Alberta 2024 - Bonus Days (September 11 - 14)

I should have been back home in Barbados on September 11. Instead, thanks to Air Canada canceling our flights from Alberta to Toronto and then onward to Barbados, our vacation stretched by four extra days. The detour took us through Grenada—yes, Grenada in the Caribbean—because that was the only available routing.

White-throated Sparrow

We were hosted at a hotel near the Calgary airport. The weather was miserable—rainy and freezing—but I managed to squeeze in a few minutes of birding during breaks in the showers. At the pond close to the hotel, a Horned Grebe (Podiceps auritus) put on a nice show, while a resident pair of White-throated Sparrows (Zonotrichia albicollis) kept me company both days at the hotel. From my room window, I also spotted a pair of Wilson’s Warblers (Cardellina pusilla) flitting through the shrubs. That was the extent of it; the rain kept me from exploring further. 

Our next stop was the Marriott Airport Hotel in Toronto where I saw my first Maple Leaf. After the issues we faced at the Calgary hotel—including missing items—we arrived skeptical. But the Marriott quickly erased those worries with excellent service and food. I was excited to spend a little extra time in Toronto, hoping to finally see the iconic Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis), a bird I’d been told was common there. Despite my efforts around the city, the cardinal remained elusive. On the morning of September 14, we boarded a five-hour Air Canada flight to Grenada. 

Stepping off the plane at Maurice Bishop International Airport, the Caribbean heat hit me like a wall—a stark reminder that the vacation was truly ending. After weeks away, I hadn’t felt temperatures like that in over a month. With four hours to spare before our connecting flight, I wandered around the airport and was rewarded with my final lifer of the trip: a Yellow-bellied Seedeater (Sporophila nigricollis). That sighting was a fitting finale to the journey.
Eventually, we boarded our last flight—a short 45-minute hop on Caribbean Airways—and finally touched down in Barbados. Bring an end to and eventful and rewarding trip to Alberta, Canada.

Week 4 |Home | Acknowledgements

Alberta 2024 - Week 4 -Days 23 - 29 (September 4th - 10th)

Palm Warbler, one of my three lifers during the week

My final week in Alberta was nothing short of spectacular. Each morning from September 6th to the 10th, I followed a familiar routine: starting at Fish Creek – Burnmead, winding my way down to Sikome Lake, and then looping back.  By the end of the week, I had added eleven more species to my 2024 trip list. Even better, four of those were new records for my Canada list—and three were lifers.  

The lifers were especially memorable:  

• Evening Grosbeak (Hesperiphona vespertina)  
• Swamp Sparrow (Melospiza georgiana)  
• Palm Warbler (Setophaga palmarum)  

There were standout moments beyond the lifers too. One morning, a Black-capped Chickadee (Poecile atricapillus) landed on my hand, curious and searching for food. That close encounter was pure magic, a beautiful moment but also a reminder of why it is encouraged not to feed wild birds, animal in general, it desensitizes the animal and causes to associate humans with handouts, which can be dangerous for the animal and the human. (getting off my soapbox) Hull Woods itself was a warbler haven, and as you might know, warblers are my favorite family of birds—so every flutter in the branches was of interest to me even it turned out to be a ubiquitous Yellow-rumped Warbler (Setophaga coronata). 

Pileated Woodpecker feeding

At Sikome Lake, I had one of the trip’s true highlights: a prolonged encounter with a Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus). For more than ten minutes, I watched it hammer into a tree, then use its astonishingly long tongue to probe deep into the wood for insects. It was raw, powerful, and mesmerizing—a perfect display of this species unique feed technique.  

Not every target bird showed itself, though. I had hoped to reconnect with the Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus), a star bird of the area that I first saw in Calgary back in 2019. Reports placed it between Sikome and the Boat Launch, but despite my efforts, it remained elusive. That’s birding for you—sometimes the chase is as memorable as the find.  

Swamp Sparrow, a lifier

My Alberta farewell was filled with lifers, rare encounters, and unforgettable moments. Even without the owl, the week was deeply rewarding and only strengthened my love for Calgary and Fish Creek Provincial Park. It has truly become one of my favorite places on earth, and I know I’ll return again.

But the adventure didn’t end there. Thanks to Air Canada, I was gifted a few unexpected bonus days of birding—not just back in Calgary, but also in Toronto and Grenada. Those surprise outings added a whole new layer - both positive and negative - to the journey, and I’ll share all the birding details in my next post.

Trip Stats:  New Birds for the Trip: 10 | Lifers: 3| Total Trip Count: 144 | Total Lifers: 28 | Trip Report

September 04: Red-eyed Vireo, Lincoln's Sparrow, Blackpoll Warbler; September 06: Ring-necked Pheasant, Gadwall; September 07: Palm Warbler, Pileated Woodpecker; September 08: Red-tailed Hawk; September 09: Solitary Sandpiper; September 10: Evening Grosbeak, Swamp Sparrow.

Week 3 |Home | Bonus Days

Images From September 4th - 10th

The Warblers

Palm Warbler

Unidentified Warbler - Orange-crowned, 

The ubiquitous Yellow-rumped Warbler 

Yellow-rumped Warbler 

Yellow-rumped Warbler 

Common Yellowthroat

Wood Duck (M)

Wood Duck

American Wigeon

Common Merganser

Alberta 2024 - Week 3 -Days 15 - 22 (August 28th - September 3rd)

One of week three's Lifers Greater White-fronted Goose

Week three in Calgary unfolded with a quieter rhythm, at least from a birding perspective. Most of my outings centered around Fish Creek Provincial Park, particularly the southeastern stretches—Hull Woods, the Boat Launch, Lafarge Meadows, and, of course, multiple pilgrimages to Mallard Point in search of warblers.  It was during one of those warbler quests through Hull Woods that I finally locked eyes on a long-standing nemesis: a Cooper’s Hawk (Astur cooperii). This bird kept alluding me during my first trip in 2019 and for most of this one but is now my first lifer of the week.  The second lifer came on a trip to Frank's Lake with John MacGillivray and Keith Miles. Rather than heading straight to the main lake by the lookout, we paused at a roadside pond, just opposite an intersection and there it was among hundreds of ducks a Greater White-fronted Goose (Anser albifrons). This medium to large in size goose, brownish-gray plumage, a bright orange bill, and a bold white undertail— stood out with quiet eleganc 

The targeted bird for the locals, John and Keith, was a Great Egret (Ardea alba), which we quickly found.  An additional bonus for them was a s Short-billed Dowitcher (Limnodromus griseus) feeding among the many Long billed ones, two birds quite common here at home but causes a stir in Alberta. It’s a reminder of how perspective shapes our appreciation, and how birding connects us across geographies.

On August 30th, while scanning the edges of Lafarge Meadows, I flushed two small birds from separate spots along the water’s edge. The second bird darted off with a strong, direct flight—warbler-like in motion, round-bodied, and short-tailed. Despite my best efforts, it remained unidentified, a mystery that still lingers. this is the one that got away.  Week three though not moving the lifer needle much was still a good week of birding. Other than the two lifers, I was able to photograph a few new species and improve the image quality of some I already had in my library.  On to week four, our last week in beautiful Calgary.

Trip Stats:  New Birds for the Trip: 12 | Lifers f: 2| Total Trip Count: 125 | Total Lifers: 26 | Trip Report

August 29: Orange-crowned Warbler, Cooper's Hawk; August 30: Canvasback, Ring-necked Duck, Horned Grebe; August 31: Greater White-fronted Goose, Green-winged Teal, Short-billed Dowitcher, Stilt Sandpiper, Forster's Tern, White-faced Ibis, Great Egret.

Week 2 |Home | Week 4 

Pied-billed Grebe

American Coot

Canvasback

Global Big Day 2025 A Fantastic Day of Birding (Part 1)

Global Big Day 2025 was a fantastic experience birding with the family! It was wonderful to reunite The Moore Birders, our family birding team, for the first time since COVID. We were all eager to see as many birds as possible on World Migratory Bird Day, May 10th.

The night before, we held a team meeting to strategize. We assigned tasks to ensure smooth transitions between locations and to guarantee we identified and accurately recorded every bird on our list in our eBird trip report (www.ebird.org). Our plan was to start early, hitting our first birding spot by 5:15 AM, with a highly anticipated visit to a special location scheduled for 6:00 AM. The excitement was palpable!

05:00

The house is quiet, with everyone asleep! What a way to start the day. We were up and moving by 5:15 AM, with my wife preparing breakfast and lunch for us to take along. I decided to head to our first stop, the pond at SBRC, just a short five-minute drive away. My target birds were the Black-crowned Nightheron (Nycticorax nycticorax) and the rare Striated Heron (Butorides striata). While getting ready to leave home, I managed to log my first six species of the day, all common birds found around the house. I then drove to the SBRC Pond at Mangrove, St. Thomas, where I added four more species, including one of my targets - the Black-crowned Night Heron. I saw six of them, of various ages, in the water lettuce-filled pond, but there was no sign of the Striated Heron. By the time we were all on the road, we had already tallied ten species! Unfortunately, we were now running late for our 6:00 AM appointment, so I called ahead to apologize. Due to our late start and the appointment, we decided to skip two other locations.

The New Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary 

The Famous Egrets Island at Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary

Our appointment was at the Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary, thanks to the management allowing me and my team to do the first World Migratory Bird Day count at this Important Birding Area (IBA), RAMSAR site, the first time in nearly twenty years.  I was given a tour while it was being worked on, and was excited to see it close to completion and preparing for it grand opening on May 30th.  While we were excited, we didn't forget our task, even though it was difficult keeping everyone from being distracted by all the purposeful distractions that would tantalize while educating the guests to this iconic facility. Our main targets were the less common of the two nightherons on the island - the Yellow-crowned Night Heron (Nyctanassa violacea), and the Orange-winged Parrot (Amazona amazonica), both were seen. We spent about one and a half hours at Graeme Hall and added fifteen species. The reopening of the Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary will be a welcome occasion for locals and visitors alike and will have something for all. I will post on our sister blog,  Bird of Barbados, on a later date, but a special thanks to Mr. Da Silva and Mr. Graham Cumberbatch. 

South Coast

Whimbrel @ Chancery Lane - Year-bird

After leaving GHNS, we made a series of stops along the south coast: Oistins, Silver Rock, Inch Marlow, and finally Chancery Lane. This route added another nine species to our tally, including my first of two "year birds," a Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus), which we spotted during our stop at Chancery Lane in Christ Church. Unfortunately, we missed a few species that were on our list, namely the Roseate Tern (Sterna dougallii) and Common Tern (Sterna hirundo) at Oistins, and the Sanderling (Calidris alba) at Inch Marlow. Following our stop at Chancery Lane, we headed inland to several private locations in and around the parish of St. Philip.

In and Around St. Philip

Black-necked Stilt at a wetland in St. Philip

Our first stop was Woodbourne Shorebird Refuge (WSR), which was surprisingly dry. However, I was pleased to find over fifty Zenaida Doves (Zenaida aurita) feeding in one of the dry areas. Even better, we spotted a single Eared Dove (Zenaida auriculata) among them, adding another species to our day's count. After leaving WSR, we stopped at two private locations, where we added a few more species, including the rare Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus). By this point, we were well past our scheduled breakfast time, so we opted for brunch instead.

At this break, we had reached a total of 43 species (see the full list here). In Part Two, we'll begin our journey north.

Images from GBD2025

Images From Global Big Day 2025

Zenaida Dove

Hybrid Little/Snowy Egret

Little Egret

Peeps - L - Western Sandpiper, R- Semipalmated Sandpiper

Another Hybrid at Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary

Black-necked Stilt

Western Cattle Egret

Western Cattle Egrets at Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary

Black-whiskered Vireo

Orange-winged Parrot

Green Heron keeping a watchful eye on a Common Gallinule 

Green Heron

Nonbird - Green Monkey in Red Mangrove

Egret Island @ Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary

Whimbrel

Great Blue Heron

Snowy Egret @ Silver Rock

Almost Ready for the Global Big Day 2025

The countdown to Global Big Day 2025 is almost over, and I'm nearly ready to go! This incredible worldwide event brings together bird lovers everywhere to observe and document species in a single day. Organized by eBird, a project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, it not only celebrates birds but also contributes to conservation efforts and valuable research on bird populations.

It’s going to be a special family day, with the Moore Birders heading out together for the adventure. As the team leader for our local group, Bajan Birders & Friends, I’m also thrilled that, for the fourth year in a row, we’ll be participating in BirdsCaribbean's annual Global Big Day fundraiser.

The rare White-tailed Hawk will be one of the difficult birds to locate tomorrow during GBD2025

While I’m simply excited to be outdoors birding with my family and raising awareness for birds in our region, I’ve set a few personal goals for the day. First, I want to beat my personal best of 52 species, recorded during Global Big Day 2017—an unforgettable day of birding!
Second, I aim to wrap up the event with a year tally of over 90 species, which would be my highest total following a Global Big Year. At 88 species so far, I’m closer than I’ve ever been at this point in the year, and there are still a few species on the island I have yet to spot.

Third, I hope to conduct the first-ever Global Big Day count at the Graeme Hall Nature Sanctuary—the last remaining original red mangrove swamp. The sanctuary is due to reopen later this month after nearly two decades of closure, and I’m currently seeking permission to document birds there for GBD2025. If granted, it would mark the first such record for this Important Bird Area (IBA).

With scouting nearly complete, the schedule is being adjusted and fine-tuned. Tonight, the Moore Birders will hold our final team meeting, and if all goes according to plan, we’ll kick things off tomorrow, May 10th, Global Big Day 2025, at 5 a.m. with our first checklist. What will our first bird be? Keep your eyes on this space.

Happy birding, everyone!

2024 Year Review

Audouin's Gull, a new species for Barbados in 2024

As my ebird checklist rolled over to zero signaling the start of another year, I could not help but reminisce on an exciting year of birding and bird photography. I saw 220 species of birds in three countries, a new personal record for birds seen in one year. Thirty-four lifers, most of which were recorded on a trip to Canada in August -September, and a new species for the island, an Audouin's Gull (Ichthyaetus audouinii), my seventh such finding.

It was one of those banner years for birding in Barbados! Not only did we witness an impressive 122 species recorded, but we also saw a significant increase in the number of birders actively exploring the island, most of whom were visitors.

  Personally, I observed 109 species, adding 7 exciting lifers to my list, including several rare and even mega-rare sightings. Sharing the knowledge I acquired on my birding journey with others has been a gratifying part of my passion.  Last year, I had the privilege of leading three enjoyable field trips: one with ecology students at the University of the West Indies and two with students from McGill University. Additionally, I had the honor of working with a group of young biologists as they conducted a brief study on the Eurasian Collared Dove. I was incredibly impressed with their insightful presentations of their findings.

Common Loon

My trip to Canada was a resounding success! I finally crossed the Common Loon (Gavia immer) off of my bucketlist of must-see birds and, a long-awaited addition to my life list. While I narrowly missed another bucketlist bird a Sandhill Crane (Antigone canadensis), I was rewarded with another magnificent member of the crane family Whooping Crane (Grus americana).

The return journey home from Canada took an unexpected turn when Air Canada rerouted us through Grenada, providing an impromptu four-hour stopover. I seized the opportunity to do some quick birding at the airport and was delighted to add a Yellow-bellied Seedeater (Sporophila nigricollis) to my life list.

Here is a breakdown of my 2024 static: 

• Total Species seen in 2024: 220 species
• Total Lifers: 34 species
• Canada: 145 species      Lifers: 28 species
• Barbados: 109 species   Lifers: 7 species   Local Lifers : 1
• Grenada:  7 species       Lifer: 1 species

My Goals  2025

With several local birders embarking on a big year, I considered joining in and even started. However, my first chase to register a yearbird reminded me why I decided against it—birding becomes more about ticking boxes than truly enjoying the birds. So, no big year for me, but I will support those who are participating.  This year, I want to focus more on my photography. Although I have said this at the start of the past two to three years, I really mean it this year. Additionally, I hope to continue sharing my knowledge with others and to be a mentor for new birders and guides trained by Birds Caribbean last year.  While no overseas trips are planned at the moment (though anything is possible!), I'm excited to see what the year brings. 

My goal for 2025 is simple: 

• Prioritize photography: Capture stunning images of the birds I encounter. keep an eye on this IG space
• Expand my life list: Add at least 3 new species to my list.
• Share my passion: Continue to share my knowledge and experience with fellow birders.
• Embrace the journey: Focus on enjoying the process of birding and appreciating each encounter.

I hope you continue to follow this blog and its sister blog, The Birds of Barbados. Here's to a wonderful and bird-filled 2025 for all of us!