A beautiful Great Horned Owl. Photo by Diane Stinson.
A few weeks ago I was leaving my house to start my walk to work and I saw a cloud of Magpies squawking wildly around a spruce tree. I ran over and was delighted to see a large Great Horned Owl! It was a lighter color than I had seen before, almost white. Its large yellow eyes looked at me wearily. The Magpies were relentlessly hassling it, flying at it and generally freaking out. I managed to get a fairly decent picture of it with my phone, and also yelled at a stranger “An Owl is in this tree!”, as one should given the special circumstances. If I saw an owl nesting I wouldn’t tell anyone, but I could tell this one was moving on soon.
The Magpies know the owl is a skilled predator that is a threat to their very lives, they don’t want it to get comfortable in our neighbourhood. Owls have very sharp beaks, crushing claws, night vision, great hearing and near silent flight, they must be terrifying to other birds. Whereas we humans just notice their super fluffy feathers and luminous, intelligent eyes. “Don’t be mean” we mutter to the Magpies and Crows harassing them.
Great Horned Owls will often roost near the trunk of a spruce tree during the non-breeding months, where they can be very hard to see. Photo by Dan Arndt.
Owls eat rodents, hares, skunks and other mammals. With their swiveling head, which can turn nearly 180 degrees in either direction, no small mammal is safe. They’ve even been known to go after house cats. I would love to see one hunting, I wouldn’t hear it though. There are numerous videos on the internet of an owl flying with a sound detector nearby, they are virtually silent. They have specialized feathers that break up the sound, a subject of much study by scientists.
If you see a very large owl it is probably one of three in Calgary: Snowy, Great Grey or Great Horned. The Great Horned Owl is the most common and is distinct because of its prominent ‘horns’ which are part of a ‘V’ coming down to its beak. Although the Long Eared owl also has feather tufts protruding from the top of its head, those owls are much harder to find in the city. Obviously the same person didn’t name these owls, one taking their tufts for horns and the other for ears. It is difficult to identify owls by colour (other than the Snowy of course), for instance the Great Horned can vary from a light colour to a tawny brown colour.
Nesting for the Great Horned is in February. The mating pair will usually steal another bird’s nest, they aren’t the apex of the birding world without some perks! After laying the eggs the female will diligently keep the nest warm for about 30 days. It probably requires a lot of energy – warming eggs through those long cold nights. Once the fluffy little owlets hatch they will stay around the nest until fall. If you know where an Owl is nesting, keep it to yourself and give them a chance to make it through their long nesting cycle.
An older Owlet, showing the last thing many mammals see. Photos by Diane Stinson.
I’m not sure if I’ll see the Owl around my house again, the Magpies are a very dominant force on our street. They seem really smug about it, if they had fingers they would be snapping them like the Jets from West Side Story. Meanwhile the owl has moved on, although they don’t migrate they can travel far for food, or to get away from Magpie gangs.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year everyone! May you all see an owl this season.
A very young Great Horned Owlet. Isn’t it the cutest?! Photo by Diane Stinson.
Tracking the winter birds of Alberta from December 1 to February 28.
Posted by Bob Lefebvre
It’s time for winter birding, and I will be helping to track the species seen in the Calgary area once again. Caroline Lambert provides a lot of assistance with the Calgary list, and also maintains the Bow Valley list.
A White-throated Sparrow below the feeder in my yard, SE Calgary, 2 December 2025. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.
Caroline also maintains a website with up-to-date and historical data for each of the four lists. Here is more information on the lists, from Caroline:
Calgary: The count area is the 80km radius count circle centred on Calgary, the same one used for the May species count. It is preferred that sightings during this count period and in the count area be reported to the email list, albertabird@groups.io (keeping in mind that certain sensitive species should not be openly reported), but we will also include species reported to eBird and elsewhere, if we can find them.
Bow Valley: this area includes both the Bow River and Kananaskis River watersheds, as far east as the Stoney Nakoda casino and Seebe Dam. Most sightings for this area are taken from the Bow Valley Birding Facebook group, but we will record sightings reported on this email list, Albertabird, eBird, Christmas Bird Counts, rumours on the street, etc. The Bow Valley has the lowest species count of any area, so we’ll accept any reputable report! This is the list Caroline maintains, so you can send reports of sightings to her.
Provincial list: Andy Ross is again taking care of the Alberta-wide list. Andy will collect sightings from the usual sources (eBird, Albertabird, the other winter lists, WhatsApp, etc.).
The Edmonton list as shown on the albertawinterbirds.org site is kept by Vivek Dabral. Birds that are listed on the Edmonton list must be reported to the Edmonton Nature Club discussion group (ENCnaturetalk@groups.io) by an Edmonton Nature Club member. If you are in Edmonton and are interested in the club, more information can be found at edmontonnatureclub.org.
If you post your sightings to eBird it will be added to the appropriate list (except for the Edmonton one). If you see a significant species that has not already been found, you can report it as above, or email to birdscalgary@gmail.com.
Most of the common winter birds are found on December 1st or shortly thereafter. This year, we had 63 species on the first day in the Calgary circle. As of December 4th, we are at 75 species. Our average for the winter is 113, so there are still lots of birds to find!
Notable birds include a Spotted Towhee which was found on December 1st in Redwood Meadows (and had been there for a while). It is only the second Calgary winter record in the nine years of the count. If you are building your own winter list, you might want to head to Carburn Park for the Harlequin Duck, which has only been reported there, and for some uncommon ducks. Wilson’s Snipe has only been reported from Douglasbank Park. Brown-Lowery Park has again produced an American Three-toed Woodpecker, and is a good place to try for Black-backed Woodpecker as well (not seen yet).
As of December 4th, the list totals are: Alberta 97, Calgary 75, Edmonton 43, Bow Valley 32.
I’ll do an update with more sightings and missing targets in a week or so. Good winter birding!
Next Thursday, June 12th, join us for The Big Birding Quiz of the Year!!
For the last Birds & Beers of the spring/summer season, we will be meeting as usual at the Royal Canadian Legion at 9202 Horton Road SW, from 5 to 9 pm. Instead of a presentation this time, we will have a birding quiz starting at about 7 pm.
Come early if you want to eat, drink, and socialize, and then at about 7 pm Joan Walker will host a special Trivial Pursuit-style “Wing and Feather” Night. A night when we can share our knowledge of our feathered friends, and perhaps gain some new insights into their unique habits and behaviors.
This promises to be a lot of fun! Each table, whether four, five, or six people, will be a team, and the teams compete to get to a certain number of correct answers. Questions will be on any birding topic, but weighted towards local birds. Songs and calls may be involved! And there will be some surprises too!
Joan introducing last month’s talk at Birds & Beers. (This shows about half of the 96 attendees.) This time, we will stay at our tables and take part in a birding quiz.
Everyone is welcome to join us, even children if accompanied by an adult.
Birds & Beers takes a break in the summer and will resume in September. I will post the schedule and upcoming presentation topics once they are booked.
Calgary is lucky to have Wood Ducks within our city limits. In June eBird checklists have about a 5% chance of including a Wood Duck, compare this with Edmonton with only a 0.1% chance! Virtually zero! Something to keep in your back pocket next time the subject of hockey comes up. “Well we have Wood Ducks!”.
If you have seen a Wood Duck you will know why this is a brag. They are like a beautiful sculpture come to life. If you want to see one for the first time (or again) head to the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary, a Wood Duck hotspot. This waterfowl has a beautiful shimmery green pompadour swept back to the nape of its neck and bright red eyes. No boring modern minimalism for this guy, it has speckles, stripes, shimmers and all kinds of colour: burgundy, blue, a bit of beige. Its latin name is “Aix Sponsa”, which can be loosely translated to “bridal duck”, it’s all dressed up for a fancy wedding. (Audubon). The female has plainer plumage, she makes do with some speckles on her front and a large white eye ring.
Male and female in flight. Photo by Dan Arndt
Its name comes from its close relationship to trees. The Wood Duck has claws on its duck feet that allow it to climb up trees. This is necessary since it nests in trees. The female will have two broods a year, which apparently is very rare for ducks. When the chicks are ready they will jump out of the tree, up to 50 feet! You have probably seen a video on the internet of ducklings jumping from trees in slow motion, landing like little puff balls on leaf litter. Their mom calls them out, encouraging them to jump, but doesn’t help otherwise. Then they follow her to the pond.
Mother Wood Duck with chicks. Photo by Dan Arndt.
So make a trip to the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary and you might get lucky and see the famous Wood Duck. They will be in the pond looking for weeds to eat. They also love perching on the logs in there, firmly in place with their claws, making it easier for you to get a picture of their finery.
The female and male Wood Duck, climbing on a log with their claws. Photo: wikimedia commons no restrictions.
With a presentation on Birding By Ear by Annie Finch.
Next Thursday’s Birds & Beers will feature a presentation by Annie Finch on Bird Sounds: Birding Better by Ear. Birding by ear is an extremely important skill, and one which many birders find difficult to master. Annie is a great birder and really knows bird calls and songs. She will teach us how to use apps and online resources to hone our skills, and will give practical advice on identifying and finding birds in the field. She will also go into recording bird sounds and contributing sounds to online databases.
Western Meadowlark, Weed Lake, April 30, 2017. Photo by Gavin McKinnon.
Birds & Beers is a social gathering of birders that is open to anyone. We meet at the Legion at 9202 Horton Road SW. The ballroom is open at 5 pm and the presentation will be at about 7 pm. Everyone is welcome!
Featuring a presentation by Jody Allair on the state of Canada’s Birds.
The next Birds & Beers meetup is next Thursday, April 10th. This is a social get-together of birders, open to everyone. We meet at the Royal Canadian Legion at 9202 Horton Road SW in Calgary. Doors to the big ballroom open at 5 pm. If you can, come early to socialize, eat and drink.
Jody Allair of Birds Canada.
At about 7 pm there will be a presentation by Jody Allair of Birds Canada. The topic is “The State of Canada’s Birds and actions we can take to help our feathered friends.”
Jody Allair with a Bald Eagle.
About Jody Allair:
Jody is an avid birder and naturalist who enjoys sharing his enthusiasm for the natural world. He has been birding and banding since his teens, when he began volunteering at Long Point Bird Observatory (LPBO) in Southern Ontario. He is now the Director of Communications at Birds Canada where he manages the organization’s public relations and media, is the co-editor of BirdWatch Canada Magazine, producer of the Warblers Podcast and a coordinator of eBird Canada.
Over the years Jody has coordinated a variety of different bird-related projects including the Southern Ontario Bald Eagle Monitoring Program, the Ontario Nocturnal Owl Survey, Birds Canada’s Youth Education Program, and the Southern Ontario Forest Birds at Risk Program.
Jody regularly speaks about birds and conservation to audiences across Canada and has written numerous articles on birds, birding and connecting with nature. He is the monthly birding columnist for CBC Radio’s Daybreak Alberta, has appeared on CBC’s Rick Mercer Report, presented at Ideacity, was a featured bird expert on Season 2 of the Love Nature Television series ‘Battle of the Alphas’ and is a regular guest, and occasional guest host, on the American Birding Association podcast.
In addition to his 20+ years at Birds Canada, he has been leading birding tours with Eagle-Eye Tours since 2008.
With the spring equinox just around the corner, I’d like to give the final results of the 2024-2025 Calgary Winter Bird Count. This is a list of all species reported in the Calgary-region 80-km radius circle from December 1, 2024 to February 28, 2025.
For this count, Caroline Lambert and I just record whether or not a species is observed in the circle during the winter months. Numbers of birds are not considered, so even a single individual counts. We are trying to get an idea of long-term trends in which species are resident here in winter, which migratory species regularly overwinter, and also, for species which are rarely are seen in winter, whether there is any trend of increasing or decreasing overwintering. Keeping a winter list also might help to keep birders interested during the winter, and encourage them to get out more.
Northern Hawk Owls are uncommon winter birds that migrate here from the north, but are seen in small numbers every winter. As we will see, it was a great winter for owls of many species. Photo by Amir Said.Both NHOW photos by Amir Said, taken in Okotoks this winter. Follow Amir on Instagram here.
The final total for this year was 111 species. This is lower than each of the previous four years, but only a little below our average.
Winter Bird Species, 2017-2025
Year
Species
2017-2018
108
2018-2019
108
2019-2020
109
2020-2021
118
2021-2022
117
2022-2023
113
2023-2024
120
2024-2025
111
The average number of species recorded is 113. Note that for this year and going forward, now that the Hoary and Common Redpolls have been lumped as one species, we have lost one species. Five of the previous years had both Common and Hoary Redpoll. The cumulative total of all species recorded at least once (taking Redpoll as one species, and also discounting Pacific/Winter Wren as a species, is now 156.
The list got off to a great start, with 71 species reported in the first two days. By December 31, after some of the local Christmas Bird Counts were complete, we were at 104. This is a typical number for that date, and I expected we would have a pretty high total by the end.
A Wilson’s Snipe (105) was added on January 1 during the annual Fish Creek Park New Year’s Day count, and a Black-backed Woodpecker (106) (an uncommon resident species) in Brown-Lowery on Jan 2. American Kestrel (107) was added on January 8 (more on this below). Also on January 8 a Harris’s Sparrow (108) was found in Airdrie. This species migrates mostly well east of us, but we do see a few in the fall, and occasionally they overwinter. The bird was still being seen there in Airdrie at the end of February.
Harris’s Sparrow. A single bird was reported in the circle this winter, and not until January 8. Photo by Bob Lefebvre, Calgary, 2020.
A more common sparrow around here is the White-crowned Sparrow, but they rarely overwinter. One was found in Carburn Park on January 12 (109). That is only the second time in 8 years we had one on the winter list. Somewhere in there we added Gyrfalcon (110), which is a hard species to verify since it is a sensitive species, and locations are hidden from most reports. But there were definitely eBird lists that were well within our circle.
The final species we added was actually reported earlier, in December. This was a new species for the winter list, Swamp Sparrow (111). It was seen and heard twice at the same location and reported on eBird. A sound recording of the call was included. We were waiting for a confirmation from eBird but it has not yet come. Nevertheless, Caroline was satisfied that the description and recording were legitimate.
There can sometimes be problems when trying to verify a report. Two American Kestrels had been reported earlier in December, but we were unable to verify either (both were on eBird, but eBird did not confirm them). Finally on January 8 a Kestrel was confirmed near Chiniki, at the west edge of the circle. Kestrels are occasionally known to overwinter here.
American Kestrel, photographed in September 2017 by Michael Kim. Only one Kestrel was confirmed to be in the circle this winter.
Another discrepency between our list and eBird is Purple Finch. One was reported on eBird in December, and photographs were included. Caroline and I thought it looked good, and added it to the list. But it has not yet been confirmed on eBird.
On the other hand, I recieved a report of a Great Blue Heron in Okotoks in early December, which I spent about a week verifying. I was satisfied that it was legitimate, and did add it to our list. It was not reported on eBird. Then in late January there was a Great Blue Heron reported on eBird in Okotoks, so likely the bird had been there all winter. Perhaps there aren’t too many eBirders in that area.
There were a couple of late-February unconfirmed reports – Rusty Blackbird, which we have always had in previous years, and Snow Goose, which we usually have. We had hoped to get these but they were not confirmed. In the last few days we also hoped to get the first returning California Gulls, but they didn’t arrive until March 2.
The species that we missed this year that had been seen in all previous years are Rusty Blackbird, Red-winged Blackbird, and Varied Thrush. A Varied Thrush was reported in the city on March 1, but that is only a week or so before their usual return date on migration, so it may not have been an overwintering bird.
Varied Thrush. We missed this for the first time this winter. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.
Although the total number of species was a little low, it was an unusually good year for most species of owl. We had all ten of the owls that might be expected here (the 11th, American Barn Owl, is very rarely seen in Alberta, even in the summer). Seven of these have been seen in all 8 winters, but we also had the less common Barred Owl (6th year out of 8), Long-eared Owl (4th year of 8), and Boreal Owl (3rd year of the 8). In addition, many of these were seen on multiple occasions in several different places, and several species like Great Gray Owl and Northern Hawk Owl were seen in much larger numbers than usual.
Barred Owl, photographed in northwest Calgary in February. Photo by Amir Said.
The Calgary list has only been kept since 2017-2018 (eight seasons), so it is too early to perceive many long-term trends, but I think there is one that is evident. Historically, Swans were rarely seen in the area during the winter months but Trumpeter Swans have been recorded on the winter list in each of the eight years of the count. Tundras are on the past seven lists. The numbers of overwintering swans on the Bow River are increasing, with groups of up to fifteen birds being reported this winter, and they tend to stay all winter.
Tundra Swans on the Bow River. Photo by Matt Wallace.Trumpeter Swans over the Bow River. Photo by Max Ortiz Aguilar.
Below is a table showing how many species have been seen every year, 7/8 years, 6/8, and so on down to 1/8 years.
Frequency of Overwintering Species
Number of Years Seen
Number of Species
8 out of 8 years
86
7/8
9
6/8
8
5/8
7
4/8
3
3/8
6
2/8
10
1/8
27
It’s an interesting and smooth distribution. There are are a large number of bird species (86) that are either year-round residents like House Sparrows and Black-billed Magpies, winter migrants that are not here in summer but are on their normal winter ranges, like Pine Grosbeak and Northern Shrike, and species that always overwinter here in decent numbers, north of their usual winter range, like American Robin and White-throated Sparrow.
Then there are 5/8, 6/8 and 7/8 species, which usually overwinter or are in low numbers so that they are difficult to find, and finally, there are quite a few species that would be considered unusual finds in the winter – the 4/8 years down to 1/8.
Once again, here is a link to the list, and from there you can navigate to all of the Alberta Winter lists and see what has been found in the Bow Valley, Edmonton region, and in the entire province.
Register now for these two southern Alberta May Species Counts.
Spring is almost here, so it’s time to prepare now for the Alberta May Species Counts, which take place in May, when many migrating birds are back or passing through. Two long-running counts are the Brooks-Lake Newell Count in the SE part of the province, and the Milk River-Writing-on-Stone Count in the far south of Alberta.
Common Nighthawk in the Brooks area. Photo by Dan Arndt.
Many birders from Calgary, Edmonton, and other parts of the province travel to these counts, so it’s important to make accomodation arrangements ahead of time. Here is the information about the counts from the organizers:
We are pleased to announce that our two SE Alberta May Species counts will take place on the following dates:
Brooks – Lake Newell Bird Count: Sat. May 17 and Sun. May 18
Milk River – Writing-on-Stone Bird Count: Sat. May 24 and Sun. May 25
Looking for accommodation for the Brooks-Lake Newell and Milk River-Writing-on-Stone Bird Counts? The Brooks Heritage Inn and Suites, where we will hold our Brooks count meetings, is offering a discount rate of $125 per night for count recipients. To book, call 403-362-8688 and mention you are a bird count participant.
See brochure (below) for hotels in the Milk River area.
All of the campsites reserved for bird count participants have been allotted. Tillebrook Provincial Park general reservations for the nights of Friday May 16 through the May long weekend and Writing-on-Stone campsite reservations for May Friday May 23 through the count weekend are open. To book: shop.albertaparks.ca, 1-877-537-2757.
Note: a non-refundable fee of $15 per person will be charged to all Brooks participants to help cover the rental of the meeting room.
A reminder to plan to attend the pre-count meetings on the Fridays before each count. The 2025 Brooks WOS Bird Counts Brochure contains more information on the schedule for each weekend. Read/download the brochure here or see below.
Registration for the Brooks-Lake Newell and Milk River-Writing-on-Stone Bird Counts will open on March 1. A link to the registration form will be emailed starting March 1. If you wish to register for either or both of the counts please contact Donna first so we can get you on the email list to receive the link! Registration is open until May 1st.
We look forward to seeing you — and thousands of migrating birds — at the end of May!
Last spring I volunteered to help clean up the Wetlands just east of Elliston Park, in the Forest Lawn area. It was organized by Nature Calgary. I also “volun-told” my teenage son Finn that he was helping. What could be better than a bit of birding with another purpose layered on top! We showed up on a sunny May day and were given capacious black garbage bags and a map of an area to clean. Our area was a large field that basically looked like a bunch of nothingness. Wetlands are like that, to our human eyes there is nothing there, not true! To a bird it is a great place to feed, breed and live.
There are many ponds in the 68 Street wetlands east of Elliston Lake. It is a great birding spot once the ice is off in April.
Making a circuit around our large area we slowly filled our garbage bags with Tim Hortons cups. We got to a stand of trees and stopped, these trees were, unfortunately, filled with garbage, big garbage. Our black bags suddenly appeared tiny. A dumpster truck was needed in that area. I toyed with the idea of putting a diaper genie in my bag, or carrying out a car windshield. Instead we backed away slowly and made our way to the pond.
The secret to getting teens birding is to plonk them down in a big field with a garbage bag and binoculars. There are only two options, birds or garbage. Finn suddenly became interested in looking at the birds through the binoculars. In the pond we saw a large group of American Avocet, the ballerinas of the bird world. These dainty and elegant wading birds were dipping their long thin bills in the pond, waving them side to side to catch small invertebrates.
Two Black-necked Stilt (left) and one American Avocet (right), 68 Street Wetlands. Photo by Max Ortiz Aguilar, April 22, 2018.
The American Avocet is fairly unmistakeable to identify: they have a rusty coloured head, black and white wings and a long upturned bill. They stride through the water on very long legs.
The Avocets’ pond was lined with a surprising amount of electronics equipment, probably something to do with the electronics recycling facility just south of their wetland. It felt good to untangle extension cords from the bushes and gather up all the small appliances.
Avocets lay their eggs out in the open, which doesn’t seem wise but they seem to know what they’re doing, their species has the best conservation rating of ‘Low Risk’. Their chicks leave the nest at only one day old, at that point they can walk, swim and even dive. Oh to have it as easy as an Avocet parent.
American Avocet with young, Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. Avocets nest in east Calgary wetlands.
Finn and I walked back along the road, collecting what appeared to be auto parts along the way. Either they fell off a truck or the city trucks are actively falling apart as they drive. Our bags were completely full either way. I focused on all the wire, seeing that as more harmful than pipes.
At the parking lot we delivered our completely full garbage bags to an already large pile. Somehow it still felt like we had missed so much, but at least the Avocet pond was a bit better. Our inaugural Wetlands clean up was celebrated with a Chinese Food feast. We plan on doing the exact same this year! Maybe Finn can learn how to drive a dump truck to make a dent in the pile by those trees. That would probably cost me three orders of Ginger Beef instead of the usual two.
Keeping track of bird species in the winter months, from December 1 to February 28.
Posted by Bob Lefebvre, 2 December 2024.
Once again I will be assisting Caroline Lambert with tracking all bird species recorded in the Calgary Count Circle in the winter months. I have been doing this for Calgary for a few years, and Caroline tracks the Bow Valley list. There is also an Edmonton List, and a Provincial one that has been going for many years.
The Calgary list got off to a great start, with the highest December 1 species count yet – 65! Many birders challenge themselves to keep a winter list and I think quite a few people went out on Sunday to get a good start to their winter birding. All 65 species were ones we get every winter, although in some years it takes quite a while to find some of these! We are more than halfway to our usual species total in one day, but it gets much harder to add species from here.
The second bird I saw when I looked out my front window on December 1st – Eurasian Collared-Dove. I only had my phone handy so the picture is very poor. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.
The winter birding season starts Sunday, Dec 1. As in previous years, various lists of winter birds seen in certain areas in Alberta will be maintained from Dec 1 to end of February. Alberta has some really good winter birds – there are just not many of them! And each year there are surprises. Links to all of the lists, with area maps, can be found at albertawinterbirds.org.
Calgary: this will be compiled again by Bob Lefebvre. The count area is the 80km radius count circle centred on Calgary, the same one used for the May species count. It is preferred that sightings during this count period and in the count area be reported to the Albertabird site (keeping in mind that certain sensitive species should not be openly reported), but we will also include species reported to eBird and elsewhere, if we can find them.
Bow Valley: this area includes both the Bow River and Kananaskis River watersheds, as far east as the Stoney Nakoda casino and Seebe Dam. Most sightings for this area are taken from the Bow Valley Birding Facebook group, but we will record sightings reported on Albertabird, eBird, Christmas Bird Counts, rumours on the street, etc. The Bow Valley has the lowest species count of any area, so we’ll accept any reputable report!
Provincial list: Andy Ross is again taking care of the Alberta-wide list. The list has been cleaned up, simplified for easier reading, and sorted to the most recent taxonomic order (following the Clement’s/eBird taxonomy). Andy will collect sightings from the usual sources (eBird, Albertabird, the other winter lists, the Alberta Birds Facebook group, etc.).
The Edmonton list as shown on the albertawinterbirds.org site is not the official one; I simply copy their list from the Edmonton Nature Club’s groups.io discussion group. The links are there mostly to have one jumping off spot to find all the winter list info should anyone be interested.
