No Net Nonsense

Broadband issues continue to plague me at home, so here's a very brief recap of the past couple of days' sightings...

Wednesday: 22 greater whitefronted geese in fields at Holden Creek among c300 Canadas. Just 2 long-billed dowitchers there.

Thursday: Influx of American wigeon on the Nanaimo River estuary with c500 birds present. Couple of bald eagles kicking around, but otherwise pretty quiet.

Will be away for a couple of weeks from hereon in - so it's time to go and find that biggy on the estuary! Keep checking the blog though, as I'll be posting my sightings from the UK (don't know how much birding I'll be doing, maybe my posts will all be about Lancashire pub interiors...)

Hot Hot Heat

Well, the tide was up when I got to Holden Creek this evening so there was no wandering around the marshes for me.
In fairness, I gave it my best shot but the creek was deeper than my wellies, so to speak.
So I had to content myself with staying in dry land and 'scoping the seemingly shorebird-free vista before me. Pah.
Although the place was waderless, as far as I was concerned, there was a bit of stuff going on to keep me  entertained for a while.
There were plenty of post-breeding gatherings - house and purple finches, mingling with the large starling flocks in the dead hawthorns, and quite a build-up of cowbirds with around 20 birds present.

The first belted kingfisher I've seen here for a while posed nicely, gasping for breath in the soaring temperatures.  
And I finally got a shot of the chaser-like dragonfly shown here - apparently a common whitetail. I've seen a few of these dazzling beasties, and several other wicked looking odanata, just lately.