I came across this noisy scene while walking the dog yesterday--a #NorthernPygmy-Owl enjoying a tasty meal of robin tartare. The alarm call tick-ticking of juncos alerted me to the situation in a nearby conifer tree. A tad grisly, but it truthfully represents the cycle of life, right? 🪶 #Owl #HopeBC

Still in the #Pantanal, this orange-backed troupial looks a bit like our local Bullock's oriole in BC. Same genus of birds-- #Icterus. The term "troupial" is from the French troupiale, meaning troop or flock, so named because of their penchant to gather. 🪶🌿🇧🇷 #BrazilBirds #AvesBrasil #BirdingInBrazil

From our #birding trip to #Brazil last August, the impressive #RufescentTigerHeron is named for its reddish-brown neck and head and coarse barred pattern particularly seen in the juvenile bird (second image). 🪶🌿🇧🇷 #brazilbirds #avesbrasil #birdinginbrazil #pantanal

With love to my special valentine @connielavon.bsky.social. I hope all family and friends have a day of peace and love. 🪶💕 #woodduckpair #valentinebirds #valentinesday

Really fun birdy article! Explore how people use Google to search for their favorite birds searchingforbirds.visualcinnamon.com 🪶

Early stocking stuffer idea!

. Yes, some say pineapple on a pizza is a Sin, but with a from scratch crust, homemade Andoullie Sausage, our own smoked Canadian Ham, fresh mushroom tomato sauce, and three cheeses.... it's a pretty good tasting #Sin! #fromscratch #pizza #dinner #eats #eater #realfood #cheflife #cheffood #foodie

This male #GreatAntshrike was keeping a close watch on me and fellow birders with those gorgeous ruby-red eyes. His black and white plumage contrast starkly with his mate's soft rufous-brown feathers, but she still has the lovely red eyes. Parque Mãe Bonifácia, Cuiabá. #brazilbirds #avesbrasil 🪶🌿🇧🇷

One more #kingfisher we were lucky enough to see in the #Pantanal. The #RingedKingfisher is like a super-sized belted kingfisher. They range through most of South America and up to the southern tip of Texas. Unfortunately, I was fighting dim evening light here. #brazilbirds #avesbrasil 🌿🪶🇧🇷

Good to get out, in spite of the chilly air.

This lovely #greenkingfisher was found in the #Pantanal, not far from the last posted Amazon kingfisher. Species range includes Mexico, Central & South America, and also extends into parts of Arizona & Texas. It's smallish at about 2/3 the size of the belted kingfisher. #brazilbirds #avesbrasil 🌿🪶🇧🇷

The Amazon kingfisher is a medium-sized #kingfisher found mostly in tropical lowlands from northern Mexico south to central Argentina. So happy to find this photogenic #bird perched by a shallow pond in the Pantanal region of Brazil last August. #amazonkingfisher #birdinginbrazil #avesbrasil 🌿🪶🇧🇷

Have you ever heard of the towhee two-step or more generically, the double-scratch? This is a foraging behaviour of some #birds such as this #SpottedTowhee where they hop backward, kicking out with both feet to scatter the substrate. Looks exhausting, but I guess an efficient way to find food. 🪶

A favourite #ornament. Happy Holidays everyone! #northernflicker #bird #birdornament 🎄🪶🌿

Gorgeous rocks, nicely displayed!

Luck was on our side when this #tapir wandered out of dense brush while we were watching for birds at the pond. This South American tapir is the largest native terrestrial mammal in the Amazon and is generally recognized as an endangered species. 🌿 🇧🇷 #wildlifeofBrazil #animalidelBrasile #pantanal

In August, @connielavon.bsky.social and I birded the #pantanal and #cerrado of Brazil's interior. Hundreds of fabulous birds were discovered, but we were also treated to sightings of other wildlife such as herds of the world's largest rodent, the Capybara. 🪶 🌿 🇧🇷 #wildlifeofBrazil #animalidelBrasile

This character was found at the edge of the Brazilian Cerrado thanks to its loud whinnying song. I love its descriptive name--white-eared puffbird. Seems quite appropriate given its puffed-up appearance! 🪶🌿🇧🇷 #brazilbirds #avesbrasil #birdinginbrazil #whiteearedpuffbird

Several different species of #Ibis were seen on our recent visit to the #Pantanal in #Brazil. Here's four of them distinguished by their large decurved bills, perfect for probing soft ground and mud for invertebrates and other small critters. ID in ALT. 🪶🌿🇧🇷 #brazilbirds #avesbrasil #birdinginbrazil

One of the prettiest finches we saw in the #Cerrado of #Brazil. But hang on a minute, after doing a little checking, it turns out this *red-crested finch* is currently classified as a #Tanager thanks to recent phylogenetic analyses. #redcrestedfinch #thraupidae #brazilbirds #avesbrasil 🇧🇷 🪶 🌿

Beautiful capture of the eastern version of the northern flicker.

Burrowing owls live in grasslands, deserts and other open habitats such as the Brazilian Cerrado, where this individual was found perched next to its burrow. They are daytime hunters, preying mainly on insects and small rodents. #owl #burrowingowl #brazilbirds #avesbrasil 🇧🇷 🪶 🌿

Northern Flicker on the west coast of Vancouver Island in September. My goal now, for comparison, is to get a similar shot of his eastern north American yellow-shafted cousin. 🪶 🌿 #northernflicker #woodpecker #birdinginbritishcolumbia #birdphotography #birdlove

❤️ these wildflowers. Nice shot, Connie!

Many song birds, such as this #SongSparrow, love nutritious Black-eyed Susan seeds through fall and winter. Good reason not to get too ambitious with garden fall cleanup! 👍🤗 #nodeadheading #birding #gardening #nature 🪶 🌱 🍁 🌿

Several #macaw species were seen on our recent trip to #Brazil, but they were a bit shy. Not surprising since they've been historically hunted for their feathers & illegal pet trade. The #Pantanal, in western Brazil, is the last stronghold of the endangered #HyacinthMacaw seen here. 🪶🌿 #avesbrasil

Although threatened by habitat loss and illegal trapping, Brazil is still home to around 35 named parakeet species. On our recent trip to the country, my DW and I were delighted to spot several of these lovely birds, four of which are seen here (named in ALT text). #avesbrasil #brazilbirds 🇧🇷 🪶

Brazil is home to ~20 species of #toucans, the highest number of any country. Catching images of 3 of these iconic tropical #birds on a recent trip was a thrill: the chestnut-eared aracari, toco toucan & channel-billed toucan. Each sport their own distinct bill colours. #avesbrasil #brazilbirds

Jabiru storks from a recent trip to central Brazil. It's a big bird with impressive wingspan, stretching up to 2.8 m. Looking ungainly on the ground, we saw it was a powerful and even graceful flier. The name, Jabiru, comes from the Tupi–Guaraní language and means "swollen neck." Good name for it! 🪶

The #northernlights were pretty amazing last night from my location in British Columbia. There may be another opportunity to see them tonight for some. It's raining here unfortunately 😮‍💨. Nov 12, 2025. Thanks to @connielavon.bsky.social for sharing my enthusiasm outside in the cold! 🔭🪐🌿 #astronomy

A pleasure!

Took advantage of the dry weekend to dig up our #dahlia tubers. With some melancholy, I felt compelled to grab some pictures of the few remaining #flowers saved to brighten the house. Thanks to @connielavon.bsky.social for help with the operation! #gardening #autumn 🌿🍁

This eccentric-looking guira cuckoo was spotted on our recent trip to Brazil. Despite their name, they build nests and don't lay eggs in other species' nests like old world cuckoos. They also don't have the archetypical call of the common cuckoos of Europe, but have a more shrill, hawk-like, call. 🪶

Looking for something Halloween-ish and came across this image taken from the kitchen window a couple of years ago. Missing is the witch flying on her broomstick! Title: Moon Over Qemqemó (a.k.a. Mt. Ogilvie in southern B.C., Canada). #risingmoon #moon #astronomy #nature 🌿

My DW’s nicely captured windows into miniature worlds of fungi, lichens and mosses. 🍄📸🌿

With a glare like that I'm glad I'm not a small bird or other critter! This ferruginous pygmy-owl is a small predator with a big appetite and like its northern cousin, can actually take down prey over twice its size. Central Brazil on a recent trip with @connielavon.bsky.social. #brazilbirding 🪶🌿🦉

Nice colours showing on the Fraser River yesterday morning. 🌿🍁 #HopeBC #Rivercolours #Fallcolours #Autumn #Dogwalk

It was a great fall day for watching bluebirds on the move yesterday. @connielavon.bsky.social and I even had a bright blue sky at a beautiful location surrounded by snow-dusted mountains. 🪶 🌿 #mountainbluebird #skagitvalleyprovincialpark #birding #bc #canada

🚨 Highway 5 Closure Update 🚨 The Coquihalla Highway (Highway 5) is closed in both directions between Hope and Merritt due to the Mine Creek wildfire near Britton Creek. ⚠️ Expect significant delays. Detours are available via Highway 1 and Highway 3. 📍 For updates, drivebc.ca

This here is a dragonfly called an Eight-spotted Skimmer. So, not being an Odonata-ologist and after a bit of research I found that you count the dark splotches on all four of the wings (not the white opaque spots) to make sense of the name. Hope this helps--it helped me anyway! 🤗 #bugsky 🌿

So many different kinds of wasps--all (and more) in the backyard herb garden! Tentative IDs: 1) Common Thread-waisted wasp, 2) European Paper Wasp, 3) Mexican Grass-carrying Wasp, 4) Great Golden Digger Wasp. Please let me know if I need to fix any IDs. #bugsky #wasps #hymenoptera #bcbugs 🌿 🐝

This, believe it or not, is a fly! Specifically, it is a representative of a genus (Spilomyia) of hoverflies that are experts in wasp mimicry. They look mean, but are actually harmless and beneficial pollinators. Found on parsley flowers in the backyard herb garden. 🌿 #bugsky #waspmimic

Nice #moonset tonight over the Olympic Mountains across the Puget Sound in Washington followed by some later amazing nighttime cloud effects.🌛🌠🌿 #moon #clouds

Pretty much at the northern terminus of its North American distribution, this beautiful California Tortoiseshell (Nymphalis californica) was seen in a sub-alpine area of Manning Provincial Park in southwest British Columbia a couple of weeks ago. 🌿 #bugsky #butterfly

Check out this American dipper's long legs and feet! They are perfectly-adapted for their aquatic lifestyle, using their strong toes and claws to grip the bottom of streams while walking underwater or clinging to rocks in swift currents. From a hike to Flood Falls, just outside of #HopeBC today. 🪶 🌿

I think these barn swallow babies are ready to fly the coop after 3 weeks in tight quarters! July 14th at International Point, Skagit Valley Provincial Park, British Columbia. 🪶

In Canada, long-term trends based on North American Breeding Bird Surveys and Christmas Bird Counts indicate a serious decline in evening grosbeak numbers. In spite of the sobering data, we've had an irruptive year here, possibly due to a huge increase of spruce budworm in our forests. 🪶 🌿 #HopeBC

#fungifriends 🍄📸

I was happily surprised to find this small (no larger than a 25-cent coin) colony of slime mold on fencing in the back yard. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe it belongs to the Stemonitis genus--chocolate tube slimes. Hope, BC, Canada. #slimemold 🌿 🍄

I just can't get enough of the exquisite wing venation of dragonflies. This four-spotted skimmer was photographed at Ross Lake just on the Canadian side of the Canada/US border in BC. It will be feeding mostly on mosquitoes, gnats and midges which are certainly plentiful at the location! #bugsky 🪲 🌿