Prairie Provinces: Winter 2021–2022

Waterfowl through Cranes

Three tardy Cackling Geese were at Winkler, MB 3 Dec (Paul Goossen, ph.), while 20 were at Regina, SK 4 Dec (Jared Clarke). A Tundra Swan lingered at Crooked Lake, SK until 14 Dec (Don Weidl, ph.). A Wood Duck, uncommon at any time in Saskatchewan, survived the winter at Wascana Marsh, Regina (m. ob., ph.). In Alberta a Gadwall x Mallard hybrid was noted, with other reports of the following hybrids in the same province: Redhead x Lesser Scaup, Common Goldeneye x Barrow’s Goldeneye and Common Goldeneye x Hooded Merganser. Up to 23 Redheads were present at Gardiner Dam, SK in Jan, while 12 Greater Scaup were there on 24 Feb (Vicki St Germaine). Other uncommon to rare ducks in winter included a Harlequin Duck at Saskatoon, SK until 25 Dec (Ryan Dudragne, m. ob.), a White-winged Scoter there until 17 Dec (Craig Salisbury, m. ob.), a Long-tailed Duck at Mc Arthur Falls, MB until 12 Dec (m. ob.) and a Barrow’s Goldeneye at Crooked Lake, last seen 14 Dec (Don Weidl). Sharp-tailed Grouse and Gray Partridges appeared to have had a very successful breeding season in southern Manitoba, with several CBCs reporting record-high tallies. The hot, dry summer may have provided broods with increased food in the form of grasshoppers and other insects. Eight Sharp-tailed Grouse along Goose Creek Road, south of Churchill, MB on 8 Dec were north of their usual range (Drew Hamilton, ph.). Late Pied-billed Grebes were at Saskatoon 9 Dec (Nick Saunders, ph.) and at Gardiner Dam 2 Jan (Ryan Dudragne). A Virginia Rail, first reported during fall 2021, remained at Wascana Marsh until 3 Dec (m. ob.). Two Sandhill Cranes near Oak Hammock Marsh, MB, last seen 5 Dec, provided the province with its fourth winter record (Lori Gomes, m. ob., ph.).

Shorebirds through Woodpeckers

The only shorebirds reported were a Killdeer at Gardiner Dam on 1 Dec (Ryan Dudragne), a Wilson’s Snipe at Swift Current, SK 11–16 Dec (Rita McLachlan, ph.) and another Wilson’s Snipe at Fish Creek P.P., AB 12 Dec (Dave Clark, ph.). A Glaucous Gull was the only gull of note during the season, at Dewdney, in the Regina area, on 26 Dec (Gail Fennell, ph.). A Pacific Loon at Barrier Lake, AB 2 Dec was tardy (Caroline Lambert, ph.), while the Yellow-billed Loon found at Gardiner Dam on 21 Nov 2021 was last reported on 4 Dec (Ryan Dudragne, m. ob.). For the second winter in-a-row an injured American White Pelican wintered successfully at Frank Lake, AB (m. ob., ph.). Sharp-shinned Hawk reports came from Regina, Saskatoon, Neilburg, Red Wing, Moose Jaw and Swift Current, all in Saskatchewan, and Brandon, Carman, Cornwallis, Glenboro, Killarney, Portage la Prairie, Steinbach and Winnipeg in Manitoba. Both Western and Eastern screech-owls continue to be reported from undisclosed locations in southern Alberta, where birds were photographed and audio-recorded (anon). Snowy Owls were particularly prominent southwest of Winnipeg, where a two-hour drive could easily deliver 20 birds late in the season. The Prince Albert, SK region witnessed a Great Gray Owl irruption, while fair numbers were found in southeast Manitoba. Most Short-eared Owl reports came from Saskatchewan, with a maximum count of 10 in the Regina area on 20 Dec (Alan Smith). Wintering Boreal and Northern Saw-whet owls suffered due to deep snow in the later stages of the winter in southern Manitoba, where several starved birds were found. A Belted Kingfisher at Canmore, AB 19 Jan was a mid-winter rarity (Nicholaus Vieira). A Red-bellied Woodpecker at Calgary, AB 18 Jan was a one-day wonder (Reagan Burns-Luck, ph.). Another at Watrous, SK, present since 4 Dec, was last seen 7 Jan (Sharlene Toole, ph.). A hybrid American Three-toed Woodpecker x Black-backed Woodpecker at Calgary, first noted 13 Jan, remained into March (m. ob., ph.). Also rare was a hybrid Yellow-shafted x Red-shafted Flicker at Morden, MB 12 Dec (Carol Holmes, ph.).

Passerines

A Black-capped Chickadee x Mountain Chickadee hybrid spent all of January and February at Calgary (Ray Saulnier, ph.), while an aberrantly-plumaged Boreal Chickadee spent most of the winter near Cochrane, AB (Maureen Hills-Urbat, ph.). A Gray Catbird at Banff, AB 2 Dec was late (James Bannon), while an Eastern Bluebird at Winnipeg on 12 Dec was Manitoba’s second-latest ever (Piotr Czaykowski, ph.). Both Saskatchewan and Manitoba hosted an above-average number of Townsend’s Solitaires: there were at least 10 in the former province and five in the latter. Varied Thrushes were prominent in Manitoba, with a record-high five noted during the Winnipeg CBC and several others elsewhere. A Eurasian Tree Sparrow was a one-day wonder at Steinbach, MB 6 Dec (Harv Lane, Dennis Fast, ph.), while a hybrid Eurasian Tree Sparrow x House Sparrow was seen on the Winnipeg CBC 19 Dec in the same location where a Eurasian Tree Sparrow had been present for a few years starting in 2014 (Garry Budyk, John Weier, ph.). Evening Grosbeaks continue their decline in the Prairie Provinces. A Lesser Goldfinch was first observed 20 Feb at Pincher Creek, AB, where it remained well into March and was seen by many (Lisa Salonen, ph., m.ob.). Chipping Sparrows were recorded on the Oak Hammock Marsh CBC 18 Dec and the Pinawa/Lac du Bonnet, MB CBC 29 Dec. Equally rare in winter were a White-crowned Sparrow at Prince Albert 16 Dec (fide Vicki St Germaine), a Harris’s Sparrow in the Pembina River valley, MB 27 Feb (Carol Holmes, ph.) and a Song Sparrow at Regina, 21 and 27 Feb (Laurel Stang, ph.). An Eastern Towhee lingered at Sherwood Park, AB from fall to 12 Dec (m. ob., ph.). A Cape May Warbler at Devon, AB was last seen 15 Dec (Doug Macauley, ph.) and the Pine Warbler first reported in Nov at Elk Island NP, AB remained until 12 Dec (m. ob., ph.). A Northern Cardinal at Lloydminster 12 Feb was an Alberta rarity (Dean Elward).

Addendum

During the summer of 2021 Birds Canada placed a number of Autonomous Recording Units (Wildlife Acoustics Song Meter Mini) in grassland areas in southwest Manitoba. During analysis of these recording the following species were noted: A Common Poorwill in atlas square 14LV44 on 13 Jun and another Common Poorwill in atlas square 14LA73 on 15 Jun. In addition, a Brewer’s Sparrow in square 14MV28 was recorded on 29 Jun. If accepted by the Manitoba Ornithological Records Committee, the poorwills will represent the first confirmed records for the province and the Brewer’s Sparrow the second.

Report processed by Andrew Keaveney, 1 Jul 2022.