Nature Journal Entry #11: The Quest for the Calliope Hummingbird
Where: Weaselhead Flats
When: June 14th 2025 (Mid-to-Late Morning) (And yes - this was posted on March 26th 2026 - oops)
Highlight: The Calliope Hummingbird
Alexis, Taylor, and I set off for Weaselhead Flats in the mid-morning. Alexis had heard rumours of a rare fellow darting over the conifers on the west side of the park and we wanted to spot him if we could. Now, with full transparency, I was fairly cynical regarding spotting the hummingbird - likely due to my single-minded pursuit of a Northern Cardinal in Winnipeg a few years ago. I am generally of the mind that targeting a specific species during a nature outing is a fool's errand, but this time, I provided myself to be the true fool. Alexis locked in and we have her to thank for that. But whilst the hummingbird was my primary highlight, I want to mention two others as well.
Firstly, while we were trekking along the Elbow River, we heard the drumming of this American Three-toed Woodpecker (Picoides dorsalis) above.
Secondly, there was the beautiful and striking Small Round-leaved Orchid (Galearis rotundifolia).
And of course, thirdly, there was the Calliope Hummingbird (Selasphorus calliope). This is the smallest native bird in North America, so imagine my surprise when we could see this unmistakable silhouette of the hummingbird perched on the crown of the conifer.
The included photographs below have been taken by Alexis and Taylor! Our digital camera seems to do remarkably well with macro photography, whereas Alexis' can capture birds very well!
