Backyard birds in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
Which birds visit Charlottetown yards, when they nest at this latitude, and when to be out for the dawn chorus, all worked out from Charlottetown's own coordinates.
- Coordinates
- 46.235°, -63.126°
- Population
- 38,809
- June 21 daylight
- 15 h 47 min
- December 21 daylight
- 8 h 37 min
- Sunrise mid-April / late June
- 6:27 AM / 5:20 AM
- Nesting vs state average
- about the same time as the state-wide average
- Hardiness zones (state)
- Canada 4b–5b
Nesting timing in Charlottetown
The state guides give nesting windows for Prince Edward Island as a whole, weighted toward where most people live (about 46.2°N). Charlottetown is at 46.2°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. Charlottetown goes from 8 h 37 min of daylight at the winter solstice to 15 h 47 min in June, a 7 h 11 min swing.
- Black-capped Chickadee — state window May–July; box hole 1 1/8 in round
- 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
- American Robin — state window May–July
- Dark-eyed Junco — state window June–July
- White-throated Sparrow — state window June–July
Birds you can expect in Charlottetown
Year-round residents (30)
Black-capped Chickadees, Downy Woodpeckers, Hairy Woodpeckers, White-breasted Nuthatchs, Purple Finchs, Pileated Woodpeckers, Red-breasted Nuthatchs, Brown Creepers, Evening Grosbeaks, Pine Siskins, House Sparrows, European Starlings, Canada Jays, American Crows, Common Ravens, Barred Owls, Great Horned Owls, American Kestrels, Mallards, Belted Kingfishers, Golden-crowned Kinglets, Pine Grosbeaks, Red Crossbills, Canada Gooses, Bald Eagles, Northern Saw-whet Owls, Black-backed Woodpeckers, American Three-toed Woodpeckers, White-winged Crossbills, Rock Pigeons
Summer breeders (54)
American Goldfinchs, House Wrens, American Robins, Dark-eyed Juncos, White-throated Sparrows, Song Sparrows, Chipping Sparrows, Northern Flickers, Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers, Common Grackles, Red-winged Blackbirds, Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, Gray Catbirds, Cedar Waxwings, Tree Swallows, Barn Swallows, Eastern Phoebes, Yellow-rumped Warblers, Eastern Kingbirds, Sharp-shinned Hawks, Great Blue Herons, 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, Bank Swallows, Common Nighthawks, Eastern Whip-poor-wills, American Coots, Killdeers, Spotted Sandpipers, American Woodcocks, Ospreys, 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
Snowy winters with sea ice offshore.
When to watch: dawn chorus in Charlottetown
Songbirds sing hardest in the 30–60 minutes before sunrise, and most of all in spring. In Charlottetown, sunrise is around 6:27 AM in mid-April, 5:20 AM at the June solstice and 7:52 AM in late December (local time, America/Halifax). Fill feeders the evening before so the first birds find food.
Native plants for Charlottetown yards
Prolific seed heads for finches and sparrows.
Seed-rich cones and year-round shelter.
Catkin seed feeds redpolls and siskins all winter.
Hosts hundreds of caterpillar species; spring flowers draw early insects.
Among the first spring bloomers; early insects for returning migrants.
Dark summer fruit and heavy caterpillar load.
Spruce-budworm habitat and dense winter roosting cover.
Cone crops drive winter irruptions of finches and crossbills.
Nearby cities in Prince Edward Island
Frequently asked
What birds live in Charlottetown all year?
Year-round residents across Prince Edward Island include Black-capped Chickadee, Downy Woodpecker, Hairy Woodpecker, White-breasted Nuthatch, Purple Finch. All of them visit backyard feeders in Charlottetown.
When do birds start nesting in Charlottetown?
Charlottetown sits at about the same latitude as Prince Edward Island'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 Charlottetown?
Songbirds start singing about 30–60 minutes before sunrise. In Charlottetown, sunrise is around 6:27 AM in mid-April and 5:20 AM in late June.
Sources
- eBird region overview and bar charts — Prince Edward Island
- 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.