May 14, 2022—after more than 36,000 votes cast, Calgarians chose the Black-capped chickadee to be the City of Calgary’s official bird.

In order to effectively attract Black-capped chickadees, you must meet their basic needs for food, water, shelter and nesting sites. While these birds do have some specialized needs, they don’t tend to be too fussy about how those needs are met, and it’s easy to make your yard chickadee-friendly.

FOOD: These small birds have big appetites. Insects are a key Chickadee menu item, and they also sample berries and snack on seeds and nuts. To offer these foods in your yard, minimize insecticide use so Chickadees can enjoy the bug buffet. Plant native berry bushes for a sweet treat and add some sunflowers with big heads for these little birds to cling to as they pluck out the seeds. You can offer whole peanuts or peanut hearts. Chickadees favourite food is black oil sunflower seeds in the shell but they will happily accept shelled sunflower hearts. In addition they will snack on suet and they will even snack on suet or peanut butter smeared directly on tree trunks for fast and easy access.

WATER: Clean, fresh water is essential for any bird but Chickadees will visit water sources to drink and bathe. Since they are tiny birds, baths should be shallow (or add a flat rock as a platform for them to sit on) to permit safe access. These birds also stay in their range year-round, which means a heated birdbath is a good idea to provide a winter water source.

SHELTER: Shelter helps keep these birds safe from predators and poor weather, and Chickadees prefer to hide in dense, mature evergreen and deciduous trees and shrubs. A brush pile can be a good alternative.

NESTING SITES: Black-capped chickadees are cavity-nesting birds. Leaving old, hollow trees available for their nesting needs is a great way to attract Chickadee families, and they will also reuse old Woodpecker holes as their new residences. Small sized birdhouses can also tempt Chickadees to move in, so long as the entrance hold is roughly 1 1/8 inch in diameter. Adding some pine wood shavings inside the house can make it more attractive to these birds, and Chickadees also love to use pet fur as nesting material. Just be sure the fur hasn’t been flea-treated, as dense concentrations of those chemicals are highly toxic for nesting birds.

· To keep warm the Chickadee erects its soft, thick feathers to trap warm air close to its body. This serves as good insulation against the cold

· When breeding season begins, the tiny brains of Chickadees and other songbirds enlarge to enable the birds to create more sounds

· The song of the Black-capped chickadee is one of the most complex vocalizations of all animals, acting as a contact call, an alarm call, to identify an individual, or to indicate recognition of a particular flock

· They cache food in hundreds of different sites, recalling those locations and retrieving food up to 28 days later

· A group of Chickadees are collectively known as a “banditry” and a “dissimulation” of Chickadees

Effective Monday, October 3, 2022, until further notice, The Wild Bird Store will be CLOSED on Mondays due to staff shortages. We apologize for any inconvenience.

NEW service now being offered!

The Wild Bird Store in partnership with Andrew Barnes, now providing at home wild bird consulting service.

Specializing in helping you and your property become Wild Bird friendly for maximum results.

Services offered will include:

Bird feeder(s) recommendations for species focus and seed types

· Type(s) of seed and for which species it will be best suited

· Preferred location for maximum results

· Bird feeder accessories

· Hummingbird feeders and accessories

Nesting

· Nest box selection for native species—including all cavity nesting and platform species for Alberta

· Preferred location for nest boxes

· Maintenance tips

· Advice on how to deter invasive species (House sparrows and European starlings)

Watering needs

· Bird baths

· Heaters and heated baths

· Accessories including drippers and bubblers

· Location dos and donts

· Maintenance tips

Bat Houses/Chambers

· Location requirements

· Housing styles—including single vs multiple chambers

After each visit all discussion points and recommendations will be provided along with a 10% OFF coupon to be used at the Wild Bird Store on your next purchase.

PLEASE NOTE: 10% coupon is only valid for a one-time purchase and must be presented at time of purchase. In-store ONLY (excludes online)

For further information, pricing and scheduling, please contact

Andrew Barnes cell # (403) 923-8121 (call or text)

Email: andrewbarnes403@gmail.com

Have you checked out the Merlin app? Would you like a demonstration on how they will help you to identify birds? Stop by The Wild Bird Store during regular business hours and staff will be happy to show you how the app will enable you to identify birds in various ways.

Identify Bird Songs and Calls

Identify Birds by your Photos

Save Birds to Your Life List

Explore lists of birds near your location

Jim’s years of guiding bird walks has been instrumental in teaching “birders” how to get the most out of their birding excursions. Children 12 and older are most welcome as long as accompanied by an adult and have purchased a ticket through Eventbrite.ca

All participants on any bird walk must have purchased a ticket through Eventbrite.ca and present the ticket to Jim prior to the bird walk. The weather plays a big part in bird walks and Jim reminds participants to dress anticipating weather changes and to carry water to keep hydrated.