This local friendly birding festival is an annual celebration of Spring Migration in the boreal forest including tours of the LSLBO, nature workshops, birding walks, children’s activities, and of course, everyone favorite, the early bird Pancake Breakfast.
This Songbird Festival, we will also celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the Boreal Centre for Bird Conservation!
Saturday, May 23 – Songbird Festival
Boreal Centre for Bird Conservation, Lesser Slave Lake Provincial Park.
Celebrate Spring Migration with a morning of birding fun at the Boreal Centre for Bird Conservation
Admission to the festival is FREE but donations are graciously accepted in support of the LSLBO research and education programs. Help support the amazing work that we do at the LSLBO!
FREE SHUTTLE BUS
On Saturday, we will be providing a shuttle bus service from the Curling Rink/Mult-rec centre north parking lot (301 6 Ave SW) out to the Boreal Centre. Just hop on the school bus that will be leaving hourly and check out all the festivities. Watch for the sandwich board for the bus pickup spot.
Departing from the MRC/Curling rink north parking lot: 7 am, 8 am, 9 am, 10 am, 11 am
Departing from the Boreal Centre back to town: 9:30 am, 10:30 am, 11:30 am, 12:30 pm, 1:30 pm
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:
6:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
FREE NEAL KNOOT PANCAKE BREAKFAST plus BBQ Burgers – coffee and pancakes will be ready for the “early birds” in the morning with tasty burgers available for lunch. Breakfast will be ready at 6:30 am for the early morning bird walk participants. Food will be available all morning while quantities last. Generously sponsored by Vanderwell Contractors (1971) Ltd.
GUIDED BIRDING WALKS – Four walks will be departing every half hour: 7:00 7:30, 8:00 and 8:30 am. To help keep the walk numbers manageable this year, REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED FOR THE WALKS. SIGN UP HERE! Last minute signup may be available in the morning, just check at the front desk. Head out with our LSLBO members and spot some of the beautiful wood warblers arriving each day during spring migration. Groups will be walking down to the LSLBO for a tour (2 km on well packed gravel trails/road) and you will have the option of catching the bus back to the Boreal Centre afterwards.
Lesser Slave Lake Bird Observatory GUIDED TOURS departing every hour ( 7 to 11 am) Hop on the bus at the Boreal Centre and meet up with our educators down at the station for the chance to experience the work of our researchers. Hopefully you will have the chance to see these tiny songbirds up close!
FUN DROP IN ACTIVITIES including:
- Birdhouse and bird feeder building
- Special drop-in booths including: Lesser Slave Watershed Council and FireSmart Alberta
- Nature crafts
- and lots of other hands-on activities for the whole family.
NATURE WORKSHOPS: Keep checking back here for our schedule, but we are excited to announce these workshop sessions taking place in the morning.
- 9:30 am: Monitoring Birds of the Boreal Forest: Birds can’t talk, but they can tell us a lot about the health of our ecosystems. Join us find out more about the data that we collect at Lesser Slave Lake Bird Observatory and what it can tell us about bird populations.
- 10:00 am: Explore Wetlands & Learn Bird ID: MarshWatch from Birds Canada & BirdWise from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology in Action Join us for an interactive, family‑friendly session featuring bird learning tools from Birds Canada and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. We’ll start with a short viewing from MarshWatch: Prairie Canada Edition to explore wetlands and the birds and amphibians that depend on them, followed by a simple quiz activity. Then, discover BirdWise and other online learning games through live demonstrations and audience participation, including identifying birds by photos and sounds. A fun introduction to beginner‑friendly resources that help build bird ID skills at your own pace.
- 11:00 am: Feathered Moments: Bird Photo Stories and How to Photograph Birds Kindly
Join us for a relaxed, family-friendly photo show with Dalique van der Nest, a local Slave Lake photographer, as she shares some of her favourite bird images and the stories behind capturing them. You’ll also learn simple, practical “do’s and don’ts” for photographing birds responsibly—putting birds’ wellbeing first by keeping a respectful distance and avoiding disturbance, especially around nests
- 12:15 pm: The Red-tailed Hawks of Alberta – Nicole Richardson from Birds Canada: (Live ZOOM presentation) The Red-tailed Hawk is among the most familiar and widespread raptor species on the continent. They breed from the treeline in Alaska, east across Canada and all the way down to the tropical forests of Panama. Throughout the wildly diverse habitats in its range, the species naturally varies in its ecology and biology, with an amazing sixteen different subspecies that all look a little different and lead unique lives. Exploring and understanding the stories behind this incredible variation is what we do on the Red-tailed Hawk Project, a collaborative continent-wide research group based out of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Of all of the places our favourite hawk species lives, nowhere is so fascinating as Alberta, where east meets west and six subspecies mix. Join Nicole to learn all about the Red-tailed Hawk and hear stories about the remarkable things we’ve learned from some very special birds we’ve tracked right here in the province of Alberta!
PARKING: Please be aware the parking is extremely limited on site so we strongly recommend that you to carpool with friends and family to limit the number of vehicles at the event. OR take our shuttle bus – schedule above!
For more information on the event, you can contact us at info@lslbo.org or 780-849-8240.
Download 29th Songbird Festival poster here!
Sunday, May 24 – 20th Annual Bird Run/Walk (5K/10K)
Join us for this fun 5K/10K run/walk through the beautiful boreal forest trails around the Boreal Centre for Bird Conservation. Surrounded by the songs of birds, it is a great way to enjoy the arrival of spring! Trails are well marked with wide packed gravel and grass surfaces. This event is suitable for all ages and dogs are welcome as long as they are on a leash.
The “race” kicks off at 10:00 am sharp from the Boreal Centre for Bird Conservation.
Cost is $20/participant or $40/family which includes race refreshments plus a special Adopt a Bird Certificate when you finish!
Download 2026 registration form here!
Registration forms can be brought with you on the Sunday Morning with your registration fee. Just make sure to arrive no later thank 9:45 am so we have time to process your registration. Fees can also be e-transferred to info@lslbo.org.
Contact us at info@lslbo.org or call 780-849-8240 for more information.
Thank you to our sponsors for our 29th Songbird Festival!
