumn

Living in the Prairies, I don’t get to see the kaleidoscope of Autumn colours as the East or the West coast. The fall plethora of fiery red foliage remains only a longing. Indeed, an Autumn road trip through the New England states has yet to be realized.

The default colour here is golden yellow with a dash of rusty orange. While less dramatic, I do feel a personal connection. I’ve learned to appreciate our Autumn… simple, crisp and clear, minimal glamour, not ostentatious. Above all else, we always have the big blue sky.

After attending TIFF in Toronto, I came home to the aftermath of a debilitating snowstorm. Power down, trails closed, thousands of trees destroyed. That was only the first week of September.

Broken…

and bent. A Wabi-sabi moment:

Autumn eventually shows its beautiful side… golden leaves spread like wild fire:

Blue and yellow go well together:

Canada Geese take their leave:

This young buck feels right at home:

But a most delightful find for me is spotting a host of Yellow-rumped Warblers still lingering at the pond, albeit the next day when I went back there, they were gone: