Calgary Urban Species Response Team

Calgary Urban Species Response Team
NicknameCUSRT
FormationSeptember 2019
PurposeUrban wildlife research and advocacy
HeadquartersCalgary, Alberta
Websitehttps://www.calgaryurbanspecies.ca/
Formerly called
Calgary Migratory Species Response Team

The Calgary Urban Species Response Team (CUSRT) is a citizen science project and volunteer organization founded in Calgary, Alberta that seeks to research the risks faced by urban wildlife,[1][2] and educate the public on ways that people can mitigate them.[3]

History

The group was co-founded in the fall of 2019 by Kathleen Johnson, Scott Lovell, and Melanie Whalen, as the Calgary Migratory Species Response Team.[4][3][5] The original goal of the group was to research the impact of buildings in downtown Calgary on migrating bird and bat populations.[6] This eventually expanded to include advocacy efforts for other urban wildlife, and due to this expansion in focus the group was renamed to the Calgary Urban Species Response Team.[7]

In 2019, the organization had around 40 volunteers.[3] During September and October 2019 the group reported that they had identified 107 animal strikes, with 88 being fatalities.[3] On November 23, 2019 they hosted a public event at St. Mary's University to share their findings, and teach about the impact that the urban environment has on bat and bird migration.[8]

In 2023, the group reported that they had found more than 600 bats and birds downtown since the fall migration season of 2019. It was also reported that they had about 20 volunteers at this time.[9]

As of 2024, the organization has identified about 50 species of bird and bat that are at risk for building collisions.[10]

The group attended the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary's World Migratory Bird Day event in May, 2025. Their booth, which was with Bird-Friendly Calgary, focused on how residents could reduce the risk of bird and bat window strikes in their own homes.[11]

Programs

Downtown surveys

Volunteers with the organization have been performing surveys in downtown Calgary during the spring and fall migration season since September 2019, looking for evidence of bat and bird window collisions, rescuing live collision victims, collecting dead collision specimens, and identifying high-impact collision areas.[12][3][2][13] Window strike fatalities are taken in for data collection before being donated to the Royal Alberta Museum.

Window strike record

The group runs a form where members of the public can submit bat and bird window strikes that they find. Information collected is added to the Global Bird Collision Mapper, which is run by FLAP Canada.[14][15]

Outreach and education

The group attends outreach events to share their findings, and inform the public about steps they can take to help urban wildlife.[2] The group has also worked with Calgary photographer and artist, Julya Hajnoczky who has created a picture archive of the specimens that CUSRT had collected. She has also created an art piece from these photographs, entitled "It Must Look Beautiful From Up There" which depicts a bird window-strike victim underneath a glowing city grid.[9]

Wildlife Wednesdays

Wildlife Wednesdays is an informational video series aimed at supporting urban wildlife and habitat, and making wildlife observing more accessible.[16]

Partnerships

The group works with organizations like Bird-Friendly Calgary, Nature Canada, Calgary Wildlife Rehabilitation Society, and Grow Wild YYC.[17][18][2][19]

See also

References

  1. ↑ Holmes, Taylor (2022-07-18). "Why North American bird populations are declining". Calgary Journal. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Window Strike Surveys". CitSci Alberta. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Volunteers count dead, injured birds and bats in downtown Calgary". Global News. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  4. ↑ Macfarlane, Bill (2019-10-30). "Calgary volunteers track building strikes by migrating birds". CTVNews. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  5. ↑ Bell, David (January 31, 2024). "Fresh research challenges 'moths to a flame' assumption, says Alberta entomologist". CBC. Archived from the original on February 6, 2024. Retrieved August 11, 2025.
  6. ↑ Rieger, Sarah (November 25, 2019). "Calgary skyscrapers are killing birds — so volunteers are studying how to make downtown safer". CBC. Archived from the original on June 27, 2024. Retrieved August 11, 2025.
  7. ↑ "Migratory". Calgary Urban Species. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  8. ↑ Lefebvre, Bob (2019-11-23). "CMSRT Public Event Tomorrow, November 23". Birds Calgary. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  9. 1 2 Citizen, Calgary. "Calgary group urging bird-friendly windows". Calgary Citizen. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  10. ↑ "'It was killing me': Calgary naturalist stops bird collisions on his windows with 'zen curtains'". Global News. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  11. ↑ "Calgary's Inglewood Bird Sanctuary celebrating World Migratory Bird Day". CityNews Calgary. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  12. ↑ Bruch, Timm (2024-05-24). "Calgary's growing birding community concerned about migration, light pollution". CTVNews. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  13. ↑ Lefebvre, Bob (2023-05-01). "Lights Out For Migration!!". Birds Calgary. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  14. ↑ "Report A Strike". Calgary Urban Species. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  15. ↑ "Global Bird Collision Mapper". www.birdmapper.org. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  16. ↑ "Previous Wildlife Wednesdays". Calgary Urban Species. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  17. ↑ "Our Work". Calgary Urban Species. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  18. ↑ Lefebvre, Bob (2019-08-22). "Birds, Bats, and Building Collisions". Birds Calgary. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
  19. ↑ "Our Partners". Nature Canada. Retrieved 2025-08-12.
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