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Springtime is a time of green ... and blues and other beautiful hues! Nothing sets the honeybees abuzz like the huge California Lilac that's blooming with hundreds of bluish-purple clusters on the front lawn not once, but twice in a year. In fact, this bush resembles a giant purple beehive from late spring through early summer. Photographed in the spring of 2016.

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

Save the Honeybees Pollinating California Lilac Flask

This male Pekin Robin decided to satisfy his curiosity of the approaching humans, and flew into a large tropical tree to observe us from under the large leafy cover. Our initial encounter was all too brief and disappointing, but this second meeting yielded the opportunity to study this wonderfully dressed and beautiful singer in much greater detail and length. Our subject must have noticed this, as he was unusually still and not hopping from branch to branch!

An Indian subcontinent native, this Old World babbler is so popular that many other countries want to claim it for their own, and so, it goes by other aliases, including Pekin Robin, Pekin nightingale, Japanese hill robin, and Japanese nightingale. 

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

Colorful Leiothrix / Pekin Robin Songbird Hip Flask

The Bald Eagle is one of the most easily recognizable birds and an exceedingly common sight in Metro Vancouver. Seeing 50-100 a day, soaring the skies or roosting in tall trees, is not an unheard of "feat."

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

Profile of an Adult Bald Eagle Hip Flask

My first encounter with the dapper little Bonaparte's Gull in breeding plumage. This was the lone member of its species at Boundary Bay Regional Park on Global Big Day 2016!

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

Bonaparte's Gull at the Beach Flask

The only Rufous Hummingbird I was able to locate -- and photograph at Iona Island on March 25, 2016. He flashed his stunning gorget very briefly -- unfortunately, too short a time for me to get a shot of it, but he was quite "faithful" to the lower trees in this area, returning to his perches within half a minute of leaving them. He was still there, holding a small number of photographers spellbound, after we had walked the length of the North Jetty.

He made no scratchy metallic noises while perched, but did treat us to the distinctive zinging that his wing feathers make in flight, and even a few dives, clearly demonstrating the acoustic differences between the acoustic tail feather squeaks of a Rufous hummingbird and Anna's hummingbird.

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

Male Rufous Hummingbird in the Spotlight Hip Flask

Green-Winged Teals are starting to mass in greater numbers at Piper Spit, Burnaby Lake, as winter passes its halfway point. A number of these small dabbling ducks are also starting to engage in springtime courtship behaviours. This drake was particularly vocal, and gave me a good angle of himself in the process.

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

A Chatty Green-Winged Teal Duck at the Pond Flask

Sometimes a mistake can be the path to a new technique. This Crested Iris was actually photographed outdoors under natural daylight after I forgot to reset shutter speed and aperture settings from the previous photo.

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

Elegant Crested Iris White Floral Flask

My second encounter with a male Mountain Bluebird. We are gifted, albeit very briefly, with the presence of these beautiful songbirds at the start of the spring season before they head to higher ground to breed. Those stunning cerulean colors stand out on a dreary landscape, even from a distance. When he wasn't busy diving for insects on the local beach, he was highpointing it on driftwood and stalks of dessicated tansy. Photographed at Boundary Bay Regional Park in early spring 2017.

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

Beautiful Mountain Bluebird on Beach Stump Flask

Add color and a touch of nature to the half-pipe with this floral-inspired skateboard, which features the crimson leaves of a large Japanese maple tree in late spring.

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

Elegant Red Japanese Maple Leaves Skateboard

A juvenile Double-Crested Cormorant swims by and gives me a cursory once over at Ladner Harbour Park. One of three juveniles swimming in the marina (fairly close to the wharf), and one of five such individuals in the general area. The youngsters have much lighter plumage than the adults, but by the time the former have matured, they're also less likely to be so close to humans. Even from a distance, this species of cormorant is readily identifiable, thanks to its bright yellow face patch.

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

Profile of a Double-Crested Cormorant Photo Print

Add a touch of nature to treasured memories and moments with this wildlife-themed binder!

This Long-Eared Owl, unlike the others of its kind, was sleeping in the surprising warmth of a mid-winter sunset. Completely at ease with the trio of photographers enthralled by the wonder of its presence, this nocturnal hunter napped the afternoon away, rarely opening those golden eyes to stare briefly past our lenses, and perhaps, into the souls of its observers. 

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

Beautiful Long-Eared Owl at Sunset Mini Binder

When Bushtits come calling, it's a sudden avalanche of cuteness in the backyard -- because these social songbirds often show up in flocks of 10-30, feed briefly (and co-operatively) on the suet or whatever else they fancy (calling to each other constantly as they do so), and leave as quickly as they came. Once in a while, though, they will stay for 15-30 minutes. I photographed this damp fellow--who was caught in the morning rain--taking a moment to pause on the laurel bush. Some of his fellow Bushtits were actually bathing on the laurel leaves, like hummingbirds do. Photographed in early July 2016.

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

Cute Wet Young Bushtit Songbird on the Laurel Photo Print

Add a touch of nature to the kitchen with this wildlife-themed kitchen towel! 

It's not a Pacific Northwest winter unless you see the Varied Thrush. One of my favorite backyard birds to see (and a highly elusive one at that), this songbird has a stunning beauty to match the hauntingly beautiful timbre of its song. This handsome fellow was foraging in the backyard with several other wintering birds when I photographed him from the second floor--giving me a rare bird's eye view of t him. We almost never see them during the summer when they spend that season northwards in Alaska, but the call of the colder seasons of the year brings them back to us. Photographed in mid-January 2017.

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

Stunning Varied Thrush Songbird in the Grass Kitchen Towel

Keep notes, reminders, and more in this whimsical, wildlife-themed journal. The perfect choice for bird lovers! 

My second encounter with a male Mountain Bluebird. We are gifted, albeit very briefly, with the presence of these beautiful songbirds at the start of the spring season before they head to higher ground to breed. Those stunning cerulean colors stand out on a dreary landscape, even from a distance. When he wasn't busy diving for insects on the local beach, he was highpointing it on driftwood and stalks of dessicated tansy. Photographed at Boundary Bay Regional Park in early spring 2017.

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

Beautiful Mountain Bluebird at the Beach Notebook

Up to 20 of these diminutive but fearless sandpipers were braving choppy waters and 14-foot morning high tides on a sunny and unseasonably warm New Year's Day 2020, to pluck the anchovies that the pounding surf was constantly washing up on the shore just off the White Rock Pier. With their dark eyes, round heads, dainty bills, and plump bodies, Black Turnstones are fascinating creatures to watch.

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

Save the Honeybees Pollinating California Lilac Flask

Save the Honeybees Pollinating California Lilac Flask

More from Walks with Nature

Other flasks from various stores