Rare Birds in Alberta
Our list for Alberta has 41 rare birds recorded regularly there: 3 residents, 11 summer visitors, 1 winter visitor, 23 passage migrants and 3 scarce visitors
Most likely in October
GBIF · Oct
Share of all bird records in Alberta in October, 2019–2024. Each month links to that month’s page.
All 41, most common first
Wild TurkeyMeleagris gallopavoWinter visitorRare100–125 cmRecorded all year
White-rumped SandpiperCalidris fuscicollisPassage migrantRare15–18 cmRegularly May–Aug
WhimbrelNumenius phaeopusPassage migrantRare40–46 cmRegularly May
Yellow-bellied FlycatcherEmpidonax flaviventrisSummer visitorRare13–15 cmRegularly May–Sep
DunlinCalidris alpinaPassage migrantRare16–22 cmRegularly Apr–Oct
Ruddy TurnstoneArenaria interpresPassage migrantRare21–24 cmRegularly May–Aug
Black-billed CuckooCoccyzus erythropthalmusPassage migrantRare28–32 cmRegularly Jun–Jul
Eastern Screech-owlMegascops asioPassage migrantRare16–25 cmRegularly Oct–Apr
Red-headed WoodpeckerMelanerpes erythrocephalusPassage migrantRare19–23 cmRegularly Jun
Western SandpiperCalidris mauriPassage migrantRare14–17 cmRegularly May–Sep
Northern CardinalCardinalis cardinalisResidentRare21–23 cmRegularly Jan
Black-throated Blue WarblerSetophaga caerulescensPassage migrantRare11–13 cmRegularly Sep–Oct
Arctic JaegerStercorarius parasiticusPassage migrantRare41–46 cmRegularly Sep
Arctic TernSterna paradisaeaPassage migrantRare33–39 cmRegularly May–Jun
ChukarAlectoris chukarSummer visitorRare32–38 cmRegularly Jan–Oct
Long-tailed JaegerStercorarius longicaudusScarceRare48–58 cm
Piping PloverCharadrius melodusPassage migrantRare17–18 cmRegularly May–Jun
Western Screech-owlMegascops kennicottiiPassage migrantRare19–25 cmRegularly Jun
Data: EOD – eBird Observation Dataset (Cornell Lab of Ornithology), accessed via GBIF.org, CC BY 4.0. Records from 2019–2024, aggregated and filtered by Birdfact. How these lists are made