Birding North of 60

Birding North of 60

Whether it’s northern wheatears, trumpeter swans or gyrfalcons, Yukon has many special northern bird species not commonly found in southern Canada. Keen birders (birdwatchers) make the trip to the Yukon in pursuit of our northern specialties. Altogether, almost 300 species of birds have been spotted in the Yukon.

The North sees migrations of waterfowl and shorebirds numbering in the countless thousands. Many species that winter in places like Panama migrate thousands of kilometres to breed on Yukon’s North Slope and Old Crow Flats. Spring in Southern Yukon brings the Celebration of the Swans, a weeklong festival at Swan Haven on Marsh Lake that marks the return of flocks of trumpeter and tundra swans. A spectacular movement of Sandhill Cranes occurs each spring and fall along the Tintina Trench in central Yukon. North America’s premier birds of prey, northern goshawk, peregrine falcon, gyrfalcon and golden eagle, are all readily found in the Yukon. For many birders, the North offers a rare chance to see songbirds such as northern wheatear, bluethroat, yellow wagtail and Smith's longspur. The territory also has Canada's only breeding population of surfbirds.