Tag Archive | calgary’s birds

Early Morning Birding

May23

At this time of year, the earlier you can get out birding the better.  The sun is up and the birds are singing before 6:00 am.  Sometimes it can be a little cold, but it’s a beautiful time of day to be out in the field.

Every Wednesday during the spring migration, Gus Yaki has been leading an early morning bird walk at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary.   Last week I was able to join Gus and a small group of birders, and we found 42 species of birds.

This is a Nature Calgary field trip, so it is free and open to everyone.  The walk begins at 6:30 am at the parking lot and lasts for about two hours.  This coming Wednesday, May 25, will be the last of these early morning walks, so if you can manage it, it’s a good opportunity.

Here are some highlights of last weeks’ walk.

There is a partially albino female American Robin which has building a nest near the south end of the lagoon, opposite Walker House.  We were lucky enough to see it at close range, with its mate…

There were several pairs of Canada Geese and a few broods of goslings around…

A female Belted Kingfisher was perched over the lagoon…

Several Yellow-rumped Warblers were seen.  This one is an Audubon subspecies…

Two male Harlequin Ducks on a distant island in the river…

Two male Wood Ducks on the river…

A yawning female Common Merganser…

And lots of these guys looking for handouts…

Afterwards I went over to the adjacent Inglewood Wildlands Park.  There were several Savannah Sparrows singing…

And hovering over the pond, a Say’s Phoebe…

You don’t see these flycatchers in the city too often, and I got a good look at it…

Posted by Bob Lefebvre

Bird Profile: Black-crowned Night-Heron

May21

Herons are elegant birds, wading through water with their long legs, waiting to plunge their beaks into the water to spear their next meal, be it a frog a mouse or a small fish. Yesterday, I visited Frank Lake, near High River, south of Calgary. While I was there, I saw several Black-crowned Night-Herons; a mostly nocturnal heron with relatively large eyes. The Black-crowned Night-Heron is a small, stocky bird with a greenish black crown and long, thin, white head plumes. A colonial species, the Night-Heron can be found roosting in trees near its hunting grounds during the daylight hours.

 This immature Night-Heron has yet to grow the fancier plumage of the adult.

Unfortunately, we did not find a colony of roosting birds; we did however, find two birds together in the same small pond. What struck me the most was the herons’ bright red eyes. They certainly looked like they would be able to see in the dark!!!

An adult Black-crowned Night-Heron in search of lunch.

That beak and those claws are pretty intimidating; especially if you are on this guy’s menu!

Posted by Matthew Sim

Hidden in Plain Sight

May16

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

Big Sit results

May14

A very windy morning was spent down at Inglewood Bird Sanctuary by us three bloggers; several people came by to join us. The large gusts of wind kept the birds down and hard to hear but we still had some great birds. From 8 -10 a.m., we counted birds down at the river recording 24 species of birds.

  1. Canada Goose
  2. American Wigeon
  3. Mallard
  4. Common Goldeneye
  5. Common Merganser
  6. Double-crested Cormorant
  7. Osprey
  8. Swainson’s Hawk
  9. Merlin
  10. Spotted Sandpiper
  11. Franklin’s Gull
  12. Rock Pigeon
  13. Belted Kingfisher
  14. Northern Flicker
  15. American Crow
  16. Common Raven
  17. Tree Swallow
  18. Northern Rough-winged Swallow
  19. European Starling
  20. Yellow-rumped Warbler
  21. Song Sparrow (heard 5 minutes before 8a.m.)
  22. Red-winged Blackbird
  23. Common Grackle
  24. Brown-headed Cowbird

At 10a.m., due to the frigid wind, we moved base to the Walker house ( we were there 10:30-12:15) where we added:

  1. Cooper’s Hawk
  2. Red-tailed Hawk
  3. Black-capped Chickadee
  4. Chipping Sparrow
  5. House Finch

All and all, not a bad morning to celebrate World Migratory Bird Day; a grand total of 29 species of birds from within the count circles. There were also some good birds from outside the circles; right after we called it a morning and took down the circle, an American Kestrel showed up. We also saw White-crowned Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, House Wren, Warbling Vireo, Northern Pintail and a Barn Swallow. One of the highlights was a Swainson’s Hawk less than twenty feet off the path, with a kill. A story will follow shortly!

Posted by Matthew Sim

Free Summer Bird Walks

May10

Last week, the first of Nature Calgary’s Tuesday evening bird walks was held.  For those of you who can’t make it out on weekend mornings, these evening walks may be a good opportunity.  Throughout the spring and summer, a free birding field trip to one of Calgary’s many parks will be offered every Tuesday beginning at 6:30 p.m.

Inglewood Bird Sanctuary

For information on upcoming walks, check the “Free Nature Walks” page on our banner above.  The page is updated regularly.  This evening, May 10, the field trip will be at Edworthy Park in the northwest.  Spring migration is getting into full swing, so get out and see the latest arrivals.

Carburn Park

All Nature Calgary field trips are free and open to all members of the public.  You don’t have to be a member of Nature Calgary to attend.  If you need any more information about a particular walk, you can phone the walk leader at the number listed.  But in general, you just have to show up!  Dress for the weather, have your binoculars and/or camera ready, and have fun while learning about the birds of Calgary and our natural areas.

Posted by Bob Lefebvre

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.

The Pine Siskin is a very curious bird; the bird in this photo is curious as to who is bothering him.

 

 

 

 

Posted by Matthew Sim