December 25/26 - Front and Back Yard Birds

This is a quick post featuring a few birds seen in the yard over the holidays.

On Christmas Day, there was a Brown Creeper on the Douglas Fir tree in our front yard. I grabbed the Nikon camera and got a couple of poor shots. The bird is constantly on the move making it tough to get a clear shot.

Brown Creeper - Front Yard, Delta BC

The bird also blends in very well with the tree back, a good evolutionary survival trait. The next shot caught more detail with the sky as the background.

Brown Creeper - Front Yard, Delta BC

On boxing day I pointed the camera towards our back yard for the last time in 2019.

This is looking down from our deck into the blackberry brambles,  where a couple of finches were munching on leaf buds.

House Finch - Back Yard, Delta BC

Not a great shot of this Junco, which are quite common at this time of year at the feeders and in the yard.

Dark-eyed Junco - Back Yard, Delta BC

We maintain a Hummingbird feeder all year round, but this is the first time I remember seeing this bird on it...

Chestnut-backed Chickadee - Back Yard, Delta BC

Here's the usual occupant for the last yard photo of 2019

Anna's Hummingbird - Back Yard, Delta BC

December 14 - Great Blue Heron Reserve - Chilliwack BC

I volunteered to drive out to Chilliwack to pick up some golf passes that our group had purchased from the Chilliwack Golf Club. The Heron Reserve is not too far from there, so I paid a visit.

I've never had a lot of luck at this location for uncommon birds, but many of the usual suspects were present today.

There were good numbers of Ducks on the ponds.


Mallard - Great Blue Heron Reserve, Chilliwack BC 

I played with the crop on this photo of a flock or Ring-necked Ducks. Interesting mix of three males with one female.


Ring-necked Ducks - Great Blue Heron Reserve, Chilliwack BC

Here's a Cormorant hanging out with the Mallards.


Double-crested Cormorant and Mallards - Great Blue Heron Reserve, Chilliwack BC

Here's a bushy looking Squirrel.


Eastern Gray Squirrel - Great Blue Heron Reserve, Chilliwack BC

I was pretty well done here, but checked out the seed feeders before leaving. There was an assortment of House Finches partaking in the Sunflower seeds. I think the bird in the right background is a Red-winged Blackbird.

House Finches - Great Blue Heron Reserve, Chilliwack BC 

This guy looks happy...

House Finches - Great Blue Heron Reserve, Chilliwack BC

And finally I saw one of the namesake birds overhead.

Great Blue Heron - Great Blue Heron Reserve, Chilliwack BC