The proliferation of a tiny, ruby-hooded hummingbird in Burnaby is likely a reflection of climate change, according to a local expert leading the Christmas Bird Count.
The annual census of winter birds noted a rise in recorded sightings for Anna’s hummingbird, and it’s a trend that’s held steady for the past several years.
“The progress in numbers here is a real indication on how they are becoming progressively more abundant,” said George Clulow, an avid birder who’s been organizing the count since the 1980s. “One of the things we believe about them is they are benefitting from climate change in terms of their numbers. They are reproducing, and more and more are surviving, because the climate is better for them.”
Anna’s hummingbirds are about 10 centimetres long, and unlike other hummingbirds, they are non-migratory. The first sighting in Burnaby was in 2008. Since then, the numbers have steadily increased, from single digits to 16 this year. In past years, Clulow relied on sighting reports from people who have hummingbird feeders, but now volunteers are spotting the species in the field. Clulow attributed their abundance to warmer winters.
“What we’re seeing here is reflected throughout the region. The whole Metro Vancouver is experiencing this boom in the numbers; it’s not just Burnaby,” he said.
This year’s Christmas Bird Count took place on Sunday, Dec. 20 in Burnaby. Volunteers saw a record number of species: 72 in total, while 60 is the norm. Clulow said there was an interesting mix of birds from different regions: some from the north, some from the mountains, and others that had not yet flown south.
Christmas Bird Count highlights
- There were three new or rare species this year: the redhead duck, the pine grosbeak and the Lincoln’s sparrow. The redhead duck has a ruddy feathered head, like the name suggests, and there was only one spotted at Deer Lake; it should be easy to find from the boardwalk on the north side of the lake, towards the west.
- There are about 20 pine grosbeaks on Burnaby Mountain. Just look for the rosy finches around Horizons Restaurant.
- Lincoln’s sparrow, which Clulow describes as a “dapper little sparrow” that hasn’t been seen in these parts since 2001.
- Roughly 7,000 crows were counted at the Still Creek roost, down from 2010 but stable since then. Counting crows is an imprecise exercise, so this year’s count is conservative.
