These blog posts were written by Pam Laing, Okanagan birder. The spectacular photographs were taken by Laing as well. Laing is an Okanagan resident.
When non-birders think of sparrows they think of the common House Sparrow, the bird that says, “Cheep, cheep” in our hedges and is abundant in built-up areas. But House Sparrows are not true sparrows, were introduced here from Europe and... [Continue Reading]
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 theSteller’s Jay. I wrote an article about Canada Jays in... [Continue Reading]
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... [Continue Reading]
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... [Continue Reading]
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 and winter.... [Continue Reading]
Orioles are a large group of birds found across the world, but the only oriole known to breed here in summer is the Bullock’s Oriole. In the east, Baltimore Orioles are the summer visitor.... [Continue Reading]
Red-winged Blackbird, Yellow-headed Blackbird, and Brewer’s Blackbird One and perhaps two of today’s birds are probably familiar to you, the other might not be. They are all blackbirds, members of the Icterid family, a group comprising (in our valley) these... [Continue Reading]
You might suppose that wintertime is not a good time for a bird that spends its life near running water, but in fact this species is able to survive in icy cold water, and manages to feed even under riverside... [Continue Reading]
At this time of year, when so many of our colourful summer breeding birds are winging their way southwards for the colder months, it is a pleasure to turn our attention to birds that stay here year round. This time... [Continue Reading]
Last summer I introduced you to our largest flycatchers, the kingbirds, Eastern Kingbird and Western Kingbird. This year let’s look at other flycatchers that also come here in summer to breed and raise their young on abundant insect food during... [Continue Reading]
