Personalized Gifts

About 4 of the 10 Horned Grebes we spotted at Blackie Spit were swimming and diving uncharacteristically close to the main walking path of Crescent Beach -- close for Horned Grebes, that is (about 20-30 feet away). The fishing was obviously quite good near shore. My closest encounter with these birds. They are exhibiting neither the flamboyant yellow horns nor red-and-black breeding plumage during this season, but those red eyes and dapper tux are nonetheless mesmerizing!

Profile of a Horned Grebe

I'd hardly call a Spotted Towhee a cute little bird. The red eyes on this large sparrow are mesmerizing and can best be described as eerie; and the black, white, reddish-brown plumage it wears all year round are "power colours". Photographed at Stanley Park's Lost Lagoon on a chilly afternoon in late November 2015.

This photo was selected by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, to be featured in its "Backyard Birds and Blossoms" Coloring Book (release date Spring 2017). 

Based on the original photography of W.H. Sim. All Rights Reserved. See more at zazzle.com/walkswithnature

Profile of a Spotted Towhee

If someone combined the adorably big head and black eyes of a Black-Capped Chickadee with the colours and bill of a Kookaburra in a Jay-sized body, they'd have the whimsically-named Whiskeyjack. Also known by its less colourful aliases of Canada Jay and Gray Jay, we saw no fewer than six at Manning Park's Lightning Lake, where they would boldly descend on picnic tables in the hopes of free handouts.

Based on the original photography of W.H. Sim. All Rights Reserved. See more at zazzle.com/walkswithnature

Profile of a Cute Grey Jay / Whiskeyjack

Beautiful Varied Thrush Songbird in the Snow

Varied Thrush in the Snow Christmas Holiday

After sitting outside for an hour and a half as the afternoon snow fell quickly and in fat clumps this afternoon, this beautiful male Varied Thrush finally ventured to the bowl of the seed on the ground. Occasionally, he would look up and gaze in my direction before resuming his meal. After eating his fill (and keeping the other, smaller songbirds at bay), he returned to flipping leaf litter under the thicket. My first time photographing a Varied Thrush in the snow. Taken in early February 2017. 

Based on the original photography of W.H. Sim. All Rights Reserved. See more at zazzle.com/walkswithnature

WWN Stunning Varied Thrush in the Driving Snow

The lone representative of its species (a recently recognized and separate species of the black geese family), a Cackling Goose (once considered a Canada Goose subspecies), plies the waters of an inner pond at Jericho Park on a sunny and surprisingly warm-for-winter afternoon. A much shorter bill and smaller body size set this goose apart from its larger Canada Goose cousin.

Profile of a Cackling Goose

This male Downy Woodpecker announced himself quite vocally with a trademark chip-chip-chip repertoire just before making an appearance on this dead tree. He proceeded to peck away at his perch, oblivious of the solitary camera lens trained on him and the many walkers on the trail.

Cute Downy Woodpecker on the Tree

Being an escapee from an Oregon farm did not diminish the appeal of this adult male Mandarin Duck, whose flight to freedom was rewarded with a constant supply of bird seed and the company of Wood Ducks at Piper Spit. I was gifted with the privilege of his metamorphosis over many agonizingly slow months, as I watched him exchange his post-breeding plumage for the magnificent feathers and stunning color palette that make him a dream to photograph (and a hit with the females of his kind). Mother Nature left nothing to the artist's imagination when she made this creature! Photographed at Burnaby Lake in mid-October 2018.

Based on the original photography of W.H. Sim. All Rights Reserved. See more at zazzle.com/walkswithnature

Beautiful Mandarin Duck in the Pond

It's hard not to be amazed by such beauty! I am so used to seeing Dunlins in flocks of hundreds and thousands in their non-breeding/winter plumage, that to encounter a solitary member of the species is a bit puzzling. S/he was in full breeding regalia, and in no particular hurry to fly north for the summer. 

We almost missed seeing this peep--so intent on photographing the 20 Greater Scaups much further out from shore--that it was many moments before I realized that this Dunlin was quite calmly "pacing" us some 6-8 feet away on the shoreline!

Being in such close proximity to this beauty enabled me to get a good look at that black belly patch and the wonderful russet brown feathers on its head and back!

Based on the original photography of W.H. Sim. All Rights Reserved. See more at zazzle.com/walkswithnature

A Beautiful Dunlin Goes Solo Card

Closeup of a Killdeer Shorebird on the Rocks Round Pillow

An early morning walk in July 2015 brings us unexpectedly face to face with the normally distant and hard to photograph Killdeer. By an extra stroke of luck, this was one of a nesting pair of Killdeer, who had decided to "set up shop" not 100 feet away from a nesting pair of Bald Eagles!

Based on the original photography of W.H. Sim. All Rights Reserved. See more at zazzle.com/walkswithnature

WWN Closeup of a Killdeer on the Beach

Add a touch of whimsy and nature to treasured memories and moments with this wildlife-themed binder! The perfect choice for hummingbird lovers!

Isn't she lovely? This female Rufous hummingbird poses calmly for my camera on the old plum tree in the backyard. With the very early arrival (and disappearance) of the males in March and April as they migrate to as far north as Alaska, we have had a veritable dearth of yardbirds. Her continued presence means that life will become much more "interesting" for the resident Anna's (particularly the males). Not coincidentally, we are also seeing more birds in the backyard now.

Based on the original photography of W.H. Sim. All Rights Reserved. See more at zazzle.com/walkswithnature

Cute Rufous Hummingbird on Plum Tree Branch 3 Ring Binder

Male and Female Surf Scoter Ducks at the Pier Serving Tray

That the Surf Scoters of White Rock Pier are habituated to the presence of humans is a bit of an understatement. This handsome and tame drake and hen pair was one of hundreds of these large black seaducks who routinely passed under the boardwalk during a crisp but sunny morning visit in early November 2019, giving great bird's eye views of that colorful and comically oversized schnoz that the ladies of his kind have found so fascinating for so long.

Based on the original photography of W.H. Sim. All Rights Reserved. See more at zazzle.com/walkswithnature

WWN Surf Scoter Ducks at the Pier

Add a touch of nature to the bedroom or living room with this wildlife-themed throw. The perfect choice for bird lovers! 

The first time I've had the opportunity to shoot a Bewick's Wren out in the open, and at fairly close range. This beautiful long-tailed songbird must have sensed that I wanted to photograph it, and returned my curiosity with its own by posing on this branch for a few moments. Photographed in January 2017.

Based on the original photography of W.H. Sim. All Rights Reserved. See more at zazzle.com/walkswithnature

Curious Bewick's Wren Songbird on Branch Throw Pillow

Add a touch of nature to the bedroom or living room with this floral-themed throw! 

Rudbeckias are some of my favourite summertime flowers, especially when these buttery yellow beauties bloom like this. Photographed in mid-August 2016 at Colony Farm Regional Park.

Based on the original photography of W.H. Sim. All Rights Reserved. See more at zazzle.com/walkswithnature

Rudbeckia Fulgida / Orange Coneflower Round Pillow

Add a touch of nature and wonder to your walls with this wildlife-themed decal! The perfect choice for bird lovers!

This Golden-Crowned Sparrow youngster doesn't fly so much as perch hop from branch to branch, because of a missing leg. Instead of feeding from the bird feeders, s/he wanders the lawn, quite capably, looking for fallen bird seed.

Based on the original photography of W.H. Sim. All Rights Reserved. See more at zazzle.com/walkswithnature

The Resilience of One Golden-Crowned Sparrow Wall Sticker

Add a touch of nature to the living room, bedroom, or any room in your home with this whimsical, wildlife-themed throw.

My first encounter with a bold and friendly Ash-Throated Flycatcher, who was only too happy to crack a large and ebullient smile for my lens between hawking for grasshoppers on a sunny autumn afternoon. Photographed in mid-October 2020.

Based on the original photography of W.H. Sim. All Rights Reserved. See more at zazzle.com/walkswithnature

Profile of a Horned Grebe

Profile of a Horned Grebe

More from Walks with Nature

Other personalized gifts from various stores