FortWhyte Alive

At 6:30am there wasn’t much I wanted to be doing other than sleeping. So during
my first spring at FortWhyte I was less than enthused to take the sunrise shift to cover
FortWhyte’s Birding and Breakfast program. I had heard tales of the birders who arrive
with the spring migration—Tilley hats, binoculars with the chest straps, and all—searching for new finds and the return of regulars. But why one would want to go birding at daybreak was still beyond me. This was my way of thinking for the first few years of my career at FortWhyte. Working the birding programs, I would open the gate, unlock the buildings, help the volunteer birding guides, and then send the birders out to explore FortWhyte. I recognized the regulars who never missed a week, and was always happy to see new faces who had never tried birding before. But still, I was more content to stay inside to ensure coffee and breakfast would be ready when they returned.

It was my role as the French Interpreter that first forced me to identify birds. In order
to deliver programs in French I needed to learn the names of our regular birdfeeder
visitors. While reviewing an identification chart one day, a new name caught my eye.
Paruline flamboyante, or an American redstart. It was a much more fun name in French,
but it stuck in English too. The very next day while leading my kindergarten group along the floating boardwalk, I looked up into the willows and spotted a little red and black bird flitting from branch to branch … “Hello redstart!” I stopped with my students to talk about the male redstart and how like the nearby geese, he also migrates, and then continued our hike. But, there it was, a sense of pride for being able to identify this little creature that no one else in my group had even noticed. The spark had been lit in me, and maybe them!

Waterfowl quickly became my favorites as they seemed to stay in one place the longest. I would find myself stopping to look for distinct markings on ducks that were swimming on Lake Devonian. I would then grab a field guide in The Nature Shop to try
and figure out what it was. Having twice missed identifying a blackburnian warbler, I decided to keep a reference book at my desk. I was becoming a bird nerd, and I loved it! FortWhyte provided the perfect surrounding to nurture my new hobby. As the seasons change, so do our wild visitors, and at the height of migration (early to mid-May) there are new species passing through daily … especially warblers. (Over 20 species.)

The popularity of birding has been growing steadily over the years. It provides an opportunity for new comers and experts to participate along side one another. And it’s a great way to get outside and appreciate nature. With this issue of LIFE being dedicated to the birds, FortWhyte will be offering programming that will appeal to both first-time birders and the seasoned listers. FortWhyte’s 640-acre wild oasis is the most diverse and accessible birding site in Winnipeg. With work now beginning on the Manitoba Breeding Bird Atlas, citizen scientists like you from across Manitoba will be invited
to assist from their living room window or further afield. And if you’re looking to make your piece of the planet more inviting to more birds, FortWhyte will be offering several Naturescape workshops to help you bring biodiversity home.

For myself, I’ve come to appreciate the thrill of making a new identification, and the spirit of competition in spring to beat our site manager, Ken Cudmore, to the First Sightings bulletin board. And yet, I still enjoy seeing species that I can see everyday. As one of my birding idols once told me: “You may have seen that species of bird before, but it’s the first time you’re seeing THAT bird.” Birding for me has grown from just a pastime, into something embedded in my daily life. Seeing new birders head out along the trails at FortWhyte in search of feathered friends affirms in me FortWhyte’s role
in the community. New people + new experiences = new appreciation.

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