Red Deer River Naturalists Bird Focus Group Walk May 2, 2026

Chris Olsen Report

Bird Focus People:

Sixteen birders were out to walk the trails of Heritage Ranch on a beautiful warm spring morning on May 2, 2026. Welcome to Margo S., Nina S. and Mukesh K. joining our group today!  

Birding was slow near the busy parking area and it was a relief to move down the trails and over the escarpment edge and away from the endless traffic noise. We immediately began to hear Yellow-rumped Warblers in the spruce canopy, and not long after one of our sharp-eyed observers caught a flash of yellow and red among the poplar catkins. A striking male Western Tanager crossed in front of us and then allowed us to watch him feeding in the mid-canopy. Meanwhile there were American Robins all about, singing, scolding and even pursuing their fellows through the midst of our group. Drayten says it was a near-miss! We saw two more Western Tanagers, also in pursuit flight.

Boreal and Black-capped Chickadees tracked us downslope and we added a single lonely Downy Woodpecker to our tally. In the fields below we had Franklin Gulls, two mature Bald Eagles and a Red-tailed Hawk all riding thermals and painted against the brilliant blue sky. Along the river, we saw Common Mergansers, Mallards, Common Goldeneyes and a few Canada Geese. We heard but could not spot a Killdeer. Cross-river, In the old poplar forest of lower Maskepetoon Park we picked out a Common Grackle, a Merlin, and even watched a Northern Flicker winging across the waters. 

Regrettably, we did not pick up the Peregrine Falcons and Ruby-crowned Kinglets we’ve come to expect on the inside loop. Ample whitewash on the high banks suggests someone is nesting or roosting along there and so it is a spot worth watching. Song Sparrows, Nuthatches and Dark-eyed Juncos were all audible on this section, and we even had drumming and calls from a Pileated Woodpecker. A lonely wader wandered the shore, but unless we get some photo results we did not have the calls or clarity to make an identification.

Join us next week for a combined Raven Brood Trout Station morning walk and an afternoon kayaking session on Beaver Lake. Come for either or both - see the RDRN website for maps and details.

Chris

Here is the eBird report:

Red Deer--Heritage Ranch Park, Red Deer, Alberta, CA
May 2, 2026 9:37 AM - 1:21 PM
Protocol: Traveling, walking
3.811 kilometres
Checklist Comments: Red Deer River Naturalists, Bird Focus Group outing.
25 species
16 Participants
Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)  6
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  26
Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula)  6
Common Merganser (Mergus merganser)  16
Killdeer (Charadrius vociferus)  1
Franklin's Gull (Leucophaeus pipixcan)  6
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)  2     Two mature birds seen circling in the same thermal above the river valley.
Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)  1
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens)  1
Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)  1
Merlin (Falco columbarius)  2
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)  1
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)  8
Common Raven (Corvus corax)  1
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)  20
Boreal Chickadee (Poecile hudsonicus)  4
White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)  1
Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)  4
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)  8
Bohemian Waxwing (Bombycilla garrulus)  90 Large group fly-catching from spruce snags along the river. Good clear sighting by a group of 15 observers.
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis)  2
Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia)  2
Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula)  1
Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata)  4
Western Tanager (Piranga ludoviciana)  3 All males feeding in open polar forest; one seen singly and two others in pursuit-flight.
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S331354704