2021 Spring Newsletter!

Check out the spring newsletter ahead of the start of the new season! https://mailchi.mp/484f6428e7a1/varc-spring-newsletter

Flammulated Owl

An exciting moment on a recent trip to the Interior of BC when one of our Flammulated Owl boxes was occupied for the first time!

Spring Migration

Banding this week at Colony Farm Spring migration is now in full swing with some nice birds showing up in our nets. Cedar waxwings are always a favourite, adult females like this one with extensive waxy tips to the secondaries and less extensive black on the chin. And lots of Wilson’s Warblers and Warbling Vireos, this adult (After Second Year) …

Barn Owl Boxes!

One of our VARC friends has made 6 Barn Owl boxes for us!Inspired by the Birds as Peacemakers presentation at the IOC, we want to start a new project for 2019 to deploy Barn Owl boxes at locations in the lower mainland. If you know of any landowners/farmers who would be happy to have a nest box on their property …

Owl Banding!

Northern Saw-whet Owl monitoring and banding got underway this month with our first owls of the season banded! One of the exciting things about owl banding is doing net rounds when you never quite know what is going to turn up!. Like all aerial insectivores bats have suffered declines in populations, so although a slightly unwelcome visitor to our nets …

Flammulated Owl Boxes

After our meeting in Merritt to wrap-up the Bluebird nest box project for the season, we headed down to Osoyoos to  put up Flammulated Owl boxes  boxes – both in places where we’ve had multiple birds calling – two perfect spots and we know they’re there so fingers crossed for next spring!

Fall Banding!

A couple of photos from an awesome morning yesterday – gorgeous fall weather with lots of birds and good diversity – lots of Yellow-rumped Warblers (both Myrtle and Audubon’s) moving through the park and other highlights included a Marsh Wren and MacGillivray’s Warbler – definitely the time of the year for that 100th species to show up!