by lcmuseum@shaw.ca | Aug 22, 2024 | Animals, Guest Bloggers, Okanagan birder, Pam Laing
Today we’re going to take a look at an unmistakable species, easily recognized when seen. In our part of the Okanagan, however, they are not common, usually sighted in either April, May or June when they pass through northwards in migration. Huge flocks migrate...
by lcmuseum@shaw.ca | May 13, 2024 | Guest Bloggers, Okanagan birder, Pam Laing
Spring migration, an overview In our valley, spring migration unfolds gradually, some birds arriving to breed here as early as February or early March, others not until June. Let’s take a look at which species have already arrived, which will come soon and which will...
by lcmuseum@shaw.ca | Mar 11, 2024 | Animals, Okanagan birder, Pam Laing
By Pam Laing American Crow and Common Raven, two familiar Corvids American Crow, winter This winter started off unusually mild and snowless. You may have noticed, as I did, that many more crows than usual were lingering here instead of moving further south. Why? As...
by lcmuseum@shaw.ca | Mar 11, 2024 | Animals, Okanagan birder, Pam Laing
Which Bird might I see today? – FALL – Fall migration, an overview Many birds migrate, as you know. In our valley, spring migration unfolds gradually, some birds arriving to breed here as early as February, others not until June. And in the fall...
by lcmuseum@shaw.ca | Mar 11, 2024 | Animals, Okanagan birder, Pam Laing
In our last post we looked at two North-American sparrows which turn up every spring to breed here, Savannah and Vesper Sparrows. This time let’s look at a sparrow you will only see here in summer, the Lark Sparrow. Lark Sparrow, distant but easily recognizable This...
by lcmuseum@shaw.ca | Mar 6, 2024 | Animals, Guest Bloggers, Okanagan birder, Pam Laing
When non-birders think of sparrows they think of the common House Sparrow, the birdthat says, “Cheep, cheep” in our hedges and is abundant in built-up areas. But HouseSparrows are not true sparrows, were introduced here from Europe and are in fact relatedto the North...
by lcmuseum@shaw.ca | Feb 6, 2023 | Bloggers, Guest Bloggers, Pam Laing
Our valley is home to two jays, members of the corvid family, (which includes crows, ravens, magpies and so on). These are the Canada Jay, formerly called the Gray Jay, and the Steller’s Jay. I wrote an article about Canada Jays in the fall of 2017 for this blog.* ...
by lcmuseum@shaw.ca | Nov 30, 2022 | Guest Bloggers, Natural History, Okanagan birder, Pam Laing
Don’t call them Seagulls! When we live in a valley with a number of lakes, large and small, as well as ponds, riversand creeks, (not to mention large landfill sites), we are bound to see gulls. Non-birdersoften refer to them as Seagulls. But we have no sea anywhere...
by lcmuseum@shaw.ca | Nov 23, 2022 | Guest Bloggers, Pam Laing
In our spring posting we took a close look at the three species of Grebe that spend their entire year here, changing plumage into breeding ‘duds’ each spring. Today we’ll focus on the two species that migrate here to breed during our summer. These are the Western...
by lcmuseum@shaw.ca | Nov 23, 2022 | Guest Bloggers, Pam Laing
Three Grebes In past postings we’ve looked at many of the ducks that can be seen in our valley annually. Today let’s look at another family of diving birds, the grebes. Five species of grebe come to the Okanagan annually, plus one more occasionally, but only three are...
by lcmuseum@shaw.ca | Nov 23, 2022 | Guest Bloggers, Pam Laing
Four Owls Winter is undoubtedly the best season in which to see owls. This is partly because many trees are bare, enabling better sightings, if you are lucky. But it’s also because in winter some of the owls that usually breed and hunt in the upper forests come down...
by lcmuseum@shaw.ca | Nov 5, 2022 | Guest Bloggers, Natural History, Okanagan birder, Pam Laing
Two small falcons – Merlin and American Kestrel Peregrine falcons are probably the best-known of all falcons and we do see them occasionally in our valley. But we are much more likely to see one of the smaller falcons, Merlins and American Kestrels, especially in fall...
