Featuring a presentation by Jody Allair on the state of Canada’s Birds.
The next Birds & Beers meetup is next Thursday, April 10th. This is a social get-together of birders, open to everyone. We meet at the Royal Canadian Legion at 9202 Horton Road SW in Calgary. Doors to the big ballroom open at 5 pm. If you can, come early to socialize, eat and drink.
Jody Allair of Birds Canada.
At about 7 pm there will be a presentation by Jody Allair of Birds Canada. The topic is “The State of Canada’s Birds and actions we can take to help our feathered friends.”
Jody Allair with a Bald Eagle.
About Jody Allair:
Jody is an avid birder and naturalist who enjoys sharing his enthusiasm for the natural world. He has been birding and banding since his teens, when he began volunteering at Long Point Bird Observatory (LPBO) in Southern Ontario. He is now the Director of Communications at Birds Canada where he manages the organization’s public relations and media, is the co-editor of BirdWatch Canada Magazine, producer of the Warblers Podcast and a coordinator of eBird Canada.
Over the years Jody has coordinated a variety of different bird-related projects including the Southern Ontario Bald Eagle Monitoring Program, the Ontario Nocturnal Owl Survey, Birds Canada’s Youth Education Program, and the Southern Ontario Forest Birds at Risk Program.
Jody regularly speaks about birds and conservation to audiences across Canada and has written numerous articles on birds, birding and connecting with nature. He is the monthly birding columnist for CBC Radio’s Daybreak Alberta, has appeared on CBC’s Rick Mercer Report, presented at Ideacity, was a featured bird expert on Season 2 of the Love Nature Television series ‘Battle of the Alphas’ and is a regular guest, and occasional guest host, on the American Birding Association podcast.
In addition to his 20+ years at Birds Canada, he has been leading birding tours with Eagle-Eye Tours since 2008.
Register now for these two southern Alberta May Species Counts.
Spring is almost here, so it’s time to prepare now for the Alberta May Species Counts, which take place in May, when many migrating birds are back or passing through. Two long-running counts are the Brooks-Lake Newell Count in the SE part of the province, and the Milk River-Writing-on-Stone Count in the far south of Alberta.
Common Nighthawk in the Brooks area. Photo by Dan Arndt.
Many birders from Calgary, Edmonton, and other parts of the province travel to these counts, so it’s important to make accomodation arrangements ahead of time. Here is the information about the counts from the organizers:
We are pleased to announce that our two SE Alberta May Species counts will take place on the following dates:
Brooks – Lake Newell Bird Count: Sat. May 17 and Sun. May 18
Milk River – Writing-on-Stone Bird Count: Sat. May 24 and Sun. May 25
Looking for accommodation for the Brooks-Lake Newell and Milk River-Writing-on-Stone Bird Counts? The Brooks Heritage Inn and Suites, where we will hold our Brooks count meetings, is offering a discount rate of $125 per night for count recipients. To book, call 403-362-8688 and mention you are a bird count participant.
See brochure (below) for hotels in the Milk River area.
All of the campsites reserved for bird count participants have been allotted. Tillebrook Provincial Park general reservations for the nights of Friday May 16 through the May long weekend and Writing-on-Stone campsite reservations for May Friday May 23 through the count weekend are open. To book: shop.albertaparks.ca, 1-877-537-2757.
Note: a non-refundable fee of $15 per person will be charged to all Brooks participants to help cover the rental of the meeting room.
A reminder to plan to attend the pre-count meetings on the Fridays before each count. The 2025 Brooks WOS Bird Counts Brochure contains more information on the schedule for each weekend. Read/download the brochure here or see below.
Registration for the Brooks-Lake Newell and Milk River-Writing-on-Stone Bird Counts will open on March 1. A link to the registration form will be emailed starting March 1. If you wish to register for either or both of the counts please contact Donna first so we can get you on the email list to receive the link! Registration is open until May 1st.
We look forward to seeing you — and thousands of migrating birds — at the end of May!
Last spring I volunteered to help clean up the Wetlands just east of Elliston Park, in the Forest Lawn area. It was organized by Nature Calgary. I also “volun-told” my teenage son Finn that he was helping. What could be better than a bit of birding with another purpose layered on top! We showed up on a sunny May day and were given capacious black garbage bags and a map of an area to clean. Our area was a large field that basically looked like a bunch of nothingness. Wetlands are like that, to our human eyes there is nothing there, not true! To a bird it is a great place to feed, breed and live.
There are many ponds in the 68 Street wetlands east of Elliston Lake. It is a great birding spot once the ice is off in April.
Making a circuit around our large area we slowly filled our garbage bags with Tim Hortons cups. We got to a stand of trees and stopped, these trees were, unfortunately, filled with garbage, big garbage. Our black bags suddenly appeared tiny. A dumpster truck was needed in that area. I toyed with the idea of putting a diaper genie in my bag, or carrying out a car windshield. Instead we backed away slowly and made our way to the pond.
The secret to getting teens birding is to plonk them down in a big field with a garbage bag and binoculars. There are only two options, birds or garbage. Finn suddenly became interested in looking at the birds through the binoculars. In the pond we saw a large group of American Avocet, the ballerinas of the bird world. These dainty and elegant wading birds were dipping their long thin bills in the pond, waving them side to side to catch small invertebrates.
Two Black-necked Stilt (left) and one American Avocet (right), 68 Street Wetlands. Photo by Max Ortiz Aguilar, April 22, 2018.
The American Avocet is fairly unmistakeable to identify: they have a rusty coloured head, black and white wings and a long upturned bill. They stride through the water on very long legs.
The Avocets’ pond was lined with a surprising amount of electronics equipment, probably something to do with the electronics recycling facility just south of their wetland. It felt good to untangle extension cords from the bushes and gather up all the small appliances.
Avocets lay their eggs out in the open, which doesn’t seem wise but they seem to know what they’re doing, their species has the best conservation rating of ‘Low Risk’. Their chicks leave the nest at only one day old, at that point they can walk, swim and even dive. Oh to have it as easy as an Avocet parent.
American Avocet with young, Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Avocets nest in east Calgary wetlands.
Finn and I walked back along the road, collecting what appeared to be auto parts along the way. Either they fell off a truck or the city trucks are actively falling apart as they drive. Our bags were completely full either way. I focused on all the wire, seeing that as more harmful than pipes.
At the parking lot we delivered our completely full garbage bags to an already large pile. Somehow it still felt like we had missed so much, but at least the Avocet pond was a bit better. Our inaugural Wetlands clean up was celebrated with a Chinese Food feast. We plan on doing the exact same this year! Maybe Finn can learn how to drive a dump truck to make a dent in the pile by those trees. That would probably cost me three orders of Ginger Beef instead of the usual two.
An inspiring film about Hummingbird rescue showing this weekend in Calgary – free tickets available!
The Calgary Underground Film Festival’s (CUFF) Documentary festival is on now, from November 20-24. This Sunday, November 24, they will feature the film “Every Little Thing” which is about a woman in Los Angeles who nurtures injured Hummingbirds.
Film Description–
Amid the glamour of Hollywood, Los Angeles, a woman finds herself on a transformative journey as she nurtures wounded hummingbirds.
A film of joy and wonder, EVERY LITTLE THING offers profound truths in a deceptively simple story. In tending to these fragile yet resilient hummingbirds, Terry Masear finds a sense of healing from her own past. Follow Cactus, Jimmy, Wasabi, Alexa, and Mikhail, celebrating their small victories and lamenting their tiny tragedies. The compassion and empathy that Masear shows her Lilliputian charges serves as a lesson to us all — a reminder that in the smallest of acts, and in the tiniest of creatures, we might find grace.
On Tuesday May 16 Calgary City Council will hear submissions on a development in the area formerly known as Ricardo Ranch.
Ricardo Ranch, in the far south of Calgary, is the last undeveloped, intact wetland along the Bow River in Calgary. This unique ecosystem contains wetlands, native grasslands, and old growth riparian forest. There are proposals before City Council to develop the area and have up to 20,000 people living on the floodplain there. Within the proposed development radius is the only Great Blue Heron rookery left in the city, as well as endangered Bank Swallow nesting sites, and many other sensitive species.
A number of nature and conservation organizations have come together to express their concerns about this project, as they believe it goes against Calgary’s Climate Strategy and its goals as a Bird-Friendly city. As proposed, the development would eliminate a huge ecologically-sensitive area within our city, and one of the last such areas that we have.
Ricardo Ranch, in red, lies on the north side of the Bow River, just east of Deerfoot Trail. From the Area Structure Plan.
Here is an open letter that was sent to City Council and signed by many organizations:
Overview
On May 16 2023, Calgary City Council will decide whether to approve as proposed, or request modifications to the Logan Landing neighbourhood development adjacent to the Bow River. This development is partly within the river valley, at the southern edge of Calgary, as part of the Ricardo Ranch Area Structure Plan (RRASP). The RRASP was approved for development in 2016, and the Logan Landing neighbourhood by Genesis Land Development is the first of three proposed neighbourhoods in that area to come before Council.
The groups who have signed this letter all work to protect and conserve important habitats throughout Alberta. We collectively oppose the development, as proposed in the application, because it would significantly impact the Bow River’s floodplain, the adjacent wildlife corridor, and sensitive habitat contained within the area below the upper plateau.
We believe there is a win-win solution that will allow the Logan Landing neighbourhood to be built with modifications, while better protecting the wildlife habitat and floodplain.
Environmentally Significant Area
The Ricardo Ranch area, containing Logan Landing, is unique because of the convergence of ecosystems in one place and the varied plant and animal species that rely on this ecosystem to survive. Close to the river you will find riparian forest in the transition zone between the river and the upland area, bordered by some of the last natural wetlands in Calgary fed from channels off the Bow River and naturally occurring springs flowing down from the escarpment above. These springs are themselves surrounded by pasture land that contains remnants of what is now rare native prairie grassland.
Unfortunately, 46% of the City-identified Environmentally Significant Areas in the Logan Landing development are proposed to be permanently destroyed. This includes wetlands, of which Calgary has already lost 90%. Natural wetlands are a hugely important ecological asset that help mitigate against the increasingly severe effects of climate change and provide crucial habitat for migratory birds, bats, and amphibians. The Ricardo Ranch area is one of the last places within Calgary where natural wetlands are intact and healthy and we believe Council has an opportunity to ensure many of them remain this way. We recognize that the wetlands on the upper plateau will be removed or compromised to accommodate this development, but the natural wetlands below the upper plateau can be preserved.
Habitat for At-Risk Species
The Ricardo Ranch area provides habitat for Species At Risk. For example, the southernmost point of land in the RRASP, straddling Logan Landing and the adjacent parcel, is home to the last remaining great blue heron rookery (nesting site) in Calgary. Some Calgarians may remember the former rookeries in other parts of Calgary, including in Fish Creek Provincial Park that was abandoned by the herons following development in the surrounding area and significant recreational use of the park. We are concerned that the standards recommended by the federal Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) and Alberta Fish and Wildlife for the disturbance radius surrounding heron nesting sites of 1000m was relaxed to 750m to allow this development to proceed as proposed. The build-out of this neighbourhood will occur over multiple years, with loud and large machinery such as excavators, graders, and pile drivers operating within the recommended setback. If this land use proposal is approved without modifications, it is almost certain that this last heron rookery in Calgary will also be abandoned by this threatened species.
In addition to the threatened Great Blue Heron nesting site, the ecological inventory document for the RRASP found that the grasslands and wetlands within the area support the following, all indicating a healthy ecosystem:
Colonies of bank swallows which are a threatened species that has lost over 98% of its population in Canada and which nest in the slope below the upper plateau;
Songbirds such as Baird’s sparrow, a species of Special Concern under the Federal Species At Risk Act (SARA) and listed as Sensitive under the provincial Wildlife Act, which nest in grasslands;
Seven species of bats, including the Federally and Provincially endangered Little Brown Myotis as well as several other species considered at-risk in Alberta that are sensitive to habitat loss and use riparian habitat for both foraging and roosting.
Important habitat for all these species will be lost if the development proceeds without modifications to better protect the river valley, the escarpment, and the wildlife corridor.
Native prairie grasslands are the most endangered ecosystem in Alberta. While the grasslands in the RRASP have been disturbed by historical grazing activities, they are still productive and are supported by the naturally occurring springs located along the escarpment. Preserving more of this ecosystem throughout the RRASP supports larger and more diverse animal populations, increasing its value and resilience.
Smarter Development Required
We know that growth is necessary to provide homes for the ever-increasing population of our city–this is why we do not oppose the development in its entirety. We believe this can be done more efficiently and not at the cost of disturbing and potentially destroying the few healthy, native ecosystems we have left within city limits. Instead, we must be creative and implement best management practices, in order to find ways to build in the areas we already call home, while protecting the areas our native wildlife also call home.
We believe developing the parcels within the Ricardo Ranch Area Structure Plan, as has been proposed, is contrary to statutory documents like the Municipal Development Plan (MDP) 2.3.4 Parks, Open Spaces and Outdoor Recreation, and 2.3.5 Municipal, School, Environmental, and Conservation Reserves, which outlines that the City will “protect, conserve, and restore” environmentally significant areas. This plan also appears to contradict the Climate Strategy and Council’s Strategic Plan for 2023-2026 which focuses on resilience. Climate resilience is a key pillar in this plan as we aim to build a city that recognizes the climate emergency and does its part to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. However, we are aware this developer has proposed to install solar panels on every home in the development, and install electric vehicle charging infrastructure, which we applaud.
Win-Win-Win Proposal
There are options to modify the neighbourhood proposals within the RRASP, including Logan Landing:
1) Identified Environmentally Significant Area lands that are not otherwise dedicated as Environmental or Municipal Reserve can be dedicated as Conservation Reserve or
2) The developers could negotiate a land swap for part of the lands, donate part of the lands to the city or the province, or enter into a conservation easement agreement with a Land Trust non-governmental organization, with the appropriate benefit of tax credits.
Implementing these options would be a win-win-win scenario, with the sensitive habitat and species better protected, the river able to access its floodplain, and the developers will be able to build a still vibrant, complete community.
Conclusion
Calgary is a city that values its river valleys and wild spaces. We present this to the world as something that makes us unique and are rightly proud of what we have worked to conserve and protect. We have signed the International Durban Commitment for Biodiversity, which reads in part:
“This Commitment recognizes…that the value of biodiversity is multi-faceted – including ecological, economic, tourism, recreational, environmental, heritage, stewardship, spiritual, intrinsic, medicinal, nutritional, health, educational, scientific, cultural and social dimensions.”
By signing this Commitment, the City of Calgary acknowledges its own “accountability and responsibility for the health and well-being of our communities through protecting, sustainably utilising and managing biodiversity and recognizing its role as the foundation of our existence.”
This is exactly why we need to reconsider developing the valley lands within the Ricardo Ranch area as has been proposed, and all future developments in our river valleys. If we don’t do so now, we risk losing forever one of the things that helps us define ourselves as Calgarians. With what we know about catastrophic biodiversity loss and climate change, it’s time we take our prior commitments seriously and preserve the valuable ecosystems we have left. Let’s start with Ricardo Ranch.
Signed,
Trout Unlimited Canada Bow River Chapter
Nature Calgary
Alberta Wilderness Society
Canadian parks and Wilderness Society, Southern Alberta Chapter
Calgary Climate Hub
Calgary River Valleys
Friends of Confederation Creek
Here is an op-ed presented by many concerened groups:
Council Must Start Walking the Talk on Climate Change and Biodiversity
This week Calgary City Council will decide whether to approve a new neighbourhood called Logan Landing at the southern edge of Calgary in an area known as Ricardo Ranch. The development is located in one of the last remaining intact wetlands along the Bow River in Calgary, crucial for supporting biodiversity and mitigating the effects of climate change. This important area must be protected from development.
Ricardo Ranch is unique because of the convergence of ecosystems in one place and the varied plant and animal species that rely on these ecosystems to survive. It includes river forests bordered by wetlands fed from the Bow River and natural springs from the slope above. The springs are surrounded by remnants of what is now endangered native prairie grassland.
An ecological study completed for Ricardo Ranch found the grasslands and wetlands within the area support multiple wildlife and plant species. Take a walk through this area on a beautiful spring day and you are likely to see activity around Calgary’s last nesting site for great blue herons, a diversity of songbirds that nest in the grasslands and riverbanks, and if you stick around into the evenings, a variety of bat and frog species. Many of the species you will find here are endangered or considered species at risk.
Grassland and wetland habitats can also play crucial roles in mitigating extreme weather events and the effects of climate change by absorbing excess water and releasing it during droughts. It does not make sense to develop this area in a city where we have declared a climate emergency and passed a Climate Strategy.
We appreciate the need for our city to continue growing, but it needs to be done in a sustainable way. There are options to modify the three neighbourhood proposals within the Ricardo Ranch area, including Logan Landing. These could include protecting environmentally significant areas within the steep slope and valley bottom. There may also be an opportunity for the developers to donate land for a tax credit, or exchange part of these lands with the city or the province for other developable lands.
These are win-win scenarios, protecting sensitive ecosystems while allowing developers to build a vibrant, complete community. Calgary is a city that values its river valleys and wild spaces The City has signed the International Durban Commitment for Biodiversity, and by doing so acknowledged the City’s “accountability and responsibility for the health and well-being of our communities through protecting, sustainably utilising and managing biodiversity and recognizing its role as the foundation of our existence.”
This is exactly why we need to reconsider developing the Bow River valley lands within the Ricardo Ranch area as has been proposed. If we don’t do so now, we risk losing forever one of the things that helps define us as Calgarians. With what we know about catastrophic biodiversity loss and climate change, it’s time we take our prior commitments seriously and preserve the valuable ecosystems we have left. Let’s start with Ricardo Ranch.
Signed,
Trout Unlimited Canada – Bow River Chapter
Nature Calgary
Alberta Wilderness Association
Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society – Southern Alberta Chapter
Calgary River Valleys
Calgary Climate Hub
Friends of Confederation Creek
Brian Keating
Calgary Urban Species Response Team
Miistakis Institute
Bird Friendly Calgary
Nature Alberta
Weaselhead/Glenmore Park Preservation Society
Finally, if you wish to express your opinion at the council meeting on Tuesday, there are instructions in this piece by Nate Schmidt:
There are three things you can do to help and you can choose to do as many or as few as your like:
Email the mayor and city councillors – this development will affect places far outside of Ward 12 so the mayor and every councillor should hear what you think. The general contact form can be found here:
Submit your comments on the project – comments received on or before May 9 will be part of the public record but don’t let that stop you from submitting whenever you’re able. The submission form can be found here.
Sign up to speak – all Calgarians can speak for up to five minutes during public submissions. This can be done in person or over the phone here.
You will be able to sign up to speak and/or submit comments beginning now. The agenda will also become accessible one week before the meeting. When asked “What meeting do you wish to attend or submit to” select “Council.”
For agenda item enter Logan Landing Development.
You have the option to speak in person or on the phone.
If you choose to speak on the phone you will receive an email with a phone number and dial-in code. Because of the large number of people who will likely submit, each speaker will be assigned a group number with five other speakers. Updates on which group is speaking are reflected through the live agenda which you can view as you are watching.
If you choose to make written submissions you do not need to make any formal submissions on the public hearing date.
Once you are signed up, it’s as easy as submitting your written submissions via the web form or waiting your turn to speak on budget day.
Those choosing to speak in person must go to city hall and through security to council chambers. From there, you will be directed where to sit and when to speak.
You can co-present with others – this has an advantage if there are several people making identical points — Council will appreciate the efficiency and all copresenters can answer questions .
Advice for addressing council on the phone or in person:
Register to speak in advance (via address above)
When you phone in, make sure to mute your phone until your name is called
When it is your time to speak and your name is called, unmute your phone to confirm you are present
When you are called upon to speak, introduce yourself
You’re limited to 5 minutes max to make your address. Write a draft of what you want to say and try it out loud a few times to see how long it takes
Make your main points succinctly, and leave opportunities for followup questions from members of Council – you’ll then have an opportunity to expand upon key points without the time limit
Speak slowly and clearly
If you are calling in by telephone, stay on the line once you are finished (and mute yourself again) in case any councillors have follow-up questions
Powerpoint presentations, or printed documents (shown via a document camera) can be part of your presentation (the A/V technician will assist with this), but it may take some time to set up. Doc. camera is much faster to use.
Help migrating songbirds by keeping our night skies dark.
Spring migration is well under way, but as far as songbirds go, it will really pick up steam for the month of May. Songbirds migrate at night, and they can become disoriented by artificial light. This can cause them to be drawn off their normal path and into a more dangerous urban area, where they may collide with windows and other human structures, or be taken by predators.
Sparrows, warblers, and other songbirds will soon be moving through the city in large numbers. Lincoln’s Sparrow, Orange-crowned Warbler. Photos by Bob Lefebvre.
In 2021, Calgary became one of Canada’s first certified Nature Canada Bird Friendly Cities. Bird Friendly Calgary is the local organization whose mission is to highlight and mitigate threats that have contributed to a decline in bird populations of an estimated three billion over the last fifty years. As part of these efforts, Bird Friendly Calgary has a “Lights Out” initiative they would like to pass on to the local birding community. It is asking for everyone to turn off all unnecessary lights between 11:00 PM and 6:00 AM during the migration periods of spring and fall. For spring they are targeting April 1st to June 15th with special emphasis on the month of May.
Please try to keep your houses and yards as dark as is safe at these times.
Lighted office towers are also a great threat to migrating birds and bats, and a huge number die or are injured each year in collisions with office buildings across North America. The Calgary Urban Species Response Team is active during migration in searching for such birds and bats in the downtown core, and trying to rescue any injured ones. The hope is that they can find out where the major problem areas are, and find ways to mitigate the loss of bird and bat life. See their site to find out more about this problem and the great work they are doing.
The next Birds & Beers event is this Friday, October 14th. Birds & Beers is a social get-together for birders at which you can meet and connect with others, have a meal and a drink, and enjoy a short presentation of interest to local birders.
Royal Canadian Legion, Centennial Calgary Branch#285,
9202 Horton Road SW.
Friday October 14, 2022, 6:00-9:00 pm
Green-winged Teal
Everyone is welcome to attend. Unfortunately we had a late cancellation by our scheduled presenter, but we hope to have an update from Greg Wagner on the proposed Frank Lake solar power project. Greg may not be able to make it, but in that case we will still have some information from him on the status of the project, how to get more information on it, and how you can get involved.
The next Calgary Birds & Beers meeting will take place this Friday.
Royal Canadian Legion, Centennial Calgary Branch#285,
9202 Horton Road SW.
Friday April 8, 2022, 6:00-9:00 pm
Greg Wagner will present a talk on “Will the Foothills Solar Project Impact Bird Populations At Frank Lake?” Greg manages the Frank Lake Important Bird Area and is the expert on the birds of Frank Lake and area. There is a proposal to build a large solar array immediately adjacent to the lake.
White-faced Ibis. These birds are relatively recent additions to the breeding birds of Frank Lake. Photo by Tony LePrieur
Everyone is welcome. The meeting begins at 6 pm, with the presentation to begin at about 7:15.
In 2021 Calgary was one of four Canadian cities to be designated as bird-friendly cities. As part of the effort to increase awareness of challenges that urban birds face, Bird Friendly Calgary is holding a vote to designate an official bird for Calgary.
The hope is to raise awareness about the importance of urban wildlife, to help mitigate threats to birds, to increase education and public engagement, and to celebrate Calgary’s birds!
The public can now choose an official bird from the five short-listed candidates. You can vote on the Calgary Bird page. You can also make suggestion on how to make Calgary a more bird-friendly city.
In 1992, Peter Sherrington and Des Allen serendipitously discovered that large numbers of Golden Eagles and other raptors were migrating along a corridor on the front ranges of the Rocky Mountains in Kananaskis. Prior to this it was thought that not many Golden Eagles migrated. Peter and a group of volunteers began observing and recording the migrating birds. Over the next ten years they observed over 80,000 Golden Eagles (plus over 16,000 other raptors from 17 other species) passing through the corridor.
Observers at Hay Meadow, Kananaskis, Alberta. Photo by Caroline Lambert
The Rocky Mountain Eagle Research Foundation, a non-profit organization, was set up with the goal of increasing knowledge of Golden Eagle, Bald Eagle and other raptor migrations in Western Canada. For over thirty years the foundation has organized spring and fall migrant watches at three sites in the foothills.
The Hay Meadows site with Mount Lorette in the background. Photo by Caroline lambert
Caroline Lambert, one of the Principal Observers, is appealing for new volunteers to join the team of observers. Anyone can join the observers at the sites to help – it’s a very interesting place to visit and I encourage anyone with any interest to get in touch with the foundation and see where and when to go – but they also have a need to recruit more volunteers who can commit to observing for full days at regular times.
Golden Eagle, photographed by Caroline Lambert
Here is Caroline’s description of what is involved, and the rewards of taking part in this important project.
It’s a deep connection to nature like no other. Going to the same place regularly and staying there for a full day allows the birds and other animals to come to you, and over time you witness how the season changes, oh so gradually. That’s what it’s like at the semiannual eagle migration count in Kananaskis. A casual visitor, coming for a few hours at the peak of migration, will see just a snapshot of this. They might witness a few dozen eagles flying by, maybe a Red-tailed Hawk or Northern Goshawk, the usual chickadees, nuthatches, maybe the American Dipper. If they’re lucky, they might see some elk, or a moose, or deer grazing in the meadow. But the long-time observers have seen just about everything the area has to offer. Eighteen different species of raptor have been seen at the site, mostly eagles, but also Turkey Vultures, Ospreys, harriers, five different species of hawk, five species of falcons, and the three accipiters, with Northern Goshawk an almost daily occurrence. While cougar sightings have been admittedly very rare, most of us have seen all the other mammals in the area, including wolves and lynxes.
The eagle count at Kananaskis, run by the Rocky Mountain Eagle Research Foundation, has been running for over 30 years, and many of the older observers are no longer able to help out. We’re looking for dedicated people to help fill our ranks. We appreciate everyone who shows up with a pair of binoculars to help spot birds, but what we need most are people who will commit to a regular schedule, first as an Assistant Observer, and later as a Principal Observer. The Assistant Observer only needs to be able to spot birds and describe to the Principal where the birds are so the Principal can ID them, but the Principal Observer needs to be able to identify all the raptors that fly by. It takes some time to acquire the skills to do that – usually our Principal Observers start out as Assistant Observers and learn on the job, which is the best way to learn – out in the field, with an experienced person at your side. This isn’t for everyone as you need to be out at the site all day (mid-morning until sunset for assistants, sunrise to sunset for principals), constantly scanning the skies, and the weather can be a challenge, but for those who do this regularly, the rewards that keep us coming back and looking forward to the next season are there – the sighting of a wolf, or a Gyrfalcon, or one of those glorious days when hundreds of eagles fly by. We smile when the dipper comes by, almost every day, dipping as dippers do, and often singing. We marvel at the bluebirds, robins, and Varied Thrushes that show up in mid-March when it still seems too cold for them. It keeps us coming back season after season – not just for what we witness, but knowing that we are contributing to our knowledge of raptor demographics, especially eagles, as citizen scientists.
Even if you can’t help out, then donations to help compensate observers for expenses would be much appreciated.
The spring 2022 eagle migration count starts on March 1 and runs until April 22. Detailed information, including location and how to get there and how to donate, can be found on the website at eaglewatch.ca.
Hope you see you out there.
Caroline Lambert, Canmore
Bald Eagles at Hay Meadows, Kananaskis, Alberta. Bald Eagles are the second-most frequently observed raptors. Photo by Caroline LambertNorthern Goshawk at Hay Meadows, Kananaskis, Alberta. Photo by Caroline Lambert
Please check out the website – it’s full of fascinating observation records and a history of the counts. And even if you can’t get out to the sites yourself, you can support the project with a donation, or purchase a lifetime membership for just $20!
