The Calgary count on May 29 and 30 still has some areas that need surveyors.
The May Species Count is an annual event in which birders count the number of birds of each species within the 80-km diameter circle centred in Calgary. The circle is divided up into many smaller territories, and there are a few that so far are not covered this year.
Area 2: FCPP Bridge 6 to Macleod Trail (Votiers Flats)
Area 3: FCPP Macleod Trail to Bridge 13 (Glennfield)
Area 4: FCPP Burnsmead South to Lafarge Meadows
Area 31: Irricana
Area 37: Acme/Carbon
43b: Confluence Park – pending
43g: Pine Creek Water Treatment Plant
43j: Nose Hill Park – pending
The Calgary count circle with the rural territories marked. The city is also divided up into many territories.
If you are an experienced birder and want to participate by covering one of the areas above, contact John McFaul at alpglow[at]telus.net. He will provide details of the procedures and a description of the territory to be covered.
As a birder, how do you contribute to the upcoming City Nature Challenge? Simply put, take a lot of photos of birds from April 30 to May 3 anywhere in Calgary, Cochrane, Okotoks, Chestermere, Airdrie and Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park. You will have until May 9 to upload the photos to iNaturalist.
Don’t neglect common species like this House Finch! It’s fun to spend some time documenting all the living things you can find in your yard.
You can photograph any living thing to upload to iNaturalist, but I would really like the local birding community to start contributing more bird photos. Many iNaturalist users take photos only with cell phones, which are ideal for photographing plants and insects, but not great for getting identifiable picture of birds. Calgary-area birders take thousands of high-quality bird photos every day.
Your bird photos do not have to be perfect, just good enough so that other iNaturalist users can identify them. It’s also important to get photos of common species that you may not normally bother to photograph.
Most birders have cell phones as well as cameras, so if you’re out birding this weekend, spend some time to photograph trees, flowers, and insects as well.
If you are not an iNaturalist user, you will still have until May 9 to upload your photos to the site or phone app.
It would be great to get a lot of reports from Airdrie, Chestermere, Okotoks, Cochrane, and Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park as well as from the city. If you are really ambitious, try to go to some areas that are new to you. The idea is to get documentation of living things everywhere within the Calgary metropolitan area, not just in city parks or well-travelled natural areas.
Once again Calgary (and the nearby communities of Cochrane, Okotoks, Airdrie, and Chestermere, plus Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park) will be participating in the City Nature Challenge. From April 30 to May 3, anyone can participate in this fun, important, and fast-growing citizen-science project. People in hundreds of cities around the world will be photographing plants, birds, mammals, and anything else in nature to capture a record of worldwide urban biodiversity.
White-crowned Sparrows should be around for the CNC. Photo by Bob Lefebvre
City Nature Challenge Calgary is back for the third year! Take photos of urban flora and fauna April 30-May 3 2021, then share to iNaturalist. Look for nature in your yards, neighborhoods, and local parks. Explore anywhere in Calgary, Cochrane, Okotoks, Airdrie, Chestermere, and Glenbow Ranch Provincial Park. Any photos taken April 30-May 3 and shared to iNaturalist before May 9 will be included. Join the 2021 iNaturalist Project to Stay up to date!
So starting on Friday morning, take as many photos as you can of birds, plants, insects, and any other living things. You will have until May 9 to upload your photos to iNaturalist.
Many Calgary birders are familiar with the book Treasures Of The Trail, a beautifully illustrated nature guide to Edworthy Park, Lawry Gardens, and the Douglas Fir Trail. It was published in 2002 by the Edworthy Park Heritage Society. Now the society is planning to publish a new history of the area with much previously unpublished information. You can pre-order a copy, and once enough people have ordered it, publication will go ahead and you will then be contacted for payment. It is $30 for the new book and a copy of Treasures Of The Trail will be also be included! A great value, especially for those of you who do not have a copy of the older book.
Here is the information about this from the society:
Shaganappi Point and Edworthy Park: A New History by the Edworthy Park Heritage Society.
The Society has written an extensive history of the park area with much previously unpublished information gathered from historic newspapers, diaries, and archives across Canada.
Part I discusses Indigenous and Métis culture and history of the area, including the three Blackfoot names for this ancient territory, plus whether there was a Métis settlement at Shaganappi. Was there an indigenous trail in the area? And much more…
Part II discusses settlement, colonization history including unpublished information about the Government of Canada quarries at Shaganappi Point (Quarry Road Trail), and the C.P.R. quarries (next to the Douglas Fir Trail), the Thomas Edworthy quarries and the four brick plants of the park, the struggle between William Pearce vs. John Lawrey, the “old lime kiln”. It has many fine black and white photos and a few hand-tinted vintage postcard photos.
Very few copies of the book will be published and we expect to almost sell out through pre-orders. In order to raise the money to print it, we are taking pre-orders. The book is only available in a package with the Society’s nature guide, Treasures of the Trail, included as a bonus, free of charge. It is $30 per copy plus postage where applicable. To pre-order, please send us an email at: eparkhs[at]gmail.com We will acknowledge your pre-order. If we have enough funds to print it, we will then contact you for payment. (P.S. The book will not be put on the internet). Please support the Society and its new book!
One of the great things about being a birder or nature enthusiast is the opportunity to get involved in citizen science projects. There are dozens of ongoing projects every year where you can contribute data to scientific studies, learn about local habitats and wildlife populations, and contribute to the public’s understanding of nature and of the importance of conservation.
Photographing a Black-capped Chickadee on a Christmas Bird Count in Calgary.
In addition to permanent year-round projects like eBird which records birds all over the world and iNaturalist which records any living thing, there are a number of annual events that you can participate in.
Winter Bug Count
Great Backyard Bird Count
City Nature Challenge
Global eBird Big Day
May Species Count
Christmas Bird Count
and many more
If you are interested in taking part in any of these local citizen science projects, or in getting more information about them, please fill out the form at this link:
Matthew Wallace, who created this form and organizes several local citizen science projects, will send you information or put you in touch with the organizers of whichever projects you are interested in. Whether you have participated before or are new to these projects, please fill out the form and get involved in 2021!
We had a very successful Christmas Bird Count in Calgary on Sunday December 20th. The weather was mild with virtually no snow on the ground, although it was a little windy. Despite Covid precautions, the field routes were all covered, and we had a record number of Feeder Watchers counting birds in their yards (thanks largely to the efforts of Matthew Wallace).
Northern Saw-whet Owl. This one was seen by a Feeder Watcher a few days before the count, but we did get another one on count day in another part of the city. Photo by Janet Gill.
Preliminary results, provided by compiler Phil Cram, show that there were 70 species counted, which is one of the higher totals we’ve had in the 69 years of the count. Most significantly, there were three new species never before seen on the CBC: Anna’s Hummingbird, Swainson’s Thrush and Mountain Bluebird, bringing our cumulative species count to 142.
Here are the results with the total number of each species seen:
Besides the three new species, there were other notable results:
Unusual Species: Green-winged Teal and Evening Grosbeak.
Record High Counts: Northern Flicker (328) and Black-billed Magpie (3063) – probably due to increased coverage.
Also High Count: White-throated Sparrow (10).
Low Counts: Gray Partridge, Eurasian Collared-Dove, Northern Goshawk, Rough-legged Hawk, Bohemian Waxwing, Common Redpoll, Red Crossbill, White-winged Crossbill and Pine Siskin (see sheet for numbers).
Noteworthy Missed Species: American Wigeon, Ruffed Grouse, Killdeer, Red-tailed Hawk, Prairie Falcon, Snow Bunting and American Tree Sparrow.
Count-week (not seen on count day, but in the period three days prior or three days after): Snow Goose and Hoary Redpoll.
It seems that during the pandemic there has been a really big increase in the number of people taking up birding, and many more people are watching birds in their yards. We had 154 observers in 128 households counting birds. Feeder Watchers counted 35 species, including the only Northern Saw-whet Owl, the only Anna’s Hummingbird, and the only Purple Finch seen.
Feeder-Watcher Results:
Canada Goose
658
Mallard
193
Rock Pigeon
96
Sharp-shinned Hawk
3
Downy Woodpecker
81
Hairy Woodpecker
6
Northern Flicker
113
Merlin
5
Blue Jay
58
Black-billed Magpie
471
Common Raven
38
Black-capped Chickadee
275
Red-breasted Nuthatch
147
White-breasted Nuthatch
18
European Starling
2
American Robin
4
Bohemian Waxwing
6
House Sparrow
1037
House Finch
400
Dark-eyed Junco
34
White-throated Sparrow
7
White-winged Crossbill
4
Pine Siskin
21
American Crow
20
Anna’s Hummingbird
1
Mountain Chickadee
2
Northern Saw-whet Owl
1
Bald Eagle
2
Purple Finch
1
Common Merganser
4
Great Horned Owl
1
Gray Partridge
10
Common Redpoll
3
Ring-necked Pheasant
7
Total Bird Species:
35
Total Bird Count:
3712
Total Observers:
154
Next post: Sign up to get involved in next year’s Christmas Bird Count, and other Citizen Science Projects.
The 69th annual Calgary Christmas Bird Count will take place this year on Sunday December 20th. This is one of over 2,000 counts that will take place in the Western Hemisphere this year. Teams spread out within a predetermined count circle and count every bird they see or hear on count day. The information gathered by thousands of volunteers over the years has been an invaluable source of information about population trends in the bird world.
A Bald Eagle seen on the count in 2014. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.
There are two ways to participate in the count: By joining a team in the field, or by watching and counting birds at the feeders in your yard. Covid restrictions will apply to the field counters.
Counting waterfowl on the river for CBC 2019. Photo by Kathleen Johnson.
The Calgary CBC was started in 1952 and the Feeder Watchers were added in 1984. The Feeder Watch is the component of the CBC that gets those involved that either don’t want to go out in the field, or are unable to. There is a wealth of bird life to be found regularly at feeders and these feeder counts are added to the counts from in the field. Birds may be counted at your residence within the count circle – a circle 24 kilometers in diameter centred on the Louise Bridge. In the 2019 CBC over 49,000 birds were counted in Calgary, of sixty-three different species. Feeder watchers recorded thirty-five species. The feeder watcher role is an important one.
We are no longer taking registrations for the 2020 count, but if you are interested in participating next year, or if you want more information, email me at birdscalgary[at]gmail.com. Next year’s Calgary Christmas Bird Count is on Sunday December 19, 2021.
A Varied Thrush that overwintered in my yard in 2011-12. It’s a possibility for Feeder Watchers on the Christmas Bird Count. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.Mammals are counted too. A porcupine found on the 2012 count. Photo by Troy Bourque.
Free Zoom meeting this Wednesday December 9 includes a presentation about the upcoming Calgary Christmas Bird Count.
Common Redpoll, Weaselhead, January 8, 2017. Photo by Tony LePrieur.
The Weaselhead/Glenmore Park Preservation Society is dedicated to preserving, protecting, and restoring the ecosystems of the Weaselhead Nature Area and surrounding parks, as well as providing educational programs for the public. (See their webpage here).
This Wednesday, December 9, will be the Annual General Meeting of the Society, from 6:50 to 8:30 pm. Everyone, whether a member or not, is welcome to attend this online Zoom meeting. It will feature a presentation about the Christmas Bird Count program by Yousif Attia, the Bird Canada national CBC Coordinator, and Phil Cram, who coordinates the Calgary CBC. The Calgary CBC will be held on Sunday December 20 this year, so if you are interested in this annual event, sign up for this presentation.
The event is free but you do have to register so you will be sent the sign-up code for the meeting. See this page to register.
After hearing about the great work that the Society does, you may want to become a member. It is only $25 for a lifetime membership! Join here.
The Winter session of the Friends of Fish Creek Provincial Park Society (FFCPPS) Birding Course begins on January 11, 2021. They are now taking registrations for this 11-week series of once-weekly field trips to parks throughout Calgary.
Bohemian Waxwing. Photo by Dan Arndt.
This course is a great way to learn about the birds and the natural areas of Calgary. In winter, many birds are in large flocks, and are easier to find in the bare trees.
Some of the sessions are beginning to fill up but there are still many options. Here is more information from the FFCPP website:
Winter is one of the best seasons for getting outside to learn about birds and other wildlife. Brave the cooler weather and explore the world of birds in Fish Creek Provincial Park. The 11 week Winter Birding Course is perfect for anyone who wants to see and learn about birds in their natural habitat, and it provides an amazing opportunity for families to get together and experience nature here in Fish Creek.
The number of course participants will be limited and health and safety precautions will be in place. (Note: The participants are split into two or three smaller groups each day.)
Monday – Thursday course, limit of 27 participants – Please Note that the Tuesday class is now full to capacity
Saturday and Sunday mornings, limit of 25 participants
Sunday afternoon, limit of 20 participants
Each session lasts approximately 2.5 hours and participants can sign up for 1 or 2 outings per week.
Start times Monday – Thursday: 9:15 am. Saturdays: 9:00 am, Sundays: 9:00 am and 1:15 pm Fee: Once a week outing, Friends of Fish Creek Members: $60.00, Non-members: $100.00 Twice a week outings, Friends Members: $100.00, Non-members: $150.00
As we approach the end of the 2020 Birding Challenge, here is a message from Howard Heffler:
As a friendly competition to stimulate interest in local birding; Andrew Hart, Bob Lefebvre, Gavin McKinnon, and I promoted BirdYYC2020 – A Big Year Birding Challenge. Over 70 participants registered and a similar number created a Calgary-City-Limits patch list on eBird. The challenge was to see as many species as possible within Calgary during calendar year 2020 with the objectives of:
Sharing sightings.
Promoting interest in birds and birding.
Enjoying Calgary’s natural areas.
Promoting Nature Calgary field trips.
Comparing results with similar events held in 2000 and 2010.
So, you ask; “How’s it going”.
Things got off to a “flying” start. There was lots of enthusiasm, numerous rare and special bird sightings, and the WhatsApp group created by Gavin allowed many people to chase sightings for their “needs” list.
Great-tailed Grackle, Elliston park. Photo by Howard Heffler. A first for the city, and one of many rarities seen by many participants.
And then along came COVID-19. On March 22 Nature Calgary canceled field trips. We shut down the WhatsApp group. Carpooling and birding in groups stopped and we all hunkered down. However, many people continued to go birding on their own and, of course, eBird checklists continued to flow into to their patch lists.
On June 18, Nature Calgary re-started field trips (with strict COVID-19 restrictions) and the WhatsApp RBA Group was re-opened.
Lewis’s Woodpecker. A species that is very seldom seen in the Calgary region, let alone in the city, as this one was. Photo by Howard Heffler.
Surprisingly, COVID has not had as much of a negative impact as we might have expected. Perhaps because people felt outdoor events posed less of a COVID risk. Also, we know most travel to remote locations was cancelled and people were looking for local activities. We hope to make a summary of the combined checklists of all participants shortly after the end of the year, but it is already safe to conclude that many more people have observed greater than 200 species in Calgary than in the previous years, 2000 and 2010. I am sure that reflects the enthusiasm of participants AND the effectiveness of eBird and WhatsApp for sharing sightings.
A Ruff that stayed around in the SE for several days. Another very rare bird for within Calgary’s city limits. Photo by Howard Heffler.
I do not have any hard data, but I am quite confident that there are many new faces out there with binoculars.
Congratulations to everyone.
Sometime in early December we will contact each participant and invite them to send us their year-list. Stay tuned for that: we still need to figure out how to do it.
As the year winds down there are fewer and fewer birds on our “needs” lists. But keep on birding – and stay well.
Howard, Andrew, Bob, Gavin
Below are a few more photos of some interesting birds seen in Calgary this year. All photos are by Howard Heffler.
A colony of Purple Martins was established within the city limits for the first time in many decades. (A very interesting story that I will revisit!) Photo by Howard Heffler.The Cooper’s Hawk pair in Confederation Park. They have nested there for a few years now. Photo by Howard Heffler.Harris’s Sparrow. A small number are seen on migration, and they sometimes overwinter here. Howard was lucky enough to get this one in his yard. Photo by Howard Heffler.
