Friday Nature Vibes
By The Water
I spent a lot of my youth in the desert, where going outside meant hot, dry air, brown landscapes, and cacti. I’ve grown to appreciate how beautiful that environment can be, but I cherish being by the ocean, with the damp, salty breezes and slippery shorelines. Here are some shots from recent seaside strolls.
Landscape with a rocky, seaweed-covered shore, calm ocean water, and snowy mountains in the background.
The first walk was a low-tide ocean shore. I love the big, slick piles of seaweed and all the little critters swimming around in the tide pools. I always struggle to keep my eyes on the ground so I don’t slip and fall, while also scanning the distance for camouflaged birds.
A black turnstone is hopping along a patch of vivid green seaweed that looks like cascading moss.
Black turnstones can be so hard to see until they move or hop onto a contrasting colour of seaweed. They were all over the shorline, but every time I looked down to keep from tripping on the rocks, I’d look up again and have to truggle to see them.
A juvenile American golden plover perched on very tall, spindly legs on a pile of seaweed. A big female gull is feeding in the background.
This little plover was an exciting treat to see. As soon as I saw it, I knew it was different than what I’m used to seeing, but I really didn’t know what it was. I’m calling it a juvenile American golden plover because that’s my best guess after looking at ID pictures, but I’m really not sure. Maybe it’s a black bellied plover? If you know, please tell me in the comments! I posted to iNaturalist, but haven’t gotten anything definitive yet.
Male and female canvasbacks float in a group on a lagoon. One red-eyed male is flapping his wings while a couple of Canada geese watch as they drift by.
And here are a few photos from a lagoon walk with much less sketchy ground to cover. Canvasbacks are another new one for me and I loved how dramatic the red eye and silky red heads are. Plus, that beak is so pointy!
A whole crowd of lesser scaups is gathered on near the shoreline, preening and bathing.
I think these are lesser, not greater scaups because of their funky head shape. They were gathered in big numbers around the shore of the lagoon and it looked like it was bath time because everyone was busy cleaning themselves.
A male ring-necked duck floating in calm water. He’s got a strong white stripe and black tip on his beak.
A male lesser scaup in a lagoon. Compared to the ring necked duck, he has more mottled feathers, and no stripe on his beak.
Here’s a fun comparison between a couple look-alike ducks. I always think I’m seeing a scaup when I first see a ring-necked duck (left), but the big tell is that bold white stripe and black tip to the beak. Frankly, I don’t know where the ring on the neck is, seems more like a ring-beaked duck to me, but what do I know? The scaups also have a very cool pattern on their feathers, where the ring-necked ducks have more flat colouring. I usually see some ring-necked ducks hanging out in a pond near the lagoon and the scaups are more often in the lagoon itself.
A cute little song sparrow perched on a fencepost.
I’m finishing with this little song sparrow even though they don’t only hang out by the water. I see them lots of places around here, but I enjoy it every time I do. Just look at those fancy feet and toenails!
Are you more of a desert or water person? Tell me in the comments!
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