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Brant
Dec 21, 2013 16:36:16 GMT -8
Post by ChrisB on Dec 21, 2013 16:36:16 GMT -8
My friend, Nathan Douglas, alerted me to a couple of grayish Geese a couple hundred yards East of the old fort at Fort Langley, in a hay field. I scanned the rest of the flock and found this!! I'm thinking one of the Bean Geese, probably Taiga? C
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Brant
Dec 21, 2013 16:59:02 GMT -8
Post by ChrisB on Dec 21, 2013 16:59:02 GMT -8
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Brant
Dec 21, 2013 17:22:22 GMT -8
Post by Gord on Dec 21, 2013 17:22:22 GMT -8
Chris, thanks for passing along the report. A very nice mixed flock of geese there. I think the first two are young Snow Geese. I wonder if that Brant is the one that was out this way earlier this year. Even for Langley, a Brant is not to be expected to be seen away from their typical coastal homes.
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Brant
Dec 21, 2013 17:34:29 GMT -8
Post by ChrisB on Dec 21, 2013 17:34:29 GMT -8
Ouch. How embarrassing. LOL
Sorry about the false alarm. Brant was my first thought, but there was no white neck ring to speak of.
My apologies.
Should the Headline be changed so no one else's time is wasted?
Chris
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Brant
Dec 22, 2013 21:45:10 GMT -8
Post by murraybrown on Dec 22, 2013 21:45:10 GMT -8
Chris, no need to feel embarrassed about a sighting like that. I have birded for many years and have yet to see a Brant anywhere other than at the seashore. And then to have a couple of Snow Geese there as well. I'm impressed. Then I took a look at your yard list and could hardly believe what I was reading. 146 species is amazing! Looking at your pictures you have a beautiful property with the pond etc. I'm Looking forward to more of your pictures and reports. Thanks for sharing.
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Brant
Dec 22, 2013 21:57:20 GMT -8
Post by Dave on Dec 22, 2013 21:57:20 GMT -8
Nicely said, Murray! We certainly encourage pictures of birds to tackle the ID of and have all made enough errors that we have lost count, but we all are always learning! Keep an eye on those large geese flocks. All kinds of things can be mixed in. Brant is a great goose to see in the valley. 2 Snow Geese are not too shabby either! What a beautiful property you have!
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Brant
Dec 22, 2013 23:52:32 GMT -8
Post by kestrel on Dec 22, 2013 23:52:32 GMT -8
Great sighting! Love your property .
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Brant
Dec 23, 2013 8:33:52 GMT -8
Post by ChrisB on Dec 23, 2013 8:33:52 GMT -8
Murraybrown, Dave, kestrel,
Thanks for the kind words. I'm a little rusty, and apparently incautious lately. I was taking photos of the Snow Geese with a new Canon T2i that I have barely mastered switching from auto to manual focus when I saw the Brant. I kept snapping shots without using my bins. They were maybe 150 yards away. When I looked up from checking my iBird App for ID the Brant was gone. The light contrast due to snow allowed me to imagine that the orange legs and on the bill just wasn't picked up by the camera because of the snow. To top it off the iBird App I used to identify it does not show the white fringe on the primaries of Brant. And, I thought the slight ring around the neck of my photo was just the light playing off the neck feathers of a Bean Goose. Those are my excuses, and I'm sticking with them. Haha.
I got into birding because of the variety of birds I noticed on the property when I moved here 23 years ago. It helped to have Glen Ryder live here in our cottage from 1998 to 2003. He got the Nelson's Sparrows, Cassin's vireo, Mountain Bluebird, etc. It's getting harder to add to the yard list these past few years. The two Sandhill Cranes flying over in 2011 and two Western Kingbirds passing through this Spring were the last additions.
We run a B&B and a Tree/Shrub/Plant Nursery so we're always here if birders want to stop by and try to add to our yard list. Just Private Message me.
Thanks again for your patience.
Chris
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Brant
Dec 23, 2013 11:40:36 GMT -8
Post by murraybrown on Dec 23, 2013 11:40:36 GMT -8
Chris, I don't know if you have heard, but Glenn passed away very recently. He was a real interesting character and genuinely nice guy. You couldn't have had a better birder on your property for all those years and it's not much wonder that you have the list you do. He will be missed.
Murray
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Brant
Dec 23, 2013 14:54:03 GMT -8
Post by ChrisB on Dec 23, 2013 14:54:03 GMT -8
Yes Murray, I heard and agree that he's sorely missed. Wayne Campbell, Phil Henderson, and others are putting together a memorial of some kind to celebrate Glenn's numerous contributions, in various fields.
Chris
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