Bird Count Results

Short-eared Owl, Dec 2012, E of High River
© Lynne Colborne

Nature Calgary’s Bird Study Group coordinates bird species counts for the Christmas and May counts in the Calgary area. In cooperation with other birding associations in southern Alberta, we participate in counts from Bow Summit to Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park and also in Feederwatch.

See the upcoming species counts on our main birding page.

 

Christmas bird count results

Christmas bird counts (CBC) have taken place in the Calgary region since 1952, covering a circle 12.1 km in radius centred on the Louise Bridge (10th St NW) in Calgary.

Audobon Society – Searchable results for the Christmas bird count

Christmas bird count results
2015
2014
2013 – Presentation
2013 – Full data report
2013 – Routes map
2013 – Participants (record number of participants)
2012
2011 – Presentation
2011 – Full data report

Winter bird lists
Alberta Winter Birds database

Red-Winged Blackbird – © Phil Smith

May species count results

May species counts (MSC) have taken place in our area since 1976, covering a circle 80 km in radius centred on the Centre Street bridge in Calgary. Counts for flowering plants are completed by our Botany Group.

2023 count results
Calgary May Species Count – Summary
Calgary May Species Count – Detailed Summary

2022 count results 
2022 Calgary May Species Count – summary
2022 Calgary May Species Count – detailed summary, including summaries of all previous years back to 1979

Summary of results
2015 – Table of species by area
2014 – Summary
2014 – Table of species by area
2013 – Summary
2013 – Table of species by area
2012 – Summary

May species count cumulative data
Calgary 1979 to 2018 (with comprehensive write-up)
Brooks May Species Data – 2013 to 2023 (PDF)
Brooks/Lake Newell – 2011 to 2022 (PDF)
Milk River/Writing-on-Stone – 2011 to 2022 (PDF)
Milk River/Writing-on-Stone – 2001 to 2010
Milk River May Species Data – 2013 to 2023 (PDF)

Alberta-wide results
Nature Alberta (formerly as the Federation of Alberta Naturalists or FAN) has compiled May Bird Count results since 1976, and those results were historically published in FAN journals.  In more recent years, the Alberta results from 2006 to 2022 have been published on the Nature Alberta website.