As many as 400,000 migrating waterfowl can be seen in the Winnipeg, Manitoba area of Western Cananda during October. (Photo courtesy Ducks Unlimited Canada)

This Place Is For The Birds

Four hundred thousand birds can't be wrong. Oak Hammock Marsh, an internationally recognized wetlands conservation area and tall grass prairie near Winnipeg, Manitoba, is the place to be in October for as many as 400,000 migrating waterfowl‹and for wildlife watchers seeking a memorable experience.

The nonprofit Oak Hammock Marsh Interpretive Centre will host a "Migration Magic Farewell Weekend Concert" October 21 at 7:30 p.m. in its multimedia theater. A string quartet from the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra will perform while visitors view projected images of some of the 300 bird species that visit the marsh throughout the year.

Tickets to the 90-minute program, including a wine and cheese reception during intermission, cost $30 Canadian dollars, or $28.50 U.S., in addition to the center's regular adult entrance fee of five Canadian dollars, or $4.75 U.S.

At sunset on most fall evenings, massive numbers of ducks, Canada geese, snow geese, shorebirds, and tundra swans stage a dramatic fly-in to the marsh from surrounding fields, where they feed on grain to gain strength for the long migratory flight south. The center's literature describes the birds' return to their overnight accommodations in the marsh as "a spectacular symphony of sounds and sights."

According to Jacques Bourgeois, the center's special events coordinator, "It's a magical moment. The whole sky becomes dark with birds. It looks like smoke."

It's not just bird watchers who flock to Oak Hammock Marsh, home to 30 species of mammals and numerous amphibians, reptiles, and fish. The wildlife management area covers nearly 14 square miles or about 9,000 acres.

The award-winning interpretive center offers guided nature walks and canoe outings in large canoes reminiscent of those used by 18th century voyageurs on their trade routes. Visitors can borrow binoculars and wildlife field guides from the center's staff.

Supernatural in the Swamp

Oak Hammock Marsh Interpretive Centre will also host a Halloween party and "Spirit Walk" October 28 from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. Costumed interpreters will appear along a nature trail in the guise of the spirits of French fur traders and Scottish settlers, relating stories of local life in earlier eras. Guides will explain misunderstood phenomena, like the other-worldly looking marsh gas and the "quaking bog"‹the shifting, bouncing mat of vegetation that frightened early settlers. Indoor exhibits will demystify "scary" critters like spiders, bats, and snakes.

It's all available for the regular admission fee of five Canadian dollars, or $4.75 U.S., for adults; four Canadian dollars, or $3.80 U.S., for seniors 55 and older and people 17 and under.

The interpretive center is located on Highway 67 between Highway 7 and Highway 8, about a 30-minute drive north of the provincial capital of Winnipeg. For information, call the center toll-free at 888-506-2774. Web site: www.oakhammockmarsh.ca. Additional information is available from Travel Manitoba at 800-665-0040 (toll free). Web site: www.travelmanitoba.com.