“For myself, I’m really rooting for the black-billed magpie. It’s probably a tough sell for some people, as it’s not the most popular bird among Edmontonians”
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What bird do you think best represents Edmonton?
You can now have your say as Bird Friendly Edmonton has launched a contest to designate Edmonton’s city bird.
More than 300 bird species call Edmonton home throughout the year, with the majority migrating to the city throughout the spring and summer. Some live here year-round, while others pop in for a while before they migrate to other areas. The six birds nominated live in Edmonton year-round.
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Voters can choose from the blue jay, downy woodpecker, red-breasted nuthatch, black-billed magpie, boreal chickadee, and the northern saw-whet owl.
“We’re essentially using this bird vote campaign to raise awareness of the urban biodiversity and urban wildlife in the city and how important it is,” said Nick Carter of Nature Alberta.
Blue jays are known for their intelligence and complex social systems and have tight family bonds. Downy woodpeckers are quite common in Edmonton, and can often be found in deciduous trees. The red-breasted nuthatch can be found hanging out with chickadees and they make excited “yank yank” calls, often preferring to face downward on tree trunks.
Of course, the black-billed magpie is no stranger to Edmonton. They’re very talkative birds and often sit conspicuously out in the open. Boreal chickadees, meanwhile, prefer to hang out in coniferous trees and regularly hide food.
The northern saw-whet owl can be hard to see, but you may hear them at night time from January to May, as males give out their toot-toot-toot call, similar to the sound of a truck’s backup beeper.
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Which will soar to the top?
Is there a favourite heading into the contest? Is there an underdog?
“I think as far as what’s going to be the most popular among people, I would think the downy woodpecker or the red-breasted nuthatch could be the most popular. For people that have birdfeeders in their yards, those are the types of birds they would come across the most,” said Carter.
“If you’re rooting for the hard to find, glamorous type of bird, then I think people would look at the northern saw-whet owl.”
Which bird is Carter pulling for in the contest?
“For myself, I’m really rooting for the black-billed magpie. It’s probably a tough sell for some people, as it’s not the most popular bird among Edmontonians.”
The contest runs until March 31, 2025. The first round of voting goes until the end of December when it will be cut down to three birds, and the final round of voting starts in January, ending March, 31.
No matter where the voters allegiance lies, Carter hopes it will bring an added interest for people learning about the different types of bird species. Whether you’re a bird enthusiast, a parent wanting to have a fun activity with the kids, or a school teacher wanting to inform students.
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“What we’re hoping is this sparks some curiosity in some people to want to learn more about birds that they’ve never heard of before and they go out and want to find out more about it,” said Carter.
“Things like this can turn into a lifelong hobby.”
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