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May Species Count – Longview Area

May30

Posted by Bob Lefebvre

On Saturday May 26, 2012 I surveyed the Longview area for the May Species Count.  This is the fifth straight year I have done this area, and I’m getting to know it pretty well.  I counted 73 species, down two from last year.

A rocky hillside west of Longview.

These large rural count areas take a long time to cover. It is mostly driving, stopping regularly to record birds and to listen.  There are only a few short walks.  I started at 5:30 a.m. and had made a first pass through the area by about 4:30 p.m.  You have to record the numbers of each species of bird and mammal you see, being careful not to over-count, which makes for some tricky record-keeping as you go down a road for the second time.  After going quickly over my checklist, I continued until 8:15, searching for species I missed earlier, and adding to some of the numbers.  It seems there are always a few birds you just can’t find.  Once again, there were few shorebirds in this area, because there just isn’t enough good habitat for them.  But there should be Bald Eagles, and I couldn’t find one.  I was compensated with two Golden Eagles. I never had a Gray Catbird, and spent the last half hour of the day searching dense thickets for one of these birds (unsuccessfully).

Here are a few of the species I photographed.

Female Mountain Bluebird.  There were good numbers of bluebirds.

This Killdeer was doing its “broken-wing” display, and likely had made its nest right on the gravel road.

I don’t get Pied-billed Grebes here every year.  This was the only grebe I saw.

Lincoln’s Sparrows were common.

There were dozens of black birds in mixed flocks in livestock fields.  It was difficult to separate the Brewer’s Blackbirds (above) from all the Brown-headed Cowbirds and European Starlings.

I had two male Northern Harriers, which seems to be a scarce species around Calgary this year.

Wilson’s Snipe.  More often heard than seen, but will sometimes sit on fence posts.

A mixed flock of about 60 Pine Siskins and American Goldfinches settled onto this field, and practically disappeared.  I can see four goldfinches in this photo but there were many more. 

I was quite entertained by this bird, which was trying to collect nesting material.  Unfortunately for the Oriole, the rope was too tough, and it left empty-handed.

Here are a few of the mammals I saw:

I think this is the same Red Fox I saw last year, in almost the same place. (See last year’s post.)

Most of the ground squirrels are Columbian, not Richardson’s as in Calgary.

These Elk kept a close eye on me as I explored a dirt trail where a Nashville Warbler had been heard a few days before.  I didn’t find the warbler.

Can you see the Bighorn Sheep in this photo?  Taken with a 400 mm lens.  I saw one in the same spot three years ago so I was looking for it, but nevertheless was surprised to find one there.

A cropped version of the photo above.

The May Species Count can be gruelling (I started at 5:30 again on Sunday and did another 13 hours in the city) but it is rewarding.  There are lots of interesting birds out there at this time of year.  Stay tuned for Dan’s post about our count in the Weaselhead.

Help With Hawk Identification

May30

No, this isn’t a quiz – we really don’t know what species of hawk this is. This photo was taken last week near Vulcan, and the hawk was estimated to be about 20-22″ by Alan Plumb & Marg Matheson.  So far, this is one of those birding mysteries that are so challenging (and annoying) to birders…

We forwarded these pictures to Terry Koryluk for his input, and here is his reply.

A most interesting bird. I have nothing in the photos to reference the bird sizewise, but it’s probably a member of the Buteo family. Judging by the broad blackish tips to the tail feathers, it appears Rough-legged Hawkish in that respect. The plumage of this bird is a plumage that I would call not a familiar one in any of the Red-tailed, Rough-legged, or, Swainson’s Hawks that have moved through our area. The underparts and head look a great deal like those of an immature Red-shouldered Hawk, but, are probably too dark for that. If it were a Red-shouldered Hawk, it would be first for the Province. It could be a hybrid of 2 of the 3 firstly-mentioned Buteos.

We would love to hear your comments on what you think this bird this might be, and why.

Travel Tuesday

May29

Our travelling birders, Alan and Marg, have sent us some pictures of a species that has never appeared on the blog. They were driving along RR181 near Twp 172 when they spotted this bird.

Lark Buntings are very much a bird of the southeastern portion of the province, and breed on the native prairie grasslands. Adult males in breeding plumage are black with large white wing patches, and can’t be mistaken for any other members of the sparrow family. His bill is blueish, and the bottom mandible is paler than the top one. Adult females resemble the other brown, streaked sparrows.

You have to be fairly lucky to see these birds, and the Status of Birds In Canada explains why.

Lark Bunting populations are highly nomadic from year to year, avoiding areas of drought and seeking out areas with adequate rainfall.

This is a difficult species to survey, with populations shifting around the grasslands of North America in response to annual variations in climate. Data from the Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) in Canada show large fluctuations and it is not possible to determine the direction of the population trend. BBS data from throughout their range suggest a moderate decline since about 1970, but again, the nomadic nature of the species creates uncertainty in this trend estimate.

Because of marked fluctuations and contradications among the available data sources, it is not possible to determine the population status in Canada.

Victoria Day Big Day 2012

May28

Posted by Dan Arndt

Long weekends are always a great time to get some extra birding in, and this one was no exception. I had initially intended on just making a morning of it with Gus Yaki’s Monday morning group with the Friends of Fish Creek Birding course at Mallard Point, but those plans went by the wayside when I was invited to join the annual Victoria Day Big Day.

What is a “Big Day”, you ask? The idea behind a Big Day is to get as many species as possible in 24 hours of birding. Some really hardcore birders begin at 12:01 AM and go all the way through until 12:00 AM the following morning, covering a huge area and generally getting a very high number of species. For instance, the current record for an Alberta-wide Big Day is somewhere around 235, and the participants started up around Cold Lake, Alberta and trekked all the way south to the SE corner of Alberta. When I heard that number, I was absolutely stunned. Not only by the magnitude of species seen, but also by the huge distance covered.

Traditionally, the Victoria Day Big Day is restricted to the Calgary city limits, and is organized by locally well known birder Tony Timmons. Instead of a competition style event, like some can be, this one is attended by all participants, with some coming and going throughout the day. This year, we started at 5:30 AM at Votier’s Flats and spent most of our time in the south end of the city, finally finishing up at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary around 6:30 PM. A long day, that’s for certain.

Both Bob Lefebvre and myself participated, and due to a bit of luck and determination, we were able to count the full 116 species reported by the group as a whole, along with 2 bonus species. One seen on the way down to Votier’s Flats, and the second in Confederation Park before Bob dropped me off at home.

I’ve posted the map and rough timeline of our locations below, along with the new species that we added to our total at each location. Oh, and of course I’ve added some photos as well!

Enjoy!

Victoria Day Big Day Locations

Victoria Day Big Day Locations

Crowchild Trail & Memorial Drive – Incidental – 5:15 AM

– Osprey

Votier’s Flats – 5:30 AM

  1. – Canada Goose
  2. – American Wigeon
  3. – Mallard
  4. – Blue-winged Teal
  5. – Bufflehead
  6. – Common Merganser
  7. – Ring-necked Pheasant
  8. – Sharp-shinned Hawk
  9. – Spotted Sandpiper
  10. – Belted Kingfisher
  11. – Downy Woodpecker
  12. – Northern Flicker
  13. – Least Flycatcher
  14. – Black-billed Magpie
  15. – American Crow
  16. – Northern Rough-winged Swallow
  17. – Tree Swallow
  18. – Bank Swallow
  19. – Barn Swallow
  20. – Black-capped Chickadee
  21. – Boreal Chickadee
  22. – Red-breasted Nuthatch
  23. – House Wren
  24. – American Robin
  25. – Gray Catbird
  26. – European Starling
  27. – Cedar Waxwing
  28. – Tennessee Warbler
  29. – Yellow Warbler
  30. – Spotted Towhee
  31. – Chipping Sparrow
  32. – Clay-colored Sparrow
  33. – Song Sparrow
  34. – Lincoln’s Sparrow
  35. – White-throated Sparrow
  36. – Red-winged Blackbird
  37. – Brown-headed Cowbird
  38. – Baltimore Oriole
  39. – House Finch
  40. – White-winged Crossbill
  41. – Pine Siskin
  42. – American Goldfinch
  43. – House Sparrow

Weaselhead – 7:30 AM

  1. Common Goldeneye
  2. Great Blue Heron
  3. Bald Eagle
  4. Swainson’s Hawk
  5. Red-tailed Hawk
  6. American Kestrel
  7. Merlin
  8. California Gull
  9. Rock-pigeon
  10. Rufous Hummingbird
  11. Calliope Hummingbird
  12. Hairy Woodpecker
  13. Pileated Woodpecker
  14. Eastern Phoebe
  15. Blue Jay
  16. Common Raven
  17. Cliff Swallow
  18. White-breasted Nuthatch
  19. Swainson’s Thrush
  20. Savannah Sparrow
  21. White-crowned Sparrow
Cliff Swallows collecting mud for nests

Cliff Swallows collecting mud for nests

American Goldfinch

American Goldfinch

North Glenmore Park & Glenmore Reservoir – 9:30 AM

  1. Gadwall
  2. Lesser Scaup
  3. American Coot
  4. Killdeer
  5. Baird’s Sandpiper
  6. Pectoral Sandpiper
  7. Bonaparte’s Gull
  8. Franklin’s Gull
  9. Ring-billed Gull
  10. Red-necked Grebe

53rd St and 22X – 10:45 AM

  1. Snow Goose
  2. Green-winged Teal
  3. Ruddy Duck
  4. Eared Grebe
  5. Sora
  6. Wilson’s Snipe
  7. Vesper Sparrow
Snow Goose

Snow Goose

Sora

Sora

Spruce Meadows Slough – 11:20 AM

  1. Cinnamon Teal
  2. Redhead
  3. Northern Shoveler
  4. Pied-billed Grebe
  5. Black Tern
  6. Marsh Wren
  7. Common Yellowthroat
Marsh Wren

Marsh Wren

South Calgary Bluebird Boxes – 11:45 AM

  1. Mountain Bluebird
Mountain Bluebird

Mountain Bluebird

South Calgary Ravine – 12:00 Noon

  1. Cooper’s Hawk
  2. Mourning Dove

Sikome Lake – 12:45 PM

  1. Horned Grebe
  2. Great Horned Owl
  3. Yellow-bellied Sapsucker
  4. Eastern Kingbird
  5. Warbling Vireo

Shepard Slough #1 – 2:20 PM

  1. Northern Pintail

Shepard Slough #2 – 2:32 PM

  1. American Avocet
  2. Willet
  3. Wilson’s Phalarope

Shepard Slough #3 – 2:37 PM

  1. Western Meadowlark

Shepard Slough #4 – 2:41 PM

  1. Canvasback

Shepard Farmhouse – 2:51 PM

  1. Brewer’s Blackbird
  2. Common Grackle
Brewer's Blackbird

Brewer’s Blackbird

Ring-necked Pheasant

Ring-necked Pheasant

Shepard Slough #5 – 3:07 pM

  1. Lesser Yellowlegs

Shepard Slough #6 – 3:30 PM

  1. Black-necked Stilt
  2. Least Sandpiper
  3. Semipalmated Sandpiper

White-faced Ibis Flyover – 4:07 PM

  1. White-faced Ibis

Main Shepard Slough – 4:11 PM

  1. Double-crested Cormorant
  2. Stilt Sandpiper

Shepard – 4:31 PM

  1. Eurasian Collared Dove
Eurasian Collared Dove

Eurasian Collared Dove

Inglewood Bird Sanctuary – 5:33 PM

  1. Wood Duck
  2. Harlequin Duck
  3. Hooded Merganser

Confederation Park – 7:45 PM

  1. Alder Flycatcher
Alder Flycatcher

Alder Flycatcher

Sunday Showcase: Spring Birds of the Calgary Area

May27

Here are some recent photographs of birds from in and around Calgary, by David Lilly.  See more on the Canadian Bird Photographer website, and on David’s website.

Western Meadowlark

Tree Swallow

American Kestrel

Northern Shoveler

Blue-winged Teal

Cinnamon Teal

Wilson’s Snipe

Rare Bird Alert Calgary: May 21

May22

Have you seen an unusual bird in Calgary? If it is on this Reportable_Birds (PDF), please report it to the Nature Calgary Rare Bird Alert line at 403 221-4519 and leave a message after the beep at the end of the recording. If you would like some help with species identification, email us at birdscalgary@gmail.com.  To report injured wildlife call the Calgary Wildlife Rehabilitation Society at 403 239-2488, or the Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation at 403 946-2361.

Bird Sightings:

May 14:
CURVE-BILLED THRASHER, Wyndham-Carseland PP, Mary Coughlin, June ?
TURKEY VULTURE, near DeWinton , Ali Bursten.

May 19:
RED-BREASTED x COMMON MERGANSER female, storm water pond, Votier’s Flats, Terry Korolyk.

May 20:
WHITE-FACED IBIS (21), east edge of Calgary, Bob Lloyd.
AMERICAN GOLDEN PLOVER , Third Lake, Richard Clarke.
SANDERLING, Pine Coulee Res. dam, TK.
RED-NECKED PHALAROPES, SEMI-PALMATED SANDPIPERS, TUNDRA SWAN, TRUMPETER SWAN, Clear Lake, TK.
PURPLE FINCH, male, Griffith’s Woods PP, Bob Lefebrve, Dan Arndt.
GOLDEN EAGLE, as above,several groups.
ROCK WREN, north of old gravel rd, Nose Hill Pk, Steve Kassai.
RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD, west of Calgary, Marilyn Sanders.

The next scheduled update of the Bird Alert is on Thursday May 24.

Rare Bird Alert Calgary: May 14

May15

Have you seen an unusual bird in Calgary? If it is on this Reportable_Birds (PDF), please report it to the Nature Calgary Rare Bird Alert line at 403 221-4519 and leave a message after the beep at the end of the recording. If you would like some help with species identification, email us at birdscalgary@gmail.com.  To report injured wildlife call the Calgary Wildlife Rehabilitation Society at 403 239-2488, or the Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation at 403 946-2361.

May 11
— RED-EYED VIREO, Fish Creek PP, Terry Korolyk

May 12
— SANDHILL CRANE, north of Cochrane, Rosemary Healey(?)
— NASHVILLE WARBLER, Inglewood Bird Sanctuary, Colin Young

May 13
— WHITE-FACED IBIS 200, Frank Lake, Paul Lehman
— NORTHERN GOSHAWK, (former) Cochrane Ranche PP, Joan&Malcolm McDonald
— RUFOUS HUMMINGBIRD, same, J&MM
— ROCK WREN, same, J&MM
— AMERICAN GOLDEN-PLOVER, Frank Lake, Andrew Hart
— BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER, Third Lake, PL
— STILT SANDPIPER 4, same, PL
— CALLIOPE HUMMINGBIRD, Weaselhead, Bill Wilson
— CASSIN’S VIREO, Lowery Gardens, Marcel Gahbauer
— PACIFIC WREN, same, MG
— BLACKPOLL WARBLER, same, MG
— PURPLE MARTIN 15, Chestermere martin houses, PL
— MAGNOLIA WARBLER, Weaselhead, reporter unknown

The next scheduled update of the Bird Alert is on Thursday May 17.

Harlan’s / Light Phase Red-tailed Hawk

May8

Posted by Bob Lefebvre

Recently Terry Korolyk spotted an interesting hawk on Hwy 549 just west of Hwy 773, south of Calgary.  Terry says it is an intergrade Harlan’s light phase Red-tailed Hawk.

Terry says:

Thought some Birds Calgary viewers might like to see what this bird looked like. The underparts are obviously a mix of both subspecies. The underside of the tail is obviously white with duskiness near the tip. The upperside of the tail was, in reality, white with a reddish subterminal band and 2 narrower wavy reddish bands adjacent to that.

Photographed by Terry Korolyk on April 6, 2012.  Click to enlarge.

To fully appreciate the bird in the photo, look at images of adult Harlan’s Hawks and of adult Eastern Red-tails, then look at my bird again. Rather than blackish underparts with a white streaked throat like a Harlan’s Hawk, or, rather than having white underparts with a strongly streaked belly like an Eastern Red-tail, you have a bird with underparts markings that meet in between. The upperparts are clearly blackish like a Harlan’s Hawk, but they also have that Eastern Red-tail brownish cast. The tail was white like a Harlan’s Hawk, but, rather than having a dusky tip, it had 3 narrow wavy reddish lines there indicating normal light-phase Eastern Red-tail association.

As Terry says, the usual Red-tailed Hawks here are the Eastern subspecies, and “Harlan’s” Hawks are considered to be another subspecies of Red-tailed Hawk.  At one time, Harlan’s Hawk was considered to be a separate species entirely. Intergrades like the one above indicate that they are varieties of one species (many people believe that Harlan’s is a separate species; perhaps genetic testing will settle this question).

The Harlan’s Hawk is very different from all other Red-tailed Hawk subspecies.  In both its dark and light forms it has black and white plumage, lacking the reds and browns of other Red-tails.  The tail, however, can have a wide variety of patterns.  Harlan’s Hawk breeds in Alaska and northwestern Canada and winters on the southern great plains.  We see them occasionally in Calgary in the winter months, when most other Red-tailed Hawks are absent.

Rare Bird Alert Calgary: May 7

May8

Have you seen an unusual bird in Calgary? If it is on this Reportable_Birds (PDF), please report it to the Nature Calgary Rare Bird Alert line at 403 221-4519 and leave a message after the beep at the end of the recording. If you would like some help with species identification, email us at birdscalgary@gmail.com.  To report injured wildlife call the Calgary Wildlife Rehabilitation Society at 403 239-2488, or the Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation at 403 946-2361.

May 5:
CHIPPING SPARROW, HERMIT THRUSH, 200 YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLERS, 3 WHITE-THROATED
SPARROWS at IBS, Gus Yaki with FFCPP.

May 6:
BOBOLINK , N side of junction of Hwy 68/Hwy 1, Dave Elphinstone.
PALM WARBLER, IBS, various observers.
BLACKPOLL WARBLER, 3 SWAINSON’S THRUSHES, SAY’S PHOEBE at Dinosaur PP, Marcel Gahbauer.
BANK, BARN, NORTHERN ROUGH-WINGED and TREE SWALLOWS, various reports.
SAY’S PHOEBE pair, Votier’s Flats, FCPP, Terry Korolyk.
SWAINSON’S THRUSH, BROAD-WINGED HAWK, Beaverdam Flats, Steve Kassai.
SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER (Caurinus) and a possible WHITE-FACED x GLOSSY IBIS Third Lake, Hwy 552, 224St SE, TK.
2 LEAST SANDPIPERS, 2 LONG-BILLED CURLEWS, slough at Hwy 547/ Rnge Rd 255, TK.
60 WHITE-FACED IBIS SE corner Basin 2, Frank Lake, Andrew Slater.
BLACK-CROWNED NIGHT HERON, LONG-BILLED CURLEW, 20 WESTERN GREBES, Frank Lake, AS.
WESTERN GREBE east of Shepherd, Andrew Hart.
3 THAYER’S GULLS (one very pale), LESSER BLACK-BACKED GULL, IBS, Ilya Povalyaev.

The next scheduled update of the Bird Alert is on Thursday May 10.