British Columbia is home to hundreds of species of birds, many of which pass through or live in Richmond year-round.

Migratory Birds

  • Snow Geese
  • Warblers
  • Trumpeter Swans
  • Hawks
  • Thrushes

For a more complete list see UBC’s Electronic Atlas of the Wildlife of British Columbia. 

Resident Birds

  • Great Blue Heron
  • Black-capped Chickadee
  • House & Song Sparrow
  • Robin
  • Northern Flicker
  • Swallow
  • House Finch
  • Anna’s Hummingbird
  • Stellar’s Jay – Our provincial bird!
  • Downy Woodpecker
  • Bald Eagle

Places to go bird watching

  • Iona Beach
  • Terra Nova Rural Park
  • Paulik Park
  • Richmond Nature Park
  • Dyke Trail
  • Garry Point Park
  • Minoru Park
  • McDonald Beach Park

Remember to give birds their space and be respectful of their homes. Stay quiet, stay still, and stay patient. Let the birds come to you.

Helping Birds Out all Year Long

Richmond is full of wonderful birds. As we continue to urbanize the city, pushing birds to the outskirts, we need to give them a hand. Throughout the year, birds need help in different ways.

Spring:

  • Check bird feeders
    • Replace broken ones or fix up anything broken
  • Add a birdbath or clean out your current birdbath
  • Plant native flowers
    • Include sunflowers – their seeds in late summer are a great food source
  • Clean your birdfeeder
    • Spring is a great time to do some maintenance
    • It should be cleaned every two weeks or so
  • Use only natural treatments on your garden
    • Any pesticides, herbicides or homemade remedies will have an impact on birds

Summer:

  • Add a birdbath to your garden
    • Any shallow dish will work but terra cotta is preferred
    • Add stones for the birds to be able to perch
    • Birds are attracted to moving water – add a waterfall or a bottle with holes punched in to add moving water
    • Clean the bath regularly
    • Place it in an area safe from predators

Fall:

  • Keep your garden a little messy
    • Leave seeds, especially sunflower seeds, in the garden as a food source
    • Keep foliage for birds to nest in or to build their nest from
  • Put up a bird feeder
    • Add seeds, natural peanut butter or other nut butters, suet
    • Feeders allow resident birds to build up enough energy for the winter
    • Don’t put the feeder too close to a window to prevent collisions
  • Leave fallen leaves under trees
    • This provides shelter for birds
    • Attracts insects that are another source of food
  • Put up decals on windows to prevent bird strike
    • Migrating birds are at a higher risk of striking windows
    • They can be disorientated or distracted by light pollution
  • Clean out bird boxes

Winter:

  • Put up bird boxes in sheltered areas
    • Make sure they’re clean and windproof
    • Paint the in darker colours to absorb the most heat from the sun
    • Add nesting material so birds can fill holes
      • Woodchips, dry grass, dead leaves, animal fur
  • Water is integral for bird survival in the winter
    • Be careful as birds can easily freeze if they touch ice or cold water then something metal
    • Place a plastic grate over the birdbath to prevent them from touching the water, but also lets them drink
  • Fill the bird feeders with high-calorie seeds and suet
    • Black oil sunflower seed
    • Peanuts
    • Millet
    • Fresh or dried fruit, can be mixed into suet
  • Add some salt to the bird feeder

**Try to avoid bird seed mixes that have a lot of corn, wheat, & milo

More information:

If you’re interested in learning more visit Richmond BC’s birding resource section.

The Reifel Bird Sanctuary in Delta, BC is another great area to go bird watching.