This Saturday, The Cornell Lab of Ornithology encourages people all over the world to go out and do some birding, and record their sightings on the eBird app. Like the Global Big Day each spring, this provides a one-day snapshot of world birding.
A Hooded Merganser on the irrigation canal in SE Calgary, October 7, 2023. Photo by Bob Lefebvre
You can go birding anywhere, and enter as many eBird lists as you like. Here is a link to more information onthe eBird site.
Every month, eBird has a new challenge to select an eBirder of the month. The winner gets a new Zeiss product (usually top-end binoculars). This month the challenge is not month-long, but just about the Big Day. Just submit five complete eBird checklists that day, and you will be entered to win a Zeiss Thermal Imaging camera. Here are the contest rules and other information.
Remember to check the eBird site near the beginning of each month to see what you have to do to enter the contest that month.
I hope you can get out on Saturday and submit some lists!
Next Friday will be the first Birds & Beers meeting of the new year. We meet at 6 pm at the Horton Road Legion. Everyone is welcome to come.
Royal Canadian Legion, Centennial Calgary Branch#285,
9202 Horton Road SW.
Friday January 13, 2023, 6:00-9:00 pm
Nesting Red-necked Grebes at the Bridlewood Wetland, Calgary, May Species Count 2021. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.
Aftere an hour or so of socializing, eating, and drinking, there will be a presentation by Andrew Hart and Lara Fitzpatrick on the Calgary May Species Count. They will present the history of the count and how it has evolved since its inception in 1976. They will discuss the areas that are covered, how the count is organized, and how and why they have migrated to eBird for data collection. Then the actual 2022 results will be shown, as well as a look ahead to how things may evolve for 2023.
The next Calgary Birds & Beers meeting will take place this Friday, June 10th. There will be a presentation about eBird by Gavin McKinnon.
Royal Canadian Legion, Centennial Calgary Branch#285,
9202 Horton Road SW.
Friday June 10, 2022, 6:00-9:00 pm
Horned Grebe. Photo by Gavin McKinnon.
After 7 pm, Gavin McKinnon will give a presentation on “eBird: The Review Process and How to Make Better Checklists.” Gavin will discuss all of the features that eBird has to offer. He will give regular eBirders a better idea of how observations are reviewed, and will talk abut how to make your checklists more valuable.
This information should prove to be useful for all birders, whether they use eBird or not. Gavin will also allow lots of time for questions and answers.
Everyone is welcome; food and drinks are available. We meet in the back rooms at the Legion at 6 pm. If you can’t make it at 6, the presentation will be at about 7:15.
Most Calgary birders know of Barb Castell’s home in the foothills SW of the city, near Priddis. Many have been there, and it is a great place to see birds, including some uncommon species, that come to her feeders and bird baths. It’s one of the most reliable places in the area to see Evening Grosbeaks, Purple Finches, and even Black-headed Grosbeaks.
Of course this is private property with restricted access, but there is a YouTube Channel which has a daily live stream from three cameras set up on the property. You can watch the birds live, and participate in the chat about what is being seen. There are also many archived past live streams, and clips of highlights on the site.
They also have a web page with more information and a link to the YouTube site: foothillsbirds.com
Below is one of the clips from YouTube, featuring some brave Blue Jays.
With fall migration now under way, as many as 26 species have been seen in a day recently, including migrating warblers and hummingbirds. Archived streams feature birds like Northern Goshawks, Northern Saw-whet Owls, Ruffed Grouse, and Mammals like Red Squirrels, Northern Flying Squirrels, and Bats. It is very entertaining and educational to watch!
I’d like to urge you to go to YouTube and subscribe to this channel. It’s as simple as clicking on the “Subscribe” button if you are a regular YouTube user. If not, to get your free subscription,
2. Log into your Google Account, if you aren’t already logged in, top right corner.
3. Click on the red SUBSCRIBE button on the right side.
4. It should change from red to gray and say UNSUBSCRIBE.
Being subscribed to a channel is not obtrusive. For you, it just means that the site appears in your feed as a suggestion from time to time when you are already on the YouTube site. Any new clips that they add will appear in your suggestions. It will also be easy for you to re-find the site since there will be a link to it under your subscriptions.
But it is very important for Foothills Birds to get more subscribers! Even if you do not plan to visit the site much, please subscribe so that it will be suggested to more and more YouTube users and seen by more people. There are currently about 444 subscribers, and if they get to 1000, it will allow them to get more advanced features from YouTube and allow them to do more to support the birds.
Some photos of birds seen at the feeders, from the web site:
Pileated Woodpecker, maleEvening Grosbeak, maleVaried Thrush, male
The best time to view the birds is when they are hungry early in the morning. The camera is usually on from from dawn to dusk.
This location is now an eBird HotSpot, so you can go on eBird and see what has been reported there every day. There have been 105 species observed at the location this year, and 140 species all-time!
If you are on Twitter, follow them @FoothillsBirds. They regularly post photos of birds that are at the feeders and in the area.
So visit the site, watch some clips and live streams, and subscribe. Let’s help them reach their goal of 1000 subscribers!
In late March, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Howard Heffler, Andrew Hart, Gavin McKinnon, and I decided to suspend the BirdYYC2020 challenge which we had organized. Participants in the challenge tried to find as many species as they could within the city limits. It was going very well, with over sixty birders taking part, and with many very good species being found. But we felt then that it was important to encourage people to stay home and refrain from gathering in groups.
Many people continued to bird individually and safely and to add to their year lists. But Nature Calgary field trips were cancelled and for a time many local parks were closed. The WhatsApp Rare Bird Group was temporarily closed.
Recently things have opened up quite a bit in Alberta, and we have decided to resume the challenge, with modifications. Nature Calgary is again offering field trips, but these are limited to ten registered participants and there is no car-pooling. The WhatsApp Rare Bird Group is open again and there have been a number of good sightings reported there. (Follow the link to learn more about this app and to join the group.)
Many birders unfortunately missed out on much of the spring migration, so as we resume the challenge, it will be difficult for them to get as many species this year as they may have hoped. (I am among those – my species total for the city is very low for this time of year, and my daily Year Needs alert from eBird runs to about forty species – mostly common species that I just haven’t seen yet.)
Common Merganser with chicks. A nice sighting on one of my few outings in recent months. Bow River, June 21, 2020. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.
Therefore, although the challenge will resume, the focus will shift away from the “friendly competition” aspect to one of “data collection” – to allow a comparison of the species found this year to those reported in the city during similar events in 2000 and 2010.
Our original objectives were to have a friendly competition and to:
· Share sightings.
· Promote interest in birds and birding.
· Enjoy Calgary’s natural areas.
· Organize more Nature Calgary field trips.
· Compare results with 2000 and 2010.
We can still achieve some of these objectives. We hope people will continue to post their sightings to eBird, and to use the WhatsApp Rare Bird Alert to share special sightings within the City limits.
It’s still possible that if the pandemic is under control, we may decide to do the whole challenge again in 2021. In the meantime, if you were already participating, continue to post your sightings to eBird. If you’d like to join in, see this Nature Calgary page or the first post linked to below.
Green-tailed Towhee, near Cremona, Alberta, May 2020. Photo by Steve Dyke.
There have been quite a number of unusual birds seen in the Calgary area this year. Here is a real rarity for Alberta, a Green-tailed Towhee that was visiting a rural yard near Cremona, NW of Calgary, in late May.
Green-tailed Towhee, near Cremona, Alberta, May 2020. Photo by Steve Dyke.
This sparrow was first noticed by Steve Dyke in his yard on May 18. The bird would shelter under lilac bushes, and emerge in to the open occasionally to feed.
Green-tailed Towhee, near Cremona, Alberta, May 2020. Photo by Steve Dyke.
Green-tailed Towhees are native to northern Mexico and the southwest United States. There have been fewer than eight previous documented sightings of this species ever in Alberta. (See this link for the Official List of the Birds of Alberta. The towhee is bird #378 on the list, and it gets the code 5 Rarity rating – “finds of a lifetime.”) The last Green-tailed Towhee seen in the Calgary region was in Bowmont Park in the NW part of the city in 1996.
Green-tailed Towhee, near Cremona, Alberta, May 2020. Photo by Steve Dyke.Green-tailed Towhee, near Cremona, Alberta, May 2020. Photo by Steve Dyke.
The bird stayed in Steve’s yard from May 18-24. Several other birders were able to see and photograph it.
Here is a range map from eBird, showing in purple all 2020 sightings of Green-tailed Towhee. (The purple square near Fort McMurray is not a mistake; there was a stray bird there last winter, from December 13, 2019 to January 21, 2020. That one was WAY out of range!)
2020 sightings of Green-tailed Towhee.
A beautiful bird, and a great find for Alberta!
Green-tailed Towhee, near Cremona, Alberta, May 2020. Photo by Steve Dyke.
With the current Covid-19 situation, it is not safe right now to bird in groups, and may not be for a long time. Nature Calgary has cancelled all group field trips for the time being, and the Friends of Fish Creek Spring Birding Course has been postponed. The BirdYYC2020 Challenge has also been suspended. Provincial and National Parks are closed.
Spring migration is under way (despite the winter-like weather we’ve been having), but I have not been publicizing any sightings at specific locations, to try to avoid having crowds gather there. Of course there are other ways for word to get around, and many people are getting out.
There is no problem with birding alone, or with another person from your household. If you do go, here are some guidelines from eBird on how to do so safely:
Keep your optics to yourself. Don’t share your scope, binoculars, or camera with others; disinfect the eye caps of your optics after each birding trip.
Maintain distance. If you are birding near others (whether they are birders or not), maintain at least 6 feet of space between yourself and other people at all times. Take turns at blinds, shelters, and in other situations where proper distancing may not be possible.
Avoid touching communal surfaces. This includes railings, doorknobs, handles, and other frequently used areas of public sites. If you touch these surfaces, wash your hands and/or use hand sanitizer immediately.
Respect restrictions and closures. Check if your favorite park, trail, or wildlife refuge is still open before heading outside. Plan your birding trips in accordance with the latest recommendations of your local authorities.
Share checklists, not phones: eBird Mobile users should avoid passing phones to review checklists for the time being. Confirm lists verbally before submission and if you need to make changes after you submit, it is easy to share and correct lists on the eBird Mobile app!
One way that birders can stay safe and continue birding is to do it their own yards. Many of us already feed the birds and watch them in our yards regularly. This is a chance to increase the number of hours we spend looking for new species in or from our yards, and a great opportunity for more people to begin backyard birding.
Here is another article from eBird Canada on how to get the most out of birding at home. I encourage you to use eBird to record what you see. If you are interested in comparing what you see in your yard to what others are seeing, you can set up a Yard List on eBird. See these eBird Help Centre articles for instructions. And here is a more detailed article I wrote on setting up Yard Lists. I’m sure some of you have thought about starting on eBird or setting up Patch and Yard lists, but just never had the time before. Maybe now is a good time to start!
If you do feed birds in your yard, you may want to take advantage of the delivery service offered by the Wild Bird Store in Calgary. Go to their web page to see how to get bird feeders or seed delivered to you. You can also do contactless pickup at the store. These are good options so that you keep your risk to a minimum and support a local business.
I have been having problems with my camera so I’m unable to share any new photos I’ve taken in my yard. I’ve had huge European Starling flocks lately (often eating crabapples), Robins in the birdbath, occasional Bohemian Waxwing flocks eating crabapples, a nesting pair of Eurasian Collared-Doves, and a local Merlin who has chased the Starlings a few times.
Reynold Reid also had a Merlin in his yard in the Chaparral neighbourhood in SE Calgary recently, and luckily for us his camera is working fine!
Merlin with prey, Calgary, March 26, 2020. Photo by Reynold Reid.
The Merlin is eating a rather large prey species. Can anyone identify it? I have an idea but would like to hear what you think.
If you have been getting good photos of backyard birds in Calgary and would like to share them here, email them to birdscalgary[at]gmail.com. Until I get my camera working properly I’ll post some of them, and some of my older photos.
With spring finally in the air and migrants starting to arrive in numbers, this is the time of year that birders anticipate the most. This year was especially exciting for Calgary birders who were involved in the 2020 Challenge, a year-long effort to see as many species as one could within the city limits.
Harlequin Ducks, seen by many birders in the city this winter. Photo by Andrew Hart.
However, the Covid-19 crisis has made it impossible to continue group outings, and we really want to encourage people to stay home as much as possible. As you may know, Nature Calgary outings and the Friends of Fish Creek birding course have also been suspended. Reluctantly, the Challenge has been suspended. We have a few ideas as to how, if, or when to resume, which I’ll address at the end.
It’s too bad, because we were lucky enough to find quite a few great birds in the city for the winter months, and several birders had recorded over 60 species already. The WhatsApp Rare bird Alert (which has been suspended) enabled participants to rapidly re-find rarities as they were reported. One example is Gyrfalcon, a very unusual bird to get in the city limits. But many participants were able to find one that was feeding on Mallards inside the city, after it was reported on the app. (There may have been as many as three Gyrfalcons in the area over the course of a week a couple of months ago.)
Gyrfalcon, near Maycroft in SW Alberta, January 30, 2020. Photo by Raymond Toal.
Here is the statementfrom Howard Hefflerabout suspending the Challenge:
The BirdYYC2020 began as idea to repeat, taking advantage of modern online tools, the big year birding competitions previously held in Calgary in 2000 and 2010. Andrew Hart, Bob Lefebvre, and – later, gratefully, joined by Gavin McKinnon – agreed we would organize and promote the event.
We hoped to create enthusiasm in the Calgary birding community to “get out there and go birding”. AND, to share your sightings with others. We also hoped to collect the data to allow comparison with what had be done 10 and 20 years previously.
Modern digital tools, eBird being the main one, but also smart phones and a variety of in-the-field tools to assist birders of all levels, have changed the landscape. What fun to compare the new with the old. The best example is Gavin setting up the WhatsApp Rare Bird alert that allows anyone to instantly receive notification of a rare bird reported by other participants.
But the fun is over. For the foreseeable future at least.
The four of us have come to the unhappy decision that what we are doing is promoting unnecessary and unwarranted social contact at a time when the entire society is relying on each other to act responsibility.
We have decided to stop supporting any BirdYYC2020 initiatives. The first step has been to shut down the WhatsApp Rare Bird Group.
I sincerely hope that the actions being taken by our federal and provincial governments will slow the spread of the COVID-19 virus. This is a threat to our global culture and economy that we are only just beginning to understand.
The best – and honestly ONLY – defense against community spread at this time is to minimize infection by strict social distancing and, where warranted, self-isolation.
A couple of days ago I “chased” a reported sighting of a Eurasian Wigeon at Carburn Park. When I arrived, I walked briskly to the likely observation spot. I interacted with other people, some were birders, and some were not. Some I knew. And some I did not. I set up my scope. Within minutes there was a small group of interested passersby. To the best of my knowledge I am not infected. I expect everyone else in that small group also felt the same way. I, and they, would hate to think that we are contributing to the spread of the virus.
But we are. So, I for one, am going to stop. The other three (Andrew, Bob, and Gavin) feel the same.
We are not going to participate in a forum that promotes unnecessary social contact.
At this time, there is no government directive to not go outdoors for a walk etc. That may change. For me, the potential public health risk resulting from random, unnecessary excursions from your home is best described in an article by a very reputable medical reporter, Andre Picard. See: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-to-tackle-coronavirus-walk-and-act-this-way/
This is really unfortunate. The BirdYYC challenge was generating a lot of interest. There are over 60 people registered and a similar number who have established the BirdYYC2020 patch. I feel we were headed toward a truly “big year”.
What shall we do? Here is one idea. We could select a date, such as March 31st , and declare the end of this birding year. Then, next April 1st, 2021, we all start again. A bit unorthodox, I know. Let me know if you have any suggestions.
We will immediately stop promoting BirdYYC2020. We have shut down the WhatsApp group.
Stay tuned. Over the next weeks things may change.
Personally, I am still in a quandary if and how to continue birding this year. I have decided, it will not be in a group.
As Howard mentioned, eBird is of course still operational, and any Patch Lists are still valid, so you can add to your lists. I added one in my yard yesterday. Some people are still (very carefully) going out birding, although many parks are now closed.
So how do we continue the Challenge? Howard made one suggestion, and I’ll add a few. If you are a Challenge participant please email me at birdscalgary(at)gmail.com, or Howard at hheffler(at)shaw.ca.
Suspend the current Patch Lists on March 31, and resume the Challenge on April 1 of 2021. This presents some logistical difficulties, since eBird won’t be tracking the totals for a split year. It would take a little more work on the part of the organizers. I also think that birders are pretty attached to one-year lists and may not like a split year either.
When safe, resume the Challenge in 2020. For example, we could resume on July 1 and continue to December 31. This would mean that the entire spring migration would be missed (individual birders can of course still add species in the spring but there would be no group outings and much would be missed by most participants). Many species missed in the spring can be found again in the fall, but not all.
Cancel the Challenge for this year, but start over from scratch in 2021. Our experiences this year would be a sort of trial run. This would mean there is an 11-year gap between this Challenge and the 2010 one, and (presumably) a 9-year gap until the next one, instead of the intended 10 years. A minor point in my opinion.
Cancel the Challenge. The next City Challenge would be in 2030.
Of these, I favour re-starting the Challenge from scratch in 2021. If you have an opinion, or any other ideas on how to resume, please let us know.
The 2020 birding challenge is well under way! About sixty local birders have begun to build up their year lists, trying to find as many species as they can within the city limits in 2020. Here is an update on how things have gone so far.
First of all, I should mention that it is not too late to join. If you were away, if you didn’t get around to joining, or if you don’t get out much in the winter, there is no reason you can’t start now and still have a big year. Even if you miss all the winter birds you will have another crack at them in November and December.
To get started, just send your name, eBird name and email address to Howard Heffler at: hheffler[at]shaw.ca. For more information, see this post.
If you are already an eBirder it is easy to get started. Just register with Howard, then set up your city patch. If not, there is still time to begin using eBird to record your sightings and have a big year. Here are the posts that will get you started.
At the end of January the leader in the challenge had recorded 52 species inside the city limits. There were 86 species seen by all eBirders in Calgary county in January. The county is larger than the city, so Howard Heffler has attempted to determine which ones were seen in the city, and it looks like there were 73 species seen collectively. You can see the list of species on Howard Heffler’s summary on Albertabird here.
In addition to the usual winter birds, the list has quite a number of overwintering birds that most birders will be able to get in the spring, summer, or fall if they don’t see them now. These include the Trumpeter Swans at Carburn Park and the Tundra Swan at Griffith Woods Park, the Lesser Scaup, Redheads, and Ring-necked Ducks at Carburn, American Robins, American Crows, and many others.
Trumpeter Swan, an overwintering adult at Carburn Park. Photo by Andrew Hart.
There are also many of the usual winter-only species that that participants should make an effort to find in the next month or so, or else have to wait until next winter. This would include Northern Shrike, American Dipper, Townsend’s Solitaire, Bohemian Waxwing, Pine Grosbeak, and Common Redpoll (Hoary Redpoll has not yet been reported). Redpolls are very scarce so I hope we get a bigger influx next winter.
In addition there are quite a few species that are much easier to find in the city in the winter, though they are in the Calgary region year-round. Examples are Northern Pygmy-Owl (seen lately in Shannon Terrace), American Three-toed Woodpecker and Black-backed Woodpecker (Votier’s Flats and Shannon Terrace in Fish Creek Park), Barrow’s Goldeneye (lower Bow River), Northern Saw-whet Owl (various locations, and really hard to find, though they are beginning to sing now and may be heard in forested areas in the next month or two).
I would also make an effort to see Harlequin Ducks – there are a few on the Bow this winter but you never know if any will be there next winter. They have been seen most reliably at Carburn Park and Beaverdam Flats. The Greater Scaup at Carburn are worth seeing too. They can be here on migration but are not common in the city. This overwintering pair is more reliable (although I haven’t seen them in four attempts). Northern Goshawk seems to be reported more often in the winter as well. I don’t know if they are more numerous in the winter or just easier to spot with no leaves on the trees.
Harlequin Ducks. Photo by Andrew Hart.Greater Scaup. Photo by Andrew hart.
There have also been a few rare birds (for the city). A single Snowy Owl was reported on Nose Hill, and a Barred Owl in Griffith Woods Park. These were unusual one- and two-day sightings. But the Clark’s Nutcracker in Quarry Park has been there for a while, and they are almost never reported in the city. Go find it – I wouldn’t count on another being seen past the spring. Gyrfalcon has been seen in the city by many participants, and that may not happen again either.
Here are the Challenge leaders at the end of January:
BirdYYC2020 Leaders, January 31
Name
Species
1
John Thompson
52
2
Blake Weis
50
3
Tony Timmons
48
4
Dave Russum
47
5
Lorrie Anderson
46
5
Evan Walters
46
5
Christopher Law
46
8
Howard Heffler
45
9
John Anderson
44
10
Alan Knowles
43
Quite a few local birders are getting out this year!
Here is an update to the leaders as of today, February 16th:
1
Tony Timmons
59
2
John Thompson
56
3
Howard Heffler
55
4
John Anderson
54
4
Lorrie Anderson
54
6
Blake Weis
53
7
Andrew Hart
52
8
Alan Knowles
50
9
Dave Russum
49
9
Evan Walters
49
11
Jim St. Laurent
48
11
Gavin McKinnon
48
11
Christopher Law
48
14
David Mitchell
47
15
Lorna Aynbinder
45
15
Tim Bandfield
45
17
Daniel Arndt
43
17
Michelle Schreder
43
17
Kerry Korber
43
20
Keith Miles
42
Mountain Chickadee. This is a species that is often in the city in winter, but not every winter. Go find it now. Photo by Andrew Hart.
Happy New Year! Today marks the start of BirdYYC2020, a year-long birding challenge. Participants will try to find as many species as they can within the Calgary city limits in 2020.
American Dipper. A few have been seen in the city this winter. You never know about next winter, so find one now! Photo by Tony LePrieur.
If you haven’t yet registered or set up your city eBird patch, you can still join. Email Howard Heffler at hheffler[@]shaw.ca with your name, eBird name, and email address and you will be added to the list. You can set up your eBird patch later too, but you’ll have to start putting your sightings into eBird right away for those to count towards your totals.
The important thing to do now if you want to get a good start on your Big Year list is to find all the winter birds that can’t be found here in the summer. The winter finches are in short supply this year but could be entirely absent next November and December, so get Pine Grosbeak and any others you can find now. Go to Carburn Park and Fish Creek Park where dippers have been seen.
All-day field trip to kick off BirdYYC2020
On Friday January 3, Gavin McKinnon will lead a field trip to various locations in the city so you can get a good start on your year. To register, text Gavin at 403-519-8703. Registration is required. See the Nature Calgary field trip page for more information.
You can increase your chances of finding good birds by following reports on Albertabird and on eBird so you can see what’s been reported and where. It’s a good idea to set your Calgary County Year Needs Alert on eBird so you get an hourly or daily email that lists everything that’s been reported on eBird that you haven’t yet seen in 2020 (keeping in mind that some reports will be from outside the city limits, so check the locations carefully).
There is a new page tab at the top of the blog called “BirdYYC2020” (right next to the “Home” tab). Click on that for links to all the articles we have posted about the challenge. This will include information about joining, using eBird, setting up your patch, setting alerts, and so on.
Horned Lark. This is a really tough one to get inside the city, but winter might be the best time to look for them on the eastern outskirts. Photo by Tony LePrieur.
If you have any questions about the challenge contact:
