JOURNALS
February 11, 2026 - A CLOSE ENCOUNTER WITH COOPER
You guessed it. Cooper is a Cooper's Hawk - a juvenile Cooper's to be exact. I'm sure you've all seen Cooper's Hawks but up close and personal? By close I mean almost within touching distance close. Believe or not, I had such an experience on Feb. 11.
After a brisk and refreshing morning stroll to the Englishman River estuary I drove slowly towards the gate of the new nature centre. I was about 10 meters away when I was startled by a Cooper's Hawk landing on the ground right in front of me. He proceeded to dart into a bush and flushed a black bunny that scurried across the road and under a pile of logs. Cooper flew up onto the gate post, surveyed the situation, then cruised over to the pile of logs to look for the bunny.
With the bunny safely concealed under the logs, Cooper reluctantly admitted defeat and flew to a nearby hydro pole. After several minutes of meditation and relaxation he flew across the road onto a log by the beach.
I followed hoping that Cooper had some prey to pursue, but he just sat like a lump on the log with his back to the morning sun. I wasn't sure what was happening, but I took a couple of record shots then stood and watched for about ten minutes hoping for a vole or mouse to pop up for some action. Unfortunately, this wasn't a rodent day so I decided to carefully approach Cooper to encourage him to hop up to the bank or fly to the nearby Douglas-fir. I was within 3 meters, but Cooper seemed oblivious to my presence or didn't care. He just turned his head to give me the hawk-eye then turned his eyes away from me. At this point I was too close for my 500 mm lens so I pulled out my iphone for a brief video. 3 m was still too far for the iphone so I inched closer and closer. I was two steps from Cooper when I reached out and shot a video of him turning his head to look at me then away. I tried to strike up a conversation with him. I asked him why he was so trusting, but he just ignored me. Finally, I backed off until I was far enough for a head shot then proceeded back to my car. Cooper was still there when I got in my car, but he finally flew as I drove off.
I have had close encounters with shorebirds, snipes, Pygmy Owls, Grouse, and even eagles, but this was my first with a Cooper's. I have no explanation why I was permitted to get so close. I'm known as a bird-friendly person, but Cooper didn't know that. Normally, the hawk would have flown as soon as I was 20 m away, but 2 steps? One more step and I could have touched him. I know he was enjoying the warm morning sun but was that enough to allow potential danger to be so close? As my high school shop teacher would say when trying to understand the mysteries of student behaviour - GOD ONLY KNOWS!
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February 24, 2026 - A VISIT WITH KASSIE THE KESTREL
Birding these days is like a crapshoot. You never know whether you'll find anything unlike the good old days when you couldn't help but encounter birds wherever you went. That's how my day started last week. First it was Little Mountain hoping for a Sooty Grouse, Pygmy Owl, or even an Anna's Hummingbird, but nothing. However, the cup was still half full - the air was fresh, the silence was therapeutic, and the view was magnificant.
My next stop was DBL to see the eagles. In the past there would be at least a 100 eagles present at this time of the year looking for a free lunch. Today there was only one sitting on top of a distant compost pile - too far for a decent shot. I was disappointed but not depressed. You guessed it. The cup was half full. The trail beside DBL was straight and long. It was the perfect place to get in some steps. I didn't mention it before, but it is important for me to get as many steps as I could every day not just for general fitness but to rebuild my hemoglobin level. I spent some time with the Grim Reaper last year, and I am still recovering. Part of the my recovery strategy is to get my daily step count up to 10,000/day - one for every species of birds in the world. Besides the steps, there were also scores of Common Ravens gliding with the wind and thermals right beside the trail to amuse me. They weren't my photo targets, but they were still fun to watch.
Just down the hill from DBL was Coldwater Road that runs along the edge of a large field. There are usually one or two American Kestrels on the hydro line that crosses the field. I hadn't bothered chasing them for the past couple of years, but I was ready today. Would anybody be home?
I was in luck. The female kestrel was home on her usual hydro line perch. I pulled over and took a shot out the car window then sat and watched to see what she would do next.
A few minutes later, she took flight. I thought that was the end of my photo session, but it wasn't. She didn't fly far before she started hovering. She was too far away for any reasonable shots, but after 30 seconds or so she flew closer and hovered again. This time she was close enoigh for a decent shot.
She seemed to hover forever but finally had her prey in her sights. Adjusting her wings, she launched her attack. Unfortunately, I was blocked out by a large blackberry thicket and couldn't see if the she caught her prey or missed.
My visit with the kestrel was the highlight of the day. I did check a few other locations, but birds were scarce and no other photo opportuniies were available. But, one good opportunity is all I needed to fill the cup especially when there are now fewer birds than ever.
March 7, 2026 - BRANT AT THE SALAD BAR
Brant begin showing up around Parksville in January, but the larger flocks don't start showing up until late February and March to coincide with the annual herring spawn. After the spawn copius amounts of herring eggs become dislodged from sea floor and seaweed and wash to shore to become fodder for numerous avian species like gulls, shorebirds, and Brant. It has become an annual ritual not only for the birds but also the folks who enjoy seeing and/or photographing the spectacle. However, before the herring eggs become available, the birds still have to eat, and for the Brant, their staple is eel grass and sea lettuce often brought in by the incoming tide.
Like many wildlife photos, it's a case of being in the right place at the right time, and that's just what happened on March 7. I was enjoying a morning stroll to the Englishman estuary when I spotted a flock of Brant, American Wigeons, and gulls on a sandbar at the mouth of the river. The Brant were sunning themselves, but as the tide pushed in a few Brant waddled into the water and started ducking for seaweed. I stood still with my camera ready and watched as the water gradually covered the sand towards me bringing the Brant and sea lettuce with it. With the sun at my back the glassy look of the sea lettuce was highlighted.
In most years the herring spawn somewhere in the Oceanside region, but this year was the exception. I'm not sure whether the Brant and other birds adjust and follow the herring or just do without the herring eggs.
March 18, 2026 - SWARMING SWALLOWS
Early spring is the best time of the year for finding birds. In addition to our year-round species, most of our winter birds are still with us, and summer migrants are starting to arrive. In the past two weeks, photographers have been posting photos of Tree and Violet-green swallows catching insects as they swarm over various ponds and waterways foraging for insects.
Spring swarming is a common practice with the swallows as it increases their likelihood of finding insect hatches, and it is a protective mesasure as swarms of swallows make it difficult for a predator to home in on an individual. As well, at times the swallows will actually mob the predator until it admits defeat. One last thought - birds of a feather flock together. It's also a social thing. Just like people, birds also enjoy the company of others.
The ideal situation for photographing swallows is during a quiet, windless day at a ripple-less and waveless pond with the sun at your back. Actually, a bright day with filtered sunlight would even be superior in terms of reducing blow-out and hasrh shadows. A calm, windless day with no ripples or waves on the water is perfect not only to present a clean and pleasing background, but also to allow your camera to track and auto-focus at an optimal level. Ripples and wave often confuse the auto-focus and tracking mechanism of the camera. However, the ideal situation rarely arises so you have to take what you get and make the best of the situation. Such was the case on March 16 when I found the swallows swarming and busily feeding at Morningstar Pond. Unfortunately, the sun was in my eyes and most of the pond was in ripples for the wind gusting up to 25 km/h but, the cup was half full. The swallows were present, a narrow strip of water about 5 meters wide was protected from the wind, and I was able to shoot towards the north with the sun quartering on the swallows. It was a limited and difficult window of opportunity but better than nothing.
Photographing swallows in flight is similar to trying to photograph flying mosquitoes. Finding them in your lens is like winning the lottery. Their constant high speed motion, erratic flight patterns, and small size present a huge challenge. On the other side of the lens many cameras now have sophisticated tracking and auto-focusing capabilities, and then there is the camera operator. Practice definitely helps. My photo buddies like Pius and Steve are now veterans at swallow photography and have no difficulty capturing the excellent images. On the other hand, not to make excuses, this was only my third concerted effort to photograph swallows. Last year my first attempt was also at Morningstar under difficult wind and sun conditions. None of my results were worth keeping. My second experience was at Tyee Spit in Campbell River. After a brief encounter with breeding plumaged Pacific Loons I noticed the Barn Swallows swarming along the water's edge. The conditions were ideal with the sun at my back and the waters fairly calm. After a 100 or so attempts, I managed a couple of decent captures.
With a less than ideal conditions last week at Morningstar I settled in for the task. I don't know how many times my left arm ached with fatique from holding the camera in a ready position to track and shoot, but it was many. I only had an hour before I had to leave for an appointment so I didn't hesitate. By the time I quit, the camera counter registered 538 clicks. Most of the images were either partials, out of focus, or nothing at all but, there were a couple of keepers. They were all fairly large crops, but suitable to tell the story.
Notice the insect in the bill of the swallow. Swallows do more than their share at controlling insect populations. I was surprised but pleased to be able to see the fly after heavy cropping.
It's difficult to see the violet plumage on a sitting Vilolet-green Swallow, but it's totally exposed when in flight.
The perfect moment for a swallow shot is just when it's about to grab an insect. The duller plumage on this bird distinguishes it as a female. Okay, it might not be the perfect moment, but beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, and I like it.
Despite my 1% success rate, the swallow shoot was exhilarating and the hour went by too quickly. I actually returned later in the afternoon when the sun was more at my back and the wind had calmed a bit. There was only one problem. The swallows had moved on.
March 13, 2026 - HERRING SPAWN REPORT
Despite the protests of numerous scientists and environmental groups, the controversial annual herring fishery commenced on March 1 for the seine operators and March 4 for the gill netters. When the fishery closed on Mar. 13, 11,554 tons of herring had been removed from the Salish Sea population.
As a keystone species the herring is the critical part of the marine ecosystem, and as its abundance has declined so have all the other fish and invertebrate species that depend on it. At one time there were 5 major herring populations in BC, but only one remains, and it is surviving on life-support. The problem is that fishermen believe there is an endless supply of fish in the ocean, and left to their own devices they will continue to fish until there is none left. Flashback to Alaska in 1930. The Alaska Fish and Game Department saw the stocks declining and recommended the closure of the fishery. The fishermen did not heed the advice and continued fishing until 1939 when no more herring could be found. Flashback to the 1950's when the Atlantic cod was being sustainably harvested by traditional methods like handlines and small nets. About 250,000 tons of cod was harvested annually providing food and economic benefits to thousands of fishermen and related support industries. In the late 1950's large trawlers and factory boats from other countries arrived to to harvest not just the cod but also haddock, herring, and any other edible species. By 1968 the annual catch was over 800,000 tons, and fish stocks began to decline. Seven years later the annual catch was down to 300,000 tons. To help protect fish stocks, Cabada and US established a 200 mile limit to exclude foreign fishing. The only problem was that Canadian factory boats and trawlers continued fishing. As well, the new technology with huge drag nets scouring the sea bed was introduced so not only was more fish caught, the reproductive and feeding ecosystem of the cod was also being destroyed. Steep declines in the fishery continued and in 1988 government scientists recommended that the quotas be cut in half. Unfortunately, economic greed and political ignorance won over and the over-fishing continued. In 1992 the catch was down to 1,00 tons, and a ban was finally imposed. 42,000 people lost their jobs and many small fishing communities were devastated. The closure lasted 32 years and reopened in 2024 with lower quotas imposed.
The situation with the west coast herring is eerily similar to the Atlantic cod. At one time herring was so abundant around Nanaimo and Nanoose Bay that during spawning time the sheer volume of the spawning mass would force millions of herring onto the shore forming knee deep windrows of rotting herring along the beaches. Historical catches reached as high as 237,600 tons in 1962-63, but it wasn't sustainable. Despite the warnings of scientists, excessive fishing continued until the stock was almost depleted, and a moratorium was finally imposed in 1968. Four out of the five major populations in BC were decimated and the only population left was the Strait of Georgia. Fortunately there was sufficient biomass for the herring to recover, and the sac roe fishery for Japan was opened in 1972. (The Japanese herring fishery peaked at 970,000 tons but collapsed in 1958 because of over-fishing.)
In 1983 DFO imposed a catch quota of 20% of the estimated biomass. At first the 20% quota seemed reasonable, but stocks declined steadily until 2020 a steady decline.
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