Birds
Finding over 400 species in Canada in one year is no easy task. You have to spend lots of time in both the east and west, as well as everywhere in-between, just to be in the range of that many birds. The sheer vastness and diversity of Canada's landscapes also creates problems, and the weather can be pretty restrictive at times. As a result, very few people have ever attempted to see that many birds in one year. In fact, too our knowledge, only one person has tried, and set the Canadian Big Year record at 424 (?). So, this year we are going to attempt to break it...riding bicycles...over 6 months. Crazy? Impossible? Probably both, but there'll be no conceding until later in the year.
To see our complete list of target species, click here.
Newfoundland (Apr-May)
What better place to start than in the rarity capital of eastern North America? Early May, especially, can be a fantastic time of year for European species blown off-course on their way to Iceland or Greenland, and the island of Newfoundland gets more than it's fair share of these birds. European Golden Plover is one such species we will be carefully looking for at that time, as well as the resident Atlantic Puffin, Rock Ptarmigan and Boreal Owl, birds that will be tough elsewhere on our route.
Nova Scotia (May-Jun)
Crossing from Newfoundland to Nova Scotia by ferry, we should start to encounter returning seabirds, such as the Great Shearwater. Nova Scotia also gets it's fair share of rarities, and we hope to see Laughing Gull, American Oystercatcher and Roseate Tern near Cape Sable at the northern extreme of their ranges. We should also see the return of the countless passerines that spent the winter in the tropics, and topping this list has to be the rare Bicknell's Thrush, which can be found within the spectacular Cape Breton area of the province's north.
Prince Edward Island (May)
A few days in Canada's smallest province may help us track down breeding Piping Plover, Arctic Tern, Northern Parula, Black-throated Green Warbler, and Canada Warbler.
New Brunswick (Jun)
It will be hard to top spending a few days on Grand Manan Island, another migrant trap with massive rarity potential, and a great place to see more seabirds including the Northern Gannet. But back on the mainland we will see many more eastern species, including Blackburnian Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler, Ovenbird (another warbler), Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, and American Woodcock (a snipe).
Quebec (Jun-Jul)
Following the Saint Lawrence River through Canada's largest province, we will try to find breeding Little Gull along it's foreshore. In the deciduous forests Philadelphia Vireo, Pine Warbler, Mourning Warbler and Scarlet Tanager will bulk up our list of eastern species, and we may be lucky in having a Long-eared Owl at our camp.
Ontario (Jul-Sep)
After riding west through Quebec, we will cross into it's English-speaking, rival neighbour, Ontario. Southern Ontario is another Canadian hotspot in terms of rarities. We will miss out on the annual irruption of migrants at Point Pelee, but we can still expect to track down some other specialties including Red-shouldered Hawk, Common Moorhen, Little Gull, Black-billed Cuckoo, Chuck-will's-widow, Prothonotary Warbler, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, and Tufted Titmouse.
Manitoba (Sep)
We'll hit the Prairies at the start of the fall (Autumn) migration. Manitoba holds many inland treasures, and we will scour it's wetlands for Clark's Grebe, White-faced Ibis, White-rumped Sandpiper, Baird's Sandpiper, Short-billed Dowitcher and Forster's Tern. In the deciduous forests we can hope to find Eastern Screech-owl, Great Crested Flycatcher and Yellow-throated Vireo, while in the grasslands Nelson's Sparrow and Dickcissel may be found.
Saskatchewan (Sep)
The southern parts of the province exhibit some of the best grassland ecosystem left in North America. As a result, there is no better place in Canada to find Greater Sage-grouse, Sharp-tailed Grouse, Ferruginous Hawk, Upland Sandpiper, Burrowing Owl, Sprague's Pipit, Lark Bunting, Baird's Sparrow or Chestnut-collared Longspur. We will have less than a week here, but we can be sure we'll add some fantastic birds to our list.
Alberta (Sep)
Similarly to Saskatchewan, grassland species occur in the south. We may be fortunate to come across White-faced Ibis, Prairie Falcon, Stilt Sandpiper, Buff-breasted Sandpiper and Loggerhead Shrike. The Endangered Mountain Plover occasionally breeds in the extreme southeast of the province, and there would be nothing more rewarding than to see one of these in Canada. After another brief stay, we head into North America's largest mountain range, the Rockies.
British Columbia (Sep-Nov)
Hidden in the Rocky Mountains, White-tailed Ptarmigan, Gray-crowned Rosy-finch and White-winged Crossbill can be found year-round. Heading down into the southern interior of the province, we will encounter a host of western species. With a lot of luck, we may be fortunate to hear the calls of one of Canada's last remaining Spotted Owl, a species that will soon be extinct in Canada as a result of inappropriate old-growth logging practices. The Western Screech-owl is in a similar situation, especially populations found in the drier interior of the province.
Reaching the Pacific coast after passing through the Coastal Mountains, we will meet up with the many shorebirds and waterfowl that winter along it's coast. Brant (geese), Rock Sandpiper and Tufted Puffin will be some of the stars. We finish our 10,000km journey on Vancouver Island, where at that time of year fall vagrants can await!
All images on this page are © Hobbs Photo Images Co. 2011
