Scenes, Wildlife, and Flora of the Vermilon River. A Post to Camera Critters and Scenic Sunday.

Clearing N. East Track Wetland.

I wasn't going to include any scenery in this post, but some how these photos got left out of the Friday post. This clearing was according to local history the site of a cabin, which it may have been as the clearing is very well laid out. You can see the effect of what little sun we've had on the greening in the clearings but other areas are just starting.

I included another shot of the channel which was cleaned out and where I always stop by to see if the otters or muskrat are back. See the branches back in the water, I suspect they're back, but I'll have to bide my time to see them.


Otter or Muskrat Channel.




Chestnut-sided Warbler.




White-crowned Sparrow.





Well onto the wildlife. The  chestnut-sided Warbler was a real find and was in the woods just north of the wetland.


I also saw this white-crowned Sparrow along with three or four others in the same area. That means they're back home now.

Female Goldfinch



Male Goldfinch.





And of course no hike would be complete without some Goldfinch photos.


Gray Jay.




This Gray Jay or Whiskey Jack was in the Long lake wetlands actually on the opposite side from me. They're even more playful than Blue Jays. The name Whiskey Jack is based on their aboriginal name which sounds like Whiskey Jack. He's at the limit of my lens reach.

The Raven is a long shot also and at first I thought he was a crow, but the shaggy mane at the back of his head probably means he's a Raven.

Raven



Male Robin.






I always have time for Robins, because they're handsome and such beautiful singers, especially early in the morning.




And yes the female Pine Siskin is fine she's just having a little rest after lunch, and her feathers are puffed against the cold.

Female Pine Siskin



Female Hairy.




I put the woodpeckers side by side for comparison. The female Hairy is recognizable by her beak size and the female Downy by the spots on her tail feathers.


Female Downy.




Blueberry Flowers.




I put in some more flower photos because the forest is starting to come alive in the clearings where the little bit of sun has been able to permeate. These blueberries will provide staple food to me, the bears and other wild life, as well the locals pick them to supplement their income. There is no comparison between wild and domestic blueberries.

Woolly Violets.



Growth.






The Violets grow in patches, and therefore make up for their small size.



A Post to Camera Critters @ http://camera-critters.blogspot.com/ and Scenic Sunday @ http://scenicsunday.blogspot.com/

Winter Wildlife of the Vermilon River. A Post to Camera Critters.

Northern Raven Eating Snow.



Same Northern Raven




Close up of Our New Friend.




Blue Jay




Black-capped Chicadee




Female RedPoll




Male RedPoll



Female RedPoll

Red or Pine Squirrel



Female Hairy Woodpecker




Female Hairy Woodpecker.



Female Evening Grossbeak



American Goldfinch.

 When I first began this blog I wondered if I would have enough wildlife to post, and here I sit with 4 full memory cards. Computer transfer files not even touched. I'm blessed beyond thousands with an abundance of photos, and outdoor activities even in a harsh climate. And of course a good buddy to do all those activities with. I don't have to drive to sightings, I just put on my winter gear and walk in any direction to a wilderness forest complete with exotic subjects, and I never return empty handed.

A post to Camera Critters @ http://camera-critters.blogspot.com/

A New Friend of the Vermilon River. A Post to World Bird Wednesday.

Photo 1



Photo 2



Photo 3



Photo 4



Photo 5



Photo 6



Photo 7



Photo 8

I have mentioned frequently that I see very few local people on my hikes as the forest and wildlife does not appeal to them. But I now know we're spending too much time alone in the bush when this is one of our new friends. I guess he thinks of himself as our East Forest Guardian, after all we have Hugin our Raven in the west, and now we're covered in the east. After he has taken the peanut you can still see it in his mouth in the last 3 photos. I might add that he took 3 peanuts at once so you can imagine how big he is.

A Post to World Bird Wednesday @ http://pineriverreview.blogspot.com/

Part 3 of Northern Ravens of the Vermilon River. A Post to my World Tuesday.

See the shaggy feathers and the distinctive beak.



Note the distinctive Raven beak





See the food clutched in his beak



Having established the Raven's ancestry,and given some other interesting characteristics, let's move onto their intelligence.

Ravens have some 30 calls which are used for social interaction ranging from danger alerts to food alerts. Ravens can mimic other birds as well as humans. One Raven may mimic, in fact, a partner to guide them home.

They have large brains and show a problem solving capability as well as other cognitive processes of imitation and insight.An experiment to look at insight and problem solving involved suspending a piece of meat from a perch. To be successful, the bird had to sit on the perch, pull up the string, stand on the loops in the string to gradually get at the meat. Four out of five Ravens were successful. I know humans who couldn't work that out.

 They appear to have the ability to manipulate other animals to work for them. For instance, calling wolves or foxes to open carcasses for them for easy feeding.

They also appear to play for instance sliding in the snow, or engaging in aerobatics. All of these facts were taken from the same wikipedia article quoted in the Part 2 Raven post.

Feel like raising the Raven Banner yet?

I haven't moved onto a post on animals yet, but I think my admiration and respect for nature is growing exponentially, and for humans is declining at the same rate. 

A Post to My World Tuesday @ http://showyourworld.blogspot.com/

Part 2 Northern Ravens of the Vermilon River. A Post to Scenic Sunday.

Now that we've established these fellows' grand ancestry and proper name, let's add a few more facts to indicate their acumen. But first a side comment. In the other post I reported these fellows were as large as 2.6 lbs only to find out that their weight could go up to 4.4 lbs.Also the California clade which differs from our Raven genetically,also evolved into the Chihuahuan Raven, which is genetically different also. Busy guys aren't they. Now the new facts:
1) Their lifespan is 10-15 years in the wild, but longer in captivity possibly up to 40 years.
2)They will hide and protect their hordes of food from other ravens or birds.
3) They actively steal from foxes, but will form a symbiotic attachment to wolf packs to scavenge their kills.
4) They mate for life, although they may practice sexual infidelity when their partner is away. Where do these scientists get this stuff from?

A few notes:
a) I set out the forest problem in the UK because the situation is dire and represents another dumb right wing move. As I said forests are an international concern because of their ability to trap carbon. I gave the web site for you no matter where you live to read about the UK Government's proposal and to possibly sign the petition to prevent privatization.

I do not live in the UK.

But I do live in a forest that was criminally damaged by mining.And I mean: by the companies that mine, by the people who worked at the mines, by a government that condoned it, and a citizenry that allowed it. All Canadians!!

So treat it as you would a threat to the rain forest in South America, and allow the UK government the embarrassment of looking like a third world country that the world has to spank. Go to http://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/protect

b) The wiki article says that the Raven is distributed all over North America, but several people said that they had never seen one or had difficulty identifying the difference between a crow or a raven. They're bigger, but the ID mark for me is the big black curved beak,the shaggy neck feathers and possibly the shaggy head feathers, but the first two for sure. See photo #1.

One more note. I'm going to post a third post to My World to talk about the IQ of these fellows as it's high, probably higher than most politicians.

All these facts are from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northern_Raven

A Post to Scenic Sunday @ http://scenicsunday.blogspot.com/