The wait is nearly over: after just over two weeks of voting, Vancouver is set to announce its official city bird on Thursday.
There are four west coast species in the running to be named official spokesbird: Anna’s hummingbird, the varied thrush, the spotted towhee and the northern flicker, each of which is thought to embody the spirit of Vancouver in some way. There’s no doubt they all do, at least in part, since not one of these birds can afford a Yaletown condo.
Vancouver has named an official bird each of the past three years: the northwestern crow, black-capped chickadee, and peregrine falcon in 2014, 2015 and 2016, respectively. But this year’s announcement is different: the winning bird will be atop the pecking order for some time. It’s a permanent appointment rather than a one-year reign.
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Anna’s Hummingbird. One of four species to be selected by the public to become the City of Vancouver’s official permanent bird.
This year’s bird will have some real responsibilities, too. Like any good pageant winner, the bird will be expected to act as an ambassador for the city and its emerging birding culture, as well as “support Vancouver’s creative economy by inspiring artists, designers, and craftspeople,” so this had better be one inspirational bird. In addition, the bird will be expected to “assume official ceremonial duties when Vancouver hosts the prestigious 27th International Ornithological Congress in August 2018 and the first ever Vancouver International Bird Festival,” according to the City of Vancouver website. The events, which are expected to bring thousands of bird enthusiasts and academics to Vancouver, run from Aug. 19-26, 2018.
“It’s going to be absolutely huge, probably the biggest bird festival ever in the world,” Rob Butler, chair of Vancouver’s bird advisory committee told Postmedia. “The city needs a bird ambassador to lead the city into that.”
There’s a lot riding on this bird.
The four birds were hardly chosen at random. Each was selected as part of a “words for birds” initiative, in which Vancouverites were asked to describe the city’s personality before experts found birds that they believed matched those traits. But do these four birds really scream “Vancouver”? Not one has ever been photographed in yoga pants.
Still, they have a few traits that might sound familiar to locals. According to Wikipedia, Anna’s hummingbirds can shake their bodies 55 times per second to shed rain while in flight, which is ideal for Vancouver’s wet weather.
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Northern Flicker. One of four species to be selected by the public to become the City of Vancouver’s official permanent bird.
Northern flickers, meanwhile, are comfortable making their home in a tree with several other holes. These woodpeckers are reminiscent of Vancouver’s young people, then, having given up on owning a single-family unit. Plus, the males have moustaches, so they’d fit right in among Main Street hipsters.
The varied thrush, which narrowly missed out on being named B.C.’s official bird in 1987, is known for its contemplative, mellow song. And, according to the city’s website, “varied Thrushes would prefer single-family living with large lot sizes where they could happily forage for insects in summer and switch to berries and seeds in winter.” A foraging singer/songwriter type? Sounds like an East Van bird.
Finally, the spotted towhee can fly long distances, but more often makes short, slow flights between patches of cover. A bird that prefers a short commute is very Vancouver. It probably hates paying tolls, too.
But only one can be Vancouver’s official bird. The winner will be unveiled on Thursday, May 18 at the Vancouver Public Library. Following a commissioned fanfare, “The Gathering Flock,” performed by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra Brass Quintet, the bird will be crowned.
No victory speech is expected, but a victory tweet is a distinct possibility.
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