A Big Black Bird

By Cathy Warwick.

Most people know that a flock of crows is called a “Murder of Crows” – it’s probably the most popular collective noun for birds. Did you know a flock of Ravens is called an “Unkindness of Ravens”? Still not very cheery, but better than murder. Perhaps some songbirds got together and made these up, they are very apt for their experience of Crows and Ravens. These big black birds love eating eggs from nests.

Common Ravens mate for life and are often seen in pairs. Here, the one on the left is grooming the head feathers of its mate on the right. Photographed in Banff National Park in October 2019 by Bob Lefebvre.

If you have ever seen a Raven up close you may agree with me when I say they are the more impressive of the two birds. If you want to get a close look at one, take out a sandwich in a ski hill parking lot, the Ravens will come flying in! I always remark on how big they are up close, every time. Their black feathers are so impeccably black they almost bend the light around them. Then they have impressive fluffy neck feathers and a massive black beak. Their intelligent eyes pierce into yours and for a second you may consider throwing the sandwich at them while you make your getaway. I once saw a Raven take a grocery bag of food right out of the back of a truck. As it was flying away I saw there was a box of cereal in its bag, unsurprisingly it had chosen wisely. Ravens are well known for being one of the more intelligent birds.

A Crow is an interesting bird also, smaller than a Raven but also intelligent. They have smaller beaks and smoother feathers. They also tend to flock together more than Ravens. If you have been to Burnaby, BC, which is a known evening roost for Crows, you will see huge flocks, all cawing relentlessly. They are so loud you need to raise your own voice to be heard. I’m not sure what the point of all the cawing is, the first caw sounds exactly like the 1000th, it’s some kind of Crow conversation. Crows have very sophisticated social relationships, which is a big reason for their success as a species.

An American Crow. Up close, the neck feathers say Crow.
Photo by Diane Stinson

A big black bird is flying in the air above your neighbourhood, which is it ? A Crow or a Raven? Here is a handy guide to help out:

Wing movement: a Raven glides and a Crow flaps
Tail shape: a Raven has a large wedge shaped tail, a Crow has a flat fan
Number of them: a Raven is alone or in a pair, Crows tend to flock together
Vocalization: Crows caw and Ravens croak, gurgle, squawk, rattle
Size: Ravens are bigger, which isn’t very helpful when there is a faraway bird against a blue sky!

The birds didn’t seem to get this memo however, and you may see a large bird, solo, flapping its heart out. If you see the bird do a barrel roll or somersault then it is a Raven, they are the more acrobatic fliers. It looks like a lot of fun and they should do it more often, then we would know what they were and wouldn’t be forced to call it a ‘Craven’.

Birders needed for Calgary CBC, Sunday December 15th!

Dec6

Register here to join backyard feeder watchers, or urban walking or driving routes.

The more eyes we have looking for birds during the Calgary Christmas Bird Count on December 15th, the better picture we will have of winter bird populations in Calgary.

Cassin's Finch — Cassin’s Finch, the first ever seen on the Calgry CBC, in 2023. Photo by Laura Bentley.

We could use a few more people to join existing teams who will be covering established routes driving or walking in a few parts of the city. (Refer to the section numbers on the map below.) This includes routes in the far NW (N9), Beaverdam Flats area (E1), Dover/Erin Woods/Forest Lawn/Marlborough neighbourhoods (E-5), the area south of Downtown along the Elbow River (W-3), a large section of the SW including North Glenmore Park (W-5), the large western edge of the Count Circle from Canada Olympic Park south to Griffiths Woods (W-6), and even Carburn Park (S-1) which is the section that usually finds the most species of birds. Please register if you’d like to help out in one of these areas – you can specify your preferred section number when you register.

Some sections have no one covering them at all yet. If you would like to do one of these by yourself, or lead a small team, again please register. Areas available include Bowness including Bowness Park (N1), The U of C grounds and parts of Varsity and Shouldice (N-4a), Parkdale and the rest of Shouldice (N-4b), and the Capitol Hill area (N-7 lower).

As always, in addition to the field teams, we will accept as many people as we can get counting birds at their feeders in their yards. You can watch for as little as 30 minutes on Count Day. Just select “Feeder Watcher” on the registration form under “How do you want to participate?” (Note that you must live within the Count Circle as shown on the map, in order that your Feeder Watcher results can count for the CBC.)

Once again, the count is Sunday December 15th. Register here!

The Winter Bird Lists

Dec2

Keeping track of bird species in the winter months, from December 1 to February 28.

Posted by Bob Lefebvre, 2 December 2024.

Once again I will be assisting Caroline Lambert with tracking all bird species recorded in the Calgary Count Circle in the winter months. I have been doing this for Calgary for a few years, and Caroline tracks the Bow Valley list. There is also an Edmonton List, and a Provincial one that has been going for many years.

The Calgary list got off to a great start, with the highest December 1 species count yet – 65! Many birders challenge themselves to keep a winter list and I think quite a few people went out on Sunday to get a good start to their winter birding. All 65 species were ones we get every winter, although in some years it takes quite a while to find some of these! We are more than halfway to our usual species total in one day, but it gets much harder to add species from here.

The second bird I saw when I looked out my front window on December 1st – Eurasian Collared-Dove. I only had my phone handy so the picture is very poor. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.

Click here for the complete Calgary list. You can tell at a glance which species are usually found but have not yet been seen this winter.

I will quote below from Caroline’s post about the winter lists on the Albertabird discussion site:

The winter birding season starts Sunday, Dec 1. As in previous years, various lists of winter birds seen in certain areas in Alberta will be maintained from Dec 1 to end of February. Alberta has some really good winter birds – there are just not many of them! And each year there are surprises. Links to all of the lists, with area maps, can be found at albertawinterbirds.org.

Calgary: this will be compiled again by Bob Lefebvre. The count area is the 80km radius count circle centred on Calgary, the same one used for the May species count. It is preferred that sightings during this count period and in the count area be reported to the Albertabird site (keeping in mind that certain sensitive species should not be openly reported), but we will also include species reported to eBird and elsewhere, if we can find them.

Bow Valley: this area includes both the Bow River and Kananaskis River watersheds, as far east as the Stoney Nakoda casino and Seebe Dam. Most sightings for this area are taken from the Bow Valley Birding Facebook group, but we will record sightings reported on Albertabird, eBird, Christmas Bird Counts, rumours on the street, etc. The Bow Valley has the lowest species count of any area, so we’ll accept any reputable report!

Provincial list: Andy Ross is again taking care of the Alberta-wide list. The list has been cleaned up, simplified for easier reading, and sorted to the most recent taxonomic order (following the Clement’s/eBird taxonomy). Andy will collect sightings from the usual sources (eBird, Albertabird, the other winter lists, the Alberta Birds Facebook group, etc.).

The Edmonton list as shown on the albertawinterbirds.org site is not the official one; I simply copy their list from the Edmonton Nature Club’s groups.io discussion group. The links are there mostly to have one jumping off spot to find all the winter list info should anyone be interested.

Good birding,
Caroline Lambert
Canmore

Join the 2024 Calgary Christmas Bird Count!

Nov2

Please register to take part in the field or at home

The Calgary CBC will be on Sunday December 15. We need birders to take part out in the field counting birds, as well as Feeder Watchers counting in their yards. All participants, whether new or returning birders, must register so we have up-to-date contact information, and, for Feeder Watchers, correct addresses.

Redpoll (at the time, Common Redpoll) taken by Lou Zaganelli on the 2023 Count.

Here is everything you need to know about the Christmas Bird Count, from organizer Matt Wallace:

I am inviting you to take part in the upcoming 2024 Calgary Christmas Bird Count (CBC) happening on December 15!

As you likely know, the CBC is the longest-running citizen science project which began in the year 1900 as a way to encourage people to appreciate birds while helping to conserve them through data collection. The Calgary event began in 1952 and is one of the largest CBC events in Western Canada with nearly 400 people participating annually.

Consider this event to be the annual census of our winter birds in Calgary! It requires lots of people and effort to conduct this event, so we are always looking for birders of all experiences and abilities to take part. We really aim to use this event as a way to build up our community of nature enthusiasts and would love for you to share the event information with your friends, family, colleagues, and community.

Skip the details below if you’re ready to sign up and hit the registration form here: https://forms.gle/cNMoCPZZ9FNNrq3Q8

There are a few ways to participate:

Field Teams:

We have 38 circle sections and assign people to survey designated sections. All birds are identified and counted, and it usually runs the entire day depending on our participant’s availability. Bird submissions are made via eBird and shared with our CBC Compiler account. We also accept field templates from people who prefer to use them.We have section leaders who work with their groups to determine meeting locations, targeted areas, summarize effort data, and submit it back to our compilation team. We are looking for both field participants and field leaders (both returning and new).

Feeder Watchers (FWs):

People (individuals and families) observe birds visiting their yards and feeders for a minimum of 30 minutes on count day. FWs submit their data using a pre-formatted template which we provide. FWs are very important for our count as they help to fill in the data gaps where our field teams can’t access due to time or privacy. FWs must reside within the count circle, but we will confirm your address to ensure you are eligible to participate.

Data Entry/ Analysis:

Anyone interested in helping us to compile data is welcome! I often receive hundreds of emails with data templates, photos, and stories of the CBC. I manage but would love to have an assistant to help with this!
We continue to expand on our ways of showcasing the hard work of our volunteers. We have approximately 20 years of data (30 binders or so) which includes the detailed “section data” for the Calgary count. Yes, we submit all of the cumulative count “Circle” data to Audubon each year, but the section data is of interest to us on a local scale for showing how changes in our landscape and may influence bird populations.We would like to get all of this data entered prior to the 2024 count so that we can provide some additional infographics and analysis at the results presentation in January 2025.
In addition to the data entry, we would love anyone with skills in GIS and data visualization to join our compilation team in producing the final report (for media and the community).

So, all that’s left to do is register so I have your contact information, and we will be in touch soon! We look forward to you joining our CBC and thank you! Please feel free to contact me directly if you have any questions citynatureyyc@gmail.com.

Naturally, Matt

Moulting Is Not Revolting

Oct27

By Cathy Warwick

No! Of course moulting is not revolting, it is a natural part in the seasonal cycle of being a duck. No need to be embarrassed and hide away. Wait a second, maybe there is a need, since they can’t fly anymore to get away from predators!

Did you know many ducks moult once a year, in late summer or early fall? This means they shed most of their primary feathers all at once to grow new ones. The process can take about 20-30 days and during that period they lay low since they become flightless. If you have ever seen a pile of feathers and thought a coyote had lunch, it may not be so. The duck feathers can come off quickly and dramatically.

Not only do they become flightless, they become difficult to identify. Their beautiful and colourful plumage becomes a beige-gray bore before moulting begins. Typically this is in the summer months. This outfit is called their ‘eclipse plumage’ and it isn’t a favourite of birders. The term eclipse refers to the boring plumage darkening their usual colours. If you do an internet search for any type of waterfowl the pictures will show them in their breeding plumage, striking and unmistakable. Meanwhile you are peering through the binoculars at a beige lump wondering why birding is so difficult. We’ve all been there. At that point you can start looking for eye rings and tail shapes, which gets challenging. Or you also have the option of saying ‘oh a duck’ and watching them paddle around a bit.

Mallard
Moulting — A photo by Diane Stinson showing a Mallard that is moulting. Mallards are easy to identify at this stage of moulting.

I was surprised to learn that the Blue Jay moults all its head feathers at once. I have never seen that out in the wild and I suspect it’s because they hide away during this phase. It is such a radical difference from their usual spiky crown, They look like a tiny vulture with bugged out eyes. It only lasts for a week but you get the feeling if any bird were vain, it would be the Blue Jay. It’s amazing how much shape and bulk the feathers give birds, look at the difference between the two pictures of the Blue Jay, it’s hard to believe it’s even the same bird.

Blue Jay
Moulting — Blue Jay: Before on left (moulting) and After (beautiful crown feathers are grown in) Photos: Diane Stinson.

The larger birds and waterfowl are more inconvenienced by their moult season than smaller birds. Their feathers take longer to grow in. They often moult right before migration to have a nice strong set of new feathers to take them south. I imagine they are in the air now with their new outfits, ready to party in Mexico.

A Fiesty Hummingbird

Sep22

By Cathy Warwick

The Rufous Hummingbird is one of several hummingbirds that visit Calgary, and certainly the most feisty. They are very territorial and are known to chase away other hummingbirds from feeders, and have also been seen chasing squirrels and chipmunks. Although the idea that such a cute, eight centimeter bird can be frightening is comical, their shocking speed and poky looking beak would have me running for cover!

This summer I had the good luck to watch a Rufous Hummingbird for a solid ten minutes. I watched it stretch its tail feathers and stick its tongue out while it was perched on a branch. Prior to that I had been chasing after it as it flitted around, finally I just decided to sit down and see if it would show itself, a wise decision as they can go about 45 km/hr. I managed to look at it while it took a break from its endless battle with another Rufous Hummingbird. I saw that it had some green on it, as well as the rufous red, it was a female or immature male. The fully grown male is a nice coppery colour all over with a shimmery chin. Hummingbirds are hard to identify, firstly they are so fast you are lucky to see any markings and secondly they often have a range of plumage that is shared with other hummers. I used the Merlin app to be sure.

These tough little birds travel up to 3000 miles during migration. All the way from Southern Mexico to Alaska, so far for a tiny bird, maybe it can just soar on the winds. It doesn’t seem to be the type to let the wind do all the work though, the one I saw was constantly beating its wings while flying. According to All About Birds they fly up through California, then Washington and BC. After that they go east and fly down the Rockies, completing a clockwise circle. So for Calgary they will come through on their way south especially during August.

Rufous Humminbird — A female or immature male Rufous (Photo from Wikimedia Commons/Tom Koerner).

To attract a Rufous Hummingbird to your yard consider planting Honeysuckle, like my sister-in-law who saw them frequently this summer. They will take a while to find it but once they do they will come back yearly. The Atlas of Breeding Birds of British Columbia mentions that they will band Rufous and note the same bird at the same feeder on the same day, year after year! Our Honeysuckle died over the winter and we had a Hummingbird on our deck looking in the back window, as if it wanted to complain to the manager.

A Hummingbird feeder is also an option. There are a lot of resources on the internet that explain how to set one up and what to use as a solution. I’ll just mention that you need to change the solution at regular intervals to provide optimum fuel for them. A Hummingbird is a finely tuned organism whose heart beats 1,260 times per minute, vs. a human’s 80ish beats. Perhaps consider putting out multiple small feeders so the Rufous lets other hummingbirds also feed.

I hope you had a chance to see this small bird with an outsize personality this summer!

Rufous Hummingbirds can been seen on their breeding grounds in Calgary in the Weaselhead Nature Area, Griffits Wood Park, and other parts of the west end of the city. They arrive here on about May 10 and can be seen until September.

Osprey in the City

Jun1

By Cathy Warwick

Our sports fans are back in town. There is a pair of Osprey in Calgary’s southwest that have a nest overlooking an athletic centre and parking lot. The hustle and bustle of sports surrounds them and they appear to be used to it. I went and checked them out on a spring morning and watched one eat some fish while perched on top of a pole. As I watched the big bird with my binoculars surveying her territory, she was probably counting the breakfast crumbs on my sweater, her eyesight is that good.

The Osprey is also called a fish hawk because of its strict diet of fish. The pair of Osprey I visited fly over to Sandy Beach and patrol the river. For every hunting trip an Osprey makes it is estimated that they are successful 70% of the time. According to Cornell, the Osprey spends an average of only twelve minutes hunting per trip! Human anglers should take note of their tactics.

They spot a fish and then dive in with their sharp talons, which have a ‘opposable thumb’ type of claw at the back. Their talons also have scales going in a direction that snags the fish onto them. This feature, coupled with their strong grip, means they can be dragged under the water by a larger fish, if they get too greedy. They have also been known to dive under the water to get a fish, then to get out they ‘swim’ with their wings. These skills, coupled with their amazing vision, make them fishing machines. It’s enough to make the average angler throw their little pole and string in the bushes and march off in disgust.

Ospreys are often used to illustrate the effects DDT and PCBs had on our ecosystems, since they are the pinnacle of their food chain. Being at the top, they end up absorbing all the bad stuff in our waterways and DDT causes their eggs to have thin shells. This had catastrophic effects back in the 70’s – Ospreys were actually endangered in some areas. It’s heartening to see how they have rebounded and now have a status of ‘Least Concern’. Ospreys are all over the world, on every continent except Antarctica, and who would want to live there and hang out with a bunch of silly penguins.

During nest building the male Osprey usually gathers the materials and the female arranges it to make a nest. Last year the male had brought his mate a pair of black athletic shorts and they were acting more as a flag, hanging from the bottom. Perhaps from their favourite team? This year it looks like they are making use of a rope and an unidentified piece of cloth. I couldn’t really tell, with all the sticks and extras making up its nest, but it looked like there was no actual nesting platform for this pair. It brings up the question of why the Osprey don’t like the very sturdy nest platforms in Weaslehead. I have never seen an Osprey nest on those ones in all the years they have been there. Perhaps it is about the fishing opportunities down there? Maybe we need to organize some sporting events for them to watch?

Below are some photos of Osprey from another well-known nesting site in the city – the art sculpture on St. Patrick’s Island by the zoo downtown. The photos were taken by Onkar Kadim in summer 2023.

Calgary May Species Count

May4

Volunteers needed for May 25-26, 2024

Posted by Bob Lefebvre

The May Species Count covers a huge area in the Calgary region. Volunteers go out to their designated routes on either the Saturday or Sunday (or both) and record all the bird species they see, and the numbers of each. There will likely be several routes available in the city and in rural areas. You should have a choice of a small or large city area, or a large rural territory or a part of one.

The birds above were seen on the 2023 May Species Count in the Longview Area, May 28, 2023. Photos by Bob Lefebvre.

Results are submitted by eBird and you are encouraged to get some photographs too. If you are inexperienced and not confident to go out on your own, you may be placed with an existing group.

The routes available will be known soon and I will post updated information. If you are not already slated to take part and are interested to join us, or for more information, email the organizer Andrew Hart at andrewhartch[at]icloud.com. Andrew is out of the country right now so if you just want more information about the count, email me at birdscalgary[at]gmail.com.

American Coot — Ruddy Duck “blowing bubbles”

The photos above were taken on the May Species Count in 2021 on the Bridlewood Pond in Calgary. Photos by Bob Lefebvre.

City Nature Challenge 2024

Apr7

Thursday April 26 through Monday April 29

Posted by Bob Lefebvre

The sixth annual Calgary City Nature Challenge is coming up soon. This four-day bioblitz is an effort to try to record as much of the Calgary and area biodiversity as possible. Cities around the world will be taking part in this effort, and competing to see who makes the most observations and records the most species. As usual, Calgary will be competing to try to increase our own participation and species numbers here.

From CNC Organizer Matthew Wallace:

The sixth annual Calgary City Nature Challenge takes place April 26-29! Over 650 cities worldwide will compete and collaborate to showcase their urban biodiversity! Participate by taking photos of wild plants and animals in your yards, neighborhoods, and favorite parks over the four days. Then, upload your observations to the iNaturalist app or iNaturalist.ca!

There are several public events happening across the city which include pollinator walks, guided birding tours, and park bioblitzes. You can also just head out to explore on your own or with a group of friends.

Participate anywhere within the Calgary Metropolitan Region which includes Calgary, Airdrie, Chestermere, Okotoks, Rocky View County, and Foothills County.

The deadline to upload your observations to iNaturalist is midnight May 5.

Cities will compete to see which can make the most observations, document the most species, and engage the most people. Calgary aims to be the top-performing Canadian city with a goal of over 10,000 observations posted. Make as many observations as you can April 26-29 so get outside and help to put Calgary’s biodiversity on the map!

Check out all of the CNC resources on the following pages:

The City Nature Challenge webpage. Watch the events tab as more field trips are added.

CNC 2024 Facebook Page

The Project Page on the iNaturalist website.

As birders, we can participate by taking as many photos of birds as we can over the four days. Any identifiable photo is good so don’t worry too much about the quality of your pictures. We also need to document everything, so don’t hesitate to photograph House Sparrows, Black-billed Magpies, and other common species. Then you have until midnight on May 5 to upload your photos to iNaturalist.

An adult Bald Eagle I photographed near the Inglewood Golf Course on the 2023 CNC. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.

While you’re out there, you can also get photos of non-bird biodiversity with your camera. Maybe you won’t know what species you have, but iNaturalist has an artificial intelligence that can help with the ID, and even if you have no idea, other iNaturalist users will help to identify everything.

Canadian Beaver — Green-striped Grasshopper

These were a few of the other species I saw on the 2023 CNC. I didn’t know some of the species identifications until I entered them into iNaturalist. (Photos by Bob Lefebvre.)

Since I have my phone with me when I’m birding, I can use it to get photos of other species which are difficult to get with a big camera (photos by Bob Lefebvre):

Brickwork Woodlouse — Elegant Sunburst Lichen

I have found it to be a great experience to use iNaturalist to learn more about our overall biodiversity. Like most birders, I am interested in all of nature, not just birds.

Watch this short video about the 2024 Calgary City Nature Challenge:

Matthew has set a goal of having 10,000 observations made over the four days this year. In 2023 we had 9,301, so we are getting closer! We also hope to better our total of 762 species recorded last year.

So check out the project links above and plan to participate in an event, or just head out on your own!

Welcome Back Mountain Bluebirds!

Apr4

By Cathy Warwick

The Mountain Bluebirds are back in Calgary and surrounding areas! The “Friends of Fish Creek” birders saw five at Carburn Park on March 21st. The Bluebirds appear to arrive faithfully on the Spring Equinox every year. This picture Carole Steeves took of a Mountain Bluebird sort of sums it up. Imagine you fly all night from the Southern States and, exhausted, you land in Calgary only to be greeted by a cold wind and snow covering all the food. Perhaps I am projecting my own “snow-fatigue” onto this bird in the picture. Hang in there little guy, things will turn around soon. And then it will get bad again, and then better again… this is Calgary after all.

This cold Bluebird is probably stuck eating seeds and old berries it finds. When the weather gets warmer it will switch to its main food source – insects. According to Audobon.com, it especially likes caterpillars, beetles and grasshoppers. Maybe that’s why it makes its home in the open fields around Southern Alberta, a lot of bugs.

Years ago my family traveled up to the Ellis Bird Farm near Lacombe expecting to see a flock of Mountain Bluebirds in the spring. It was there that I learned that the bluebirds are very territorial while breeding and, according to their fact sheet, need to nest about 2-3 acres apart. That is why the nest boxes are put on what is called a ‘Mountain Bluebird Trail’. There are many such trails in Alberta and the efforts of volunteers building and monitoring nesting boxes can be read about all over the internet. It’s fun to slowly drive down a Bluebird trail. If you’re lucky you will see the unmistakable bright blue of a Male Mountain Bluebird. They are like a piece of the summer sky come to life. If you see a bird pop out of the nest that is more navy blue with a bright white chest then is probably a Tree Swallow that has taken a nest box.

Like the Blue Jay the blue comes from the structure of the feathers and the way it refracts the light. There is no actual blue pigment in the Mountain Bluebirds feathers. This is probably one of the more irritating facts that you can tell a beginner birder – “That bird isn’t really blue you know.” Birders already have a nerdy reputation so let’s use this fact sparingly. It’s interesting though, this bird really is sky blue, as the sky is also just refracted blue wavelengths.

The Mountain Bluebirds are in a hot competition for nesting cavities. They fight Tree Swallows, House Sparrows, other Mountain Bluebirds and worst of all – the European Starling. Yes, these aren’t your blue birds of song, flitting around Cinderella and landing on available shoulders. Reading about them on the internet the adjective “aggressive” comes up a lot. The Mountain Bluebirds are tough fighters scraping out a living. Needless to say, their population numbers fluctuate and although they are currently listed as ‘Least Concern’ their peak in population was in the 1940’s. According to the Nature Conservancy of Canada they have decreased by approximately 26 per cent between 1966 and 2014. Their scrappy, fighting spirit will be needed, as well as the help from the nest box volunteers.

Here is a link to the Calgary Area NestBox Monitors Society

Note: In addition to a number of migrating Mountain Bluebirds that have been seen along the Bow River in the past two weeks, there was a pair of Western Bluebirds seen at Carburn Park up until March 30. This species is rarely seen in Alberta, and this is likely the first sighting ever in the city.

More about Mountain Bluebirds at All About Birds.

Birds Calgary

A birding blog for Calgary, Alberta and area

Archives

A Big Black Bird

By Cathy Warwick.

Birders needed for Calgary CBC, Sunday December 15th!

Register here to join backyard feeder watchers, or urban walking or driving routes.

The Winter Bird Lists

Keeping track of bird species in the winter months, from December 1 to February 28.

Join the 2024 Calgary Christmas Bird Count!

Please register to take part in the field or at home

Moulting Is Not Revolting

By Cathy Warwick

A Fiesty Hummingbird

By Cathy Warwick

Osprey in the City

Calgary May Species Count

Volunteers needed for May 25-26, 2024

City Nature Challenge 2024

Thursday April 26 through Monday April 29

Welcome Back Mountain Bluebirds!

By Cathy Warwick.

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Register here to join backyard feeder watchers, or urban walking or driving routes.

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Keeping track of bird species in the winter months, from December 1 to February 28.

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Please register to take part in the field or at home

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By Cathy Warwick

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By Cathy Warwick

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Volunteers needed for May 25-26, 2024

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Thursday April 26 through Monday April 29

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