Tag Archive | birds native to calgary

Photo Feathers: Splish Splash

Posted by Bob Lefebvre

Hidden in Plain Sight

Canada Geese are abundant in Calgary year-round, and for the last month or so they have been nesting in various spots around the city. Like all birds, they try to find nesting sites that are secure from predators like coyotes. They will often nest on top of flat-topped buildings, and one of the best locations a goose can find is the top of a large broken tree.

Another good location is an island in a pond or the river. I’m always amazed at how difficult it can be to see the nesting goose even if it’s in the open like this…

Above, the male Canada Goose stands watch near the nest and is fairly conspicuous on the left-hand side of the gravel bar, but can you see the female on her nest?

There she is, on the right-hand side.

As seen below, it’s amazing how the colour pattern of a Canada Goose can allow it to blend in to its surroundings so that it is nearly invisible…

There are still plenty of geese on their nests in the city. I just saw my first goslings on Saturday, May 14, about ten days later than usual. For the next couple of months we will be treated to scenes like this:

Posted by Bob Lefebvre

Swainson’s Hawk

May15

While we were at Inglewood Bird Sanctuary doing our Big Sit, we came across a very interesting sight. There, perched on the ground, maybe ten feet off the path, was a dark-morph Swainson’s Hawk. The dark-morph Swainson’s Hawk has a dark-brown colour over most of its body; the more common light morph has a brown bib contrasting with white underparts. This particular hawk had a Richardson’s Ground Squirrel clutched in his claws and was regarding all the photographers and interested visitors with a haughty look.

This Swainson’s Hawk intrigued many visitors to Inglewood Bird Sanctuary.

And there he sat; for over an hour we were told, he had stayed in the same spot. He finally got tired of all this hustle and bustle, deciding to try to find a quieter place to enjoy his meal in peace. However, he had not counted on catching such a heavy meal…

Attempted take-off

After he couldn’t achieve lift-off by taking a running leap, he tried a different tactic: taking off from the spot where he stood.

Flap!!!

Well that didn’t work either…

The hawk then decided that, seeing as he wasn’t going anywhere with his meal, he might try to eat it right then and there. And that’s what he did. He hopped back a couple of feet with his meal, to a slightly more secluded area and began to eat.

Here, he shields his meal from potential thieves.

Hopefully his meal didn’t weigh him down too much after he ate it; otherwise, he might not be able to take off again!!!

Posted by Matthew Sim

Bird Songs 101

May14

Ever heard that beautiful song coming from deep inside a dense bush, but don’t know what exactly is the source of that amazing sound? You can check out this great site to help you match the song with the bird.

http://www.natureinstruct.org/dendroica/

The Blackpoll Warbler gives a very high-pitched song that can be inaudible at times.

Dendroica.com is a great site; whether you are a novice and just learning the songs, or you are a seasoned pro and brushing up for the spring migration. Photographs of the bird are provided on this site, as well as a description of the song or call and then the song itself. Once you have gotten familiar with the sounds, you can go out into the field with this newly-found or rediscovered knowledge, and be able to identify that beautiful song coming from deep inside the bush.

Posted by Matthew Sim

Down at the pond

May13

Ponds can be a great place to see birds. They provide a home to not only birds, but many plants, mammals, insects, fish; the list could go on forever! The key factor is the water. Water attracts birds almost without fail; they need it to bathe, to drink and to keep cool. You can see birds at big lakes, such as Frank Lake, or you can see birds at small ponds, like the one close to my house.

A male Red-winged Blackbird calling. These birds are common at ponds that have rushes and reeds along the banks.

At my local pond, which sits on the Willow Park golf course, you can just about always see Mallards, Common Goldeneye, American Wigeon, Redheads and Red-winged Blackbirds. Lately, there has been a pair of Canvasbacks on the pond as well. Ponds where you are likely to find birds need to be the right types of ponds. Several characteristics define a good pond, including: moderately deep water, plenty of vegetation, both on and under the water, reeds around the banks and good, fairly undisturbed nesting spots. These factors can make ponds irresistible to many birds.

The male Redhead is a striking duck with its rust red head and dusky grey back.

Do you have a pond near you? If you do, go check it out, you never know what you might see!

Posted by Matthew Sim

Migratory Bird Day: The Big Sit

May8

Saturday May 14 is World Migratory Bird Day. To celebrate this, and to see the birds of Calgary at the peak of our spring migration, Birds Calgary will be doing a Big Sit at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary.

Sit birding is an activity that requires the birder to count all the birds that are seen and heard while remaining within a circle seventeen feet in diameter. Essentially, you stay put and let the birds come to you. On May 14, the Birds Calgary writers will see how many species they can find from a spot in the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary near the Bow River.

Inglewood Bird Sanctuary, 2425 9 Avenue SE, Calgary

We will begin the count at 8 a.m. and go until 11 a.m (noon if the birds keep coming). Anyone who wants to join us for the count and help out is welcome. You can also just drop by at any time during the count to see how we are doing. If you plan to stay, bring a lawn chair, binoculars, water, and either sunscreen or rain gear (or both) as the weather requires.

Harlequin Ducks, male and female, seen last year from our Big Sit spot.

Here is a link to the World Migratory Bird Day website: http://www.worldmigratorybirdday.org/2011/

I hope you can join us next Saturday for a great morning of birding!

Posted by Bob Lefebvre

Help Us With the May Species Count!

May7

The May Species Count is an event held on the last weekend of May each year, in which birders try to find every species of bird in the Calgary area. Over the two-day period, teams or individuals scour their assigned areas to identify every bird species they see and hear, and also note the total numbers of each species. This year the count will be on May 28 and 29.

How many Mallards?

The area covered is huge – a circle 160 kilometres in diameter centred on the Centre Street bridge in Calgary. Organizers have broken the count circle into many smaller territories, and assigned volunteers to each area. We need a lot of birders to cover all this territory!

The Count Circle. The numbers indicate the territories to which birders or teams of birders are assigned. Click on the map to enlarge it.

There are still some territories that are not covered, so if you want to contribute to a very worthwhile citizen science project, contact the co-ordinator:

Terry Poulton – May Species Count, May 28-29, 2011

phone 403-274-7393 email tpoulton@yahoo.com

Everyone is invited to participate, whether beginner or seasoned pro. You can do a whole day, a half day, or both days. Terry will try to assign you to an interesting route, and try to match new-comers with experienced birders, and drivers with riders. There are a wide variety of environments, from urban to prairie to foothills habitats. Most years, more than 200 bird species are seen in total within the circle.

This is a great opportunity to get involved in Calgary and area birding, and to see as many as one hundred species of birds in a single day. If you can identify most birds you see, you can survey an area yourself. If you are a new birder, you will be assigned to a team with other experienced birders where you can help to spot and count birds, and learn about the process.

If you are at all interested in this, please contact Terry to get more information. It’s one of the funnest birding experiences of the year, at the birdiest time of the year!

Posted by Bob Lefebvre

Photo Feathers: Pine Siskin

May6

The Pine Siskin is a familiar, tame little finch. They are often very approachable, enough to see their beautiful feathers. They are quite noisy, even while they feast on niger, black oil sunflower seeds and the seeds of pinecones, among other foods. Pine Siskins are common in Calgary and can be seen year round.