Red Deer River Naturalists Bird Focus Group Walk April 4, 2026

Chris Olsen Report

Bird Focus People:

Seven birders were out on a bright Saturday morning April 4, 2026 to walk the Wishart trail through the Gaetz Lakes Sanctuary. Our first stretch out along the boardwalk to the viewing structure was a bit of a shock. The ‘lake’ is virtually dry and mostly a frozen mud flat. A few Canada Geese pairs were visible along the edges, but as Ron observed coyotes and other predators could simply walk out to any nest built on the beaver lodges. Grim for the geese and aquatic mammals!

Notwithstanding the forecast, our weather was warmer than expected and we never saw the threatened rain or wind. We did see large numbers of Bohemian Waxwings and the ever-present chickadees and nuthatches were joined in song by small flocks of American Robins, Pine Siskins, Dark-eyed Juncos and House Finches. At the east lake overlook a Cooper’s Hawk treated us with a classic accipiter fly-by!

There’s lots of porcupine activity along the upper trails, with bark-stripped elderberry and scattered broken withes  (a tough, flexible branch of an osier or other willow, used for tying, binding, or basketry) all along. Drayten soon started a collection of quills from along the trail - travel evidence more persistent than snow tracks!

We finished back near the Kerry Wood Nature Centre and as we reviewed the bird list, pairs of Pileated, Hairy and Downy Woodpeckers, arrived to forage on the aging box elders and feeders - a nice finish to the morning!

A last reminder with respect to the Sharp-tailed Grouse Watch booked for April 25^th, 2026. For the first time that booking is not full. Many of our group have attended more than once in the past and so we’ll likely give that outing a rest for a couple of years.

P.S.: ice cleats were still very helpful on the Wishart Trail, and are highly recommended for the steep and shaded portions of the McKenzie-to-River Bend walk next weekend April 11, 2026.

Here is an unusual species pairing photo (this past week) from my feeders.

Enjoy!

Chris

Here is the eBird report:

Gaetz Lakes Sanctuary, Red Deer CA-AB 52.28497, -113.79440, Red Deer, Alberta, CA
Apr 4, 2026 10:04 AM - 12:58 PM
Protocol: Traveling, walking
3.643 kilometres
Checklist Comments: Red Deer River Naturalists, Bird Focus Group outing.
20 species
7 Participants
Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)  14
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  2
Cooper's Hawk (Astur cooperii)  1
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens)  2
Hairy Woodpecker (Leuconotopicus villosus)  2
Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)  3
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)  3
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)  6
Black-billed Magpie (Pica hudsonia)  8
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)  11
Common Raven (Corvus corax)  3
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)  19
Boreal Chickadee (Poecile hudsonicus)  2
White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)  3
Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)  7
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)  17
Bohemian Waxwing (Bombycilla garrulus)  80
House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus)  4
Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus)  5
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis)  5
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S316970906

Red Deer River Naturalists Bird Focus Group Walk December 13, 2025

Chris Olsen Report

Bird Focus People:

Five birders joined us December 13, 2025 for a cool, year-end walk on the Wishart Trail in the Gaetz Lakes Sanctuary. The breeze was brisk and birding was slow, with only Downy Woodpeckers, Northern Flickers and Black-billed Magpies for company much of the way. House Finches were moving in the canopy, and otherwise only the irrepressible Black-capped Chickadees and a pair of White-breasted Nuthatches were about. One large raptor circled low near Gaetz Creek and this provided a bit of excitement. Thanks to Deb McCluskey for her quick work and two excellent photos. The presumptive ‘hawk’ turned out to be a juvenile Bald Eagle.

After our walk we joined about 20 of our Bird Focus Group people in the Kerry Wood Nature Centre and enjoyed coffee, donuts and sweet treats while we looked at the year past and discussed ideas for our winter/spring schedule ahead. I’ll provide a complete summary for the RDRN AGM and the January RDRN newsletter, but in my verbal report Saturday I noted our species count was 155, up 7 from this last year. We had 274 participants on 31 outings (not including Ferry point, the Snow Goose Festival, or the May Species count). Our group walked 164 km, with groups averaging 9-10 people per outing. Ferry Point netted us 86 species this year, accounting for 16 of our total. For our regular walks, Kuhnen Park led for species richness this year (51), followed by Riverbend Golf & Recreation Area Upper trail (46 - great work Ron!) and Alix Lake (45). Thanks so much to Rick, SuSan and the RDRN Board for their support through the year, and for this most excellent treat! Thanks to everyone in the group (130+) for their enthusiasm and participation, rain or shine!

I’ll be missing some dates for eye surgery in the New Year, but after some discussion we decided to go with a full schedule. Ahead of those dates, we’ll look for someone to step forward to be ‘host’ so we can keep up our eBird reports and summary records for our outings. Watch for the new Schedule in March 2026. 

Don’t forget the upcoming Christmas Bird Count December 21, 2025 (visit www.rdrn.ca for info and contact Shelley-Anne or John Goulet 403-392-1894 to sign up). Be safe in your travels and best for the holiday season!

Enjoy!

Chris

Here is the eBird report:

Gaetz Lakes Sanctuary, Red Deer CA-AB 52.28494, -113.79417, Red Deer, Alberta, CA
Dec 13, 2025 10:05 AM - 12:32 PM
Protocol: Traveling, walking
3.41 kilometres
Checklist Comments: Red Deer River Naturalists, Bird Focus Group outing.
8 species
5 Participants
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)  1
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens)  5
Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus)  2
Black-billed Magpie (Pica hudsonia)  7
Common Raven (Corvus corax)  4
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)  16
White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)  2
House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus)  5
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S288502718

Red Deer River Naturalists Bird Focus Group Walk April 5, 2025

Chris Olsen Report

Bird Focus People:

Fifteen birders were out to the Gaetz Lake Sanctuary April 5, 2025 to share a glorious morning walk! Welcome to Jim H., Moira S., Terri R., Marg C. Faye N. and Aaron joining us and last week! Birding was only fair with 21 species, but as always there were surprises. Firstly, a shadow through the undergrowth of the oxbow turned out to be a low-flying Pileated Woodpecker. It was soon joined by two more and we were treated to calls as the three moved through the forest. The canopy on the top of the escarpment was busy with groups of ever-social Bohemian Waxwings, and we even had a couple of early gulls moving through. On the south side of the sanctuary, I spotted a distant Great Horned Owl - that was very exciting until Brian determined it was a stick. It was worth stopping there however, as Claudia spotted a lone male Redpoll foraging on the ground in the birch forest of the slope. He seemed healthy and active, but it was a late and solitary sighting for this northern species. Further upslope, we could see a Canada Goose on a nest. Not unusual at first glance, but this determined early nester has usurped an Osprey nest at the top of a broken snag - the tallest perch in the canopy! We finished the morning with a few Dark-eyed Juncos and Pine Siskins, and a lone American Tree Sparrow. A final touch was an early butterfly (Compton Tortoiseshell) our group watched just outside the Nature Centre. Perfect!

Our Sharp-tailed Grouse Watch is full now with a short waiting list. Thanks to everyone who inquired,and remember there are likely still lots of openings for Snow Goose Festival tours.

Enjoy!

Chris

Here is the eBird report:

Gaetz Lakes Sanctuary, Red Deer CA-AB 52.28494, -113.79417, Red Deer, Alberta, CA

Apr 5, 2025 10:11 AM - 1:20 PM

Protocol: Traveling, walking

4.941 kilometres

Checklist Comments: Red Deer River Naturalists, Bird Focus Group outing.

21 species

15 Participants

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) 15

Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis) 2

California Gull (Larus californicus) 2

Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) 8

Hairy Woodpecker (Dryobates villosus) 1

Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus) 3

Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) 3

Black-billed Magpie (Pica hudsonia) 13

American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) 3

Common Raven (Corvus corax) 6

Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) 12

Boreal Chickadee (Poecile hudsonicus) 2

White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis) 8

Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) 4

American Robin (Turdus migratorius) 11

Bohemian Waxwing (Bombycilla garrulus) 137

House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus) 8

Redpoll (Acanthis flammea) 1 Lone bird, male, feeding on the ground in a paper birch stand.

Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus) 5

American Tree Sparrow (Spizelloides arborea) 1

Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis) 4

View this checklist online at [https://ebird.org/checklist/S223219521](https://ebird.org/checklist/S223219521) 

Red Deer River Naturalists Bird Focus Group Walk April 13, 2024

Sixteen birders were out April 13, 2024 for a beautiful spring stroll along the Wishart trail in the Gaetz Lakes Migratory Bird Sanctuary. There is still some ice in shaded portions, but the trails are generally good. Welcome to Dee joining the group for the first time! There were lots of other people on the trails this morning, and so we saw little on the ground, but the birding was pretty good in the canopy and above. 

Notables for this morning were first-of-the-year Red-winged Blackbirds, all males for now, loudly proclaiming their place in the cattails. We saw Dark-eyed Juncos near the start, and a boldly streaked under and rufous above ‘Sparrow’ (Fox sparrow?) that I’m hopeful can be confirmed from one of Deb’s photos. There were three Bald Eagles and numerous Gulls soaring above.

News from the group and my own travels is that there are larger numbers of Swans, Snow Geese and Greater White-fronted Geese in the area. Mountain Bluebirds are on the nest box lines, and I’m pretty sure I saw a Northern Harrier on the road yesterday. 

Chris

Gaetz Lakes Sanctuary, Red Deer CA-AB 52.28494, -113.79417, Red Deer, Alberta, CA
13-Apr-2024 9:54 AM - 12:55 PM
Protocol: Traveling, walking
4.897 kilometer(s)
Checklist Comments: Red Deer River Naturalists, Bird Focus Group outing
21 species
16 Participants
Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)  11
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)  13
Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula)  6
Ring-billed Gull (Larus delawarensis)  10
California Gull (Larus californicus)  2
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)  3
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens)  5
Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)  3
Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata)  4
Black-billed Magpie (Pica hudsonia)  5
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos)  3
Common Raven (Corvus corax)  2
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus)  16
Boreal Chickadee (Poecile hudsonicus)  2
White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis)  6
Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis)  3
American Robin (Turdus migratorius)  2
House Finch (Haemorhous mexicanus)  6
Pine Siskin (Spinus pinus)  16
Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis)  7
Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus)  4
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S168471057

A Good Birding Morning

     Yesterday we spent 2 hours on the Wishart trail on the west side of the Gaetz Lake Sanctuary in Red Deer Alberta. 

     It was very windy and we thought that we wouldn't see much but we were surprised. We saw and heard a total of 22 species. There were many yellow warblers and alder sided flycatchers. We spent quite a bit of time on a viewing deck watching for water birds. A red necked grebe had a nest about 50 meters away . An osprey put in a couple of appearances and one time was carrying a small fish.

    I'm surprised this year at how few ducks are around. 

    Surprise! Surprise! a couple of yellow warblers sat in the open and gave a good opportunity for photos.

    The yellow lady slippers were in full bloom along with striped coral .