The World Through Our Lens
At the time Bob and I visited Northern Ireland, we had only a casual interest in birds and animals, so it was just by happenstance that we took several photographs of the peculiar looking birds called Razorbill auks (Alca Torda) that were nesting on Carrick-a-Rede Island. What struck us about their appearance was the thick black beak that is so deep and blunt. Read more
It isn’t as if Bob and I have never seen Long-tailed Ducks before, previously known as Oldsquaws, but on one spring visit to Tommy Thompson Park, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, we noticed something quite unusual about this female as it swam near the lift bridge on the Leslie Street Spit. Read more
When Bob and I set out from Zitacuaro for San Blas on the Pacific Coast of Mexico, our spirits were high. Being a birding hotspot, our destination had us filled with anticipation. What we did not expect to find was the lush aquatic environment and the prolific population of shorebirds at Lago de Cuitzeo, which is found along Toll Highway 15D still in the State of Michoacan. Read more
Bob and I could think of no better way to shed the winter blahs than to go for a hike at Tommy Thompson Park, on the Leslie Street Spit here in Toronto, Ontario. That is where we came across a raft of Redhead Ducks. Read more
It always amazes me the different species of ducks that one can find right in your own backyard. Such was the case when Bob and I visited Tommy Thompson Park in Toronto where we came across numerous Greater Scaups. Read more
Our first morning in San Blas, Mexico, Bob and I awoke to the sounds of Great-tailed Grackles, church bells, and seabirds. From our third-floor balcony, a slim band of blue water was barely visible beyond the tall, swaying palm trees of the hotel’s inner courtyard, so we knew that an interesting walk lay ahead of us. After a relaxed breakfast, we navigated the dirt streets to the harbour where a huge Brown Pelican soared on the ocean breeze. Read more
Bob and I had made several attempts to photograph Wood Ducks at High Park over the past year, but it wasn’t until one sunny morning one spring that we actually succeeded in finding a pair of them in favourable light conditions that helped to show off their stunning plumage. Read more
The Great-tailed Grackles that Bob and I saw in Mexico were certainly impressive when it comes to grackles. On our first morning in Zitacuaro, as we made our way to the patio for breakfast, we did not recognize the ear-piercing call of a number of these birds as they stood sentinel on the hotel’s rooftop. Read more
Last spring, at home in Ontario, Bob and I had fervently hoped to see a Wilson’s Warbler as they migrated through our region to their breeding grounds in northern Canada. It was a total surprise to spot one in Mexico on our very first day on the ground there, and it was no further than a short walk from our hotel room at Hotel Rancho San Cayetano. Read more