2012 found us waking up in Canmore so there was a good
chance that the all important first bird of the year would be something more
interesting than last year’s House Sparrow. Sure enough as I drove over to Banff for some morning
birding a pair of Common Ravens flew
over the Highway, the first of many for the day.
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| A rooftop Raven, Corvus corax, in Banff |
Driving through Banff, which was relatively deserted except
for groups of skiers waiting for shuttle buses, I picked up
Black-billed Magpie on my way to Cave
Avenue. More excitingly, as soon
as I stepped out of the car, there was a group of
Mountain
Chickadees making trips between a large pine tree and a feeder - a target bird both for the day
and for the year. I had great views, although with the sun
still not up above the mountains my efforts at photography were, umm,
impressionistic!
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| Oddly enough, given the terrible photo, this shows the critical field mark for Mountain Chickadee, Poecile gambeli - it looked better through binoculars! |
I took a walk down the Cave and Basin boardwalk where there
were Red-breasted Nuthatches and a
flock of White-winged Crossbills
dropping cones on to the path. The crossbills were so quiet and diligent in their feeding that I first thought I was being targeted by a squirrel with a sense of humour. Suddenly the tree erupted with a flock of a dozen birds which settled into a tree that afforded better views. Down at the hot springs I was hoping for dippers but found only a small
group of Mallards paddling around in
the steaming water.
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| Click to enlarge and see how many White-winged Crossbills, Loxia leucoptera, you can spot |
After this walk I headed over to Vermillion Lakes Drive, a
flock of Rock Pigeons flying
overhead. Alongside the road at
Vermillion Lakes there are several patches of water kept ice-free by underground
springs. In one I found a muskrat
keeping company with a rather forlorn female Bufflehead. A Townsend’s Solitaire perched overhead –
the second year I've found this bird on my first day of birding. More surprisingly was a group of Green-winged Teal at the limit of their winter range. They were huddled together in a tiny open stretch of water and I wonder how they will make out when we finally have a real cold snap.
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| Green-winged Teal, Anas crecca, Alberta's smallest duck on the smallest remaining part of Vermillion Lakes |
On my way back to Canmore I stopped at Exshaw hoping for
Gray-crowned Rosy-finch but found only Black-capped
Chickadee and House Sparrow to
add to my list. As a footnote to
this trip report, I should add that we skied in to Boom Lake today where Gray Jay’s made their usual begging appearance. All in all a
good start to the year’s birding.
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| A convenient perch for a hopeful Gray Jay, Perisoreus canadensis |
