A humpback officially named “Wally” by Happy Whale is one of the best known humpbacks on the northern British Columbia coast. Those people in Prince Rupert who have observed him (sex determined by DNA testing) often call him “two dots” because of the distinctive two dots on his tail fluke. According to the Happy Whale […]
On December 16, 2023 Kitimat Valley Naturalists took part in the worldwide Christmas Bird Count, with special permission and guidance to view the natural areas of the Kitimat River estuary in both the RIo Tinto and LNG Canada industrial sites. The weather was cool and overcast, but unlike earlier years no snow or heavy rain […]
This October was a great month to shoot birds in Kitimat, not only in my backyard, but on the ocean at Kitamaat Village and MK Bay Marina.
It was forty years ago, in August, 1980, that a friend and I drove from Vancouver, BC, where I was living at the time, to spend a weekend at Florence, Oregon, which inspired Frank Herbert to write the famous novel Dune. Like many at the time, I was entranced by Dune as soon as I […]
Shots from the November shore bird survey. A Western grebe off the Maggie Point gazebo. (Robin Rowland) Common mergansers off Maggie Point. (Robin Rowland) We spotted gulls in a feeding frenzy off the Kitamaat Village soccer field. (Robin Rowland) Another shot of the feeding frenzy. (Robin Rowland) Detail of the feeding frenzy in the above […]
I made the annual trip with Walter Thorne into the Kitimat River estuary on Saturday, Dec. 17 for that leg of the Kitimat Christmas Bird Count. We didn’t see as much variety as in previous years because the region had been the grip of an icy -15 C at least cold snap for the […]
A juvenile bald eagle surveys the Kitimat River from a log on a sandbar. (Robin Rowland) Once again this year I joined the Kitimat Christmas Bird Count, helping out the Kitimat Valley Naturalists. Here are some of the best shots from that day, Wednesday December 16. 2015. Gulls huddle together on the shore of MK […]