Tuesday Two Cents - Pacific Plastic Vortex

Seal caught in debris - Image courtesy of NOAA

There is a vortex of plastic refuse circulating in the Pacific Ocean that has been estimated to be 700 000 to 1.5 million square kilometres in size, containing 3.5 million tons of trash, and which affects all levels of the food chain. At present, nothing is being done about it. We need to somehow reduce our use of plastics as it's destroying life in the ocean and in the end will also destroy us.

Click here to watch a video about the plastic plague.

Macro Monday & Mellow Yellow Monday - Yellow Monkey Flower

Yellow Monkey Flower, Mission, BC

The leaves of the yellow monkey flower were eaten raw or cooked by various native american tribes like the Mendocino and Miwok Indians. The plant has agents that cause tissue to contract and was used for healing wounds, fresh cuts and usually as a poultice. The Shoshoni used a poultice of the crushed leaves and applied it to their wounds. A decoction of the leaves and stems was used by the Kawaiisu as a herbal steam bath for chest and back soreness.

Source: Yellow Monkey Flower

Silent Sunday & Sunday Scenery - A delicate balancing act

Male Red-Winged Blackbird at Burnaby Lake

There are over 200 nest boxes at Burnaby Lake for the many wood ducks, swallows, chickadees, purple martins and flying squirrels who inhabit them in the Spring.

Camera Critters - Aix sponsa

Male Wood Duck on Burnaby Lake

"In the west the Wood Duck breeds from British Columbia south to
California and winters near the Pacific coast no farther north than Washington.
It inhabits wooded rivers, ponds and swamps and visits freshwater marshes in the
late summer and fall.

Wood Duck nests are lined with down in a natural tree cavity
sometimes up to 50 feet off of the ground; 9-12 whitish or tan eggs incubate
there. This surface feeding duck eats aquatic plants, seeds, grass, small
aquatic animals and insects. Considered one of the most beautiful of North
American waterfowl, Wood Ducks were hunted to near extinction in the late 19th
and early 20th centuries. The hunting season was closed down and numbers rose
steadily; there are well over a million Wood Ducks in North America. "

BC Outdoor Wilderness Guide

Macro Monday - Lilly

“Consider the lilies of the field how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin; And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these”

Source: Holy Bible

Silent Sunday & Sunday Scenery - Spire

One of the spires on The Holy Rosary Cathedral in downtown Vancouver.

Click here to see a view of the entire cathedral.

A brief history:

"On October 21, 1900 the bells at Holy Rosary Church were blessed by a papal
delegate visiting Vancouver. The church was built (in 490 days) of sandstone
from Gabriola Island. Holy Rosary would become a cathedral in 1916."

Source: re:place Magazine

Camera Critters - Double-crested Cormorant

From blog

Last weekend I visited the duck pond and was just expecting to see the usual inhabitants - malards, geese and sea gulls. Then out of the corner of my eye I thought I saw a dark-colored something way on the other side of the pond and that's when I had a "what on earth" moment.

From blog

After a few puzzled moments I realized I was looking at a double-crested cormorant! (Phalacrocorax auritus) Certainly not what I was expecting at the duck pond. The mallards didn't seem too sure of this strange visitor and they kept to their end of the pond. I snapped quite a few photos but this bird never seemed to stop moving it's head, so this was one of the better shots.

"Due to suspected declines in the population of the Double-crested Cormorant, British Columbia has blue-listed the seabird as vulnerable. Population declines have also been noted for the Pelagic Cormorant. The Cormorant is a fish-eating seabird that nests on rocky cliffs and islands. The Pelagic Cormorant is found along the entire coast of British Columbia, the Double-crested Cormorant nests only in the Strait of Georgia." Source: Clayoquot.Org

Have a wonderful Valentine's day everyone.

Silent Sunday & Sunday Scenery - Snow on Seymour

Snow on Mt. Seymour

If you look real close when this photo is enlarged you will see the Skytrain.

Bears eating salmon in Coquitlam, BC

Mama Bear with her two cubs

Cubs eating salmon

My friend Tobi A. took these photos for me when she was doing field work in Coquitlam, BC in October 2008. I had forgotten about them until I stumbled on them last night and felt it would make a great first post for the Camera Critter Meme. Click photos to enlarge for a better view.

Sky Watch Friday - Purple Sunset

Same scene as the one above but taken 15 mins later

All of the above photos were taken from 5:00 - 5:35 PM on February 4, 2009. Click on the photos for larger views.

We're so used to grey skies around Vancouver that it was a shock to see the brilliant colors of this sunset. Many people stopped and looked at the sky and some were even taking photos on their camera phones.

To see many more Sky Watch Friday photos, visit http://skyley.blogspot.com/

Mellow Yellow Monday - Fish @ Seattle Aquarium

My first entry for Mellow Yellow Monday, a meme about all things yellow.

Here is a pretty little yellow fish I saw at the Seattle Aquarium.

Click to enlarge for better view.