Tag Archive | birds calgary blog

The Elusive Brown Creeper

By Cathy Warwick

The last time I saw a Brown Creeper I was cross-country skiing at Confederation Park and had stopped at the top of a hill to catch my breath. I was near a stand of Spruce trees and noticed a piece of the bark was moving. Of course it wasn’t the bark – it was a tiny brown bird moving up the tree. The Brown Creeper is not a well-known bird largely because they lay low, extremely low. They are elusive and mysterious but when you see one its behaviour and look is unmistakable. If you decide to add it to your Life List and go out looking for one, good luck! You’re going to need it. Another strategy is to read this article to familiarize yourself with the Brown Creeper for the day you see one, then you can point to it and yell “a Brown Creeper!”

Brown Creeper
Brown Creeper. From Wildreturn at Wikimedia.com

First of all they are tiny, their body is about the length of a thumb, add to that their long brown tail. Secondly they have amazing camouflage, they have brown feathers on the top of their body, perfectly suited to hide against a spruce tree. Their underside is a white colour, this countershading camouflages them when flying. Their stealth colouring is only undone by their song, a high pitched tssst sound. That’s where you come in with your phone at the ready, the Merlin Bird ID app open. It can identify a Brown Creeper and then you can look for it by its song. 

If you get a good enough look you will see its curved bill, perfect for digging in the bark where other birds can’t get to. It eats the insects, their eggs and pupae, hidden in the bark. In photos you can see its relatively long feet, which help it hang on to the bark as it creeps upward in a spiral. Once they have checked out a tree they will fly to the base of the next and start up that one. I wonder if the nuthatch, going down and the creeper, going up, have ever bumped their little heads together. What an adorable mishap that would be.

Brown Creeper
A colourful Creeper photographed in Elliston Park, January 23, 2017. Photo by Bree Tucker.

The Brown Creeper needs live trees to forage on and dead and dying trees to nest in, they use the whole forest lifecycle (allaboutbirds.com). The English traditional park of rolling green lawns with large trees studding it is horrible for wildlife. In our city it’s nice we have some Creeper friendly ‘messy parks’ like Weaslehead and Fish Creek. 

Brown Creeper
A well-camouflaged Brown Creeper, Bebo Grove, Calgary, January 15, 2015.
Photo by Dan Arndt.

Hopefully five years from now when you actually see a Brown Creeper on a tree you can recall the name of it. Maybe the fact that it is ‘creeping’ up the tree will twig your memory and you can yell out its name. Your advanced birding badge will be on its way if you succeed.

More about the Brown Creeper on All About Birds.

Birds & Beers, March 14, 2024

Featuring a presentation on the East African wilderness.

Birds & Beers will resume next Thursday, March 14, at the Royal Canadian Legion at 9202 Horton Road SW. Doors open at 5 pm, and we meet in the big ballroom. Enjoy food, drinks, and visiting with your fellow birders. At 7 pm there will be a presentation by Melanie Seneviratne on the wildlife of East Africa.

Secretary Bird
Secretary Bird. Photo by Melanie Seneviratne.

Here is the presentation description:

Join me as I delve into the heart of East Africa’s wilderness and share with you my amazing journey through Tanzania’s untamed landscapes. You will see where every moment unfolds in a mesmerizing tapestry of safari adventures, awe-inspiring wildlife encounters, and vibrant birding.

Little Bee-eater
Little Bee-eater. Photo by Melanie Seneviratne.

We will also see some African mammals, like these lions.

Lion
Photo by Melanie Seneviratne.

Everyone is welcome at Birds & Beers!

The House Finch

By Cathy Warwick

House Finch
Male House Finch. Photo from Wikimedia Commons.

If you are walking around Calgary and hear a bird singing its heart out in a long trilling song, it is most likely a House Finch. These small birds are identified by their brown bodies, heavy beaks and the red colour on the male. It’s hard to believe that these now ubiquitous birds were fairly rare in Calgary, until as recently as the 1990’s! In theory most of us can remember a time when there were no House Finches around. In practice I barely remember the 90’s. Look at a group of birds at any feeder now and you will probably see some. The females have a striped body, and I find if you look for the stripes you can tell them apart from the House Sparrow fairly readily.

House Finch
Male House Finch (left) showing off his reddish rump, with a sleepy female House Finch. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.

The House Finches origins start in the Southwestern US and Mexico. In the 1940’s someone tried to rebrand them as a ‘Hollywood Finch’ and sold them to pet stores in New York. In what way are they symbols of Hollywood I’m not sure, it was a different time back then. The Migratory Bird act came into effect, and all of a sudden pet store owners had illegal birds in their store. What do you do with a bird you don’t want? You open the window and let it fly away! If that bird is a tough and hardy finch, it will spread across North America.

The House Finch is prone to an eye disease called Mycoplasmal Conjunctivitis. If you see one with red puffy eyes don’t bother running out with tiny little cucumber slices, that bird is too far gone. According to Project FeederWatch you should take down your feeder for a couple days and then wash it. This will stop the spread of the disease to other House Finches.

These birds are fairly strict vegetarians, they fill up on seeds, buds, roots and foliage. Their colour is believed to be related to how well they are fed, if you see an orange male it could be that he isn’t getting all the nutrients he needs. Studies show the females choose the redder males. The male House Finch is responsible for feeding the young so it’s important to choose one that is a good provider. According to allaboutbirds, during courtship the male mimics regurgitating food to the female, showing off how good a feeder he is! These are monogamous birds, and very social, so really what you are seeing around the feeder are just a bunch of couples hanging out together. 

House Finch
This House Finch is pretty orange. Photo by Pat Bumstead.
House Finch
And here is a very yellow male. Photo by Bob Lefebvre.

What I love about them is their song that seems so out of place on a cold day. Listen for a “zzz” buzzing sound that is part of the up and down warble and it sure to be a House Finch. You can look for the singer and you will see a little brownish bird way up in the heights of a tree singing, perhaps lamenting its ancestors’ move from Mexico. Or perhaps it’s trying to win back its Hollywood moniker with a winning solo.

More about the House Finch on All About Birds, including audio.

New Year’s Day Bird Count

Results of the January 1, 2024 Fish Creek Park Count.

Posted by Bob Lefebvre

The annual half-day bird count in Fish Creek Park was a lot of fun and a great success again this New Year’s Day. We had a high number of species, with high counts for several, and some new species for the count. It was another mild day, as it had been for pretty much the whole winter up to then.

Bow River
Sunrise in Fish Creek Park, January 1, 2024. Photo by Matt Wallace.

Forty-three birders went out to eight sections of the park. We found a total of 42 species, up from the ten-year average of 35. There were two new species not recorded before (Cackling Goose and Greater Scaup), and record high counts for six others.

Cackling Goose10
Canada Goose2,321
Trumpeter Swan3
Tundra Swan4
American Wigeon7
Mallard771
Northern Pintail1
Green-winged Teal4
Redhead2
Greater Scaup1
Bufflehead179
Common Goldeneye920
Barrow’s Goldeneye13
Common Merganser27
Ring-necked Pheasant2
Rock Pigeon (Feral Pigeon)17
Sharp-shinned Hawk3
Bald Eagle12
Great Horned Owl2
Belted Kingfisher1
Downy Woodpecker31
Hairy Woodpecker11
Pileated Woodpecker5
Northern Flicker53
Merlin4
Northern Shrike1
Blue Jay5
Black-billed Magpie133
American Crow2
Common Raven86
Black-capped Chickadee219
Mountain Chickadee7
Boreal Chickadee11
White-breasted Nuthatch42
Red-breasted Nuthatch33
Townsend’s Solitaire2
American Robin1
Bohemian Waxwing277
House Sparrow78
Pine Grosbeak12
House Finch20
Dark-eyed Junco1

Our group covered the Hull’s Wood/Sikome Lake/Boat Launch areas. Matt Wallace took some great photos of our day.

Fish Creek
Fish Creek near the Bow River. Photo by Matt Wallace.
Tundra Swan
We found a group of four overwintering Tundra Swans on the Bow. Photos by Matt Wallace.
Tundra Swan
North American Porcupine
We also count mammals. This Porcupine was snoozing up in a tree. Photos by Matt Wallace.
North American Porcupine
WAY up in a tree.
Downy Woodpecker
Despite the Park Rules, someone has been leaving seeds for the birds. This Downy Woodpecker was so used to being fed that it kept comng to our hands briefly even though we had no food. Photo by Matt Wallace.
Downy Woodpecker
We wanted to take a team photo, so Dan grabbed a few seeds so that the Downy would stay long enough to get in the photo too. Photo by Matt Wallace.

This count is not an official Christmas Bird Count, but it has a pretty long history now, and it is an important tool to monitor the long-term population trends in the park. If you want to learn more about the count in all areas of the park, come to Birds & Beers this Thursday, February 8, where the Count Organizer Jim Washbrook will present the results and answer questions.

Results of the Calgary and Priddis Christmas Bird Counts will also be presented at Birds & Beers. In case you missed it, here are some of the results from the Calgary Count, showing the species recorded and the numbers of each:

Christmas Bird Count
Christmas Bird Count

Birds & Beers, February 8, 2024

Presenting the Christmas Bird Count Results

Next Thursday, February 8th, we will have another Birds & Beers meeting in Calgary. As usual, we meet in the big ballroom at the Royal Canadian Legion at 9202 Horton Road SW. The event starts at 5 pm.

Black-billed Magpie
A Black-billed Magpie seen by a Feeder Watcher on the 2023 Calgary Christmas Bird Count. Photo by Lou Zaganelli.

After some time for socializing, eating, and drinking, there will be a presentation on some of the recent Christmas Bird Counts that took place in the Calgary area. Matthew Wallace will present the results of the Calgary Count, Gavin McKinnon on the Priddis Count, and Jim Washbrook on the Fish Creek Park New Year’s Day Count. The presentation starts at about 7 pm.

Common Redpoll
A Common Redpoll seen on the Calgary Count. They have been scarce this winter here, but we had almost a hundred on the count. Photo by Lou Zaganelli.

Everyone is welcome at Birds & Beers! See you there!

Pine Grosbeak – Our Winter Bird

By Cathy Warwick

Have you ever seen a Northern Cardinal in real life? These birds are beautiful and striking, and most of all, an intense red. If you haven’t seen them in person, I know you have seen them on Christmas cards and other winter-based accessories. Surrounded by snow and red berries probably. Those of us who live in Western Canada are tired of seeing them on our cards and mugs, and since they refuse to migrate out west I say we get a new bird to be emblematic of winter. I propose the Pine Grosbeak.

Pine Grosbeak
Male Pine Grosbeak. Photo by Diane Stinson.

The Pine Grosbeak is a large (robin sized) pinkish-red bird that flocks around berry-laden trees whilst looking festive. Although it is only the male Pine Grosbeak that have the red hue, and the females tend to be a mustard yellow, they still are very striking. As All About Birds describes them “a large and plump, heavy-chested finch with a round head”, sounds like they just need a Ho Ho Ho and their big bellies will shake like a bowl full of jelly.

I have been seeing them often on my street this winter, eating fruit from the trees. They travel in a small flock, and are identified by their color, their heavy finch beaks and their white wing bars. As the Audubon website says, they are “absurdly tame” so you can go stand under the tree and watch them. They dwarf the regular house finch, and probably can bully them off of bird feeders. I have never seen them on my feeder, probably because they are so big they would trigger the squirrel cage around it.

Pine Grosbeak
Male Pine Grosbeak with a much smaller Common Redpoll. Photo by Dan Arndt.

They are often seen in Weaselhead, just past the big bridge, where people put seeds. One year, a long time ago now, I saw some there that were a very rich brick red. Interestingly, their size and color varies across the continent. The males in California tend to be more orange for example. The Pine Grosbeak in British Columbia tends to be smaller. If they want a shot at supplanting the Cardinal they better start emphasizing the red.

Like most finches they have a pleasant song, warbly and melodic. I can’t say I have heard them sing in person. Perhaps this is because they sing during breeding season and by then they have vacated the city. According to the Government of Canada this bird is an ‘irruptive’ species whose populations are poorly understood. That means they move to southern locales when the food in the North is scarce. It is very special that they can overwinter in our city and I love seeing them here.

The Pine Grosbeak has a reputation for being slow-moving. In Newfoundland they have the nickname of ‘mopes’ because of their mopey, sluggish movements. I’m not sure how fast things usually move in Newfoundland but I would never call a bird mopey. However this does mean they make great photo subjects, and that should fit right in with my idea of overtaking the Cardinal in winter and Christmas memorabilia.

Pine Grosbeak
A female-type Pine Grosbeak. It may be an adult female, or a juvenile of either sex. Photo by Dan Arndt.
Pine Grosbeak
Another female-type. Photo by Dan Arndt.

In Calgary Pine Grosbeaks can be found most readily in coniferous forests of the Weaselhead, the west end of Fish Creek Park, west Bowness, and Griffith Wood Park. In big irruptive years they might be seen almost anywhere in the city.

Pine Grosbeak
A nice male Pine Grosbeak. Photo by Dan Arndt.

Here is a map showing sightings of this species in the Calgary area this year, from November 2023 to January 2024, as posted on eBird. As you can see, they are most often seen in the west end of the city and to the west of it.

Pine Grosbeak map

Read more about the Pine Grosbeak on eBird here.

Birds & Beers Resumes January 11th

Featuring a presentation on the birds of Indonesia

From January through June 2024 we will be meeting monthly at the Horton Road Legion in Calgary for a social get-together and birding presentation. Everyone is welcome to attend these events, have some food and drinks, and enjoy a birding talk from one of our many local volunteers.

The first Birds & Beers of 2024 will be on Thursday January 11. We meet in the big ballroom at the Legion, at 9202 Horton Road SW in Calgary. The doors open at 5 pm. At about 7 pm there will be a presentation by Bob and Dianne Leonhardt on their recent trip to see the birds and wildlife of Indonesia.

Bali Mynas
Critically endangered Bali Mynas in West Bali National Park.

Presentation Description by the Leonhardts:

Indonesia is the fourteenth largest country in the world by area.  It consists of over 17,000 islands.  By population it is the fourth largest country in the world with approximately 279 million people.  This may seem like an odd choice for a birding tour, however, Indonesia also contains approximately 1800 species of birds, including 786 endemics.  So in September of 2023 we flew from Calgary to Vancouver to Tokyo and on to Jakarta to participate in a 20 day birding tour with Naturalist Journeys.  On this tour we visited five islands, including Sumatra, Java, Bali, Flores and Komodo.  We experienced several different types of environments and ended up seeing approximately 270 species of birds, the majority of which were lifers for us.  Some of the most notable species were the Javan Trogon, the Javan Banded Pitta, the Bali Myna, Red and Green Jungle Fowl, and Milky Storks.  There were many more, some of which will be shown in this presentation.  A final highlight of the tour was a trip to Komodo National Park on Komodo Island to see the infamous Komodo Dragons.

Here are the dates for the upcoming 2024 Birds & Beers events:

Thursday January 11.

Thursday February 8.

Thursday March 14.

Thursday April 11.

Thursday May 9.

Thursday June 13.

July and August is a summer break, and Birds & Beers will resume in September.

Calgary Christmas Bird Count Results 2023

72 species seen during a very successful count!

Posted by Bob Lefebvre birdscalgary@gmail.com

We had really good results on the Calgary CBC on Sunday December 17. The weather was still very mild, and we had a lot of partcipation both in the field and at backyard feeders. The species total was 72, with an additional 2 Count Week species not seen on Count Day but seen on the three days before or after the count.

The first Cassin’s Finch ever seen on a Calgary CBC! Photo by Laura Bentley.

Below are the results as reported by Matt Wallace, the organizer of the count. First, watch a YouTube video with a quick summary. Next, the Summary Report has some details about the species counted on page one, and then a list of the birds on pages two and three. Just hover over the report and use the arrows at the bottom of the page to navigate there. Third, if you really want a lot of detail, and want to make your own graphs and so on, you can download the Results file. Finally, anyone can explore the eBird Trip Report, which includes all the checklists and photos submitted by our Field Teams.

_____________________________________________

From Matt:

Lara, Bob, and myself finally have all of the numbers tallied for the 72nd annual Calgary Christmas Bird Count! After a few days of enjoying the holidays ourselves, we’ve got the results ready for you to enjoy and explore!

Count Summary:

So, our total count this year was 35,833 birds! We had 72 species documented on count day with 2 more species found during count week. We added 3 new species to our 72 year list which included a Cassin’s Finch, Gray Catbird, and Western Grebe. Our “Count Week Birds” were a Yellow-rumped Warbler and Winter Wren. 

Overall, our total bird count was way down from previous years but our species count was right on par with our 15-year average. Our low numbers are undoubtedly related to our low counts of Canada Goose, Mallard, and Bohemian Waxwings. It’s challenging to say exactly why this is but likely related to the warm temperatures we’ve experienced with very little ice on the river. When we have lots of ice on the river system there are few places for waterfowl to congregate. The Elbow and Bow do not freeze over entirely even in the coldest of winter so this is where they gather. When there is very little ice the birds are unlikely to congregate within the count circle. We heard little about dead birds from field teams this year but we know that avian flu has been a big issue the past few years. This may have contributed to our lower counts but really it is not clear at this time. As for our finches and waxwings, our numbers were below what we expected but again there is bountiful food for them currently in the boreal regions which again would not drive them towards or into our circle. 

Overall, we are really pleased with how the count went this year despite having lower numbers of birds. We heard from lots of people that they enjoyed their day exploring new areas of the city and getting to meet new birders. We had 16 brand new birders (less than one year of birding) and 74 participants who had never taken part in a CBC before! We also had several participants that were participating for their third or fourth decade! Just amazing to see the age range (4-99 years), diversity of skill levels, and support that our Calgary birding community brings together! Thank you for all of your hard work and we should all celebrate what we accomplished as a community! 

Below are some ways you can explore the results in further in detail:

1) Results Video: If you’d like a quick recap of the event you can now view the Results video on YouTubehttps://youtu.be/EgwSl1iEp6Y  (see above). Please feel free to share and we’d love for a few likes and subscribers! If you submitted some photos, you’re likely to find a mention. We also had to cherry-pick a few photos from our eBird Trip Report but have credited each photographer. If you’re still sitting on some photos or videos from count day, please send these along so we can use them in our results presentation in January.

2) Summary Report (.PDF): This is a brief summary of all of the bird and effort data we collected showing the final results and a few graphs of how far we’ve come over the years.

Calgary-CBC-2023-Summary-Report

3) Bonus: Results Excel File: This is a detailed snapshot of our “behind the scenes” work which Lara has masterfully crafted for our count circle the past three years. Feel free to explore this at your own leisure if you’re a data nerd like us! This may be a bit more technical than some people would like but I figured a few people may be interested in seeing it anyways. Download the file to explore it.

A few tips for this file: 

  • Use the tabs at the bottom of the page. There are really only a few tabs to be concerned with here (Graphs, Analysis, and Report). Look for any bold red text to help you understand how to investigate the data:
    • Graphs Tab:
      • In cells A3 (species) and A37 (Family) you can enter any species we’ve ever had on the Calgary count to produce immediate graphs. You must type the exact spelling of the species you would like to review. If your graphs are appearing empty, the spelling is likely off. If you are unsure of the spelling you can copy and paste the names of the birds found in the “Report” tab. You can then hover your mouse over the graphs to see the numbers for each year.
    • Analysis Tab:
      • In Row 7 you can use the drop down filters to explore things like News species, Record Highs, Record Lows, and comparisons between our yearly averages for each species.
    • Report Tab:
      • This tab is essentially what you see in the Summary Report File. 

______________________________________

4)  eBird Trip Report (Field Team Data submitted via eBird Only) 

The 2024 Calgary CBC will take place on December 22, 2024! I’ve gone ahead and set up the registration form for next year in the case you wanted to register in advance. Just a note that this form will be online throughout the year so there is no rush to get it filled out. We will be sending out reminders and information September-December 2024. https://forms.gle/wBcfCRD4sqFpQ8qq9

  • One thing that isn’t displayed on our spreadsheets is the number of NEW birders/ participants we had this year (see comments above). This is one of the reasons why we are using a registration form – simply because we want to keep the CBC as accessible as possible!

We are working with Nature Calgary to organize a CBC 2023 event presentation in January and will send out an invitation to all 2023 participants to join the event and do a more in-depth analysis of our results this year!

You may also know that I assist with organizing other citizen science events throughout the year including the Calgary City Nature Challenge, Bioblitzes, Biodiversity Challenge, National Moth Week, and various other bird counts! Most of these are shared on my social media pages (@ CityNatureYYC) on Instagram, Twitter (X), and Facebook. If you’re keen on participating in other events, give these pages a follow so you’re up to date on what is happening around Calgary and Southern Alberta! I also reshare any photos or videos people post so if you’re out on your own, tag me and I’ll reshare your nature stuff!

Thank you very much to all participants and we look forward to having you back next year! I hope you all had a great time and are enjoying your holidays. 

Happy New Year!

Matt Wallace

Help Us Count Birds on December 17!

More Birders Needed For the Calgary Christmas Bird Count.

Many of our regulars are away or busy with other events this year, so we have a bit of a shortage of birders to help with the count, which is next Sunday. We can use experienced birders who could lead the effort in a section of the city, or help with a field team in a section. Even if you are a novice birder you can help assist a field team. The more eyes the better! Plus we are always looking for more people to count birds at their backyard feeders. That can take as little as 30 minutes.

House Finch
House Finch. A common backyard bird, but they all need counting! Photo by Bob Lefebvre.

You can register to participate in the count at this page. You may use this form even if you just want more information and may not take part this year. If you have any questions, you can email me at birdscalgary@gmail.com.

Thanks for helping out in this long-running Citizen Science project!

Bob Lefebvre

Winter Birding 2023-2024

Bird Listing from December 1 to February 29

Posted by Bob Lefebvre

For the last few years I have been helping to keep track of all species reported in the Calgary region in the winter months. It’s interesing to see which species are here and to see if there are any long-term trends or changes.

White-throated Sparrow. They often overwinter here. Calgary, 2018. Photo by Bob Lefebvre

Caroline Lambert has been keeping the list of birds from the Bow Valley, and linking to lists from other parts of the province (as well as the entire province). You can see the lists here.

Here is Caroline’s description of this project, taken from the Albertabird discussion group.


The winter birding season starts this Friday, 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. We get an extra day this season since it’s a leap year! It is hoped that this makes winter birding a little more interesting. 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 this 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. [Note – You must be a member of the Albertabird group to post reports there. Go to the home page to subscribe.]

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!

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.), but if you want to send a report to him directly, please use the email address albertabirding@gmail.com.

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.

Good birding,
Caroline Lambert
Canmore


Keeping track of your own winter list is also a way to make winter birding more interesting.With the mild winter we have had so far, there may be some late migrants that we can add to the cumulative species totals. Good luck!