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Sparrows stop by the Shuswap as they head north for spring

Bird watcher has seen about 100 per day during the peak of their visit
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Since late April, Shuswap residents may have been seeing an influx of white-crowned sparrows as they have been moving northward on their annual spring migration. (John Woods photo)

You might have seen this bird recently.

Avid birder John Woods sent in this photo, because recently he has been watching a wave of white-crowned sparrows in the Shuswap.

He took the photo on May 1, at which time he said he was seeing more than 100 of the sparrows some days. He said given that number, there must be thousands in the Shuswap during the height of their spring migration.

They arrived in late April. Woods predicted that most were moving northward in B.C., although a few would stay to nest.

“Unlike many sparrows, adult white-crowned sparrows are easy to identify. You can often see their boldly lined black-and-white heads without the aid of binoculars. They also draw attention by singing as they migrate, saturating the morning air with an unmistakable excitement as their nesting season approaches,” he said.

Unlike ducks lined up on the shore of the lake, Woods said white-crowns in lawns and garden shrubs are difficult to count.

Read more: 2019 - Flight puts light on plight of songbirds

Read more: Despite reports of decline, birds flocking to national parks in Canadian Rockies



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Martha Wickett

About the Author: Martha Wickett

came to Salmon Arm in May of 2004 to work at the Observer. I was looking for a change from the hustle and bustle of the Lower Mainland, where I had spent more than a decade working in community newspapers.
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