Friends of Fish Creek Winter Birding, Week 4 – Carburn Park

Posted by Dan Arndt

A week after our visit to Griffith Woods and the weather in Calgary has taken a turn for the better. We were greeted this morning by blue skies, above-zero temperatures, and a mild winter’s day with plenty of birds, which was a nice change from last week!

We took our usual route, heading south from the parking lot to the bridge crossing to the Southland Dog Park, continuing a bit further south to get a good look at some of the waterfowl in the clear morning sunlight.

Carburn Park

View from the bridge

Our first birds of the morning were a group of White-winged Crossbills hanging out in the trees near the parking lot, quite likely the same ones that Tim Hopwood was able to get some gorgeous photos of recently.

female or juvenile White-winged Crossbill

As we reached the bridge, it seemed that iridescence would be the word of the day. With the low angle of the sun, and the weather giving us a hint of the warmer spring soon to come, it seemed like every bird was showing off its brightest colors, including this normally drab Rock Pigeon.

Rock Pigeon

The real prize of the day were these Buffleheads, showing off their iridescence that we so rarely get to see in our dull grey winters. It certainly was a beautiful sight to see!

Bufflehead

Male Buffleheads in the morning sun

We headed south from the bridge after pausing to investigate some birds near the gazebo at the east side of the river. We spotted a Barrow’s Goldeneye at the far south end, and quite a number of Common Goldeneye as well. This female was kind enough to allow some decent flight shots, and the huge number of Canada Geese and Mallards on the river banks was too good to pass up.

female Common Goldeneye

Canada Geese, Mallards, and a few other waterfowl

We headed back north and followed the river around the bend, stopping a few times to watch some distant Bald Eagles on the far side of the river, but were also treated to some rather unusual activity from a group of Northern Flickers foraging around in the gravel at the edge of the river.

Northern Flicker

Another great bird to find in Calgary in the winter are the American Crows, which have been overwintering in Carburn Park for a number of years now, in ever-increasing numbers. Our group saw no less than 20 individuals during our exploration of the banks of the Bow River today.

American Crow

With that said, waterfowl watching is not for everyone, but we did manage to spot a few unusual winter ducks in our excursion. This pair of Redheads gave us quite the views, and we were also treated to a pair of either Lesser or Greater Scaup a bit later on, though the ID is still up in the air on those ones.

Redheads

A little more common around here, but still a welcome sight, are the Common Mergansers. This group of four males appeared to be trying to woo this lone female, who would have nothing of it, by all appearances.

Common Mergansers fighting for a female

It was clear that spring was getting just that much closer as we saw many birds beginning their preparation for the new breeding season. Northern Flickers were drilling out nest holes, Black-billed Magpies were displaying and pursuing each other, and this pair of male Downy Woodpeckers were flitting about, displaying and attacking each other in a fight for territory.

male Downy Woodpeckers

Next week we head back to Votier’s Flats in search of American Dippers, Wilson’s Snipe, and American Three-toed or Black-backed Woodpeckers.

Good birding!

Friends of Fish Creek Winter Birding 2013, Week 3 – Griffith Woods

Jan28

Posted by Dan Arndt

There’s nothing quite like a quiet Sunday morning bird walk, and the gorgeous scenery of Griffith Woods was no exception. The unfortunate part is that it seemed like the birds decided that it was time for them to take a walk too, making it a little too quiet in the park!

The light wasn’t the greatest, but the company was excellent, and while the birds were scarce, it was otherwise a great morning.

Elbow River through Griffith Woods

Starting at the parking lot on the east end of the park, we worked clockwise around the park. While we heard a Common Raven or two on the early part of our walk, we didn’t get looks at any birds whatsoever aside from a Black-capped Chickadee or three for at least half an hour after our start.

Griffith Woods

Our first good looks were of a group of Boreal Chickadees, along with a number of Black-capped Chickadees and Red-breasted Nuthatches, who came down to investigate what all the commotion was. After a few minutes of posing and checking us out, they moved on, but not before allowing us some very close looks and a few photos.

Boreal Chickadee

A few flyovers of some Common Redpolls and White-winged Crossbills were the only birds seen for nearly another half hour. Travelling from the east end to almost the very westernmost edge of the park, we were once again granted good looks at a few more species. A pair of Blue Jays began calling to the south of where we were standing, and as we scanned the horizon to the west, this gorgeous Rough-legged Hawk popped into view.

Blue Jay

Rough-legged Hawk

It seemed that our day was finally making a turn for the better, with the sun making an appearance, the birds seemed to become much more active. The ice on the river though, was just stunning.

Ice Crystals

It was, unfortunately, a short-lived reprieve. Heading back along the pathway was even quieter still. You know it’s a slow winter’s day in Calgary when a small flock of Mallards is the most interesting thing you’ve seen in a while.

Mallards

It wasn’t completely uneventful on the walk back, but we did get a few nice looks at some more Black-capped Chickadees having a snack on one of the interpretive maps, along with a few Common Redpolls.

Black-capped Chickadee

Common Redpoll

Our last bird of the day was our first actual looks at a bird we’d been hearing all day, this Common Raven.

Common Raven

A few of us decided to explore the park a little more, as the sun came out once again, and we did manage to find a Downy Woodpecker and a few very cooperative Boreal Chickadees in near perfect light.

Downy Woodpecker

Boreal Chickadee

Curious Boreal Chickadee

Perched Boreal Chickadee

What’s up there?

You can’t see me!

Next week, Carburn Park! I hope there’s a bit more variety there, and there certainly should be greater numbers on the Bow River.

Sunday Showcase: Female Rufous Hummingbird

Jan27

Photos taken by Rob English near Highwood House, SW of Calgary, in June 2012.

Here are a couple of shots of a male Rufous Hummingbird taken at the same time, to show the difference. For more of Rob’s photos of a male Rufous, see this post.

Furry Friday: Weasel & Pika

Jan25

Rob English took these photos in mid-June 2012 near the Highwood Pass. He was looking for American Pikas, but so was this Long-tailed Weasel.

Wednesday Wings: Golden Eagle & Snowy Owls

Jan23

Mitchell Kranz spotted this juvenile Golden Eagle on January 20 near Lake McGregor, northeast of Vulcan.

The same day, he also saw no less than 15 Snowy Owls between there and Blackie.

You can see more of Mitchell’s photos here.

The Calgary Zoo, a birder’s refuge on a cold winter day

Jan21

Posted by Dan Arndt

Unfortunately I wasn’t able to attend the second week of the Friends of Fish Creek Winter birding course as I was out of town on personal business, but I knew that I’d hate to leave the regular Monday readers high and dry. As such, here is a post I’ve been sitting on for a while, and since the coldest days of winter are still ahead of us, and some folks just can’t handle the cold for long periods of time, here’s a suggestion of somewhere to go to brush up on your exotic bird identification skills!

While birding even in the coldest days can bring out some incredible surprises, there are much warmer places with incredibly gorgeous birds all year round. The Calgary Zoo houses a wide variety of bird species, from native Canadian species such as the Burrowing Owl, Whooping Crane, and Bald Eagle, to exotic birds from all over the world, the ugly-pretty Vulturine Guineafowl from Central Africa, the ever-popular and charismatic Rockhopper Penguin, and the beautiful and majestic Andean Condor, from South America.

While none of these birds would count on any list (except maybe a “Seen in Captivity” list), they’re great subjects to photograph, and familiarity gained with these birds here at home would aid significantly in identifying them if you ever end up in their native habitat looking for their wild cousins. On top of that, the public education and awareness of wildlife that the Calgary Zoo engenders with their live collections, public outreach, and captive breeding programs go much further to increase the popularity and appreciation of all animals, not just the charismatic megafauna that they have on display.

I hope you enjoy the photos of a variety of birds I’ve taken at the Calgary Zoo in the past few years!

Vulturine Guineafowl – Africa

Northern Rockhopper Penguin – Southern Atlantic islands and Southern Indian islands

American or Carribean Flamingo – North and Central America and the Carribean islands

Burrowing Owl – North, Central, and South America

Andean Condor – South America

Bald Eagle – North America

Van der Decken’s Hornbill – Africa

Whooping Crane – North America

Furry Friday: Nocturnal Visitor

Jan18

Posted by Pat Bumstead

Do you ever wonder about the night time activity in your yard?

For the past several years, we have been host to a few over-wintering mourning doves. As these beautiful birds are ground feeders, they have a special feeding area under a large poplar in our yard. We keep this area cleared of snow, and make sure there is always food available.

Doves aren’t the only ones who like sunflower chips however, and a few nights ago we were lucky to catch site of our nocturnal visitor – a white-tailed jack rabbit.

Early European settlers on the prairies encountered this large, long-legged, big-eared prairie hare which they promptly dubbed the ‘jackass rabbit.’ This name has mellowed over the years to the more familiar term jack rabbit.

Creatures of the prairie grasslands, white-tailed jack rabbits are common within the city limits. Predominantly a nocturnal species, city rabbits can also be seen during daylight hours, taking advantage of the lack of predator activity. A favourite prey species of coyotes, foxes and bobcats, their powerful hind legs allow them to sprint at speeds up to 64 km an hour, and make huge 5 meter long leaps. During the winter months they live on twigs, buds and bark so a free dinner of sunflower chips makes a nice change!

Wednesday Wings: Crossbills

Jan16

These photos were taken by Tim Hopwood over the past two weeks in various locations within the city of Calgary. The first four photos show Red Crossbills (which seem to be more abundant than usual in the city this winter), and the rest are White-winged Crossbills.

To see more of Tim’s photos, see his blog, Tim J. Hopwood Images.

Fur & Feathers Wrap-Up

Jan15

I’m sure many of you have followed the Fur & Feathers 500 blog. Four Calgary bird watchers (and mammal watchers) did a bird and mammal Big Year in 2012, trying to see as many species as they could within Canada. They were successful in reaching their goals of seeing 500 combined species as a team, and of visiting each Territory and Province in Canada.

Brian Elder has summarized their efforts in two excellent posts, which highlight some of the most interesting species they saw, and which feature their great photographs too.

A Look Back at the Birds of our Big Year

A Look Back at the Mammals of our Big Year

Now that the Big Year is over, Brian has launched a new blog to document his efforts to reach a life list of 5000 bird and mammal species worldwide. Follow him at:

Fur and Feathers 5000

At Birds Calgary we will be following this with great interest, and we wish him luck!

Friends of Fish Creek Winter Birding – Week 1 – Fish Creek Provincial Park HQ and Sikome Lake

Jan14

Posted by Dan Arndt

The beginning of the Winter birding course was very reminiscent of our last trip there with the autumn course. We started off with a light snowfall at the headquarters building at Bow Valley Ranch, visiting with the Great Horned Owls that have been regulars there for many years. This time though they were a bit easier to see, with the first one sitting high in the trees on the east end of the pathway, and the second just a little further west than its previous roost. Both were cashing in on their natural camouflage in spades, but given their placement in the trees, were slightly more conspicuous than before.

Great Horned Owl #1

Great Horned Owl #2

As we continued west towards the headquarters building, we were mobbed by the resident Black-capped Chickadees for their toll, paid in the form of sunflower seeds, while a few Golden-crowned Kinglets and Brown Creepers flitted among the spruce.

Black-capped Chickadee toll collector

Brown Creeper

We spotted a decent sized flock of White-winged Crossbills in the trees at the headquarters before packing up and heading down to Sikome Lake. We stopped along the way to look at quite a number of Bald Eagles in the trees both on the roadside, and sitting over the Bow River. As it turns out, there was a deer carcass that was keeping their interest, which, by the time we were leaving the park, was down to only the cleanly stripped hide.

Down at Sikome Lake, the resident pair of Great Horned Owls was hiding out in the same roost as the lone owl was in December.

Great Horned Owls 3 & 4 – There are two owls in this photo, seriously.

At this point, we split off from Gus Yaki’s group and headed off toward the Bow River on our own. We found a good number of waterfowl on the river, from Common Goldeneyes, to extremely comfortable looking Canada Geese.

Common Goldeneyes

Canada Geese

On the north end of our walk, this huge flock of mixed Canada Geese, Mallards, Common Mergansers and Common Goldeneyes came into view. As we watched, they began to flush as not one, not two, but three Bald Eagles made their way closer. Two others stayed in the trees on either side of the river, just out of sight, while two sub-adult eagles flew by, along with one adult.

Geese, Mallards and more

4th year Bald Eagle

adult Bald Eagle

The walk back to the parking lot in the trees along the river was a little bit quieter than expected, yielding only a lone Northern Flicker, along with a Hairy Woodpecker, and four of these little White-breasted Nuthatches.

White-breasted Nuthatch

All in all, it was a good, solid start to a new year of birding, and a new birding course. Good birding, and thanks for reading!

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