Look Up as You Are Out Walking in
Our Bird-Friendly Neighbourhood!
by Laurie Alisat, Green Team
Subcommittee of the BRCA Beautification Committee
As we await the leafing out of our
deciduous trees, take time to look up into these trees. Find the various
locations where there are empty nests. As our feathered friends migrate back,
notice who moves into the different nests. Some nests are home to the same
birds each year, such as Bald Eagles and Great Blue Herons. Other nests are
shared, in that they are only used once by a particular bird and then have
different birds the next year, such as Great Horned Owls, who use abandoned
Black-billed Magpie nests. Many nests will be used only once by a family of
birds and then never used again, such as those by American Robins, who make new
nests every year.
Did you know May is World Migratory
Bird Day? In Calgary, migratory birds start arriving from March 22 to May 31.
To support their migration, turn your lights out between 11:00 pm and 6:00 am,
as that is the time most migrating birds are in flight, and others are trying
to rest in the dark. This reduces the window collisions, as birds actively in
flight are drawn off course by the lights into built-up areas. Unable to see
glass, birds may collide with and fall victim to unmarked windows. Drawn to the
lighting and vegetation, the majority (90 percent) of bird collisions in cities
occur in residential and mid-rise building areas.
Other things we can all do to help
birds include treating the outside of our windows with effective bird-friendly
products. This helps birds from colliding with windows. Additionally, keep cats
inside, in a ‘catio’ enclosure, or on a leash when they go outside strolling.
This has a double benefit: it saves birds’ lives, as well as cats’ lives.
Many birds in Alberta build their
nest close to the ground and in grasses and shrubs, making them very difficult
to see. This is why it’s so important to walk on paths with dogs by our sides,
keeping new nesting safe.
Birds contribute to human
well-being through their song, appearance, and role in our food supply. They
deserve our efforts in protection. Calgary is a three-time certified Bird
Friendly City in Canada. Let’s keep Calgary a friendly and safe city for birds.
For more information, you can visit
bird-friendly websites such as birdfriendlycalgary.ca or featherfriendly.com or
a cool site on nightly bird migration tracking, such as birdcast.org.
Although it is a United States website, it can show you where our birds are
coming from and when they will be arriving/leaving our province.
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