Gilligallou's Blog — bird identification

Louise Beckinsale
coopers-hawk

Cooper’s Hawk or Sharp-Shinned? Here’s How to Tell

Even the most seasoned birder gets stumped every now and again when it comes to identifying their favourite birds. Whether trying to decipher between finches, warblers or owls, each species can present challenges when trying to id them in the field. As is often the case, our encounters with unfamiliar species are often brief in […]

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2017-christmas-bird-counts

How & Why You Should Join in a Christmas Bird Count This Year

Each year that goes by we seem to experience more change in all areas of life and the birding world is no different .  With some of my recent speaking engagements I refer to it as the runway effect; where everything runs along fairly consistently, gaining momentum, then all of a sudden, lift off and […]  

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snowy-owl-forecast

Snowy Owls Set to Invade in Record Numbers Again This Winter

As (most) of our migrants have left us for the year, the shift has been steadily moving towards winter birding for us here in the Ottawa area. As temperatures continue to swing up and down and more snow starts to accumulate, we are fixated on the possibility of spotting some of our favourite birds of […]  

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pine-warbler

Tips for Grouping Fall Warblers to Make Identification Easier

Just the same as the leaves way up high in our trees are transitioning into their fall foliage, the same is true for the majority of our feathered friends.  As the fall season begins to set in, those bright coloured birds we became so accustomed to during the spring and summer months now look, well, […]  

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