President’s Fall Report
Fall is upon us but who would know, with temperatures in the mid-20s? If this is fall, I will take it.
This has been an extraordinary year for unpredictable weather, with unprecedented heat this past summer. These extreme weather patterns have also taken a toll on the mountain bluebird population.
Numbers of returning bluebirds this past spring to nest were down from previous years and in some areas the birds were late in arriving.
This appears to be the case generally across the board in other parts of the province. The consensus as to why seems to be that the harsh winter in the lower states, where the bluebirds winter, was the biggest factor but perhaps not the only one.
We know that bluebird numbers were down from the annual reports you send in as monitors at the end of each nesting season. We rely on these reports to assess what is happening with the bluebird populations. If you haven't had a chance to send your annual report to Joe Michielsen, please take a few minutes to do that.
As was the case in the two previous newsletters, we are still in the grasp of this pandemic and its impacts. We are thankful as a society that our activities for the most part are outside. The opportunity to get out and monitor boxes this past season I am sure was a welcome relief to ongoing restrictions in other areas.
I hosted my annual Trail Orientation Day on June 5 for an eager group of seven individuals from around southern Alberta. We had a lovely half day on the trail observing the nesting activities of the mountain bluebird at various stages of development from eggs to young fledglings.
We also had a chance to see other bird species as well but the unexpected treat this year was the discovery of the violet green swallow in a few boxes. This was a rare occurrence indeed and the first time I personally have ever had this particular species of swallow nest in what is normally occupied by, if not a bluebird, then a common tree swallow or the occasional house wren.
Thank you to my fellow executive team members who were able to attend and for adding their informative comments and experiences. Thanks again to our hardworking Trail Master, Steven Shumborski, for all his efforts with the discovery and restoration of old trails along with his constant work in renovating and making adjustments to existing boxes on the many trails in southern Alberta. Steven has also taken a lead with community schools that want to collaborate with us to make boxes as school projects. In addition, Steven has managed to actively recruit new monitors when trails are abandoned or monitors have to give up their trails for various reasons.
Once again, we want to recognize all the hard work that has gone into the upkeep and maintenance of our website (bluebirdtrails.org). Thank you, Curtis, for all you do. We would not have the exposure that we do, nor be able to support those in the bluebird community that contact us for assistance with their trails, without this wonderful, upgraded website.
It has come to our attention that our Mountain Bluebird Trails Conservation Society will be 50 years old in 2024, as best as we can determine. Therefore, we have undertaken an initiative to gather as much historical information as we can so we can provide a history on our website. If you know of past members who could contribute historical information, facts or anecdotal stories, please contact Curtis Goodman, our Web Master, by accessing the "Contact Us" tab on our website.
As was the case last fall, we have decided as an executive to defer the annual general meeting from this fall to March 2022. We hope to meet in person at that time.
Thank you to all our faithful monitors who give of their time and resources to make a huge difference in supporting the beautiful mountain bluebird population here in southern Alberta and beyond.