Opportunity

We were given the opportunity to visit the Banff Centre to attend a play reading and were able to expand the trip by driving there from here. The weather was unbeatable for the whole 6 days which we came to understand was unusual given the rain and hail that had gripped Banff for days just before our visit. Because it hastened our drive, we crossed the border at a different spot, more rural, and along the way there passed some absolutely beautiful agricultural valleys which continued for miles and miles into Canada. Not to be outdone, our next encounter with beauty came in the form of the Shuswap area which is anchored by a huge long lake/river system bordered by mountains on all sides. It was at this point in our drive that we stopped and stayed overnight in a small lakeside town which boasted a resort sensibility and economy but encouraged an appreciation of nature. There, we were able to walk along the lake and out onto a long pier from which we watched not one but two osprey nests built by the town which both contained this year's clutches of 3 nestlings. From a mere 25 feet away, we hardly needed the binocs to watch feedings. How marvelous!
The next leg of the trip introduced us to the mountains of British Columbia and the Canadian Rockies to Banff, Alberta. I ran out of adjectives on this day. The landscape was so breathtaking and mammoth and unique that it made us silent for hours. We had everything to say and no words to say anything. That remained the case for our stay at the Banff Centre where we saw and heard such sublime performances of musical expression that we could only shake our heads in response.
The only time we really spoke a lot was on a hike at around 7500 feet and the reason for such chatter was amazement that we both made it and lived to tell the tale! I daresay that we were overawed the whole trip and for various and sundry reasons.
The only drawback to the whole trip was the sight of the many forests decimated by the very opportunistic Mountain Pine Beetle. This insect, prior to the 1990's, was usually killed off by the blisteringly cold winters (- 30 degrees Fahrenheit). In fact, according to one forest worker we spoke with, the Spruce Beetle was the former villain of the woods. When the Spruce trees were killed by this pest, planting companies changed the nature of the woods to Lodgepole Pine trees in the hopes of stopping the devastation. At the same time, however, winters warmed up enough to allow the Pine beetles to thrive. With the ample food supply, their colonies spread probably better than wildfire and the evidence of their work is plentiful. Opportunity comes to many living things it seems.
Pictured is Banff from our hike above and a lovely tree bark and fir needle arrangement.

You must have been a beautiful baby.......

We've watched the family the past few nights with awe and admiration. Tonight's show included posing for us, staring down Flickers which were pestering them and roosting higher in "their" deadtop fir, buzzing crows away just 'cause Ma taught them how, and being the first to grab the prey from the food drop by Thor. There were thrilling, playful flights by three or four of them between trees and over houses. We heard what sounded like food fights when one grabbed what Thor brought to eat and flew off with it only to be followed by a hungry sibling ready to fight for the treasure. We were simply treated to the deliciously normal doings of a family and a mighty beautiful one at that. Here are closeups of two of the brood.

Teach your children well

When I think back two years and recall my initial observations of the Merlin family with Spike and Thor at the helm, I have many vivid memories. None were more remarkable, though, than the evening of July 4 that year, 2008. We were assembled in the original nest neighborhood (a couple of blocks south of the current site) and watching the fledglings still very much in the nest when we saw a very large mass of crows flying our way from the southwest. This mob was easily a couple hundred strong. It occurred to us that maybe the crows had been spooked by all the fireworks being blown up all around the Sound and were trying to find quiet. Whatever the case, there were hundreds and they were aiming straight towards the nest.
What happened next blew my mind. Spike flew out of the nest tree and right into the center of the knot of crows. We poor scared mortals on the ground opined that she was probably a goner and it certainly looked that way at first sight. Crows near her attacked but she attacked back. These melees went on for a while until Spike changed tactics and started flying through the crows and ahead, around them. We watched in complete awe as she rattled and confused the crows until she was able to divide the mass into two swarms. In almost no time, the crows flew their separate ways around the nest tree and away from that ferocious, tiny bully. It was a demonstration of a mother and the steps she takes for her babies the likes of which we will rarely see again. It was a remarkable display that I will never forget.
This year's brood came earlier than the 2008 family. We think that Spike and Thor found each other late that Spring which pushed everything back a couple of weeks. This year, instead of the birds just having hatched, the "kids" are days out of the nest and, for all intents and purposes (save food), on their own. So, when the crows flew nearby tonight, the response from Spike was quite different. She stayed put in her nearby tree and just watched while one of the babies called and called loudly for the crows to stay away. And, those crows heeded the young bird's warning. Indeed, mom had taught her children well.