Champneuf (Abitibi County) - I have been tracking the movement of this species since mid-December. Last winter there was a major irruption south so we should not have expected anything noteworthy for several years at least. However, the birds had other plans and have staged a minor irruption into familiar territory again. That worked for me. On this trip I saw 64 (my personal record) with 44 in one location. These birds are a lot of fun to watch and are a real treat for someone from southern Canada, a driveable distance to Arctic birds.
I went to check on our little friend in downtown Vancouver at the Aquatic Centre. No birdwatchers were there when I arrived. After walking down the beach a few blocks towards Jervis, I found him/her in a tree with the behaviour I saw before - low feeder, flying to the ground, then back back for a 30sec pause in low branches. Once I found it, others surrounded me, both casual passerbys and other photographers. Even 2 kids, who asked what was going on, and then ran closer to the bird when I explain how rare it was. Amongst the hundreds of joggers, dogs, gulls, crows, and us birdwatchers, plus the chilly foggy weather, it's pretty amazing to see this little one hanging on far outside it's normal range.