If it is a species on this Reportable_Birds (PDF), please report it to the Rare Bird Alert line at 403 221-4519 and leave a message after the beep at the end of the recording. If you would like some help with species identification, us email us at zoxox@shaw.ca To report injured wildlife call the Calgary Wildlife Rehabilitation Society at 403 239-2488, or the Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation at 403 946-2361.
This report was prepared on Thursday May 26.
May 19
— STILT SANDPIPER 4, pond east of Hwy 817 north of Strathmore, Isobel Anderson & Nimali Seneviratne
— LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER, Boundary Rd near Weed Lake, IA & NS
May 23
— SNOW GOOSE 2, Twp Rd 312 near Linden, Corrine Griffin
— SABINE’S GULL adult, Glenmore Reservoir, Bill Wilson (also seen by Terry Korolyk)
May 24
— EURASIAN WIGEON male, Glenmore Res, Yousif Attia & Ilya Povalyaev
— WHIMBREL, Glenmore Reservoir, YA & IP
May 25
— SUMMER TANAGER 2nd year male, photographed, Cypress Hills PP, Jeremiah Kennedy — if accepted this will be the 6th record for Alberta
The next scheduled update of the Bird Alert is on Monday May 30.
Most of us take Fish Creek Provincial Park for granted. We are, however, extremely lucky to have such a gem of a park in our city. One of the largest urban parks in the world at 13.48 square kilometers (5.2 square miles), Fish Creek has over 80 kilometers of trails, 30 of which are paved and encompasses three natural regions; grasslands, parkland and foothills forest.
The Glennfield area of Fish Creek is one of the many different sections of this amazing park.
The Bow river cuts through Fish Creek attracting fishermen, rafters and birds, lots of birds. Fish Creek is a haven for birds in a busy and bustling city, leading birds to flock here; more than 200 species of birds have been recorded here. Stretching through southern Calgary, Fish Creek also provides an easily accessible hotspot for birders.
There are many different sections of Fish Creek, some of the more well-known being Votier’s Flats, Mallard Point and Sikome Lake (a recreational lake that thousands of Calgarians visit each summer).
Canada Geese are common throughout Fish Creek.
The Tree Swallow’s blue-green upper parts separate it from other species of Swallow.
Nature Calgary has many field trips to various parts of Fish Creek, see if you can attend one; you may find a very good bird.
Sat June 4, 8:30am: Birding Hull’s Wood FCPP, turn left off Bow Bottom Tr SE shortly after entering the park. Meet West end of parking lot. Leader, Howard Heffler, 403-284-2961.
Sun June 5, 8am: Birding Marshall Springs to Votier’s Flats area, FCPP. Meet at Marshall Springs parking lot on the south side of FCPP, just East of Sanderson Ridge condos, on North side of Fish Creek Blvd. Leader, Grant Brydle, 403-270-4957.
For more information on Fish Creek Park and to volunteer as well as participate in many activities, visit the Friends of Fish Creek at
The day started off well, but the weather gradually deteriorated, and by 4:30 in the afternoon, with cold driving rain, and after eleven hours of birding, we decided to stop. The total for the group was 93 species. I saw or heard 88 of them, so I’ll have to try another time to reach 100 species in a day. Due to the weather we missed almost all shorebirds and warblers.
We went to the following locations: Votier’s Flats, Bow Valley Ranch and Sikome, all in Fish Creek Park; Inglewood Bird Sanctuary; Elliston Park; Ponds one mile west of Shepard; Shepard; Shepard Slough (east of Shepard); a series of ponds south of highway 22X in the far SE; a pond just east of Spruce Meadows; the South shore of Glenmore Reservoir. We didn’t go into the Weaselhead as planned.
Click here for the report, with a list of the species seen or heard, from Albertabird.
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How many species of birds do you think you could find within the city of Calgary in a single day? The answer at this time of year is over 100. This weekend there will be a great opportunity to see if you can do it.
Birders call this a “Big Day” – an attempt to identify as many species as possible in a twenty-four hour period. This is often done as a competitive or fundraising activity, usually with teams of birders all trying to get the highest total.
For the past few years, Nature Calgary has offered a guided Big Day field trip every Victoria Day holiday. It can be a long, hard day, especially in bad weather, but it is a great chance to see most of the bird species present in Calgary in the spring. This year the trip is on Monday, May 23. We will meet at Votier’s Flats in Fish Creek Park (at the south end of Elbow Drive SW) at 5:30 am. From there, the leader, Tony Timmons, will guide us to several different habitats within the city over the course of the day. Bring a lunch, and be prepared for whatever weather we might get.
Last year, the group managed to find 111 species! The highlight of the day was a Virginia Rail calling at a slough in SE Calgary.
Virginia Rail. Photo by Mike Baird, from Wikimedia Commons.
In 2009, in very cold, wet conditions, the total was 108 species. The birds are out there, so come out on Monday and help us find them! If you need more information, call the leader, Tony Timmons, at 403-256-0754. Like all Nature Calgary field trips, it is free and open to all members of the public.
Two weeks ago I was in Edgemont in NW Calgary, so I stopped at Edgemont Ravines to check out the two ponds there. I didn’t have my camera, which was too bad, because I was able to see the elusive Sora. Soras are small waterbirds in the rail family, who spend a lot of time hiding in the reeds.
Last week I returned to the ponds, with camera in hand, to try to get a picture of the Sora. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to find it, but I did find some other interesting birds and mammals. The pictures below are from that second trip.
Park on the east side of Edgebrook Boulevard NW.
The easternmost pond.
On my first visit I walked around both ponds, and saw an American Coot, several Mallards, and lots of male Red-winged Blackbirds. Suddenly, a strange bird popped up onto a cattail…
Every time the first of these comes into view in the spring, I briefly believe that I have discovered a bird unknown to science. This, of course, is a female Red-winged Blackbird. They look so unlike the males that at first it seems to be a different species altogether.
It turned out that there were many Red-winged Blackbirds, both male and female, and they were engaged in courtship behaviour and nest-building.
As I finished up the circuit, I heard the hair-raising whinny of a Sora coming from a corner of the pond. This Sora specialty is one of my favourites, because it sounds like demented laughter.
Soras are very elusive birds, who skulk around the margins of ponds, rarely showing themselves. You hear them far more often than you see them.
I slowly moved towards the spot where the Sora was hidden: step, wait; step, wait; until I was finally rewarded with a shoe-ful of water. Drat. I was too close to the pond.
Luckily, back on shore, there was a convenient “surveillance bush” right near the spot where the Sora was concealed.
I lurked behind the bush for ten minutes or so, trying to hold still while mosquitoes treated my neck like an all-you-can-eat buffet.
Finally, there was some movement in the grass, and there was the Sora! The bird came almost out into the open. I regretted not having that camera. Naturally, when I returned the following week with camera, there was no sign of the bird. The shot below remains the best picture I’ve got of a Sora, taken at Valleyview Park pond in southeast Calgary in 2008.
Soras almost always seem to keep some vegetation between themselves and the camera.
Despite missing out on the Sora, I continued to the second pond, where last year I had found a Pied-billed Grebe. Wouldn’t you know it; this time there were no grebes, but there was a pair of scaup.
Lesser or Greater Scaup?
A breeding American Coot didn’t like them around and repeatedly emerged from the rushes to chase them off.
Determined Coot chug-chug-chugging towards his foes!
On my way back to the parking lot, I noticed a small plump rodent scurry into the bushes. Eventually, I got some pictures. It was a Vole, probably a Meadow Vole.
So although you don’t always find what you’re looking for, you usually see something interesting, even at the smallest ponds. All in all, a rewarding outing.
Have you seen an unusual bird in Calgary? If it is a species on this Reportable_Birds (PDF), please report it to the Rare Bird Alert line at 403 221-4519 and leave a message after the beep at the end of the recording. If you would like some help with species identification, us email us at zoxox@shaw.ca To report injured wildlife call the Calgary Wildlife Rehabilitation Society at 403 239-2488, or the Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation at 403 946-2361.
This Bird Alert was recorded on Monday May 23.
Bird Sightings:
May 18:
2 WHITE-FACED IBIS at wetlands on Hwy 567 between Airdrie & Hwy 791, John Corbin.
EURASIAN-COLLARED DOVE pairs at Patricia and Duchess, Lois Martin and Arlene Torkeson.
May 19:
2 WHITE-WINGED SCOTERS on Glenmore Res., Jeff Banks.
BLACK-HEADED GROSBEAK (or a hybrid ) between Airdrie and Irricana, Doug McQueen.
May 20:
4 CASPIAN TERNS at Glenmore Res., Bill Wilson.
A WILLOW FLYCATCHER, ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK, SWAINSON’S THRUSHES (10) at IBS,
banding project.
BLACKPOLL WARBLERS(3), SWAINSON’S THRUSH (7), ROSE-BREASTED GROSBEAK, RED-EYED
VIREO, WARBLING VIREO, EASTERN & WESTERN KINGBIRDS, WESTERN TANAGER, CALLIOPE
HUMMINGBIRD between IBS and Glenmore Res, Bill Wilson.
May 21:
GLOSSY IBIS or GLOSSY/WHITE-FACED hybrid feeding with WHITE-FACED IBIS at Third Lake, 224 St SE approx. 1-2 km south of Hwy 552, Terry Korolyk.
BLACKPOLL WARBLER, TENNESSEE WARBLER at IBS, Bill Wilson.
May 22:
An unidentified HUMMINGBIRD at Priddis, unknown observer.
An albinistic SWAINSON’S HAWK, Hwy 560 east of Hwy 24, TK.
The next scheduled update of the Bird Alert is on Thursday May 26.
At this time of year, the earlier you can get out birding the better. The sun is up and the birds are singing before 6:00 am. Sometimes it can be a little cold, but it’s a beautiful time of day to be out in the field.
Every Wednesday during the spring migration, Gus Yaki has been leading an early morning bird walk at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary. Last week I was able to join Gus and a small group of birders, and we found 42 species of birds.
This is a Nature Calgary field trip, so it is free and open to everyone. The walk begins at 6:30 am at the parking lot and lasts for about two hours. This coming Wednesday, May 25, will be the last of these early morning walks, so if you can manage it, it’s a good opportunity.
Here are some highlights of last weeks’ walk.
There is a partially albino female American Robin which has building a nest near the south end of the lagoon, opposite Walker House. We were lucky enough to see it at close range, with its mate…
There were several pairs of Canada Geese and a few broods of goslings around…
A female Belted Kingfisher was perched over the lagoon…
Several Yellow-rumped Warblers were seen. This one is an Audubon subspecies…
Two male Harlequin Ducks on a distant island in the river…
Two male Wood Ducks on the river…
A yawning female Common Merganser…
And lots of these guys looking for handouts…
Afterwards I went over to the adjacent Inglewood Wildlands Park. There were several Savannah Sparrows singing…
And hovering over the pond, a Say’s Phoebe…
You don’t see these flycatchers in the city too often, and I got a good look at it…
Herons are elegant birds, wading through water with their long legs, waiting to plunge their beaks into the water to spear their next meal, be it a frog a mouse or a small fish. Yesterday, I visited Frank Lake, near High River, south of Calgary. While I was there, I saw several Black-crowned Night-Herons; a mostly nocturnal heron with relatively large eyes. The Black-crowned Night-Heron is a small, stocky bird with a greenish black crown and long, thin, white head plumes. A colonial species, the Night-Heron can be found roosting in trees near its hunting grounds during the daylight hours.
This immature Night-Heron has yet to grow the fancier plumage of the adult.
Unfortunately, we did not find a colony of roosting birds; we did however, find two birds together in the same small pond. What struck me the most was the herons’ bright red eyes. They certainly looked like they would be able to see in the dark!!!
An adult Black-crowned Night-Heron in search of lunch.
That beak and those claws are pretty intimidating; especially if you are on this guy’s menu!
Have you seen an unusual bird in Calgary? If it is a species on this Reportable_Birds (PDF), please report it to the Rare Bird Alert line at 403 221-4519 and leave a message after the beep at the end of the recording. If you would like some help with species identification, us email us at zoxox@shaw.ca To report injured wildlife call the Calgary Wildlife Rehabilitation Society at 403 239-2488, or the Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation at 403 946-2361.
This Bird Albert was recorded on May 19, 2011.
MAY 15
BLACK TERN – 6 reported by Dwight Knapik at the Calgary Zoo’s private facility just southeast of Calgary
RED KNOT – 2 by Richard Clarke at Kitsim Reservoir located in the southwest corner of the intersection of Hwys 36 and 539
BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER – 130 as above
MAY 16
SWAINSON’S THRUSH – Peter Roxburgh had one in his yard in Lake Bonavista
MAY 17
CALLIOPE HUMMINGBIRD – one seen in Weaselhead by Dwight Knapik
ROCK WREN – at Kinbrook Island Prov Park near Brooks, by RC
YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER ( Audubon subspecies) – Corinne Griffon saw a male at Rge Rd 35 and Twp Rd 320 NE of Cremona
BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER – reported by Bill Wilson at the west end of Glenmore Reservoir
SEMIPALMATED PLOVER – 6 reported as above
SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER – 25 as above
CASPIAN TERN – Terry Korolyk saw 2 at Glenmore Reservoir
GOLDEN EAGLE – 1 on Nose Hill reported by Gus Yaki
TURKEY VULTURE – 2 reported flying over Willowpark subdivision, seen by Matthew Sim
GLAUCOUS-WINGED-HERRING GULL hybrid – 1st yr reported by TK at Glenmore Reservoir
MAY 18
RED KNOT – 30 reported by RC at Kitsim Reservoir
BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER – 400 as above
LARK SPARROW – 1 reported at Kinbrook Island PP by RC
NORTHERN WATERTHRUSH – GY and a Nature Calgary group saw one at Inglewood Bird Sanctuary
BARN SWALLOW – several reports in the Calgary area
The next scheduled update of the bird alert is on Mon May 23.
