Nature Vancouver

The Vancouver Avian Research Centre (VARC) is presenting its popular Bird Identification Workshop again this year. It will run Via 10 Zoom Sessions Over 5 Weeks – Tuesday May 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 from 6:30pm – 8:30pm PST. This workshop is designed for beginner and intermediate birders who want to take their bird knowledge and identification skills to the next level. It’s very comprehensive and has been well received in previous years. See full course details from this LINK. The cost is $250 and the sign-up sheet is available from…

Read More Read More

Submitted by Peter Ward Exactly 41 years have gone by since Peter Ward (Life Member NV) published an article in Discovery, “Tape Recording of Birds Songs”, concerning the physics of making good quality bird sound recordings with a parabolic dish, and the electronic equipment that was used at the time. Discovery Volume 11, March to May 1982, pp. 4-11 and pp 45-50.  It is a very long time since cassette tapes and open reel decks were the principal technology for…

Read More Read More

Submitted by Caroline Penn There have been several flocks of snow geese in Vancouver since December. One flock was in Carnarvon Park adjacent to 16th av. in December. Last week a flock has been gathering daily in Winona Park near South Cambie and 59th av. They are very busy feeding and seem to be extremely tolerant of people, and dogs, sitting or even walking through their flock. I am not sure how common it is to see them north of the Fraser…

Read More Read More

Leader Tom Plath scheduled a birding field trip to Boundary Bay for the morning of January 16th. Only two participants, Michelle and Harvey, braved the heavy early morning rain to get there, but the rain stopped pretty much at the scheduled start time. The very high tide brought the water right up to the dike at the planned starting point at 104th St, so all the birds had gone elsewhere. Tom suggested a change of venue to Blackie Spit, so…

Read More Read More

Dr. David Bird is a Professor Emeritus of Wildlife Biology at McGill University, including teaching university-level courses in ornithology. He has been the strongest promoter for the Canada Jay to be designated as Canada’s national bird. He gave a wonderful Zoom presentation about this for the Nature Vancouver Birders’ Night in January 2022. For 8 years Dr. Bird has been petitioning the federal government to make this happen, but so far it has shown no initiative in doing so. Therefore,…

Read More Read More