Barb Castell is a birder who lives on an acreage SW of Calgary, Alberta, near the community of Priddis. The location is in the foothills, a transition zone between the prairies to the east and the mountains to the west. It is a great place to see birds, including some uncommon species, that come to her feeders and bird baths. It’s one of the most reliable places in the area to see Evening Grosbeaks, Purple Finches, and even Black-headed Grosbeaks – species that are rarely seen in the city, the outskirts of which lie only 15 km away.
Evening Grosbeak (male). Common in Calgary sixty years ago, but rarely seen there now.
Of course this is private property with restricted access, but there is a YouTube Channel which has a daily live stream from three cameras set up on the property. You can watch the birds live, and participate in the chat about what is being seen. There are also many archived past live streams, and clips of highlights on the site. Here is the YouTube page: Foothills Birds. They also have a web page with more information and a link to the YouTube site: foothillsbirds.com Below is one of the clips from YouTube, featuring some brave Blue Jays.
During the recent fall migration as many as twenty-six species were seen in a day, including migrating hummingbirds and warblers. Late migrants continue to pass through. On October 1st, twenty-one species were seen, including the first report of a Golden-crowned Sparrow in the Calgary area this fall.
Golden-crowned Sparrow. A mainly Pacific-coast bird, it does have a breeding population along the nearby eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains.
Archived streams feature birds like Northern Goshawks, Northern Saw-whet Owls, Ruffed Grouse, and Mammals like Red Squirrels, Northern Flying Squirrels, and Bats. It is very entertaining and educational to watch! Below is a nighttime video of a Northern Flying Squirrel (in the left-hand feeder) being chased by a Northern Saw-whet Owl.
I’d like to urge you to go to YouTube and subscribe to this channel. It’s as simple as clicking on the “Subscribe” button if you are a regular YouTube user. If not, to get your free subscription,
1. Go to: https://www.youtube.com/foothillsbirds
2. Log into your Google Account, if you aren’t already logged in, top right corner.
3. Click on the red SUBSCRIBE button on the right side.
4. It should change from red to gray and say UNSUBSCRIBE.
Being subscribed to a channel is not obtrusive. For you, it just means that the site appears in your feed as a suggestion from time to time when you are already on the YouTube site. Any new clips that they add will appear in your suggestions. It will also be easy for you to re-find the site since there will be a link to it under your subscriptions. But it is very important for Foothills Birds to get more subscribers! Even if you do not plan to visit the site much, please subscribe so that it will be suggested to more and more YouTube users and seen by more people. There are currently about 515 subscribers, and if they get to 1000, it will allow them to get more advanced features from YouTube and allow them to do more to support the birds. Some photos of birds seen at the feeders, from the web site:
A male Varied Thrush.
Male Pileated Woodpecker.
The best time to view the birds is when they are hungry early in the morning. The camera is usually on from from dawn to dusk. This location is now an eBird HotSpot, so you can go on eBird and see what has been reported there every day. There have been 109 species observed at the location this year, and 141 species all-time! If you are on Twitter, follow them @FoothillsBirds. They regularly post photos of birds that are at the feeders and in the area, as well as lists of species seen at the feeders. You can also follow Foothills Birds on Facebook and Instagram. So visit the site, watch some clips and live streams, and subscribe. Check the site from time to time, and follow it throughout the spring migration in 2022. Let’s help them reach their goal of 1000 subscribers!