A lovely sunset (7 p.m. ish) on Burnaby Lake, spotted from the spit:

• Osprey;
• Beaver (and babies, much activity by dam, which is at the end of the spit);
• Cooper’s hawk (?);
• Canada geese with cute goslings in tow;
• Tree swallows swooping low to catch flies;
• Red-winged blackbird;
• As always, wood duck and mallard.

Sadly no ducklings in tow for the wood ducks, I will just have to keep coming back. Didn’t see the eagle near the nest again … wonder why.

Two beaver damns can be seen from the spit, one is located at the end of it, close to the observation deck.

One of the birders on the spit recommended going to Iona beach near the airport, where he recently saw a rare yellow-headed blackbird, and watched ospreys fishing.

Warning: bad joke ahead.

What did the mother beaver say when baby beaver got home?

Shut the dam door.

Online finds

Found the website of the Vancouver Natural History Society, it’s well worth a browse. The society publishes A Birders Guide to Vancouver and the Lower Mainland, which I just ordered from Amazon. It got some great reviews, I think it will help me plan trips

I also discovered a photo group pool on Flickr: Field Guide, Birds of British Columbia. I started to watch the slideshow, but there are more than 9,000 photos, some are amazing.

Website ideas

I will need to add information to my in-the-works park wesbite, listing migratory birds, what can you see in spring, what can you see in fall. Summer is not the best time for birding as the birds are on the nest and not as visible as when they are passing through in great numbers.

Also, I would like to have a link for day trips, as I will be visiting Iona, and George C. Reifel Bird Sanctuary.