Clark’s Nutcracker
Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada.
This handsome member of the crow family pauses in his jay-like chatter to survey his wide (see previous photo) kingdom. The grey of the background is a distant mountainside, probably Caldron Peak. Like many birds of the higher altitudes, Nutcrackers can be surprisingly tame around humans. The perch appears to be an Englelmann Spruce.