Some Edmonton, Alberta, Birds 



By SIDNEY S. S. STANSELL 



With photographs from nature by the author 



IN visiting Alberta for the first time, 1 find there are many birds here 

 that are not listed as breeding this far north by several hundred miles. 

 My first surprise was in seeing the Rose -breasted Grosbeak; my second 

 vv^hen, early one morning, I heard a House Wren singing, for all the 

 world, as it does in Illinois. My third surprise came when 1 heard the 

 familiar call of the American Goldfinch, flying just as he did at home and 

 singing his same old song when resting on a bush or tree. 



Thus my list of birds has lengthened and, by searching the woods day 

 after day, I became acquainted with more and more birds on each visit, 

 locating a nest here and one there. I soon had a fair collection of photo- 

 graphs, a few only of which are shown here. 



On June 25, I visited Rat Lake, a small body of water containing only 

 a few acres, situated within a few minutes' walk of the city of Edmonton. 



Here I expected to find 

 Ducks nesting, but, on 

 account of its proximity 

 to the city, the small 

 boys and hunters kept 

 them away; and all the 

 reward I received for 

 my diligent search was 

 a solitary Pied - billed 

 Grebe's nest floating in 

 the center of the lake, 

 and this contained only 

 one egg, so no photo- 

 graph was taken. 



After encircling the 

 lake twice I noticed what 

 at first seemed to be a 

 bunch of dry grass, but, 

 on looking closer, it 

 proved to be an Ameri- 

 can Bittern hiding. I ad- 

 vanced toward the bird 

 slowly and carefully until 

 1 was within fifty feet of 

 it, and yet it stood 

 perfectly still. I timed 

 it, and it remained in 



ROBIN FEEDING YOUNG 



(118) 



