Bird Counts and New Photos

Happy New Year everyone!

So, I finished up doing seven bird counts in the end. Each one just as fun as the next, and the decent weather stayed unseasonably mild for everyone involved.

Some of the bird (and mammal ) highlights included :

Gyrfalcon - a gray-phase bird at Elbow
Northern Goshawk - a juvenile at Elbow
Bald eagle - many at Gardiner Dam and one in Saskatoon
Snowy Owl - several around Harris
American Tree Sparrow - 1 at Elbow
Killdeer - a lingering bird at an icy creek near Gardiner Dam
American White Pelican - 5 individuals still at Gardiner Dam
Eurasian Collared Dove - a few at Gardiner Dam, and at Elbow
White-winged Scoter - Gardiner Dam
Horned Grebe - Gardiner Dam
Red-necked Grebe - Gardiner Dam
Bufflehead - 1 in Saskatoon
Golden-crowned Kinglet - 1 at Sask River Forks and 4 in Saskatoon
American Robin - 1 at Harris
Hoary Redpoll - a couple at Pike Lake

Long-tailed Weasel ( personal highlight for me, as I hadn't had a good look at one before )


Here are some new photos :


Long-tailed Weasel



Golden-crowned Kinglet



Killdeer




Snowy Owl



Bufflehead



Pine Grosbeak






Common Redpoll




Bald Eagle

First Place Prize

Greetings friends, I'm happy to reveal, I just won first place in the 'Welovebirds" Photo competition, sponsored by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and NRDC.

My winning image of six Saw-whet Owl chicks can be seen on their website here :

http://www.welovebirds.org/page/top-10-photos-winter-2011

Christmas Bird Counts...

Well, its that time of year again, and I'm happy to be doing another batch of bird counts, six to be exact.
There's always the possibility of finding something rare too, and I'm always on the lookout for mammals that I've not seen before!

Here's a Northern Flicker that I got as it was coming in for a landing at the bird bath a few weeks ago :

'Saskatchewan Birds in Pictures' Book

Greetings friends. I'm happy to announce the release of my first publication. It is a collection of some of my favourite photos of nearly 120 birds found within the Province of Saskatchewan.

For a preview of some of the pages and to order, just visit the website below. Thanks for looking!

http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/2627171

November Update

Greetings friends. I have been busy processing many photos over the past few weeks, and trying to cram in birding and work at the same time.
Saskatoon now has its annual covering of snow, that is now unlikely to go anywhere until at least March!
So now comes the beginning of Winter birds, & birding!
I can't believe its almost time to start the Christmas Bird Counts again...

I hope you enjoy these new photos :

Gray Jay



Ruffed Grouse




White-breasted Nuthatch



Black-capped Chickadee









Blue Jay



Merlin



Northern Flicker



Pine Siskin



Yellow-rumped Warbler

2012 Saskatchewan Birds Calendar

Greetings friends! My 2012 Saskatchewan Birds Calendar is now ready to order. Professionally coil-bound and printed on high quality photo paper. The calendar is now bigger and better at 11x17 inches, with a full colour photo for each month that fills the page, but is still the same price at $20.00 For a preview of the pages and for shipping costs (if needed), please email me at : nikovich@gmail.com
Local buyers are also welcome to collect their calendars from me personally, so please email me to make arrangements.
There is no limit on ordering, so feel free to order multiple copies if needed, for Christmas presents etc.

Here is a sample of the inside :

Catch-Up Time Again!

Greetings friends. I find myself  just about 2 months late with any recent updates, so thought it high time I shared some new images taken since my last post.
Our backyard has been a flurry of activity, with many of the expected fall migrants coming and going, with a nice selection of sparrows, some warblers and raptors!
So far this Fall, our yard has been host to over 40 species of birds, including a couple of new additions that I didn't see last year.
Such species have included ( I won't list all )  :  Harris's Sparrow,  White-crowned and White-throated Sparrow, Lincoln's , Clay-colored, Chipping and Tree Sparrows, Nashville, Mourning, Palm, Yellow-rumped, Orange-crowned and Tennessee Warbler, American Redstart, Purple Finch, Ruby-crowned Kinglet and Brown Thrasher.

Old man winter will soon be upon us already, which actually is a wonderful time of year for nature photography, even though it can be bitterly cold, but is actually one of my favorite seasons. There can be great opportunities for Owls and there is always the chance of seeing something rare.

I hope you enjoy these new photos :-)


Sharp-shinned Hawk - a backyard visitor .....

Brown Thrasher - another visitor to the pond this fall ...

Barn Swallow - these acrobatic birds were taken at Greenwater Lake Provincial Park...

Black & White Warbler - one of my favourite warblers, taken at local  park....

Palm Warbler - I've had several of these visit the backyard this Fall ...

Yellow-rumped Warbler - I'm still seeing these little  beauties in the backyard...

Pine Siskin - These feisty finches are also regular backyard visitors, but this one was from a park...

Turkey Vulture - This handsome fellow was one of 2 youngsters being tagged this summer by a licenced bird bander. The birds will then be monitored and their progressed tracked....

Osprey - I found this awesome hunter of fish along our river one morning...

Cedar Waxwing - I found this gorgeous species perched on some wolf willow bushes at a local lake...