I was out of town when I first heard about the Taiga Flycatcher hanging around Sunset Beach, pretty much right down the street from my apartment. I panicked and despaired at first, because I was so sure it would have moved on by the time I got back… but it stayed. And it seems it’s likely to stick around for the season, which means many more photo ops!
Assuming the weather cooperates, which it mostly hasn’t so far 🙁
January 4
It bounced around the trees very close to the Aquatic Centre, sometimes perching on the wire fence, sometimes sticking to the Centre’s slanty, mossy walls for a few moments, sometimes hopping about those big grated concrete blocks, which I figure are ventilation for the swimming pool.
After a while it moved further east, into a thicker stand of trees along the seawall, and the assembled birders lost track of it.
January 5
This time a few of us followed it as it hopped west from tree to tree along Beach Ave. We lost track of it as it passed the entrance to the parking lot. It probably went back to complete a circuit, but who knows?
January 8
This day had excellent lighting conditions, and I was able to take my best photos yet! Including one of our little friend grabbing a little fly (well… it’s in the name!) which I didn’t even notice until later as I went through my photos.
Look at that fly though! It looks like it’s cheering the birb on. “Good job catching me! You’re doing so great in this weird country of poutine and moose!”
Also, can I just say: its tail is absolutely adorable. At first it looked a bit like a junco’s, with a mainly dark top and one white feather on either side, visible only in flight. But here the white tail feathers are always visible, though still partly hidden at rest.
There’s some question as to whether this is actually a female, though. It probably is, but apparently the orange throat patch seen in adult males may be absent in winter. We’ll find out if it sticks around much longer!
