Advertise on podcast: Birds of Alberta with Chris Fisher

American White Pelicans are large birds stand apart from all other birds in the province. They are attention-grabbing, in-your-face, conversation starters that get people talking about nature and as such they are a top influencer among all the Birds of Alberta. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Northern and Loggerhead Shrike are some of our most dynamic songbirds. They come dressed as Mexican Wrestlers and bear the brutality of a MMA fighter. Shrike are some of the most rapacious of the Birds of Alberta and we love them for it. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

American Robins are the Spark bird that ignites within us an acknowledgement of the natural world around us and provides an intimacy that simmers within us a love of nature. Robins through the course of our seasons, hold up a mirror to our lives and play a transcendent role among all The Birds of Alberta. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Snowy Owl is a bird unlike no other in Alberta. Known for both its unequalled cuteness and rawness in tooth and claw, but there is something else that makes them a singular focus for us birders and non-birders alike during the Alberta winter. Snowy Owls have become a symbol that acts as our antidote to the gravity of winter. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Alberta’s triumphant Trumpeter Swans have come to represent through the past century a story that blends conservation, admiration and beauty to all of us who find promise and purpose in the Birds of Alberta. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The American Dipper puts on an exhibit of unequal energy - among all our birds. Their robust personality, instagrammable habitat choice and accessibility make the American Dipper the greatest avian champion for the Birds and birders of Alberta. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Canada Jays are perfectly Canadian. Low key, soft spoken, resilient and enduring. They are a companion with whom we share a landscape and they serve as a symbol to ourselves. They are a much-talked about survivor that plays by the rules of the bush and they win by always being up to something – even if it means getting the best of us every now and then. All of this makes the Canada Jay one of the most perfect - Birds of Alberta. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Snow Geese are exceptional birds in Alberta and those of us lucky enough to experience their erratic cacophony will long remember their snowy, showy spectacle that is unmatched by any of our other Birds of Alberta. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Here in Canada, the Common Loon is a singular bird that has migrated from our distant remote northern areas into the very heart of Canadiana. It magically straddles a line that intersects with the romanticism of solitude and the comforts of companionship. It is both distant and intimate, remote and personal, lonely and reassuring. It has become a symbol for all this is good and pure and those feelings are reinforced whenever it is seen or heard in our province. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Western Painted Turtles are our our ultimate summer souls and wild sun bathers – soaking up the rays only in our sunniest and southernmost areas. But the ways in which our turtles populated the various areas of this northern place, are insightful lessons of modernity and ancient movement corridors. For a species that may only number a couple of hundred individual, their presence and story outstrips their mere numbers and makes Painted Turtles a surprisingly iconic member of our Alberta wildlife community. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Calliope Hummingbird is a legendary species our Alberta list - not for the frequency it is seen, but how its story mesmerizes our concept of birdom. No other Alberta bird combines fierce fragility with boldness & a beauty seemingly painted on by a psychedelic artist from the '60s. The Calliope Hummingbird brings a ton to our home identity - even though it weighs only a few ounces. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How lucky are we that that our most common warbler is also one of our most incandescent? Yellow Warblers are special. They are our most visible wood warbler, catching the eye and ear of anyone who hangs out in Alberta's river bottoms, urban parks or upland aspen stands. Yellow warblers offer a song that is the most reliable and reassuring voice of any of the Birds of Alberta. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Great Blue Herons are well known birds that defy convention. Sometimes solitary, sometimes social; piscivores with a taste of mice, muskrats and salamanders; a bird of summer that arrives and leaves with the snow, and a modern elegant bird with hints of the dinosaurian! They are never so common here that they escape our attention or admiration and as a result we feel quite a bit of pride in knowing that the Great Blue Heron is one of our very own Birds of Alberta.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Red-winged Blackbirds are certainly amongst the most common birds we have in Alberta. They know how to put on a show for everyone to enjoy whether they are watching birds or seeing them new for the first time. They do interesting things with an interesting look and with an interesting voice that just might get many more of us to develop an interest in the Birds of Alberta. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Decades ago, we had to search out Osprey in Alberta's northern lakes. Nowadays, they are a daily summer sight in Calgary and throughout the waterways of Alberta. Their presence and conservation have informed the way we see our hometowns - and how our lives are shaped by the Birds of Alberta. Link to Brian Keating speaking on the 30th anniversary of the Calgary Zoo Osprey nest platform from CBC Homestretch: https://www.cbc.ca/listen/live-radio/1-97-the-homestretch/clip/16057321-brian-keating-osprey-anniversary Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.