Max Hellicar
@birdingtothemax.bsky.social
Birder • Ringer (BTO trainer) • Ecologist • MSc graduate • Sharing the wildlife I see on my travels!
A cracking third-year Northern Saw-whet Owl ringed in Metchosin tonight. The key denotes the moult pattern of three flight feather generations, allowing its age to be determined. 🇨🇦🧪🌎 #birdringing
November 18, 2025 at 8:28 AM
A cracking third-year Northern Saw-whet Owl ringed in Metchosin tonight. The key denotes the moult pattern of three flight feather generations, allowing its age to be determined. 🇨🇦🧪🌎 #birdringing
Woodland wander last night. Trees swaying. Wolves howling. Varied Thrushes roosting. 🇨🇦🪶
November 18, 2025 at 7:45 AM
Woodland wander last night. Trees swaying. Wolves howling. Varied Thrushes roosting. 🇨🇦🪶
Odd twitch yesterday. A distant White-tailed Ptarmigan in Nanaimo, Vancouver Island. A mountain specialist, favouring elevations of >820 metres, who appeared on lowland farmland. 🇨🇦🪶
November 15, 2025 at 9:46 PM
Odd twitch yesterday. A distant White-tailed Ptarmigan in Nanaimo, Vancouver Island. A mountain specialist, favouring elevations of >820 metres, who appeared on lowland farmland. 🇨🇦🪶
Harris’s Sparrow this afternoon at Jordan River on Vancouver Island. Over 1000 miles northwest of where it should be! 🇨🇦🪶
November 11, 2025 at 6:13 AM
Harris’s Sparrow this afternoon at Jordan River on Vancouver Island. Over 1000 miles northwest of where it should be! 🇨🇦🪶
White-crowned Sparrow experienced a record year at Rocky Point, with 537 ringed (2000-2024 mean of 160). This individual, who’d clearly been feasting on berries, was one of our oldest recaptures, having been ringed in 2019. 🇨🇦🪶🧪🌎
November 9, 2025 at 9:52 PM
White-crowned Sparrow experienced a record year at Rocky Point, with 537 ringed (2000-2024 mean of 160). This individual, who’d clearly been feasting on berries, was one of our oldest recaptures, having been ringed in 2019. 🇨🇦🪶🧪🌎
It was Rocky Point’s second-best autumn for White-throated Sparrow, with 16 ringed (2000-2024 mean of 7.2) 🇨🇦🪶🧪🌎
November 9, 2025 at 9:42 PM
It was Rocky Point’s second-best autumn for White-throated Sparrow, with 16 ringed (2000-2024 mean of 7.2) 🇨🇦🪶🧪🌎
Male Varied Thrush in a southern Vancouver Island forest today. I’ve ringed 10 first-years over the last two weeks here, but this was my first adult! 🪶
November 9, 2025 at 6:12 AM
Male Varied Thrush in a southern Vancouver Island forest today. I’ve ringed 10 first-years over the last two weeks here, but this was my first adult! 🪶
First- and second-year Northern Saw-whet Owls last weekend in Metchosin. 1CYs are characterised by a single generation of new (juvenile) flight feathers. 2CYs exhibit a block of old (juvenile) flight feathers which are sandwiched between new outer primaries and inner secondaries. 🇨🇦🧪🌎 #birdringing
November 8, 2025 at 10:06 PM
First- and second-year Northern Saw-whet Owls last weekend in Metchosin. 1CYs are characterised by a single generation of new (juvenile) flight feathers. 2CYs exhibit a block of old (juvenile) flight feathers which are sandwiched between new outer primaries and inner secondaries. 🇨🇦🧪🌎 #birdringing
Adult male Barred Owl ringed in a southern Vancouver Island forest this evening 🇨🇦🦉
November 8, 2025 at 6:37 AM
Adult male Barred Owl ringed in a southern Vancouver Island forest this evening 🇨🇦🦉
This Northern Saw-whet Owl, trapped last night in Metchosin, was ringed <1 km away on 14 Oct 2023. Now in its third year, the clincher for ageing is the presence of three generations of flight feathers which include a juvenile generation (in this case, just the innermost primary). 🇨🇦🧪🌎 #birdringing
November 4, 2025 at 6:57 AM
This Northern Saw-whet Owl, trapped last night in Metchosin, was ringed <1 km away on 14 Oct 2023. Now in its third year, the clincher for ageing is the presence of three generations of flight feathers which include a juvenile generation (in this case, just the innermost primary). 🇨🇦🧪🌎 #birdringing
Nice night spent ringing Northern Saw-whet Owls on southern Vancouver Island 🦉🇨🇦
November 3, 2025 at 7:52 AM
Nice night spent ringing Northern Saw-whet Owls on southern Vancouver Island 🦉🇨🇦
It’s always good to see the impacts of avian non-natives documented. A recent paper on Common Myna in Israel (mdpi.com/2079-7737/14/7/828) cited our Seychelles research (sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2351989423002196). #ornithology
November 2, 2025 at 10:52 PM
It’s always good to see the impacts of avian non-natives documented. A recent paper on Common Myna in Israel (mdpi.com/2079-7737/14/7/828) cited our Seychelles research (sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2351989423002196). #ornithology
Every Varied Thrush I see is a delight! A male and a female, ringed in Metchosin this evening, allowed a side-by-side comparison. 🇨🇦🪶
November 2, 2025 at 6:44 AM
Every Varied Thrush I see is a delight! A male and a female, ringed in Metchosin this evening, allowed a side-by-side comparison. 🇨🇦🪶
Steller’s Jay ringed in Metchosin just now. The blue lateral crown-stripes are easy to miss in the field! #birdringing
November 2, 2025 at 12:08 AM
Steller’s Jay ringed in Metchosin just now. The blue lateral crown-stripes are easy to miss in the field! #birdringing
Male Red-breasted Nuthatch ringed in Metchosin today #birdingBC
November 1, 2025 at 10:13 PM
Male Red-breasted Nuthatch ringed in Metchosin today #birdingBC
A day of habitat restoration in the subalpine zone, via chopper. By expanding lines of sight for Vancouver Island Marmots, predation pressure on this Critically Endangered ground squirrel should be reduced. 🇨🇦🌎🐿️
October 31, 2025 at 6:03 AM
A day of habitat restoration in the subalpine zone, via chopper. By expanding lines of sight for Vancouver Island Marmots, predation pressure on this Critically Endangered ground squirrel should be reduced. 🇨🇦🌎🐿️
A stunning male Varied Thrush in Metchosin this evening 🇨🇦 #birdringing
October 30, 2025 at 5:27 AM
A stunning male Varied Thrush in Metchosin this evening 🇨🇦 #birdringing
Adult male Golden-crowned Kinglet recaptured at Rocky Point this month; ringed there in August 2024. Males are told by orange feathers in the crown. #birdringing
October 28, 2025 at 8:20 AM
Adult male Golden-crowned Kinglet recaptured at Rocky Point this month; ringed there in August 2024. Males are told by orange feathers in the crown. #birdringing
California Quail at Rocky Point last month. Their plume is comprised of six overlapping feathers. #birdingBC
October 28, 2025 at 8:12 AM
California Quail at Rocky Point last month. Their plume is comprised of six overlapping feathers. #birdingBC
Barred Owl ringed at Rocky Point Bird Observatory tonight 🦉
October 27, 2025 at 9:12 AM
Barred Owl ringed at Rocky Point Bird Observatory tonight 🦉
Blog post on my last week as 2025’s bander-in-charge at Rocky Point Bird Observatory, now we’ve completed autumn migration monitoring: rpboblog.blogspot.com/2025/10/week... 🇨🇦🪶🧪🌎
October 24, 2025 at 7:23 AM
Blog post on my last week as 2025’s bander-in-charge at Rocky Point Bird Observatory, now we’ve completed autumn migration monitoring: rpboblog.blogspot.com/2025/10/week... 🇨🇦🪶🧪🌎
Third time lucky with this Rock Wren at McMicking Point in Victoria today! #birdingBC
October 24, 2025 at 4:12 AM
Third time lucky with this Rock Wren at McMicking Point in Victoria today! #birdingBC
Siberian Thrush ageing confusion resolved! Papay’s 2022 bird (accepted as an adult) was a first-winter male. Morals of the story: adult males should always have striking head patterns and juvenile wing feathers can be very blue! Thanks to @stervander.com for revisiting the specimen. #birdingScotland
October 19, 2025 at 6:03 AM
Siberian Thrush ageing confusion resolved! Papay’s 2022 bird (accepted as an adult) was a first-winter male. Morals of the story: adult males should always have striking head patterns and juvenile wing feathers can be very blue! Thanks to @stervander.com for revisiting the specimen. #birdingScotland
Marsh Wrens are not common in the nets at Rocky Point. It was nice to catch a couple last weekend, including a recapture from last year. #birdringing
October 18, 2025 at 8:41 PM
Marsh Wrens are not common in the nets at Rocky Point. It was nice to catch a couple last weekend, including a recapture from last year. #birdringing
A juvenile female Sharp-shinned Hawk rounded off the final day of autumn migration monitoring at Pedder Bay today #birdringing
October 18, 2025 at 8:22 PM
A juvenile female Sharp-shinned Hawk rounded off the final day of autumn migration monitoring at Pedder Bay today #birdringing