Backyard birds in Fredericton, New Brunswick
Which birds visit Fredericton yards, when they nest at this latitude, and when to be out for the dawn chorus, all worked out from Fredericton's own coordinates.
- Coordinates
- 45.945°, -66.666°
- Population
- 63,116
- June 21 daylight
- 15 h 45 min
- December 21 daylight
- 8 h 39 min
- Sunrise mid-April / late June
- 6:42 AM / 5:35 AM
- Nesting vs state average
- about the same time as the state-wide average
- Hardiness zones (state)
- Canada 3a–5b
Nesting timing in Fredericton
The state guides give nesting windows for New Brunswick as a whole, weighted toward where most people live (about 46.0°N). Fredericton is at 45.9°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. Fredericton goes from 8 h 39 min of daylight at the winter solstice to 15 h 45 min in June, a 7 h 6 min swing.
- Northern Cardinal — state window May–August
- Eastern Bluebird — state window May–August; box hole 1 1/2 in round (1 9/16 in for Mountain/Western overlap)
- 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
Birds you can expect in Fredericton
Year-round residents (39)
Northern Cardinals, 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, Cedar Waxwings, House Sparrows, European Starlings, Canada Jays, American Crows, Common Ravens, Red-tailed Hawks, Barred Owls, Great Horned Owls, American Kestrels, Wood Ducks, Wild Turkeys, Mallards, Great Blue Herons, Belted Kingfishers, Brown-headed Cowbirds, Golden-crowned Kinglets, Pine Grosbeaks, Red Crossbills, Hooded Mergansers, Canada Gooses, Bald Eagles, Northern Saw-whet Owls, Black-backed Woodpeckers, American Three-toed Woodpeckers, White-winged Crossbills, Rock Pigeons
Summer breeders (64)
Eastern Bluebirds, 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, Indigo Buntings, Gray Catbirds, Tree Swallows, Barn Swallows, Eastern Phoebes, Chimney Swifts, Yellow-rumped Warblers, Great Crested Flycatchers, Eastern Kingbirds, Cooper's Hawks, Sharp-shinned Hawks, Scarlet Tanagers, Ruby-crowned Kinglets, Hermit Thrushs, Winter Wrens, Gray Catbirds, Yellow Warblers, Common Yellowthroats, American Redstarts, Black-and-white Warblers, Ovenbirds, Orange-crowned Warblers, Palm Warblers, Red-eyed Vireos, Warbling Vireos, Eastern Wood-Pewees, Least Flycatchers, Cliff Swallows, Northern Rough-winged Swallows, Bank Swallows, Common Nighthawks, Eastern Whip-poor-wills, American Coots, Killdeers, Spotted Sandpipers, American Woodcocks, Green Herons, Turkey Vultures, Ospreys, Red-shouldered Hawks, Merlins, Peregrine Falcons, Savannah Sparrows, Swamp Sparrows, Vesper Sparrows, Horned Larks, Bobolinks, Rusty Blackbirds
Winter visitors (6)
Common Redpolls, American Tree Sparrows, Snow Buntings, Common Redpolls, Hoary Redpolls, Bohemian Waxwings
Cold, snowy winters.
When to watch: dawn chorus in Fredericton
Songbirds sing hardest in the 30–60 minutes before sunrise, and most of all in spring. In Fredericton, sunrise is around 6:42 AM in mid-April, 5:35 AM at the June solstice and 8:05 AM in late December (local time, America/Moncton). Fill feeders the evening before so the first birds find food.
Native plants for Fredericton yards
Early-summer berries arrive exactly when nestlings are being fed.
Deciduous holly holding red fruit into mid-winter.
Fruit clusters persist all winter as emergency food.
Summer fruit and one of the top caterpillar host trees.
Late-summer berry clusters taken by over 40 bird species.
Blue-black fall fruit and dense nesting cover.
Blue fruit on red stems in early fall.
Prolific seed heads for finches and sparrows.
Nearby cities in New Brunswick
- Quispamsis — 50 mi away, nesting about the same time as Fredericton
- Saint John — 55 mi away, nesting roughly 3 days earlier than Fredericton
- Lutes Mountain — 85 mi away, nesting about the same time as Fredericton
- Moncton — 90 mi away, nesting about the same time as Fredericton
- Miramichi — 93 mi away, nesting roughly 4 days later than Fredericton
- Dieppe — 95 mi away, nesting about the same time as Fredericton
Frequently asked
What birds live in Fredericton all year?
Year-round residents across New Brunswick include Northern Cardinal, Black-capped Chickadee, Downy Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, White-breasted Nuthatch. All of them visit backyard feeders in Fredericton.
When do birds start nesting in Fredericton?
Fredericton sits at about the same latitude as New Brunswick'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 Fredericton?
Songbirds start singing about 30–60 minutes before sunrise. In Fredericton, sunrise is around 6:42 AM in mid-April and 5:35 AM in late June.
Sources
- eBird region overview and bar charts — New Brunswick
- 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.