Every year, the second Saturday of the month of May is dedicated to celebrating the journey of migratory birds for World Migratory Bird Day. Last Saturday, May 12th, Canadians in over forty-five cities across the country celebrated the return of migratory birds at Bird Day events. It was a day of celebration marked by nature walks, bird counts, & activities for birders of all ages to learn more about the journey and challenges that millions of migratory birds face every year to return to Canada.

This year was the 25th anniversary of the celebration, and to commemorate this milestone, Nature Canada teamed up with Bird Studies Canada and Quebec Oiseaux to create and provide support to a network of organizations hosting Bird Day events across Canada. There were a combined forty-eight events in British-Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova-Scotia, Prince-Edward-Island and Newfoundland & Labrador.

Here are a few photos from the event that took place in Ottawa, at the Ottawa Children’s Festival at LeBreton Flats Park. We were honoured to have Algonquin Elder, Annie Smith St-George open the day with a smudging ceremony, and that Environment and Climate Change Minster Catherine McKenna attended the event to lend her voice to birds in Canada.

Falcon Ed at the Ottawa Bird Day Event.

Young Nature lover at the Ottawa Bird Day Event.

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Nature Canada would also like to thank it’s local partner, Earth Path, for joining in on the fun with many bird-related activities at the Festival. As well, we would like to acknowledge the financial support of Science Odyssey, without which this World Migratory Bird Day Event could not have taken place.

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