MARCH? - I bet you're thinking it must be close to herring spawn and Brant time in Parksville. No, your calendar is correct and it isn't quite Christmas yet. My theory is that the Brant discovered by Rhys on Dec. 6 at Parksville Park is an extremely clever promotional ploy conceived by the Brant festival committee to plant the idea of "Brant" in the public's mind. "Plant Brant!" That works for me. What? You don't believe me? ... O.K., What's your explanation? Regardless of how it got there, it has been extremely tame and several times wandered to within 2 or 3 meters of me allowing for excellent close-up visiting. However, dull, overcast skies weren't conducive to photography. But, shooting at 1600 ISO and LO speed, about 1 out of 5 pictures was successful.
EARLY BIRD? - Although Brant usually don't appear in the region until late February, according to Sibley's Guide, southern Vancouver Island is well within the Brant's wintering range. However, I can't recall any December Island records in my meagre 3 years of birding. MERGING WITH MERGANSERS Photography in heavy overcast conditions is usually a lost cause unless the subject is reasonably close. Such was the case with the Red-breasted Mergansers at Deep Bay. It was high tide and a small flock was near the end of the spit. MERGING TO AN ADULT MALE? - Although I am not familiar with the moulting sequence of any bird, I suspect that this is a juvenile soon to become an adult male. Continuing on my speculative journey, I would assume this juvenile is just beginning its transition to an adult male. UNOBSESSED PART II - The second way to become unobsessed is to finally be granted the good fortune of experiencing a real live Snowy Owl. When I first went up north, every child I met had cute rabbit fur "Ookpiks" (Eskimo for Snowy Owl) for sale, but as I mentioned previously, I had not had the privilege of the real thing. However, just as I finished my round of golf today, I got a message from Don Cameron, proprietor of the Englishman River Gallery. THE SNOWY WAS IN!!!! (Thanks, Don.) My golf buddies must have thought I had a medical emergency as I sprinted to my car and headed north. For the next hour I was in Snowy Heaven. As I drove up to the gallery, there it was - a big white, fluffy ball on the white fence. The Snowy was totally unconcerned as I carefully worked my way around for a better angle. At most it would open one eye as if to say please don't bother me. In about 15 minutes, it actually reached behind and used its bill to scratch an itch or something. As it faced me again, that was the only time I got to see its bill. After an hour, it didn't seem like the Snowy was going to do anything but sleep. Maybe I should have taken some lemmings with me. Anyway, I was happy. I had seen my first Snowy. I had secretly asked Santa for a Snowy for Christmas, but now that I've seen the Snowy, I wonder if he would spring for a new digital camera? NANAIMO - BACKYARD WILDBIRD & NATURE STORE SAVE-ON FOODS (WOODGROVE) SAVE-ON FOODS (COUNTRY CLUB) CHAPTERS FALCONER BOOKS COLE'S PORT ALBERNI - CLOCKTOWER GALLERY COURTENAY - GRAHAM'S JEWELLERS SAVE-ON FOODS SIDNEY - VICTORIAN BIRD HOUSE COMOX - BLUE HERON BOOKS BOWSER - LIGHTHOUSE GIFTS DEEP BAY - SAANICH - WILD BIRDS UNLIMITED VICTORIA - BOLEN BOOKS MUNRO'S CAMPBELL RIVER - CAMPBELL RIVER MUSEUM BOOK BONANZA SAVE-ON FOODS DUNCAN - VOLUME 1 BOOKSTORE CHEMAINUS - LITTLE SHOP OF NOVELS LADYSMITH - SALAMANDER BOOKS NANOOSE - SCHOONER COVE MARINA SOOKE - SOOKE HARBOUR HOUSE
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