A Great Horned Owlet with Wanderlust

great horned owlet and adult in nest, markham, ontario

On May 12, Bob and I went to check on the Great Horned Owls’ nest previously observed in a Markham park in Ontario, Canada.  We found the 3-week old Great Horned owlet hunkered down out of sight.  After a few minutes, the owlet appeared over the lip of the nest and looked in our direction.  We were there and gone after 15 minutes. Read more

Great Horned Owlet Newly Hatched

great horned owl, markham, ontario

In early spring, 2021, Bob and I were contacted by a friend who had been tipped off to the location of a Great Horned Owl in our midst.  It turned out that there was a pair of these owls raising a newly-hatched chick near the urban area of Markham, Ontario. Read more

Northern Hawk Owl Winters In Southern Ontario

northern hawk owl, schomberg, ontario

Northern Hawk Owls are denizens of boreal forests and rarely leave their breeding grounds.  Some winters, however, for lack of food in their normal habitat, Northern Hawk Owls will venture into southern Canada and even the northern United States.  In 2019, nature enthusiasts like ourselves were thrilled to have a Northern Hawk Owl show up in the village of Schomberg in southern Ontario. Read more

Varied Thrush Enduring Ontario’s Cold Winter

Bob and I had been seeing reports of a Varied Thrush sighted in Central Ontario in early December 2019.  A denizen of forests in the Pacific Northwest of Canada and continental U.S.A., the visitor was far from home and seemed to be enduring Ontario’s cold winter quite well. Read more

A Northern Flicker Brings a Smile To Our Face

We are hoping that this bathing beauty brings a smile to your face during these Pandemic times, a Northern Flicker at our backyard water fountain.
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White Rhinoceros in Hluhluwe-Imfolozi, South Africa

The route we chose as a conduit between Hilltop Camp and the Nyalazi Gate in South Africa had us experiencing a couple of close calls on our last morning in    Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Game Reserve   .  One incident was when we came head-to-head with a pair of massive White Rhinoceros. Read more

Driving The Ecotour Road In Grasslands National Park

Image of jean sitting at the borderlands lookout, grasslands national park, saskatchewan

On our first full day at Grasslands National Park, after waking up very early and having a hearty breakfast, we took the advice of our hostess and set out to drive the Ecotour Road to the Borderlands Lookout.  It was a relaxing way to start our explorations on the heels of a very long travel day. Read more

“Into Africa” – Someday in the Post-covid World

A couple of weeks ago, I decided to make this video as part of my wife’s, Jean’s, birthday gift.  As you will see, this video highlights our travels to South Africa, and it features Jean.

Hopefully, you all enjoy it, and in a small way, you are able to take a short virtual tour of South Africa with Jean.

For now, because of the pandemic, we remain “Out Of Africa”.  Hopefully someday, Jean and I, and all of you, will be able to head back “Into Africa”.

 

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Eddie A Mandarin Duck on the Lam

Eddie, A Mandarin Duck on the Lam, Ontario, Canada

Mandarin Ducks breed in Eastern Siberia as far south as North Korea, and they winter by choice in southern China and Japan.  So, when a Mandarin Duck like Eddie shows up in a small town in Ontario, Canada, it creates a lot of excitement. Read more

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