My most memorable encounter occurred while I was in college in 1975 when a northern saw-whet owl became my first pet owl — if only for twenty minutes ! He had torpedoed my dorm room
Red-eyed vireo windowwith quite a thud one evening , startling me to the point of investigating outside and retrieving the diminutive owl from the ground . He was quite compliant until he came to his full senses and started snapping . I had time only for a fellow student to take a quick picture before letting him go . Since then I have developed a particular fondness for owls , and over the years I have taken the opportunity to handle them whenever I can . What ’ s the adage : “ A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush ”?
FRANCIS : Owls are fascinating birds if for no other reason than how different they look . But it ’ s not normal to see them at 5:30 p . m . in early May , in one ’ s front yard . I had just come home from work when one of my sons called me about a bird making a racket outside . Sure enough , a blue jay was letting the whole neighbourhood know there was an unwelcome visitor in our midst . Grabbing
Long-eared owl my camera , I went carefully outside to see who was there — a long-eared owl ! It must have been rudely awakened by the blue jay and just sat on the ground coming to .
I started taking pictures , getting a little closer each time . As I did so , the owl gradually fluffed out its wings to be bigger . After seven shots , the photo shoot was over and it flew off . I was wet from the snow but I had my photo !
ADRIAN : To best enjoy this hobby , a few basic resources are needed . I have settled on an expensive 8x42 set of Zeiss binoculars for viewing at a distance . My three staple reference books are second-hand copies : The Birds of Alberta ( Salt and Salt 1976 ), Birds of Alberta ( Fisher and Acorn 1998 ) and The Birder ’ s Handbook ( Erlich , Dobkin and Wheye 1988 ). For camera shots , I use my old Canon Rebel XT along with a 75 to 300 mm Canon zoom lens . Two other newer tools for identification are the inexpensive apps Audubon Bird Guide and Merlin Bird ID for the iPhone . But of course the best resources are simply your eyes and ears at the ready whenever you are out .
FRANCIS : Birding starts out cheaply — you just spot birds with your eyes ! But then you want to see them closer , so you buy binoculars . Well , you want to prove what you saw , so you need a camera … with a telephoto lens . And then books such as Sibley ’ s Birds of North America are good guides when you ’ re not sure if that small exoticlooking bird belongs here .
ADRIAN : Regardless of the books and tools needed , it is the wonder and awe of beholding birds that satisfies one in this passion . They provide the colour and music of nature that fill our hearts with joy and gratitude . Let us hope and pray that this great variety of birds will always be in our midst — not only for our generation , but also for the enjoyment of all future generations . �
news & views WINTER 2017 | 49