Backyard birds in Sylvan Lake, Alberta
Which birds visit Sylvan Lake yards, when they nest at this latitude, and when to be out for the dawn chorus, all worked out from Sylvan Lake's own coordinates.
- Coordinates
- 52.311°, -114.084°
- Population
- 17,477
- June 21 daylight
- 16 h 48 min
- December 21 daylight
- 7 h 41 min
- Sunrise mid-April / late June
- 6:40 AM / 5:13 AM
- Nesting vs state average
- about the same time as the state-wide average
- Hardiness zones (state)
- Canada 2a–4b
Nesting timing in Sylvan Lake
The state guides give nesting windows for Alberta as a whole, weighted toward where most people live (about 52.2°N). Sylvan Lake is at 52.3°N. Going by Hopkins' bioclimatic law, spring events move about four days per degree of latitude, so breeding here starts about the same time as the state-wide average. Elevation and nearby water also play a part.
Daylight triggers breeding. Sylvan Lake goes from 7 h 41 min of daylight at the winter solstice to 16 h 48 min in June, a 9 h 6 min swing.
- Black-capped Chickadee — state window May–July; box hole 1 1/8 in round
- Purple Martin — state window June–July; box hole 1 3/4–2 1/8 in round, or starling-resistant crescent (3 × 1 3/16 in)
- Downy Woodpecker — state window May–June; box hole 1 1/4 in round
- Hairy Woodpecker — state window May–June; box hole 1 1/2 in round
- American Goldfinch — state window August–September
- White-breasted Nuthatch — state window May–June; box hole 1 1/4 in round
- House Wren — state window June–August; box hole 1 to 1 1/8 in round
- Purple Finch — state window June–July
- Ruby-throated Hummingbird — state window June–August
- Mourning Dove — state window April–September
Birds you can expect in Sylvan Lake
Year-round residents (30)
Black-capped Chickadees, Downy Woodpeckers, Hairy Woodpeckers, White-breasted Nuthatchs, Purple Finchs, Dark-eyed Juncos, Pileated Woodpeckers, Red-breasted Nuthatchs, Brown Creepers, Evening Grosbeaks, Pine Siskins, House Sparrows, European Starlings, Steller's Jays, Black-billed Magpies, Canada Jays, Mountain Chickadees, Eurasian Collared-Doves, American Crows, Common Ravens, Red-tailed Hawks, Great Horned Owls, Mallards, Belted Kingfishers, Brown-headed Cowbirds, Golden-crowned Kinglets, Pine Grosbeaks, Red Crossbills, Clark's Nutcrackers, Western Screech-Owls
Summer breeders (43)
Purple Martins, American Goldfinchs, House Wrens, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds, Mourning Doves, American Robins, White-throated Sparrows, Song Sparrows, Chipping Sparrows, Northern Flickers, Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, Common Grackles, Red-winged Blackbirds, Baltimore Orioles, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Gray Catbirds, Brown Thrashers, Cedar Waxwings, Tree Swallows, Barn Swallows, Eastern Phoebes, Yellow-rumped Warblers, Great Crested Flycatchers, Eastern Kingbirds, Rufous Hummingbirds, Spotted Towhees, Mountain Bluebirds, Say's Phoebes, White-crowned Sparrows, Fox Sparrows, Varied Thrushs, Violet-green Swallows, Lazuli Buntings, Bullock's Orioles, Cooper's Hawks, Sharp-shinned Hawks, American Kestrels, Great Blue Herons, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Hermit Thrushs, Winter Wrens, Gray Catbirds, Western Tanagers
Winter visitors (2)
Cold winters broken by chinook thaws in the south.
When to watch: dawn chorus in Sylvan Lake
Songbirds sing hardest in the 30–60 minutes before sunrise, and most of all in spring. In Sylvan Lake, sunrise is around 6:40 AM in mid-April, 5:13 AM at the June solstice and 9:43 AM in late December (local time, America/Edmonton). Fill feeders the evening before so the first birds find food.
Native plants for Sylvan Lake yards
Tubular flowers for hummingbirds and seed heads for finches.
Prolific seed heads for finches and sparrows.
Annual native sunflower — the original feeder seed.
Native bunchgrass; winter seed and ground cover for sparrows and juncos.
Catkin seed feeds redpolls and siskins all winter.
Dark summer fruit and heavy caterpillar load.
Berry-like cones feed bluebirds, solitaires and waxwings in winter.
Nectar-rich in summer, seed for finches in fall.
Nearby cities in Alberta
- Red Deer — 12 mi away, nesting about the same time as Sylvan Lake
- Leduc — 70 mi away, nesting roughly 4 days later than Sylvan Lake
- Airdrie — 70 mi away, nesting roughly 4 days earlier than Sylvan Lake
- Camrose — 71 mi away, nesting roughly 3 days later than Sylvan Lake
- Cochrane — 80 mi away, nesting roughly 5 days earlier than Sylvan Lake
- Panorama Hills — 80 mi away, nesting roughly 5 days earlier than Sylvan Lake
Frequently asked
What birds live in Sylvan Lake all year?
Year-round residents across Alberta include Black-capped Chickadee, Downy Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, White-breasted Nuthatch, Purple Finch. All of them visit backyard feeders in Sylvan Lake.
When do birds start nesting in Sylvan Lake?
Sylvan Lake sits at about the same latitude as Alberta's population centre, so nesting runs about the same time as the state-wide average, going by the rule of about 4 days per degree of latitude.
What time does the dawn chorus start in Sylvan Lake?
Songbirds start singing about 30–60 minutes before sunrise. In Sylvan Lake, sunrise is around 6:40 AM in mid-April and 5:13 AM in late June.
Sources
- eBird region overview and bar charts — Alberta
- Plant Hardiness Zones of Canada — Natural Resources Canada
- Audubon Native Plants Database
- GeoNames gazetteer (city coordinates & population)
- NOAA Solar Calculator methodology
Timing reflects typical patterns for the region as a whole; local dates vary with elevation and year. Check the linked eBird bar charts for your county.