Bird Focus Group Host Chris Olsen reports:
Seven birders joined us on Saturday March 29, 2025 along the perimeter trail at Riverbend Recreation & Golf Area. Although the forecast was for flurries and wind, we enjoyed clear skies and warming along the trail. We saw Swans overhead early, and from the footbridge there were hundreds of Canada Geese and Mallards. Sharp-eyed Lynette spotted a rare ‘white forehead’ variant among the Canada Geese (see the photos on eBird). A White-throated Sparrow was foraging exactly where we saw a late specimen on our December 7th, 2024 outing - perhaps a rare over-winter bird? At the outflow, we added American Wigeons and Northern Pintails to our early season list. Along the trail we picked up a Black-backed Woodpecker, Redpolls and Ring-necked Ducks. Raptors were moving and we saw thermalling Bald Eagles, a Rough-legged Hawk and an unidentified Accipiter. There were Swans on the water, and of course the usual habituated beggars (Chickadees, Nuthatches, Downies) following along.
Chris
Here is the eBird report:
River Bend Golf, Red Deer, Alberta, CA
Mar 29, 2025 10:05 AM - 1:17 PM
Protocol: Traveling
4.757 kilometer(s)
Checklist Comments: Red Deer River Naturalists, Bird Focus Group outing.
24 species (+1 other taxa)
7 Participants
Cackling Goose (Branta hutchinsii) 35
Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) 850 One bird with a white ‘forehead’ among a large flock (ca. 300) of typical Canada Geese on the Red Deer river.
Tundra Swan (Cygnus columbianus) 2
Trumpeter/Tundra Swan (Cygnus buccinator/columbianus) 10 Seen in flight and not vocalizing… . Both Tundra and Trumpeter swans can be seen on the river here during migration.
American Wigeon (Mareca americana) 6
Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) 600
Northern Pintail (Anas acuta) 2
Ring-necked Duck (Aythya collaris) 2
Common Goldeneye (Bucephala clangula) 10
Common Merganser (Mergus merganser) 2
Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) 3
Rough-legged Hawk (Buteo lagopus) 1
Black-backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus) 1
Downy Woodpecker (Dryobates pubescens) 6
Hairy Woodpecker (Dryobates villosus) 1
American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) 3
Common Raven (Corvus corax) 5
Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) 30
Boreal Chickadee (Poecile hudsonicus) 5
White-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis) 5
Red-breasted Nuthatch (Sitta canadensis) 5
American Robin (Turdus migratorius) 5
Bohemian Waxwing (Bombycilla garrulus) 75
Redpoll (Acanthis flammea) 12 Feeding on birch catkins along the river
White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) 1 Feeding in low shrubbery along the trail at the same location this species was seen last Dec 7th - perhaps an over-winter bird. Photos to follow.
View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S221715753
📷 Photo Chris Olsen