These pictures were taken recently by Dan Kingston at Waiparous Village, NW of Calgary. There are two leucistic chickadees coming to the feeders there. They have been seen together, and are likely litter mates. If you have an opinion as to which species they are, let us know in the comments. Also, the feet on one of the birds don’t look normal – any opinions on this?
Posted by Dan Arndt
Located on the eastern edge of Calgary, Elliston Park boasts the distinction of being the second largest body of water in the city limits, with a 20 hectare storm-water retention pond, stands of poplar, ash, and spruce located around the lake, and in the course of the week, over fifty species of birds were seen on or around the lake.
When I woke up on Sunday morning to head out to the lake, I was greeted by a bright, sunny sky, with great light, above-zero temperatures, and a very good feeling that it would be an incredible walk, and how right I was!
Elliston Park route
When we arrived at the park, it was nearly completely full of geese, ducks, and gulls galore. The western half of the lake had frozen over, and the eastern end was still open, making the area where the ice meets the water the congregation point for the various waterfowl, with the gulls resting just behind them.
We headed around the north end of the lake first, into the poplars and aspen that border the fence on 17th Avenue SE, in hope of catching some Common Redpolls, or maybe a finch species or two. We were delighted when we came across this Townsend’s Solitaire that stopped to take a look at us and then flew right by.
Townsend’s Solitaire
As we cleared the first stand of trees we got a great view of the rest of the lake, and all the birds out on the water and on the ice.
View of Elliston Lake
As we neared the east end of the lake, it became clear that we were getting a little too close for comfort for the large numbers of Canada Geese. Either that, or it was just their time to take off and go forage the surrounding fields for breakfast.
Canada Geese taking off
In the northeast bay of the reservoir we got wonderful looks at a pair of grebes that aren’t often seen together, though both have been seen regularly all summer. These grebes had been seen in this bay all week, and the excellent light and close proximity made even my stand-by 18-250 lens get close enough for some good shots! On top of that, there were quite a few Hooded Mergansers in the lake, and these three also posed nicely to have their photo taken.
Pied-billed and Red-necked Grebes
Hooded Mergansers
As we rounded the lake, we found this small flock of House Finches, which gave us a bit of trouble with identification. They sure looked like House Finches, but their vocaluizations were very unusual and sounded more like Purple Finches. In fact, one of the males was much deeper red, almost purple, unfortunately none of the photos I snapped of that one turned out, so here’s the other, more normal looking male.
House Finches
As we continued south and walked along the east shore, we had brief glimpses of a Northern Harrier harassing some gulls on a large pond east of the park, a rather noisy Blue Jay, and many more good looks at a few straggling Ruddy Ducks, Lesser Scaup, Green-winged Teal, and even a close overflight of Common Mergansers. The last of the waterfowl we picked out from the crowd was a lone Barrow’s Goldeneye, picked out by the crescent shaped patch behind the bill, the spotted pattern on the back, and lastly by the green, rather than purple iridescence of the head plumage of the Common Goldeneye. Quite a sight to see!
Barrow’s Goldeneye
Our last, and I would say possibly best bird of the day was this lone Golden-crowned Kinglet. I heard its distinctive “seet” calls in the last stand of spruce trees before the parking lot, and decided to pull out my phone and turn on my Sibley Guide app and see if it would come in for a visit. Here are the results:
This curious Golden-crowned Kinglet was beginning to display the orange streak hidden beneath its bright yellow crest.
And then it came in to investigate even closer. At one point it was less than two feet away from me. What an experience!
Thanks once again for reading! Have a great week of winter birding!
Posted by Bob Lefebvre.
I thought I’d provide some detailed information on Nature Calgary’s Bird Studies Group meetings for those of you who are new to birding in Calgary, or who just have not gotten around to attending a meeting yet. The meetings are free and open to everyone; you don’t have to have a membership in Nature Calgary to attend.
The Bird Studies Group is involved in the Christmas Bird Count, May Species Count, conducting birding field trips in the Calgary area, and in other birding projects. From September through May, they also have a monthly meeting on the first Wednesday of each month.
Meetings are held in room 211 of the Biological Sciences building at the University of Calgary. The doors open at 7 pm, and the meeting starts at 7:30. The first half-hour is for socializing with your fellow birders. There is coffee, tea, and homemade cookies available for very reasonable prices. At 7:30, Andrew Hart, the Chairman of the BSG advisory committee, begins with announcements of upcoming events and meetings, and sometimes of good bird sightings. Sometimes we have a bird quiz, which is always fun and challenging. The main presentation follows, and lasts about an hour. It is followed by a question-and-answer period. The meetings usually conclude by 9 pm.
Recent topics for the main presentation include “Important Bird Areas of Alberta,” “Red Kites in Britain,” “Weed Lake,” and “Migration Monitoring at Cypress Hills.” The topic for the next meeting should interest our readers: “Birding and Technology” by Daniel Arndt and David Pugh. They will discuss smart phone apps, eBird, and the ways that new technologies can help you be a better birder.
Here is a map of the University of Calgary Campus. The Biological Sciences building, labelled B1, is located at the bottom right, nearest to the University LRT Station. Click on the map to see a larger version.
A plus is that the location is very close to the University LRT station, and of course there is good bus service to the campus too. If you are driving, parking is available in several lots near the building (the closest are lots L25 and L21). One drawback of the meeting location is the $6 charge for parking, payable by cash(coins) or credit card.
So if you haven’t yet been to a meeting, or haven’t been attending regularly, please join us. As Andrew says, the goal of the Bird Studies Group is “to encourage birding in the Calgary area and beyond by helping local birders develop their knowledge and skills.” These meetings are a great way to do that.
For more information on the Bird Studies Group, contact Andrew Hart at andrewhart(at)shaw.ca .
Links:
A beautiful photo of a Great Horned Owl in an old abandoned barn. Taken by Brett Mahura near Vulcan in September.
Have you seen an unusual bird in Calgary?
If it is on this Reportable_Birds (PDF), please report it to the Nature Calgary 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, email us at birdscalgary@gmail.com. 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.
Compiled by Terry Korolyk
Bird Sightings:
Oct 28:
SHORT-EARRED OWL at Twp Rd 252, Jumping Pound area, Gord Smith.
Oct 29:
WHITE-WINGED SCOTERS (2), adult male SURF SCOTER, Glenmore Res. Bill Wilson.
GREATER WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE, Ellliston Pk, Gus Yaki, FFCPP.
PALM WARBLER in Queensland SE Calgary, Odel Duncan.
RUSTY BLACKBIRDS (2), Gus Yaki etc. Carburn Pk.
Oct 30:
YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER, Elliston Pk, GY etc.
WHITE-WINGED SCOTER, SURF SCOTERS (2), Glenmore Res. BW.
RED-BREASTED MERGANSER (3), Elliston Pk, GY etc., and 2 Bow River, Hull’s Wood, Jeff Bank.
THAYER’S GULLS (2) 1st yr, 22X bridge, Terry Korolyk.
Oct 31:
NORTHEREN SAW-WHET OWL OR BOREAL OWL, NW Calgary, Robert Nelson.
RED-THROATED LOON, Glenmore Res. David Pugh.
Nov 1:
RED-THROATED LOON at a slough 22X/Hwy2, TK.
SNOW BUNTINGS have been reported.(date ?)
SAVANNAH SPARROW, S Calgary, Carol Coulter (date ?).
The next scheduled update of the Bird Alert is on Monday Nov 5.
The next meeting of the Nature Calgary Bird Study Group will be held on Wednesday November 07 in Room 211 of the Biosciences Building of the University of Calgary. Doors are open at 7:00 PM and the meeting will begin at 7:30 PM.
Dan Arndt and David Pugh, both members of the BSG advisory group, will be sharing their experiences with technology in the field of birding.
Posted by Bob Lefebvre.
Photos taken at dusk on the irrigation canal is SE Calgary, September 7, 2012.
Have you seen an unusual bird in Calgary?
If it is on this Reportable_Birds (PDF), please report it to the Nature Calgary 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, email us at birdscalgary@gmail.com. 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.
Compiled by Terry Korolyk
3 AMERICAN GOLDFINCHES and 4-5 WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS have been in the Marlborough yard of Dorothy Johnston during this reporting period.
OCT 25
SHORT-EARED OWL – found dead at Lafarge Meadows – Rick Robb
WHITE-WINGED SCOTER – 7 at Glenmore Reservoir – Gus Yaki and FFCPP
WESTERN PALM WARBLER – Carburn Park – Nick Bartok and Mike Potter
OCT 26
WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW – at 3rd Vermilion Lake in Banff NP – Joan and Malcolm Macdonald
HERRING-GLAUCOUS GULL hybrid – 1st yr at point north of 22X Bridge in East Fish Creek PP , also one bird south of the Shepard Landfill – Terry Korolyk
THAYER’S GULL – two 1st yrs north of 22X as above
OCT 27
SURF SCOTER – 5 immatures at dam at Chestermere Lake – Terry Korolyk
PACIFIC LOON – on Glenmore Reservoir – Gus Yaki and FFCPP
THAYER’S GULL – 1st yr north of 22X bridge – TK
OCT 28
RED-THROATED LOON – on Glenmore Reservoir in east end – Bob Storms
RED-BREASTED MERGANSER – 29 at dam at Pine Coulee Reservoir west of Stavely – TK
SURF SCOTER – 2 at Clear Lake 15 kms west of Stavely – TK
NASHVILLE WARBLER – on Barrier Mtn. Drive in Exshaw, Ross Leins and Val Haynes
RUBY-CROWNED KINGLET – as above
RUSTY BLACKBIRD – 16 along the river in Fish Creek PP Hull’s Wood Lafarge Meadows area – Tony Timmons and Nature Calgary
RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD – 6 as above
RED-TAILED HAWK – imm in west end of Glenmore Reservoir – Steve Kassai
THAYER’S GULL – 1st yr at Pine Coulee Dam – TK
The next scheduled update of the Bird Alert is on Thu Nov 1.
BIRD STUDY GROUP:
Bird Study Group meets 1st Wednesday of the month, 7:30pm in Room 211 of the BioSciences Building, U of C. WEDNESDAY, NOV 7, 7:30PM – DANIEL ARNDT AND DAVID PUGH will share their experiences with technology in the world of birding.
Posted by Dan Arndt
Another week, another trip into the wilds of Calgary’s Parks. It was a familiar sight when we assembled at the parking lot at South Glenmore Park, but the difference of a week of sub-zero temperatures turned the open water of the Glenmore Reservoir into a nearly birdless and iced over expanse.
Unfortunately for me, my 150-500mm Sigma lens is once again out for repair, and I didn’t get too many shots of the other birds we had in close proximity to us, so I’ve decided to throw in some photos that I’ve taken elsewhere this year to substitute for the birds we saw on this walk.
We walked from the Boating Club west along the edge of the reservoir, then up into the woods representative of the Boreal Forest biome, then continued west into a finger of Aspen Parkland before returning to the main pathway and returning to our rides.
South Glenmore Park – West End
One of our first sightings from the top of the hill was a Northern Shrike, which appeared to be a juvenile, and quite possibly the same one we saw perched in the exact same spot the week before.
Northern Shrike
Along the edge of the reservoir we looked out and saw a pair of Bald Eagles attempting to hunt, time and time again. As we neared their roost, we stopped amongst a group of Black-capped Chickadees and happened to spot a Brown Creeper flocking in with them!
Brown Creeper
The constant din of honking Canada Geese heavily into their migration and low flyovers allowed us some nice close shots, but even better were the groups of Tundra and Trumpeter Swans that also flew back and forth from the west end of the Reservoir, which still had a good amount of open water.
Canada Goose
We ascended the hill, and stopped for a few minutes to feed the Black-Capped Chickadees, Red-breasted and White-breasted Nuthatches, and enjoyed their calls and antics while they ate their fill.
We walked through the Boreal Forest biome and as we crossed into the edge of the Aspen Parkland we paused as we heard not only Golden-crowned Kinglets, but also Boreal Chickadees and Brown Creepers. Quite the sight!
Our final addition of the day, as we neared the western-most extent of our walk, was a flock of more than sixty Bohemian Waxwings decorating a completely defoliated aspen like so many leaves. It was quite the sight and a definite cap to our great day of winter birding!
Bohemian Waxwing
Posted by Matthew Sim
This summer while I was up in Calgary, I noticed a lot of starlings as well, especially in Fish Creek P.P. On one of my excursions to the park, I positioned myself beneath a Starling’s nest hole and managed to capture a few shots as the bird descended to feed it’s young.
Preparing for landing…
Landing; note food in beak
At nest hole; seems to be startled by the ferocity of its two young!
Posted by Matthew Sim
I maintain bird feeders in my yard in Calgary all the time when I am around. Suet feeders, a tray feeder for millet, a peanut feeder, a niger feeder for siskins and goldfinches, a feeder for sunflower seeds; you name it. I enjoy watching the regular species of birds (and squirrels!) come in to eat and the occasional unusual species. When I watch “my” birds, I often notice intriguing behavior; the way that the Red-breasted Nuthatches stored food is particularly interesting. The nuthatches take a seed from the feeder, head to my fence and hide the seed there in a nook or cranny. Later, whether it be days, weeks or months, they would eventually come back looking for the seeds, providing some entertainment as we observe their antics.
Red-breasted Nuthatch, searching for a sunflower seed hidden somewhere along the fence
Is it down here, perhaps?
Maybe if I come at it from this angle…
Certainly is amazing what you can see from your backyard!