Birds are everywhere in Sutherland Hills Park. The park is basically a
large chunk of Ponderosa Pine, dotted with small ponds, within the city of
Kelowna. Around the ponds, numerous berry bushes grow, including
Chokecherry, Red Osier Dogwood, Saskatoon, Virginia Creeper, Mountain Ash,
Snowberry and Oregon Grape. The bird gather here every August to feed on the
bounty of berries. The most popular food items are the dogwood, chokecherry
and Mountain Ash.


Here is a comparative list from today and August 22,2000

August 20, 2002 August 22, 2000

Eastern Kingbird 60 50
Western Tanager 20 40
Cedar Waxwing 30 1
American Robin 15 75
Warbling Vireo 12 6
Red-eyed Vireo 1 1
Northern Waterthrush 1
Pacific-slope Flycatcher 1
Western Wood Pewee 15 15
Yellow-rumped Warbler 1 15
Bullock's Oriole 1 1
Yellow Warbler 3
Northern Flicker 30 30
Mourning Dove 2
Pine Siskin 2 2
Black-billed Magpie 1 5
American Crow 3 1
Belted Kingfisher 2 1
Wood Duck 2 12
Mallard 8 8
Solitary Sandpiper 2
Downy Woodpecker 2 5
Turkey Vulture 2
Red-breasted Nuthatch 2 1
European Starling 80 2
House Finch 10 5
Pygmy Nuthatch 5 100
Red Crossbill 10 10
Black-capped Chickadee 1 10
Song Sparrow 3 1
American Goldfinch 1
Steller's Jay 1
Olive-sided Flycatcher 1
Rock Dove 4
Evening Grosbeak 1
Merlin 1
Orange-crowned Warbler 1
House Sparrow 1
California Quail 9
Hammond's Flycatcher 3
Cassin's Vireo 2
Gray Catbird 7
Mountain Chickadee 1
Pileated Woodpecker 2
Red-winged Blackbird 1
Common Raven 1

As you can see, birds were more plentiful overall on August 22,2000. There
is a lack of warblers so far this fall, possibly due to the ridge of high
pressure over the region. When weather like this occurs in August, many
birds simply fly over, but when a weather system settles in, birds flock up
and wait out the storm. The weather on the 22 was also sunny and warm,
however, so this doesn't explain the lack of birds in 2002. Eastern
Kingbirds reach the highest numbers at any one place that I have ever seen
in Sutherland Hills Park in August. The habitat is very different from EAKI
breeding habitat; open Ponderosa Pine forest. Robin Yellowlees, who
regularly walked the area in the 1970s has record of up to 300 EAKIs in the
park in August. This is quite impressive since the birds are all
concentrated in a relatively small area.

That's about all for now,

Chris Charlesworth, Kelowna, BC

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