Here are some birds seen recently by local birders in their yards. Lots of great birds can still been seen while staying at home! Some of these are migrating and won’t be seen in the summer, but others are year-round residents.
Mountain Bluebird, Calgary, April 2020. Photo by Patrice O’Brien.Black-capped Chickadee, Calgary, April 2020. Photo by Patrice O’Brien.Blue Jay, Calgary, April 2020. Photo by Patrice O’Brien.American Robin, Okotoks, April 2020. Photo by Lloyd Bligh.Downy Woodpecker, Calgary, April 2020. Photo by Jane Potter.Northern Flicker, Calgary, April 2020. Photo by Jane Potter.Red-breasted Nuthatch, Calgary, April 2020. Photo by Jane Potter.House Finches, Calgary, April 2020. Photo by Jane Potter.
Finally, here is a photo of a Varied Thrush that Karen Bout photographed in her yard in April. I have heard of three or four reports of Varied Thrushes passing through the city this spring, and there were at least three that overwintered here this year.
Varied Thrush, Calgary, April 2020. Photo by Karen Bout.
May can be even better for migrants passing through city yards, so if you are isolating at home, keep an eye open!
Nature Calgary is promoting a friendly “big year” birding challenge within Calgary city limits in 2020 (BIRDYYC2020). (See this post for an introduction to the challenge.) This guide to Albertabird is one of a number of posts we will present to help everyone who participates.
What is Albertabird?
One useful tool for those taking part in the challenge is the online discussion forum “Albertabird”. This is a place where birders can share sightings, locations, and photos, so it will be useful to participants in keeping informed during the year and giving them the best chance to see as many bird species within the city limits as possible. This article is for newcomers to Albertabird. Anyone can join Albertabird or use it as a resource – it is not just for BIRDYYC2020 participants.
The Albertabird email list was started in early 2000. Initially hosted by Yahoo Groups, a switch to the more compatible platform, Groups IO, was completed in late 2019.
This list functions within the guidelines found in the American Birding Association Code of Ethics. The Albertabird Moderators are Gerald Romanchuk, Malcolm McDonald, and Caroline Lambert.
To post messages to the list you must be a member. To join, you simply go to the site’s Home page and click on “Apply for Membership in this Group.” You will be asked to submit your email address. You should get a response to your request for membership in a day or two.
You can open the “Messages” page to see the latest posts. You can also go to “Subscription” and set the parameters in a way that suits you. You may elect to receive each message in an individual email or in other ways or to not receive emails. Once you are a member, you can post messages and photos for all to see. You can post either right on the website or by sending an email to Albertabird[at]groups.io.
Albertabird
has been a powerful and useful tool for years, allowing birders to share
stories and help others learn.
We encourage you to look frequently at Albertabird and to post stories about your adventures during the BirdYYC2020 challenge.
Albertabird
Guidelines
The complete guidelines for users of Albertabird can be found on the Albertabird website under “files”.
A
few points to remember are:
Do
not to hit the “Reply” button when responding to a message unless you
are intending to send your comments to all subscribers.
All
posts should contain your name and location by city.
Be
prepared to share directions to interesting birds, except for species at risk.
Do
not share directions on private property until you have permission from the
landowner to do so.
Do
not post detailed information on a nest location, particularly for species at
risk, to minimize disturbance to nesting birds.
The
list allows attachments such as photos or files. Files should be kept as
concise as possible in the interest of saving storage space
Photos can be attached to the message as a file or pasted into the
message. (See the guidelines on the Albertabird website for more details and
restrictions.)
Enjoy!
Any questions or suggestions about BIRDYYC2020 contact: Howard Heffler: hheffler*@*shaw.ca Andrew Hart: andrewhart*@*shaw.ca Bob Lefebvre: wbird7*@*gmail.com Gavin McKinnon: gmckinnonbird*@*gmail.com
For the past two decades Nature Calgary has sponsored year-long birding competitions every five years. In 2000 and 2010 the goal was to see as many species as you could within the city limits in the calendar year. In 2005 and 2015 goal was the same, but the area used was the 80-km-diameter circle centered on the Center Street Bridge.
Willet, photographed by Brian Elder in Calgary during the 2010 competition. This won first prize in the photography portion of competition.
In keeping with the pattern, we’d like to announce the Calgary 2020 Big Year Birding Challenge. This will be a year-long event, in which participants try to identify as many species as they can within the city limits between January 1, 2020, and December 31, 2020. The challenge is led by Howard Heffler, Andrew Hart, Gavin McKinnon, and myself.
As in 2015, we will exclusively be using eBird to keep track of participant’s progress. Simply name your city limits patch “BirdYYC2020” and include in your patch all the locations for which you have submitted lists that are within the city limits. (If you already have a city limits patch, just rename it.) If you are not yet using eBird you will have to set up a free account first.
There are a lot of good articles on the eBird website about how to sign up, and how to set up patches. It is really quite easy, and the eBird site is also a tremendously useful resource for birders.
We are going to keep this very simple and informal. There will be no entry fees or prizes, no categories for different experience levels, and no waivers to sign. Rather than a competition, it will be a challenge – a personal test for each participant to try to reach new goals, explore new birding locations, and learn more about the birds of Calgary.
Participants are asked to send their name, ebird name and email address to Howard Heffler at: hheffler[at]shaw.ca. This will allow the organizers to communicate with active participants. At the end of the year, we will ask participants to share their species list to allow comparison with the results of the 2000 and 2010 competitions.
In the weeks and months ahead, we will be prepared to answer questions and take suggestions. We will use this blog for ongoing communication and to write helpful instructions for participants. We also will post stories on Albertabird and on Nature Calgary’s website. We encourage all participants to share their adventures and birding tips on Albertabird.
In the 2010 competition, Michael Harrison won with 240 species! (Amazingly, he saw every species while riding his bike, competing in the “Non-motorized Transport” category.) To read about the 2010 competition, see the 2010 blog here.
Of course, 240 is a very high total – about 265 species are seen within the city limits in a typical year, but many of those are one-day wonders. In a challenge like this, you should set a reasonable goal for yourself. My goal is to see more than 180 species, which is the best total I’ve had since I started using eBird in 2012. I would love to get 200!
A challenge like this is a lot of fun and gets you really involved in the local birding community. I hope you join us!
Please see the guidelines below for more information.
Calgary 2020 Big Year Birding Challenge
Nature Calgary is promoting a friendly “big year” birding challenge within Calgary city limits in 2020.
Background
There have been two “big year” competitions in Calgary; 2000 and 2010.
(There were also “Calgary Region” competitions in 2005 and
2015.)
Scope – an eBird “Patch” challenge
Challenge yourself to find as many species of
birds as you can within the Calgary city limits in 2020!
All sightings must be within the city limits. See link below.
Calendar year 2020.
Open to all.
No sub-categories for participants.
No entry fee or prizes.
No waivers.
Nature Calgary field trips would have waivers exactly as per current practice.
Objective – a friendly competition
Share sightings.
Promote interest in birds and
birding.
Enjoy Calgary’s natural areas.
More field trips.
Compare results with 2000 and
2010.
Challenge Guidelines and Procedures
The organizers are proposing the following guidelines and procedures
to make the challenge more enjoyable and rewarding for all participants.
Participants “register” by adding an eBird patch (or re-naming their existing Calgary city-limits patch.) with the name: “BirdYYC2020” by January 1, 2020.
Participants are asked to send their name, eBird name and email address to Howard Heffler at: hheffler[at]shaw.ca. This will allow the organizers to communicate with active participants. At the end of the year, we will ask participants to share their species list to allow comparison with the results of the 2000 and 2010 competitions.
We recommend that participants re-name their patch back to their own city-limits patch after the challenge year is completed.
Participants MUST share eBird lists and make sightings on eBird visible. The purpose is to allow all participants to chase sightings by others. Specifically: on eBird, under My eBird, select Preferences; Data privacy – elect to NOT hide your eBird data.
Anybody at any time can see who is leading and his/her total number of sightings to date by looking on eBird at patch totals.
We have created “BirdYYC2020 RBA”, a WhatsApp group for sharing instant updates on unusual birds within the city limits of Calgary. To join the group, send a message to Gavin McKinnon (403) 519-8703.
Helpful Hints and Participant Expectations
There are about 200 hotspots in the Calgary “county”. All the ones within the city-limits (90) begin with the prefix “Calgary” or “Fish Creek PP”.
Over the next few weeks we will develop detailed procedures and instructions for things such as:
how to set up an eBird patch,
how to set up eBird alerts,
how to join Albertabird,
how to use WhatsApp,
how to use the mapping tools, and
other topics that might arise.
We hope to make a seasonal list of birds to help participants target specific species during each season.
Some species will be identified as “reportable” so you know what will be of special interest to everyone else.
Of course, we will do what we can to ensure participants respect private property, drive and act safely and responsibly, and follow ABA ethical guidelines: especially as it relates to protecting sensitive species.
We have maps of the city boundary in PDF format available.
The Friends of Fish Creek birding course continues to grow in popularity, with over 300 people now going out on weekly three-hour field trips to various parks in the city. The Spring session is under way, and Max Ortiz Aguilar has contributed some photos from recent outings.
On April 22, 2018 the course went to the 68 Street SE Wetlands, east of Elliston Park. This is a fairly new area for the birding course and is excellent for spring shorebirds, gulls, and waterfowl on migration. All photos by Max Ortiz Aguilar.
American Avocet.
The wetlands (which are also called the Rotary/Mattamy Greenway wetlands since they are on that city-encircling pathway) lie just east of Elliston Lake, between 68 Street SE and Stoney Trail, just south of 17 Avenue. There is a parking lot south of 17 Avenue on the west side of 68 St.
Elliston Lake and the 68 St SE Wetlands.
Black-necked Stilt.
Two Black-necked Stilt and one American Avocet.
Black-crowned Night-Heron.
In the first week of May the course went to South Glenmore Park in search of more waterfowl and migrants. Max took the following photos on May 6, 2018.
Mountain Chickadee seen by the birding course participants at Bebo Grove, Fish Creek Park. Photographed February 14, 2017. Photo by David Mitchell.
The popular Friends of Fish Creek birding course begins its 12-week spring session on April 3, 2017.
Go out on field trips with experienced leaders once or twice a week for twelve weeks, and learn about the birds of Calgary. You can expect to see over 150 species of birds.
Field trips are held in several parts of Fish Creek Park, in Carburn Park, Beaverdam Flats, the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary, the Weaselhead Nature Area, Bowmont Park, Elliston Lake, Griffith Woods Park, and possibly other locations.
It is still only $5 for children (accompanied by a registered adult) for the whole twelve-week course! See this page for details on how to register.
Here are just a few more of the many birds seen on the winter course this year.
Bald Eagle (adult), Mallard Point, Fish Creek Park, February 8, 2017. Photo by David Mitchell.
Black-capped Chickadee (note the unusual brownish cap), Inglewood Bird Sanctuary, March 4, 2017. Photo by Ken Pride.
Ruffed Grouse, Weaselhead Nature Area, February 22, 2017. Photo by David Mitchell.
Wood Duck (female, centre back) with Mallards, Inglewood Bird Sanctuary, March 4, 2017. Photo by Ken Pride.
Great Horned Owl, Beaverdam Flats, March 6, 2017. Photo by Ken Pride.
Common Raven, Beaverdam Flats, March 6, 2017. Photo by Ken Pride.
Common Raven and Great Horned Owl, Beaverdam Flats, March 6, 2017. Photo by Ken Pride.
Great Horned Owl, Beaverdam Flats, March 6, 2017. Photo by Ken Pride.
Adult Long-eared Owl. Photo by Tony LePrieur, Calgary, June 26, 2016.
Long-eared Owls are fairly common in the Calgary area and breed in and around the city, but they are nocturnal and so secretive that many birders go years between sightings. In early summer I was told of a Long-eared Owl nest in the city with young in the nest. Here are some photos of this family taken by several local birders.
(Note: The birds are secretive since they are vulnerable to predation from Great Horned Owls, magpies, ravens, crows, porcupines, and hawks. It is very important when observing them to not give away the location of the nest. This nest was very close to a public pathway. Although the young have fledged long ago now, the owls may nest in the same area again next year, so I won’t reveal the location. I did share it with Dan Arndt, Andrew Hart, and a couple of young birders who had never seen this species before, but we didn’t want to put undue stress on the birds or draw attention to the location by having too many people go to see them.)
Adult Long-eared Owl, Calgary, June 9, 2016. Photo by Dan Arndt.
June 9, 2016, Calgary. Four young were in the nest. Photo by Dan Arndt.
June 11, 2016. Only one young remained in the nest. We were concerned that they had been predated, so stopped visiting for a while. But later on we saw two fledged young together near the nest, so they may just have fledged at slightly different times. Photo by Dan Arndt.
Another adult on June 9. They are about 14 inches (36 cm) tall. Photo by Dan Arndt.
A close-up of one of the young in the nest, June 9, 2016. Photo by Dan Arndt.
On June 26 Andrew Hart and I went to see if the last of the owls had fledged. The nest was empty, but we found two very vocal and active young owls nearby.
Recently fledged Long-eared Owl, Calgary, June 23, 2016. Photo by Andrew Hart.
Photo by Andrew Hart.
Vocalizing fledgling. Photo by Andrew Hart.
Photo by Andrew Hart.
Photo by Andrew Hart.
Tony LePrieur had found this same nest independently and visited it a couple of times.
Long-eared Owl, Calgary, June 26, 2016. This looks like a younger owl than the ones Andrew and I saw three days previously. Photo by Tony LePrieur.
Vocalizing adult Long-eared Owl, Calgary, June 26, 2016. Photo by Tony LePrieur.
For the week of October 12-18, we went to Elliston Park on the eastern edge of the city. Besides walking around the lake, we also viewed the wetlands immediately to the east.
Bonaparte’s Gull
Common Goldeneye
Common Merganser
Eared Grebe
Purple Finch
Ring-billed Gull
The following week we went to South Glenmore to try to find Scoters and Loons, among other birds. The winter finches were also arriving by then. Here are some photos from October 19 and 25.
Bufflehead
Herring Gull
White-winged Scoters
Common Redpoll
Common Redpoll
Common Redpolls
Western Grebe
Red Crossbill
Red Crossbill
White-winged Crossbills
Finally, here are some photos from October 26 at Bebo Grove in Fish Creek Park.
Great Horned Owl
White-winged Crossbills
Black-capped Chickadee
Tomorrow, Dan Arndt will post a full account of our group’s tour of Bebo Grove on November 1.
Today, Friday December 19, CBC Radio 1’s Alberta@Noon show will feature local bird expert Sid Andrews taking calls from listeners about their bird sightings. The show starts just after the 12:30 news.
Two Black-necked Stilt and one American Avocet.
