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Medicine Hat a great spot to see migratory birds year-round
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Still at work
Retired
Saturday marks World Migratory Bird Day, an important date in Medicine Hat with a strong meaning at the nature centre, says a park interpreter at Police Point Park.
“We do a lot of things related to birds here, we have a very nice population of resident birds that are here year-round, but we also have a large population of migrant birds that head south for the winter and then return to our area to breed and nest or move to our area or areas further north to do the same thing,” says Marty Drut. “This is just a day to focus on those birds that are migrating to and from wintering grounds.”
Spring in the Hat means the return of turkey vultures to the region
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Yes
The summer resident turkey vultures have begun their return to Medicine Hat from their wintering spots in Central and South America. PHOTO COURTESY CHRIS FISHER
They might get a bad rap but the return of turkey vultures to Medicine Hat in the past week is as sure a sign spring has sprung in southeastern Alberta as just about anything else.
And as one of the largest birds found in the province, they are hard to miss as they glide over the city’s downtown around their usual roosting perch on the top of the Telus building.
Local Christmas bird count numbers are in
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Yes
A total of 52 species were observed during the 39th annual local Christmas Bird Count.
Although the temperature was relatively mild with a high of 8 C there was a brisk wind that can affect bird activity, said Marty Drut, compiler and park interpreter for the Medicine Hat Interpretive Program.
The 52 species counted is slightly fewer than the previous count in December 2019, but a total of 21,869 birds were counted.
Anyone who lives near the South Saskatchewan River or can observe the activity of Canada geese in the mornings and evenings, especially on the west side of the city. The numbers are not what they were a couple of years ago, though. There were 16,849 in 2020 compared to 21,586 in 2018.