Birds
This page features articles and video presentations about Alberta's birds. See our Featured Species page for information on other species.
Diminished Chorus: The Decline of Grassland Birds
BY NANCY MAHONY
Few people are lucky enough to experience the dawn chorus on Alberta’s native grasslands — a bewildering concert of ringing trills, melodious gurgles, and jumbled songs. I’ve had the good fortune to do so on many May and June mornings, as a biologist researching grassland songbirds at one of Canada’s largest remaining native prairies, the Suffield National Wildlife Area near Medicine Hat.
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Alberta Red-necks — Grebes, That Is
BY NICK CARTER
Although the courtship of red-necked grebes is one of nature’s great shows, it often goes unappreciated. The same goes for other grebe species. These birds generally do not inspire the same sense of northern majesty that loons do. Nor are they synonymous with Alberta wetlands the way ducks and geese are. But grebes are just as much a part of our lakes and ponds as all those other birds.
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Saw-whet Owls: residents, migrants or vagrants; an avian enigma
Recorded Presentation
Speaker: THE BEAVERHILL BIRD OBSERVATORY
Host: Edmonton Nature Club
Kingfishers: Keeping a Watchful Eye on the Water
BY MARGOT HERVIEUX
If you spend time along rivers or small lakes this summer, you may be lucky enough to spot a kingfisher. There are many kinds of kingfishers in other parts of the world but in Canada we only have one species: the belted kingfisher.
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Jaw-Dropping Bird – The Common Nighthawk
BY DORIS MAY & STEPH WEIZENBACH
Feel the Noise
BOOM! The first time I heard this loud, unnerving sound, it reverberated through the ravine where my prairie home lies nestled along a meandering creek. The sound was ominous, like a sound effect you might expect in a tense scene from a Jurassic Park movie.
Pesticide threats to birds and biodiversity in the prairies
Recorded Presentation
Speaker: CHRISTY MORRISSEY
Host: Crooked Creek Conservancy Society of Athabasca
The Beauty of a Bird Song
Recorded Presentation
Speaker: ERIN BAYNE
Host: Red Deer River Naturalists
Watching Winter Woodpeckers
Black-capped chickadees are certainly our most common winter feeder visitors, but downy woodpeckers are often a close second. Both downies and their larger cousins, hairy woodpeckers, are year-round residents in our winter forests.
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Weathering Winter with Chickadees
Alberta is home to four chickadee species. Black-capped chickadees are the most common and widespread. They are found across the entire province and are not only the easiest bird species to attract to backyard bird feeders, but also hold the distinction of being Canada’s most common feeder species. Their small size, cheery countenance, and remarkable hardiness endear them to their human neighbours.
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Spotting Spotted Sandpipers
BY MYRNA PEARMAN
As I approached the west shoreline, I noticed a pair of spotted sandpipers bobbing along a small stretch of beach. As I paddled closer, two little fluffballs suddenly materialized!
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