Tony LePrieur photographed these birds on September 27, 2015. The robins and the White-throated Sparrow were seen in Queen’s Park Cemetery in NW Calgary, and the rest in the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary.
American Robin
[exif id=”14755″]
American Robin
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American Robin
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White-throated Sparrow
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Great Blue Heron
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Male Wood Duck
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Great Horned owl
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Posted by Bob Lefebvre
Paul Koegler was lucky enough to see this Common Loon with very little dark pigmentation on August 15, 2015 at Whitetail Lake, BC. Leucistic birds are not too common, especially ones like this that lack the darkest pigments in all their feathers. Birds with irregular white splotches or patches seem to be more common. The bird is not albino; if it was it would have pink eyes, a light bill, and whiter feathers.
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This looks like an adult bird. It has the black bill of an adult and you can faintly see the ring around the neck. It is with at least two other adult loons, so they were either done breeding at this time or were unsuccessful breeders. Breeding loons are very territorial and a breeding male will not tolerate any other loon besides its mate being nearby.
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In about a week we should be seeing the first of the migrating loons coming through Calgary. They can be seen on Glenmore Reservoir, the Bow River, and other large bodies of water. If we’re lucky we may get other species here on migration such as the Pacific Loon or even Arctic or Red-throated Loons.
The winner of the pair of free tickets to the film The Messenger is David Severson. Thanks to all who entered.
If you plan to attend the show you can still use the discount code to get $2 off admission. The code is Birdcon-15! (include the exclamation point). The Messenger is an important film and has been getting excellent reviews.
The film plays at Eau Claire Cinemas on Friday October 2 at 7:15 pm and Saturday October 3 at 12 noon, as part of the Calgary International Film Festival. See this site for more information and to view the trailer.
The Messenger, an important film about the worldwide decline in songbird numbers, is playing in Calgary as part of the Calgary International Film Festival. There will be two showings: Friday October 2 at 7:15 pm, and Saturday October 3 at 12 noon, at the Eau Claire Cinemas.
The insect in this video might be mistaken for a hummingbird or large bee, but it is a moth of the sphingidae family. They are commonly known as hawk moths, sphinx moths, or hummingbird moths. There are six species in Alberta. I believe this one is a Hummingbird Clearwing Moth. It is found throughout Alberta and is active in the daytime.
These moths are known for their ability to hover while feeding on flower nectar. You can see the long curved proboscis. With a wingspan of about six cm, you can see how they are sometimes mistaken for hummingbirds!
The video was taken in Peace River, in northern Alberta, on June 10, 2015.
Posted by Bob Lefebvre
Tomorrow evening, Tuesday September 15, marks the beginning of another season of nature talks in the Nature Calgary Speaker’s Series. The topic is “Cruise the World For Birds” and will be given by renowned local author and speaker Chris Fisher. Here is the talk description from the Nature Calgary site:
“For more than five years, Chris served as lecturer and naturalist for a major cruise line. This experience took him to every continent and to more than 160 ports around the world. From Alaska to the Antarctic and Stockholm to Samoa, birds (and other wildlife) were a constant, yet ever changing companion to his voyages. This presentation will not only be a natural history showcase, but it will also strive to demonstrate how our wildlife encounters enrich our lives and create our life’s most cherished moments.”
The location is the Cardel Theatre in Quarry Park, just south of Carburn Park. For a map, driving directions, and more information, see the Nature Calgary event page here. There is free parking, but please bring a food bank donation. The doors open at 7 pm and the talk begins at 7:30. Everyone is welcome.
The Nature Calgary Lecture Series is held on the third Tuesday of each month in this location, from September through April. In addition, the Nature Calgary Bird Studies Group holds talks on the first Wednesday of each month at the University of Calgary. Watch the Nature Calgary site for upcoming lectures and events.
Follow Chris Fisher on Twitter @FisherSpeaks
Carburn Park is a great place to find warblers and other songbirds during fall migration. Many species that pass through in the fall are not seen in Calgary in spring and summer, or seen in very small numbers. For many species of warbler the peak of migration is in mid-August. Some of the later-migrating warblers will continue to move through until late September (or much later in the case of Yellow-rumped Warblers).
Currently our native sparrows are beginning to migrate through the area.
Tony LePrieur photographed these birds on a visit to Carburn Park on August 23, 2015. Some of the ID’s are tricky so please correct me if I’m mistaken! -Bob Lefebvre
Northern Waterthrush ([exif id=”14667″])
Warbling Vireo ([exif id=”14662″])
American Redstart ([exif id=”14663″])
Yellow Warbler ([exif id=”14668″])
Philadelphia Vireo ([exif id=”14666″])
Empidonax Flycatcher species, probably Least Flycatcher ([exif id=”14664″])
House Wren ([exif id=”14665″])
The next Calgary Birds & Beers social get-together will be held from 6 to 9 pm on Friday September 11, at the Royal Canadian Legion, 9202 Horton Road SW Calgary. Everyone is welcome to join us to have a friendly chat with their fellow birders. Drinks and meals are available.
See the Facebook event page here, with a map to the location.
The following Birds & Beers events will be held on Friday October 30 and Friday November 13.
Some summer birds and mammals from Calgary, taken in late June 2015. All photos by Tony LePrieur.
Redhead chicks.
American Coot chicks and adult.
Male Yellow Warbler.
Savannah Sparrow.
Yellow-rumped Warbler.
Great Blue Heron.
Black-crowned Night-Heron.
Green-winged Teal.
Barn Swallow.
Beaver.
Twin Mule Deer fawns photographed July 24, 2015 at Bragg Creek, by Kim Selbee.
