The razorbill

This is the razorbill.  Another member of the alcidae family of the St-Lawrence river.  He forms part of the large offshore birds grouping of the St-Lawrence. We call ‘offshore birds’ all those that come to the shore to nest and spend the rest of the year at sea to fish and to live.   

Have a good day.  Louis.  

What a shame

Those that believe that the persons from Quebec are champion poachers, you are wrong.  Each year in Alberta, while I was guiding, I would find one or two abandoned bucks because the antlers were not as big as the hunter expected.  What a sad reality.   

Good day.  Louis   

Is that my nest?

The gannets don’t have a wide margin of error if they don’t want to start a street fight with their neighbors.  18 inches by 18 inches is all they have, they must have a good eye… 

Good day. Louis

Bad choice

Here is an inappropriate treatment to control bad weeds.  This hunter has chosen the use of herbicides instead of doing two summer cuts.  In addition to being harmful to the environment, the herbicides have little effects on the clover.  For an optimum result, the cuts should be done just before a rainfall.   

Have a good day.  Louis

Welcome sign

The slap of their beaks as a welcome sign is a regular habit in almost all the alcids of this world.  The Atlantic puffin is among the most expressive birds that nest in the province of Quebec.  This was in June at the Mingan Islands, more than 15 years ago.  Time goes by quickly!  

 Have a good day.  Louis  

Northern adventure

Here is a small herd of female caribou followed by young males and a few mature bulls which you can see the antlers exceeding in the background.  I wish to all of you the chance to go some day in Northern Quebec to admire the tundra in the fall.  Quite something to see.   

Have a good day.  Louis   

Close call ...

Nothing much to add other than we came very close to eating wild turkey… 

 

Good day. Louis

Predator of the shore

Here is the Great Black-backed Gull.  This seagull is the biggest in Québec and also the greatest winged predator that the coastal birds have to continuously keep an eye on.  In fact, all the small birds nesting along the shores of the St-Lawrence river are in danger if they do not hide from these outstanding hunters.  The eggs of these seagulls were for a long time very appreciated by the residents of the Lower North Shore, but they are protected nowadays. 

Have a good day. Louis

Deers that are blind

Most people think that deers are blind… Oh yes, and I repeat, they believe that because of the way that most deer blinds are constructed.  It is obvious that you believe that they are blind… Here is a quality installation that will surprise all the deers, as long as you take the wind into consideration. 

 Have a good day.  Louis

Hunting on horseback

Three years ago at the same date, I was preparing my hunting trip in the Rockies for elk.  This elk hunting trip on horseback is without question the most beautiful trip that I had the chance to do.  If you’re up for adventure, I would suggest BigNine outfitter, which we chose.  In the hope that my next trip will be as successful.  You may find the DVD that was produced from this adventure in many hunting stores.  

 Have a good day. Louis 

Better than salt

Here is a small technique that is even better than salt.  To verify if your have local bucks in your area, make a false scrape late in the spring at trails intersection or in an area occupied by deers.  If there’s a buck that sees this naked area, he won’t resist at leaving his scent and his tracks in the scrape. A game camera will do the rest.  No lure or apple, only a small naked area under a branch.  You may repeat this strategy in all your sectors by leaving your game cameras in place for 2 weeks.   

Have a good day.  Louis 

The first fawn

Yesterday, while I was installing game cameras in the wood, I had the chance to observe my first fawn of the year.  The doe had cease to molt and had her red summer coat.  It is obviously not this Anticosti fawn on this picture that we see being photographed by my spouse.  Here, on the continent, with the number of predators, I try to stay away from the fawns so that I don’t leave any odors.  

 Have a good day.  Louis  

Here we lay

The current hot days that we actually have seems to have triggered the beginning of the annual laying period of the turtles.  Since the last few days, the painted turtle and the snapping turtles are getting out of surrounding ponds, creeks and lakes to dig on gravel roads so that they may lay their eggs.  Here is a snapping turtle of approximately 11 pounds which will lay around 20 eggs.  She will lay some more in another area since this is their strategic defense if they want to succeed in having some of the eggs hatched because foxes , coyotes and raccoons will feast upon this wealth which will last for almost 2 weeks.   

Have a good day.  Louis    

A new life

Finally, after more than a month of nesting, two chicks are born.  They will be nourished from two to four times a day by the two parents until the end of August, which by then, they will attempt their first flights.  The parents will be by their sides until the end of the year, and even later.  This picture got me a third place in a provincial photo contest held by the Union Québéçoise de la Conservation de la Nature.   

Good day.  Louis

The braggarts

Let me present the black guillemots.  This small alcid, of the same family as the puffin, nest in rock crevices on cliffs along the sea shore.  They are great fisherman of sandeel, a small and long fish which can be likened to a small eel and which are of a red wine color.  The guillemots get together in small groups and get excited by discussing of some hot topics. When they fly, you may notice the big white stain on their wings from many hundred yards from the coast… just like mirrors.  

 Good day. Louis      

Mother courage

Approximately the same date as usual… it seems that life continues.  Yesterday morning, I had the chance to observe a mother fox with a mouthful of small rodents.  I followed her for a few hundred yards in the forest and there she had a meeting with her litter of fox cubs.  I will try to do a follow-up on them later in the season.  Have a good day.  Louis  

The bite

My friend came to my place yesterday to hunt bear.  He was joined by one of his sons.  Side by side in their tree-stand, father and son experienced exciting moments.  I think that the hunt bite will have more durable effects than the mosquito bites… 

Have a good day.  Louis 

Danger

Here is the most dangerous hunter for the mature bucks.  A full camo hunter, seated in the middle of a thick wood, close to a small patch of food with the wind in his face.  One hour on this spot and then he moves 400 to 500 feet still the wind in his face and sits back close to a quality food source in the thick wood and so on.  How can a nice buck detect this hunter if he doesn’t have the wind for him?  

 Good day. Louis   

Biologist

More than 25 years have passed since I was working as a biologist-assistant in the swamps of Thurso, in the Outaouais region, on a muskrat doctoral research.  We would catch muskrats to determine the major causes of death and the effects of trapping on these population.  You will agree that with 6 to 8 youngsters per litter, it takes efficient predators otherwise the population will explode… 

Good day. Louis  

Tenderness…

Many birds show signs of tenderness in their courtship behavior.  Here are two examples with the Atlantic puffin and the gannet.  In fact, mos twill continue these exchanges during the entire breeding season, particularly the species united for life, which is the case for these two bird species.   

Good day. Louis

The nesting is almost over

After more than a month of nesting, almost 40 days to be exact… 40 days shared between the two parents relaying each other a few times each day, the couple will now be ready to do the commute to bring back food.  We spent more than 15 consecutive days in a 4’ X 4’ closed blind at 30 feet in the air wishing to see the mother seeing her youngsters for the first time and discarding the empty shells.  But it was done at night and we did not succeed.  But what a nice bird.   

Have a good day.  Louis     

Big rub

Here is a picture of an Anticosti rub that many hunters of the prairies and Ontario would dream of…  Which just shows that big rubs simply come from the presence of big mature males that are in the area.  This kind of big rub will be used almost all year long, with major activities peaking from October 15th to around the10th of November.   

Have a good day.  Louis  

My first success

Here is one of the nicest pictures that I took of Atlantic puffin that I am proud of.  A good looking picture is all about composition and light.

You can also see that it is also a question of quality equipment.   

Good day.   Louis

Hungry

Here is an example of a fenced enclosure surrounding a municipal gravel pit.  In an habitat holding only 4 deers per km2 like in the Outaouais region, look at the grazing difference between the inside and the outside of the fence… deer eats a lot and this is the reason of the positive effects of a food plot.   

Louis 

False scrape

It’s time to go and make some false scrapes in your hunting areas, either along an old trail or in a transition area between two habitats.  If there’s a buck in the vicinity, he’ll come and investigate the bare ground and he’ll remember.  He will be back a few times early in the fall and you will therefore increase your chances with a good sexual lure.   

Have a good day.  Louis.   

Divers

Here is a picture that I took at the Corosol islands at Sept-Iles.  The black-legged kittiwakes are small replica’s of the seagulls but they nest in colony of many thousands of individuals and the biggest one is at the Seagull’s Cliff on the north-east of Anticosti.  These birds, unlike the seagulls, may dive a few meters to catch fish.  Have a good day.  Louis.

    

I’m late

Here is what I’m going to do this morning, start a bear bait.  

Louis

Servicing

A lot of people think that once done, a food plot doesn’t require servicing.  If nothing is done, weeds will slowly take control without you noticing it.  For the clover fields, there is a pesticide for grass but once again, the environmental question arises and it might become disturbing.

Mechanically, by cutting your clover once or twice during the year and by having sowed a greater ratio of seeds per acre, you will go further without the environmental risks.  Furthermore, cutting your clover has a stimulative effect on the plant which reacts positively by growing more rapidly, more densely and with more proteins, which is beneficial to deers.   

Have a good day.  Louis   

Change of habitat

Here is an example of a rapid food plot.  For many years, we had beavers.  I trapped them, ask for a license and opened the dam.  We cleaned the most we could do and sowed Whitetail Imperial’s clover after sprinkling some granular lime to raise the ph.  You get a small and interesting field that is inexpensive.  

 Have a good day, Louis 

 

Male or female

Some might think, by looking at this picture, that it’s a female lecturing his male because he is coming back to the nest without food.  I don’t really know but I can tell you that the puffin is a colored specie and it is not only in his plumage… You can spend many hours observing them and there’s always action.  I think that I was the one to take this picture but it might also be my spouse.  Have a good day.  Louis 

Nature’s color

Hi to all.  I’m a bit rushed by time and I’ve got a fragile humor this morning.  So here is some color in your life and mine.  Three pictures of Jose and I that reminds me that it is not always necessary to harvest to have a great day.  

 Have a good day.  Louis.    

Paternal… my eye

In less than three weeks, the first fawns will see the day.  Although in some cases, the females choose habitats close to the males, The fawns will rarely meet, for their first time, the mature males only a few weeks later in habitats containing large food sources such as agricultural fields.  Obviously, some contacts may happen, but under no circumstances shall we qualify them as paternal since there is no way for the fawns to know if it is his father or another buck.  It’s a curiosity gesture… I presume.   

Have a good day.  Louis  

Specialty : hunter

If yesterday, I presented the herring gull as a common bird, here is a common but discreet hunter : the red fox.  Everyone knows him, has seen him on some occasions or has crossed his tracks.  The fox, because of his size, is without a doubt the most widespread terrestrial predator in the world.  His finesse, speed and agility allows him to exploit almost all the different habitats.  Since he’s not very tall and he’s a general hunter, he may live on a varied diet as well as survive a few days without food.  However, in summer, his hunter quality allows him to comeback to the den with his mouth full of small rodents, such as the red squirrels and the chipmunks caught in less than one hour… 

Have a good day.  Louis

  

Specialty : fisherman

Not all the seagulls are at McDonald… We were waiting for the ferryboat to take us to the Bonaventure Island so we could photograph the gannets.  My spouse, faithful to her habit of optimizing every trip, decides to put a lens and a body together on a tripod and to have fun with the seagulls.  In photography, light and composition make up for almost everything.  A common subject such as a seagull captured at the right moment can make a picture of a very high quality.  At that time we were with 35mm films and when she received her slides a few weeks later, she had fun over me because of her seagull having caught a rock crab.   

Have a good day. Louis  

A good morning for…

When we were more active as wildlife photographers, my biologist title opened many doors to refuges almost never visited but by the Canadian Wildlife Service biologists.  They were working on the restoration of the razorbill populations in the Ste-Marie Islands of the St-Lawrence river, just in front of Harrington Arbour.  These birds, which used to be tens of thousands at the turn of the century, were almost entirely wiped out because the eggs were harvested for the surrounding villages.  The bird population of these islands came close to extinction.  Today, it’s simply a paradise for the birdwatchers and the nature lovers… but the winters are… tough.   

Have a good day.  Louis