These five photos were taken yesterday, 4 August 2023, when I took a drive SW of Calgary. On the way home, I called in for just a few minutes at Frank Lake, hoping to find that the wild Maximillian Sunflowers would still be in bloom. Last year, I found several nice insects on the flowers and leaves. This time, however, there were maybe half a dozen flowers left, all of them basically finished. Not a single insect to be seen. I took a quick, distant photo or two of some of the American White Pelicans, but I was just too tired after driving in the SW and wanted to get home.
When I decided to go for a drive, after being at home for three weeks, there were two birds that I was hoping I might get to see. One was a Western Kingbird - I think I did see one a few weeks ago, in flight, but I wasn't sure. This time, I was in luck, coming across a family, waiting to be fed.
The other bird that I kept my eyes open for was a Ferruginous Hawk. Though I have seen them on various outings over the years, to me it's always a thrill when I am lucky enough to see one. As you can see in one of the photos, the one yesterday was standing on top of a power pole - of course a branch or a fence post would have been really nice. I pulled over and spent less than a minute taking a few shots, and then happily continued on my drive. This was the first time I had seen this species SW of Calgary.
The weather was not exactly good - hazy (smoky?) and by about 4:30 pm, the sky darkened and all the cars on the highway had their headlights on.
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