Hi, Gord,
Thought we would let you know that yesterday, the 28th, we took the kids up to Algonquin and saw only a few species...wonder if it was the toboggans and laughter along the paths? We did see the gray jay who was not hungry enough to come to our hands, and pine grosbeaks at the Frost Centre and along the road on Hwy 60 along with some striking ravens. At the visitor centre, there were black capped chickadees and a hairy woodpecker. We were a wee bit disappointed that we did not see any crossbills or the Spruce Grouse but another day! To let birders know, it was very cold at night there (-25) and the day time temperatures were not mild... but with no wind and some sun it was really quite spectacular!

In the Pefferlaw area from which we hail there has been a few Pine Grosbeaks, lots of evening grosbeaks and common redpolls about. Saw a kingfisher at the river last week but not since. ttyl,

Hi Gord:

On December 26th I saw from my kitchen window a Hoary Redpoll sitting in a birch tree in my backyard of Holland Landing. I have had small flocks of Redpolls at my feeder but this is the first Hoary Redpoll I have seen. It did not come down to the feeder but just sat there long enough for me to get a good look through my binoculars.

There is a Northern Hawk Owl beside Hwy 132 Just outside Dacre (junction of hwy 132 & 41). Look for it on the hydro poles or tree tops on the right side when Renfrew bound just past Constant Creek. We saw it every day from Dec. 21 to Dec. 24.

Other noteworthy birds seen near Renfrew include Pine Grosbeak, Evening Grosbeak, Common Redpoll and Boheminan Waxwing.

Hi,

I'm not sure how rare they are for Georgetown, but last weekend we had two Pine Siskins at our backyard feeder (we're on the ravine) and right now there's a pair of Common Redpolls at the niger seed feeder. They've been there for 15 minutes or more. A couple of weeks ago, there was a Winter Wren in the back yard, checking out the shrubbery. And, just for interest's sake, we regularly have Chickadees, Goldfinches, Red-Breasted Nuthatches (and the occasional White-Breasted), Downy Woodpeckers (at the suet feeder), Juncos, and House Finches (and last weekend, one male Purple Finch).

In the ravine, I've been seeing Pileated Woodpeckers regularly (not to mention Downy and the occasional Hairy), an unidentified owl, and a Winter Wren about 2 weeks ago.

That's all I can think of -- hope it's of interest.

Hi Gord,

I had to wait 10 years to see a pileated and now I've seen two in three days! This sighting was in addition to the Pileated seen near Newtonville on Sunday Dec 7.

Spotted a pileated woodpecker on Wednesday December 10/97 at 7:30 a.m. in Newcastle village, just 50 yards north of highway 2. There was plenty of noisy traffic travelling along #2, and even a couple of pedestrians, but the pileated didn't seem to care. Are these birds moving south??

The following species were observed over the last two day's in the city of Kingston, around the area of elevator bay.RING-NECKED DUCK, RED-TAILED HAWK, AMERICAN TREE SPARROW, MOURNING DOVE, ROCK DOVE, RING BILLED GULL, CANADA GEESE, GREAT BLACK-BACKED GULL, BUFFLEHEAD, MALLARD, GREATER and LESSER SCAUP, as well as TUNDRA SWAN'S. A HAWK OWL is still present just NORTH of the 401.

14 Bohemian waxwings along the river by the dam/bridge. No sign of the pacific loon but the road to the picnic areas is now closed and it is a very long walk to picnic areas 2/3, too far to go in the brutal wind that was blowing off the lake yesterday. If you do visit this winter take some sunflower seeds as the chickadees et al expect to be fed by hand. A small flock followed me about half a mile back to the car yesterday and all I had to offer was bits of granola bar. The chickadees were impressed but the wb nuthatch that landed on my hand wasn't too thrilled, the titmice just watched.

Dave Peters and Myles Willard had a flock of 75 Bohemian Waxwings at Port Franks, Ontario on Wednesday, December 3rd. They also had a Red-throated Loon on Lake Huron at the east end of Ipperwash Beach on the same date

Hi Gord,

Just wanted to pass along a sighting on Sunday December 7, 1997, just east of Newtonville, north of Highway 401 about 4km:

1 Pileated Woodpecker

I was able to view it for about one minute at just 20 feet. While there are frequent sightings north of this area (past Peterborough), this is the first that I have either seen myself. Absolutlely beautiful! Wish I had a camera.

On a walk through Selkirk Prov. Pk this afternoon a few of the birds seen included a Great Blue Heron, Hooded Merganser, Canvasback, Great Horned Owl, Long-eared Owl, 3 Red-bellied Woodpeckers, N. Flicker, Golden-crowned Kinglets and a Red-breasted Nuthatch.

The best bird was an Orange-crowned Warbler at the south end of the west side of the park.

A female Harlequin Duck was found to-day at Port Rysere over in Norfolk Co. They are rarely found in this part of Lake Erie.

Hi Gord. We saw the PACIFIC LOON on Sunday 30th.Nov. and again today the 2nd.Dec. at Picnic area #3 in the PINERY. It seems to be the only loon around so far this week. BOHEMIANS still around the Riverside Campgrounds. We have a sub. ad, GOLDEN EAGLE again in the usual wintering area on PRIVATE LAND. I hope that this is of interest to you. Best Wishes Alf.

HI.GORD. On Nov 23rd. the first of this falls GOLDEN EAGLES was found in the Arkona area. Canatara Pk. Sarnia had one on the 24th,and a third on the 27th. was below tree top height in the Pinery P.Pk.flying along the river at the North Bridge . The BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS are hard to find but a resolute lady birder found them in picnic area #8this afternoon drinking from a pool of water.The time was around 3pm.on 27th.in Pinery P.Pk. Yours ALF.

Gord, a drive along the Lake Erie shore line this afternoon from Nanticoke to the Dunn-Hald line produced 4 Killdeers and 15 Dunlin. A few Am Pipits were also noted. The number of Bonaparte's Gulls have increased significantly since last week.

The Short-eared Owls have returned to the roost on the 4th concession of South Cayuga where they have roosted for several years.

Red-tailed Hawks and Am Kestrels were present to-day in good numbers. Several Rough-legged Hawks and a few N. Harriers were also seen

BON ECHO PROVINCIAL PARK (80 km SW of Ottawa) Nov 21st

Greetings. Not many birds left at Bon Echo now. Some random sightings from the summer include:

Peregrine Falcons - After having released 33 of these birds at the park from 1994-1996 it was a little strange not being able to see a falcon almost at will this year. We did have one male falcon living on the cliff this summer but he was not always to be found. We suspect this is a bird we released in 1995 but are not 100% sure. Two Peregrines where seen on Oct 6th, probably migrating through, but now maybe a potential mate for our falcon knows how to find our Cliff and we will get a breeding pair next year! Our falcon was last seen on Oct 26th - pretty late.

Morning Doves - these were seen throughout the park this year, even deep in the forest, very strange, I have not seen them in the Park before.

Black-backed Woodpecker - A couple of these continue to be seen after 1st showing up 4 years ago.

As for the the fall migration my highlight was two FOX SPARROWS foraging at the side of the road Oct 28th, we already had snow and this area had been scraped clean by the plow.

Everyone is anticipating a big winter finch year but I have this feeling they are going to by-pass Bon Echo this year and keep going south. PURPLE FINCHES dissappeared in late Oct. and EVENING GROSBEAKS are present but scarcer then a month ago. One REDPOLL was at the feeder on Nov. 20th.

The biggest highlight for me was 15 BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS that flew in for 5 minutes and tried to eat some European Highbush Cranberry on Nov 18th. These berries are bright red but nothing seems to like eating them. The Waxwings were no exception, and after trying a couple they flew off in, what I imagined as, disgust. These were our first ever record for the park.

Have a good winter, I will let you know if anything else turns up.

HI Gord .RED THROATED LOONS 10+at Kettle Point and Hungry Hollow today, no COMMON loons.There are some huge flocks of COMMON REDPOLLS, HORNED LARKS and SNOW BUNTINGS, each containing several hundred birds in this general area with the occasional LAPLAND LONGSPUR in with them. An imm. NORTHERN SHRIKE chased a MOURNING DOVE briefly at a well known birders feeder in HUNGRY HOLLOW yesterday.At the same feeders 3 FOX SPARROWS forage with 17 other species. Hoping that this is of interest to you. Yours. Alf.

Kathy Beardsley and I birded Pt. Edward and Pinery park on Sat., 11/15 with some success..

2 Oldsquaw were among the hundreds of R-br Mergs at Pt. Edwards. Although the winds were right NW, now unusual gulls were sighted.

The Sarnia Airport yielded 2 Snow Buntings among the 40 Horned Larks. At the Pinery, we saw 2 Cedar Waxwings among the 70 or so BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS along the Riverside Campground Trail that parallels the river. The berry crop there is strong, so the birds may stick around awhile.Other reports from the sightings book there and local birders include, 20 Evening Grosbeaks at the feeder on 11/14; a Pine Grosbeak along the Riverside trail 11/14; a Pacific Loon (!) off the lake at Picnic area #9 (week of 11/9). That area is still accessible by car, but all we turned up there were 100 Hooded Mergs and 2 Common Loons. A local birder reported that the Thedford SL were virtually frozen over 11/15. No Eared Grebe or Brant, but about 30 Redpolls.

A quick Sunday afternoon drive along the Lake Erie shore line from Selkirk Prov. Pk to the Hald-Dunn Town Line produced a few sightings dispite our wintery conditions. The shallow ponds and placid pools on the creeks are frozen and snow covered.

Thousands of Greater Scaup and hundreds of Bufflehead were the most common waterfowl. A few lingering birds were noted including a Greater Yellowlegs at the mouth pf Stoney Point, 6 Killdeers between the Koehler Rd and the Sweets Corners Rd., 5 Dunlin east of Knight's Pt., near the Booker Rd a Hermit Thrush flew up into a tree, at least a dozen Am. Pipits were also seen acting like miniture shore birds along the lake shore.

Coming back home along Reg. Rd. #9 a meadowlark flew by and several flocks of Horned Larks were out on the roads. Short-eared Owls were back in the roost they used last year. 3 were easily seen from the car at 2:15 p.m. without getting out of the car. There may have been more in the roost but there was no need to get out of the car and have them flush.

There is a female varied thrush reported west of Benmiller Ont (near Goderich). Go one mile west of Benmiller on County Road #31. On the south side there is a pale green barn and a mailbox with the name "Ross". The bird has been seen here. Mrs. Ross' phone number is 519-524-7724. Be advised this is in the "lake-effect" snow zone and they have had a lot of snow in the last two days.

Hi,Gord. Just a brief note . 12 PINE GROSBEAKS moved through Ipperwash area this p.m. Flocks of OLDSQUAW, total 300 past Pinery 3 pm. Best wishes Alf.

Hi Gord, took a trip today Nov. 9th along Lake Erie from Selkirk Prov. Pk. to the Hald-Dunn town line. In Selkirk was 2 Long-eared Owls, a Tutfted Titmouse was with a flock of B.C. Chickadees and W.B. Nuthatches. At least 2 Red-bellied Woodpeckers were also present.

Along the lake was a good collection of Bufflehead and Greater Scaup. Off the mouth of Stoney Creek were at least 20 Common Loons and similar number of Horned Grebes. In the mouth of Stoney Creek were 4 Greater Yellowlegs. Near Knight's Pt. were 70 Dunlin and 2 White-rumped Sandpipers. East of the Koehler Rd. was a partial albino female Bufflehead. This bird head was buffy sand in clour with some buffy sand colour down the middle of the back. The sides and wings appeared white as the bird was only seen on the water. On the 6th concession of S. Cayuga just north of Fisherville was a mixed flock of Redwings and B.-h. Cowbirds of around 8,000 birds

Sunday, the Detroit Audubon Society took a field trip to Sarnia and up the Lake Huron shore to the Pinery Provincial Park. The trip was led by Carl Overman. While at the Pinery, admiring the flocks (at least a dozen each) of Evening Grosbeaks and Bohemian Waxwings, we ran into another birder who had stopped at the nearby Thedford sewage lagoon to try for a reported Eared Grebe. No grebe, but he did see a Brant. The DAS grouped stopped there on the way back, and saw the Brant as well. We did not see the grebe either.

The Thedford sewage lagoons are on Route 79 between Port Franks (on the lake) and Thedford (a few km. south), where the road turns from its North/South direction to run East/West. The lagoons are on the north side, behind a fence and and gate marked "No Trespassing". The Brant was visible from the road with a scope.

Hi Gord . Today Nov.10th.at3.30pm.there was an adult winter plumage PACIFIC LOON off picnic area #8 in the PINERY P.Pk. Yours ALF.

Hi .Gord .Quite a cool day here in N . Lambton area .Highlights passed on to me today . GOSHAWK ad . and PEREGRINE at Camlachie . BRANT goose at Thedford and Pinery has 34 BOHEMIAN WAXWINGS below the dam .EVENING GROSBEAKS are now spreading, with 20 in my garden on Kettle Point and 25+ in the Pinery P .Pk .An approaching system from the WEST will bring North winds from the Arctic on Nov .10th

Best Wishes . Alf .

Hello Gord, Cobourg Harbour was really good for waterfowl today. Here is the list:

7        American Black Ducks

100 +    Red-breasted Mergansers

10       Lesser Scaup

5        Greater Scaup

12       Redheads

10       American Coots

12       Buffleheads

50+      Mallards

Hi Gord, to-day Sat. Nov. 8, 1997 I lead an outing for the NFN at Selkirk Prov. Park. There were few hawks flying as the wind was the wrong direction and New York State where these birds come from was under stormy conditions. Several Red-tails, N. Harriers, a Sharp-shinned Hawk and a dark phase Rough-leg were seen. A couple of Red-bellied Woodpeckers were in the oaks. In the marsh was a flock of Green-winged Teal with one late lone Blue-winged Teal. Several Hooded Mergansers were with them. Along the hedge row on the west side of the park were flocks of juncos, Ruby-cr. Kinglets and a Yellow-rumped Warbler. Several large mixed flocks of blackbirds were also noted.

Friday Nov. 7th. A few sightings for down this way. Yesterday there were 3 Dunlin and 5 Greater Yellowlegs on the Sandust Creek west of Cheapside. To day along the Lake Erie shoreline from Peacock Pt. to the Sweets Corners Rd. were thousands of Red-breasted Mergansers, large flocks of Greater Scaup, hundreds of Bufflehead, Common Goldeneyes, Common Loons, good numbers of Horned Grebes, large numbers of Bonaparte's Gulls and a couple of good sized Dumlin flocks. In the mouth of the Sandust Creek were 8 Tundra Swans and a few Am Coots. Numberous large flocks of Red-wings and other blackbirds were moving along the shore line along with Robins, Am. Pipits, Pine Siskins and Evening Grosbeaks. A Red-bellied Woodpecker was at the entrance of Selkirk Prov. Pk. There was another at a feeder near Fulsom Corners as well as a Tufted Titmouse.

Hi Gord,

This past weekend the Black Swamp Bird Observatory of Oak Harbor, Ohio, sponsored a field trip to Sarnia and Pinery PP. I'm sending you the high lights, even though I'm late.

Nov. 1

Pt. Edwards - Horned Grebes & Red-breasted Mergansers
Lake Huron (N.of Sarnia & S. of Kettle Pt.) - A Red-throated Loon & a few Common Loons
Kettle Pt. - A single Snow Bunting
Ipperwash Beach - Two Black Scoters (probably female), 3-4 Greater Scaup, & a few Common Loons
Pinery PP - Pine Siskins, a few Purple Finch, 1 or 2 Red-breasted nuthatches, & a single Tufted Titmouse - all at the Visitor Centre feeders.

Nov. 2

Pt. Edwards - Horned Grebes & Red-breasted Mergansers
St. Claire River (S. to Sombra, Ont.) - A single drake Harlequin duck, 2-3 Surf Scoters, & 5-6 Common Goldeneyes.
Sombra (ferry landing) - Two Snow Buntings

On both days we saw a few small flocks of Tundra Swans flying at several places, though I'm not sure of the locations. Also, Horned Grebes where visible at most of our stops along Lake Huron or the St. Claire River.

Cheers,

Sorry for being so tardy in posting this but it may well still be around.

Last Sunday, Novenber 2, there was a Greater White Fronted Goose with Canada Geese on the beach just north of Picnic Area #3 at the Pinery Provincial Park.

There was also an eared grebe at Thedford Sewage Lagoons.

Hi. Gord. Red throated loons still cruise off Kettle point and picnic area #8at Pinery P.Pk. 3 White rumped sandpipers are at Thedford lagoons. Grand Bend S. lagoons host a Merlin and lots of Common Redpolls to add variety to all the Tundra swans ducks and shore birds there . At Brights Grove this afternoon a Peregrine was chasing doves . The Bohemian waxwing flock now numbers 8 off the Riverside campground in the Pinery.

Best wishes.

Our woodpecker is still here, being really noisy and a total joy to behold. He's getting to be an old friend.Do you happen to know the record northern limit of overwintering birds of this species? I know there have been occasional reports of them staying in Southern Ontario to the south of us. We're about 50 ks north of Toronto.

Gord, to-day, Nov. 2nd, was the Hamilton fall bird count. Some of the better birds found in the Haldimand portion of the count are as follows. The Hagersville quarities, Red-necked Grebe, Horned Grebe, Pied-billed Grebe, 41 Ruddy Ducks, 8 Am Coot.

Sitting in a tree along the MacKenzie Rd. were 34 Turkey Vultures with another 12 flying overhead with a Rough-legged Hawk while a flock of 200 Am. Pipits were right in front of us on the ground. All told 82 Vultures were found in Onieda Twp.

Hewitt's Pond had 23 Dunlin, 13 Green-winged Teal and 1 Common Snipe. At Taquanyah were 16 Hooded Mergansers a Common Snipe and a group of 18 Greater Yellowlegs.

Along the McGowan Rd. was a Vesper Sparrow, a Savannah, a Field Sparrow and a Fox Sparrow.

A walk along the old Michican Central main line east of Reg. Rd. # 9 produced our 3rd Red-bellied Woodpecker for the day, a flock of 50 White-throated Sparrows, 65 Rusty Blackbirds and a flock of 100 Am Pipits Our group found 71 species south of the Grand River and east of the Sandust Rd to-day and missed many common species.

Hi.Gord. N.Lambton Co .+Pinery ,Grand Bend areas.Nov.1st.1997. C.Loon numbers declining now ,Red throated Loons up to 6 a day along L.Huron between Kettle Pt. and Pinery P. Pk. On 29th.Oct.at K.Pt.there was a single Common Redpoll feeding on weed seeds at Pats Pt. A single Bohemian Waxwing was found with 50 Cedars off Riverside campgrounds the same day. PIne siskins are now thinly distributed through the area. AT Grand Bend sewage lagoons on 1st. Nov.97. most of the ducks a Snow goose and Tundra swans.There were 11 youngsters with 80 adults which is the highest ratio so far ,the last count was 6 imm.out of 250 in Thedford S.L. The 2 sp. of Yellowlegs and the Dunlin were very restless this evening . A flock of approx. 50 Evening grosbeaks have been seen in the area in the last 2 days. The rain has started this evening and that usually slows migration.

Best wishes,

Gord, I had an Osprey flying over the town of Wingham this morning and when last seen it was flying north up the main street! Also flocks of up to 20 Common Redpolls have been present in the Wingham area for the past week.

Hi Gord:

It was nice waking up to see Fox sparrows at my feeder today. Unfortunately I have not seen the Evening Grosbeaks since last weekend. I have a few Pine Siskins, Goldfinch, tree sparrows, cardinals and tons of juncoes as well. I was at the Sewage lagoons on Sunday but only Bonaparte Gulls were present.

Bye for now

The conditions which delayed the inclement weather for about 48 hours resulted in better than expected birding on Amherst Island this past weekend.

Highlight of the period was the many hundreds of COMMON REDPOLL in dozens of flocks along the shore, in the fields and at the feeders. Accompanying them were lesser but still significant numbers of PINE SISKIN and EVENING GROSBEAK. Smaller numbers of PURPLE FINCH and CEDAR WAXWING were also seen.

While AMERICAN TREE SPARROWS move in for the winter, the last of the CHIPPING, VESPER and SAVANNAH SPARROWS are departing the area. There are still small numbers of WHITE-CROWNED and WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS about as well as a few FOX SPARROWS, HERMIT THRUSH and the occasional EASTERN TOWHEE.

Hawks were not numerous but were sufficiently varied to be interesting. As well as many NORTHERN HARRIER and a few AMERICAN KESTREL and RED-TAILED HAWK there were a number of ACCIPITERS including COOPER'S HAWK and at least one NORTHERN GOSHAWK seen over the Owl Woods. No more ROUGH-LEGGED HAWKS or NORTHERN SHRIKES were seen on the weekend.

Ducks continue to be slow so far with only small numbers of COMMON GOLDENEYE, BUFFLEHEAD, REDHEAD, OLDSQUAW and WHITE-WINGED SCOTER about. SCAUP also seem very low in numbers so far except for some large rafts well out in the lake. All three species of common GREBE were also seen.

The shorebird population seems stable at the moment with little change from day to day. There are still a number of BLACK-BELLIED and KILLDEER PLOVER about, and the one SEMIPALMATED PLOVER continues to hang on. One AMERICAN GOLDEN PLOVER was also seen on Sunday. Two WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPERS joined hundreds of DUNLIN and several PECTORAL SANDPIPERS, GREATER YELLOWLEGS and SNIPE. SNOW BUNTING flocks increased in numbers and size while AMERICAN PIPITS begin to decline. About 15 LAPLAND LONGSPURS were also seen. There is still at least one VIRGINIA RAIL in the marsh just west of the gravel bar.

Likewise the Owl population appears stable at the moment as we await what should be the largest SAW-WHET OWL flight of the year which should occur over the next 7-10 days. Several SAW-WHETS were present in both the Cedar and Pine sections of the Owl Woods, along with one or two LONG-EARED OWLS and the resident GREAT HORNED OWLS. No SHORT-EARED OWLS were reported on the weekend.

Hi gord. I led atrip for Lambton Wildlife Inc. and Blue water Audubon of Port Huron Mi.today to Kettle Point area. The weather slowly deteriorated with strong N.E. winds and wet snow. The Lake Huron flight was weak but we got R.T.Loon, C. Loon, ,Horned and Eared grebes At the Pinery Prov.Pk.we had a flock of 30+Brant, a single Evening Grosbeak at the Visitor Center feeders with Pine siskins.The hundreds of Pipits have almost all gone being replaced by Lapland Longspurs and Snow Buntings. Pete Chapman had an imm.Rough Legged Hawk South of Arkona ,whilst we missed seeing an imm. Bald Eagle on the rocks at K.Pt.eating a dead fish. Thats all for now.

We have had a male red-bellied woodpecker at our suet feeder for over a week now, the first time we've ever seen them in all the 10 years we've lived here. We're north of Newmarket in a little place called Queensville- about 50 ks north of Toronto.

Hi Gord. North Lambton area has lots of good birds this weekend . Common and Red throated loons, Red necked,Eared and Horned grebes have been seen. Tundra swans, a Snow goose and 9Brant are on time . Blue winged teal are gone but Green wings are around 300 at Grand Bend lagoons which also host 4 Long billed dowitchers ,2 White rumps both yellow legs and 7 Snipe.. A surprise there was a lonely N. Rough winged swallow yesterday (Friday).An even Bigger surprise was the single White winged crossbill at Pete Chapmans feeders at Hungry Hollow,Arkona later the same day.Not seen Sat. The large flocks of Pipits are moving out after their biggest showing in the last 28 years . If this is going to be a Bohemian waxwing year we expect them this week along with Northern shrikes. Sarah Rupert had a Raven on Hwy.21 at the Pinery Prov. Pk.last week . Ravens average one every three years or so here . I hope that this is of some interest .

The outlook for this weekend is a bit uncertain given the current weather conditions. Currently Amherst is right on the edge of a stationary front which could not only stall significant migration for a few days but also make whatever species are here rather unpredictable. However, the outlook seems to have improved over the past several hours and based on that here is the weekend outlook.

SHOREBIRDS - GOOD

Shorebird migration is winding down but expect to find a small number of BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER and at least one SEMIPALMATED PLOVER which continues to defy its instincts to move on. There should also be small numbers of SNIPE, GREATER YELLOWLEGS, and PECTORAL SANDPIPER along with several hundred DUNLIN. Look for WHITE-RUMPED and SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER which continue to be seen occasionally. HUDSONIAN GODWIT remains a longshot. Look too for LAPLAND LONGSPURS and SNOW BUNTINGS which have joined the AMERICAN PIPITS over the past week.

WATERFOWL - FAIR

Winter ducks continue to be slow but expect a few COMMON GOLDENEYE, BUFFLEHEAD, OLDSQUAW, REDHEAD and WHITE-WINGED SCOTER along with good numbers of BRANT, COMMON LOON and all three species of GREBE. Winds will probably make for significant chop making location and identification more difficult.

RAPTORS - FAIR & IMPROVING

Expect good numbers of NORTHERN HARRIER, and smaller numbers of RED-TAILED HAWK and AMERICAN KESTREL along with a few ACCIPITERS. Look for ROUGH- LEGGED HAWK and NORTHERN SHRIKE both of which showed up in the past week. Longshot - NORTHERN GOSHAWK.

OWLS - FAIRLY GOOD FOR SOME SPECIES

Expect to find good numbers of SAW-WHET OWL in both the Cedar and the Pine sections of the Owl Woods, the remnants of the second wave of migration which occurred in the past week. The next wave, due in the next 7 to 10 days, should produce the highest peak number for this year although the first two weeks in November will probably produce higher total numbers than any similar period. Several LONG-EARED OWLS and at least one SHORT-EARED OWL also came with this flight. SNOWY OWLS are probably still at least 2 weeks away for us but those a few miles north of Lake Ontario should be looking for them any time now.

IN THE WOODS:

There should continue to be large numbers of HERMIT THRUSH in the woods along with some WHITE-THROATED and WHITE-CROWNED SPARROW. FOX SPARROW should still be present but getting a little harder to find. Highlights of this past week's migration were good numbers of COMMON REDPOLL and EVENING GROSBEAK with smaller numbers of PINE SISKIN and PURPLE FINCH, all present into the weekend. These should continue but in somewhat smaller numbers over the weekend. Longshots: BOREAL CHICKADEE and PINE GROSBEAK.

Stay dry and remember - if things do get too bad this weekend there's always VIRTUAL BIRDING on the Net. All birds guaranteed there!

Hi Gord:

On Saturday around 1:30 I had a nice surprise at my feeder. A flock of 12 Evening Grosbeaks came to my feeder to feast on the black oil sunflower seeds. They also had a good drink and a bath. They must have enjoyed it because they came back on Sunday at exactly the same time. I'm not sure whether they are still here because I work but hopefully I will see them again this weekend.

Yesterday, while birding under what seemed to be ideal conditions for jaegers at Point Edward, Dave Stimac and I saw perhaps 10 Common Loons, several Horned Grebes, several migrating flocks of scaup, Redhead, Green-winged Teal, one interesting-looking but unidentified shorebird and 2 dark-winged scoters. No jaegers however (no doubt due to my presence).

I continued on to Kettle Point where I saw a few more loons, a fly-by female Surf Scoter and a Snow Bunting. I saw Alf Rider there who told me he knew of no jaegers having been seen so far this fall from Kettle Point or Pt Edward which he thought was unusual.

OWL ALERT:

Expect a major flight of NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL over the next 48 hours. This could be one of the largest flights in several years. It should produce large numbers of roosting SAW-WHETS over the next 2 or 3 days with smaller but still significant numbers well into the weekend.

Watch also for increasing numbers of EVENING GROSBEAK, PURPLE FINCH and PINE SISKIN as well as SNOW BUNTING, LAPLAND LONGSPUR and NORTHERN SHRIKE.

For more details see Amherst Island weekend report dated October 18-19, 1997.

Not surprisingly the highlights of the weekend were to be found at the KFN gravel bar and the immediate surrounding area.

Shorebirds were abundant on the weekend with good numbers of BLACK-BELLIED and KILLDEER PLOVER still present as well as a few SEMIPALMATED PLOVER. As expected the GOLDEN PLOVER have now departed the area, at least as a regular, and none were seen over the weekend.

DUNLIN were present in the hundreds, and there were increased numbers of PECTORAL SANDPIPER and SNIPE. There were also a few GREATER YELLOWLEGS and a single SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER. Unexpected was a RUDDY TURNSTONE. This is well after the average September departure date for this species here, but still 2 or 3 weeks away from the latest record. Another late bird was a VIRGINIA RAIL in the marsh near the gravel bar.

The anticipated 3 grebe weekend turned into a 4 grebe weekend when several PIED-BILLED GREBES, a RED-NECKED GREBE, and about 30 HORNED GREBES were joined by the highlight of the weekend, an EARED GREBE. The EARED GREBE was still present on Monday morning. Also present in the area were 10-20 AMERICAN PIPITS and a single female LAPLAND LONGSPUR.

HAWKS were small in numbers but varied. As well as the usual NORTHERN HARRIERS, RED-TAILED HAWKS and KESTRELS, MERLIN and COOPER'S HAWK were also seen, along with the occasional TURKEY VULTURE. A RED-SHOULDERED HAWK was calling regularly in the Owl Woods on both days.

A few OLDSQUAW and a small number of BUFFLEHEAD joined the REDHEADS, COMMON GOLDENEYE and SCAUP already present. All 3 species of MERGANSER were also seen along with a good variety of dabblers. One very large raft of perhaps a thousand GREATER SCAUP were seen, and there were several hundred WHITE-WINGED SCOTER in the lake to the west of the Island.

There were still lots of HERMIT THRUSH, WHITE-CROWNED SPARROWS and WHITE- THROATED SPARROWS in the woods. FOX SPARROWS were numerous - there were about 50 in the Owl Woods - and some muted songs were heard.

The outlook for SAW-WHET OWL migration continues to look good. At Prince Edward Point, the nets were open Friday and Saturday night for the first time in 3 years. Eight NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWLS were banded on Friday night and four more on Saturday night. These were good numbers considering the fact that the conditions were not favourable for owl migration into the Point. In addition, all but one of the owls was a hatch-year bird. In the past, high numbers of hatch-year birds has been a characteristic of large owl flights. This fits with about a four hundred percent increase in the number of SAW-WHETS found in the Owl Woods on Amherst this year as compared with last year at this time. Unfortunately there does not appear to be any correlation that I have been able to find between the number of migrating owls and the number that overwinter here. Still, as pointed out before (see report "Amherst Island - September 27- 28"), the outlook for this winter should be at least fair as far as this owl is concerned.

As of this morning (Monday), conditions appear favourable for a major flight of NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWL over the next 48 hours. This could be the largest flight in the past several years. While it may produce some additional LONG-EARED OWLS as well, don't expect any exotic species such as BOREAL OWL with this flight. There probably won't be any SNOWY OWL for Amherst with this either but those along the northern shore of Lake Ontario should be getting the first reports any day now.

Look for increasing numbers of EVENING GROSBEAK, PURPLE FINCH, and PINE SISKIN. SNOW BUNTING, LAPLAND LONGSPUR and NORTHERN SHRIKE should also be a part of this movement. REDPOLLS are another distinct possibility although a bit early for many.

Look for Amherst to be very quiet this weekend. Exceptions - Shorebirds and SAW-WHET OWLS.

OUTLOOK FOR SHOREBIRDS - GOOD BECOMING FAIR.

All four PLOVERS are present into the weekend but decreasing numbers of GOLDEN and SEMIPALMATED PLOVERS may make these hard to find by the end of the period. There are also at least 7 species of SANDPIPERS present to including lots of DUNLIN, some GREATER YELLOWLEGS and PECTORAL SANDPIPER but SANDERLING, SNIPE, WHITE-RUMPED and SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER are getting scarce. Look for HUDSONIAN GODWIT as an outside possibility. Look too for WATER PIPIT and possible early LAPLAND LONGSPUR in the fields approaching the gravel bar.

OUTLOOK FOR OWLS - POOR EXCEPT FOR SAW-WHET OWLS.

Several good flights of SAW-WHET OWLS this week have resulted in above average numbers roosting in the Owl Woods. Expect these to decline sharply over the next several days in advance of the next major wave. However, enough should remain to make looking interesting and worthwhile. Suggest you concentrate your search in the Pine Woods. Finding at least one is almost a guarantee. You'll be lucky however to find a LONG-EARED OWL and even luckier to find a SHORT-EARED.

OUTLOOK FOR HAWKS - FAIR

Outlook for hawks a little better than usual. Look for HARRIER, RED-TAILED and RED- SHOULDERED HAWKS. There may also be small numbers of KESTREL and ACCIPITERS. Outside possibility remains for an early ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK.

The rest of the Island promises to be very slow. DUCKS are still scarce but look for good numbers of COMMON LOON and for all 3 species of GREBES. The woods too should be very quiet except for ROBINS, HERMIT THRUSH, WHITE-CROWNED and WHITE-THROATED SPARROWS. One highlight should be FOX SPARROW. Look too for increased numbers of PURPLE FINCH and EVENING GROSBEAK especially flying overhead.

Enjoy your weekend.

Hi Gord:

On Wednesday I had two Evening Grosbeaks fly over my house while I was filling up the feeder. On Sunday evening around 8:00 a Great Horned Owl flew into a large Silver Maple tree in my backyard and then flew off. That's a great bird for my backyard list. A lone Pine Sisken is also a new bird for my list and has been at my feeder all week.

Take Care and Good Birding

The weekend developed much as expected.

There was a heavy flight of NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWLS on Friday night. They did not linger long, however, and all but a few had departed by the following day, -typical behaviour for the early migrants of this species. A few more stragglers from this first wave of an expected 4 or 5 between now and mid-November showed up on Monday. Several LONG-EARED OWLS were also present, along with resident GREAT HORNED OWLS. No SHORT-EARED OWLS were recorded this weekend.

Shorebirds were numerous and varied throughout the period but no unusual species were found. Plovers present were BLACK-BELLIED (25), GOLDEN (6), SEMI-PALMATED (2), and KILLDEER. Sandpipers included GREATER YELLOWLEGS, SANDERLING (4), DUNLIN (70), SNIPE, PECTORAL (3), WHITE-RUMPED (2), and SEMIPALMATED (1).

Migrating hawks were essentially non-existent on the Island during the weekend.

There was not much change either in the duck population. There were still some REDHEAD, COMMON GOLDENEYE and both SCAUP but no great numbers of any, although HORNED GREBE were still present in good numbers.

Songbird migration continued slow with the trend being more departing than arriving. One exception was the arrival of the first FOX SPARROWS. There were also small numbers of EVENING GROSBEAKS and PURPLE FINCHES over the period.

On Oct. 11, I had a snow goose and an American Tree Sparrow at Pinery Prov. park just west of Grand Bend, Ont., along lake Huron. A ruffed grouse walked up to our group of 24 birders and pecked along the road for at least 10 minutes as well. On Oct. 12, a Parasitic Jaeger put on quite a show off the beach.

Location: Kendal Hills park

1 Pileated Woodpecker (male)
10+ Yellow-Rumped Warblers (immature and winter adult)
1 Ruffed Grouse
2 Mute Swans
10+ Dark-eyed "Slate-Coloured" Juncos

Location: Cobourg Harbour (Northumberland County) - Oct, 10 /1997

Hello Gord, It was a windy day on the pier. To our surprise, my Dad and I spotted a pair of Horned Larks "northern race" In the grass along the shore came the highlight, "4 immature White-Crowned Sparrows" We have never seen immature ones before. They were brown with head stripes of distinct reddish-brown and light buff and a bright red beak. It was interesting to observe the adults watching over the immature ones with care.

The total list for the day was as follows:

2 Horned Larks "northern race"
8 White-Crowned Sparrows ( 4 immature)
2 American Coots
10 American Black Ducks
15 Bonaparte's Gulls
1 Herring Gull
10 Great Black-backed Gulls
1 Glaucous Gull ( immature, 1st year)

All the Best,

OUTLOOK FOR SHOREBIRDS - GOOD

BLACK-BELLIED, GOLDEN, SEMIPALMATED and KILLDEER PLOVER, YELLOWLEGS, DUNLIN and PECTORAL SANDPIPER were all present in good numbers going into the weekend and should continue, although the SEMIPALMATED PLOVER are getting scarce. Also present during the past week have been SANDERLING, SNIPE, SEMIPALMATED and WHITE-RUMPED SANDPIPER. Other less likely possibles this weekend would be RED KNOT and HUDSONIAN GODWIT, and of course there's always the unexpected.

OUTLOOK FOR OWLS - FAIR

Four species of owl, GREAT HORNED, SAW-WHET, LONG-EARED and SHORT-EARED (one only) OWL present into the weekend. Look for increasing numbers of SAW-WHET and LONG-EARED OWL over the next 3 to 4 weeks. SNOWY OWL has been seen this early but is not likely until early November.

OUTLOOK FOR HAWKS - FAIR TO POOR

There are still good numbers of NORTHERN HARRIER, RED-TAILED HAWK and KESTREL present on the Island, and 3 PEREGRINE FALCON were seen in the past week, but Prince Edward Point near Picton would be a much better place, especially Saturday, and perhaps Sunday if north-west winds materialize. Look for all 3 ACCIPITER and RED-SHOULDERED HAWK there as well as the above mentioned species. Small numbers of ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK are also likely about now.

OUTLOOK FOR OTHER SPECIES

Winter ducks have begun to arrive, especially REDHEAD, SCAUP, WHITE-WINGED SCOTER, COMMON GOLDENEYE and the MERGANSERS. There are also good numbers of HORNED GREBE out in the Lake.

Songbird migration is very slow here right now. Don't look for much until at least Monday, and expect to get wet when you do. Watch for EVENING GROSBEAK beginning to appear in small numbers.

Have a good weekend!!

Hello Gord! It's been a while since I've been to the Birding Page, and I thought you might be interested in the flurry of southbound birds I saw on Wednesday, October 8, at my place near Pefferlaw in Town of Georgina, in York Region. We have 50 acres of mostly wild land with bush, stream, beaver pond, open areas, but this list is just what I saw from our house, between 8 a.m. and 10 a.m.

It was a mild sunny day and the birds were very active. There were several dozens of Robins on the grass and in the trees, many singing and chasing one another. They also fed on the Autumn Olive fruits. I hadn't seen any Robins around here in late summer, so I assume these were migrants from further north.

Also there were several Dark-Eyed Juncos (they have been here for the last few weeks), White-crowned Sparrows (adults & immatures), White-Throated Sparrows (adults & immatures), Chipping Sparrows( Winter & immature plumages), Song Sparrows, all these found lots of weed seeds to eat on or around our gravel driveway. In the trees and shrubs were Eastern Phoebes, a Swainson's Thrush, White-breasted Nuthatch, Downy & Hairy Woodpeckers (they are here all year round), Ruby- & Golden-Crowned Kinglets, Yellow-rumped (Myrtle) Warblers, and the usual bunch of Blue Jays, Chickadees, Crows, a flock of Starlings, Grackles and Redwings. While watching the sparrows on the driveway with binoculars, I was amazed to see about half a dozen Evening Grosbeaks under my car. We occasionally get a flock of these in Winter, but don't recall seeing them before in October. In our bush there are many species of birds, and I saw a Hermit Thrush there a few days before. We have had Nashville Warblers, Black & White Warblers and many others all summer. In a small clearing where we grow clover, wheat or soybeans for the wildlife, we have seen six Wild Turkeys on several occasions. Other people in the area have seen them, so they wander about. They were here the last few days.

Also on October 8, I happened to spot some birds flying overhead, heading southeast. In binoculars, they looked like mergansers, especially as they seemed to have a dark head with flat crest. Underparts were generally white. But I noticed their feet trailed out past their dark tails, so they could not have been ducks. They could have been cormorants, perhaps the immatures, as the Double-Crested Cormorants do fly over our area (just south of Lake Simcoe). Or maybe they were loons with ruffled head feathers!! But they didn't fly like loons.

Maybe I'll get time to do a proper bird-watching stint one of these mornings, as I have seen the loons migrating early in the morning.

. Today at Kettle Point . Common loons and Red throated loons some in breeding (alternate)plumage.Ten Horned grebes. Thedford still has its Eared grebe . Grand Bend sewage lagoons have Snipe, Greater Yellow legs, Lesser yellow legs,Pectoral and White rumped sandpipers,Dunlin and Long billed dowitchers mostly in the second lagoon. There are two ploughed fields just past the GBSL,s and there are about fifty Pipits feeding there..

The Owl Woods began another owl season on Sept. 28 with the arrival of the first migrating SAW-WHET OWLS.

Shorebird migration continues steady but slow with all expected species having appeared but in low numbers. Present on the weekend were AMERICAN GOLDEN PLOVER (5), BLACK-BELLIED PLOVER (2), SEMIPALMATED PLOVER and numerous KILLDEER; also GREATER YELLOWLEGS (2), SPOTTED SANDPIPER, SANDERLING, SEMIPALMATED and PECTORAL SANDPIPERS, DUNLIN and SNIPE. Highlights present on both Saturday and Sunday were HUDSONIAN GODWIT (1) and LONG-BILLED DOWITCHER (1).

Large numbers of AMERICAN PIPITS were present and migrating HORNED LARKS of the Northern race augmented the summer residents.

Southerly winds made migrating hawks on the Island almost nonexistent, but there are still large numbers of NORTHERN HARRIERS and AMERICAN KESTRELS present.

The resident OSPREYS appear to have left. There appeared to be at least six adults present over the summer months. The pair on the KFN property at the east end raised only one young this year after having successfully fledged three in each of the past two years and two the previous year. Two eggs appear to have hatched raising the possibility that this was a different female, a speculation supported by behavioral differences observed over the summer.

Migration of WARBLERS has also been slow here, except Saturday morning when a heavy mist grounded large number of them and other passerines.

OUTLOOK FOR OWLS:

The vole population has increased after it crashed in the spring of 1996 but is still far short of peak levels. Expect an average year at best for migrating owls. After two years of heavy flights, don't expect BOREAL OWL this winter. Likewise after a heavy movement two years ago and an echo movement last winter the outlook for GREAT GRAY OWL is not good either. NORTHERN SAW-WHET OWLS should be present in at least small numbers over the winter as should LONG-EARED OWLS. SHORT-EARED OWLS had a good summer here with lots of young but have since decreased markedly in numbers. Look for a few here but more likely on Wolfe Island or perhaps Howe Island. SNOWY OWLS should be here but probably in less than average numbers. Consolation may be a good year for winter finches.

Hi Gord:

Hope you are doing well. I have only done a little birding lately but not too much has been seen. I went birding with a friend of mine Judy Randall and we saw a snow goose near the Sunnidale golf course. It was a loner with about 100 Canada Geese. We went to Osler bluff but no hawks to be found.

On my way back from a Mushroom Walk with the FON I saw 6 wild Turkeys just outside Craighurst off the 400 in a corn field. I can hardly wait until the Snowy Owls show up here in the Marsh. In one day you can see around 4 or 5 snowy owls in the Holland Marsh.

I don't mind keeping you posted with bird sightings in my area. It might make me more motivated on what is around here. Do you know of any birders in Holland Landing?? Tomorrow I will be checking out the Port Perry Lagoons and also Cranberry marsh. I hope to see some Hawks and hopefully some eagles!! Wouldn't that be great!!

Gord Gallant
gallantg@interlog.com

Location: Orono

Hello Gord, A pair of Pine Siskins have been at my backyard niger feeder for 3 days. This is the first year I have seen them in the yard. Today Sept. 26/ 1997 was the first time the "yellow" in the wings and at the base of the tail was "really evident." They were not shy, I was 6 ft away from them. The total list for these 3 days is as follows:

2 Pine Siskins (male+female)
8 American Goldfinch (winter plumage)
6 Black-Capped Chickadees
2 Red-Breasted Nuthatch (male+female)
2 White-Breasted Nuthatch (male+female)
4 Purple Finch (male+female)
8 House Finch (male+female)
7 Mourning Doves
1 Evening Grosbeak (female only - no flock!!!)
2 American Robins

On Sept 19th I saw a pair of Great Egrets at the south end of Wildwood Lake outside of Harrington (Oxford County). I am curious if any one else has seen them here this year.

Hi Gord

Yes, just last weekend I counted 75 Golden Plovers in the Sod fields around Beeton area (new tecumseth twp) I find it interesting that there were no black bellied plovers. I will keep you posted on anything interesting at both the bradford and holland landing sewage lagoons as I don't live too far from both.

Take care and good birding

My son and I spotted a golden plover two days in a row - Sept.12 and 13 at the east end of Cobourg beach.

We managed to video tape what we believe to be a black-bellied and golden Plover side by side. There are similarities. It is a little confusing looking at fall juveniles and winter adults.- We will rerun the tape again and again to assure ourselves.

We went to Presqu'ile park today nr.Brighton and saw our first Red Knot.

A Spotted Sandpiper was observed at CFB Kingston, Ontario on 9 Sept 97. Currently large number's of waterfowl and geese can be observed at Coomodore's Cove, King St West in Kingston, with best viewing between 6 and 7 am.

On Saturday 23 Aug 97 I observed an Osprey fishing at the Cataraqui Conservation Area off Perth Road. The sighting was observed on the south end of the lake and was my first Osprey I've seen this year in the Kingston area. However I have been away during June & July and didn't get much birding in. More reports to follow.

Mitchell, Aug. 19 - A number of shorebirds are at the Mitchell sewage lagoons, as there is very little water in most of the ponds. The highlights were 3 American golden-plovers, 2 red-necked phalarope, and short-billed dowitcher.

Gord Gallant
gallantg@interlog.com

Hi, Gord,

Our family just came back from a fine camping/birding holiday at Algonquin. We were able to see 45 species on various trails even with two small children and the family dog!

Some of the highlights were:

Boreal Chickadee (Old Airfield)
9 species of Warbler...Magnolia, Nashville, chestnut-sided, yellow rump. blackburnian, black and white, redstart, common yellowthroat, ovenbird
Wood Thrush
Wood Duck
Spotted Sandpiper
Gray Jay

Although we didn't see the Spruce Grouse, we know we will return next year (or later this year!!) to try once again.

The Birding Walk at Old Airfield was excellent with Matt Holder as guide,,,a very special treat!

Kathy, Mike, Fern and Robin.

       _ _     

      (o!o)  

     ((___))

       " "       

Today we were out birding and saw the following:

Jarvis Sewage Lagoons:
Greater Yellowlegs
Lesser Yellowlegs
Solitary Sandpiper
Semipalmated Sandpiper
Pectoral Sandpiper
Short-billed Dowitcher(3)

Hewitt's Pond (Hagersville)
Wilson's Phalarope

Thanks

Gord, the small bird migration is well under way at Ruthven on the Grand River. The bulk of the Yellow Warblers seem to have already gone through as the numbers have dropped off rapidly in the past three days. Northern Waterthrushes started to appear two days ago, yesterday an adult male Blue-winged Warbler was banded and in the same pocket of the net was an adult female "Lawrence's" Warbler. Perhaps a mated pair. Canada Warblers and "Traills" Flycatchers ( it is impossible to separate Willows and Alders in the hand to the satisfaction of the banding office) are going through. While in Norfolk, (it is only 200 yards from the Halimand county line) at the Townsend Sewage Lagoon yesterday a Sandhill Crane flew in from the south and landed in a field a little over a 1/2 north of the lagoons.

The summering Tundra Swan was there Tueday but not yesterday.

Of note to birders the Townsend Sewage Lagoons appear to have been down loaded by the Government. The MNR controlled area hunting signs have been removed along with the designated parking spot signs. The west fence has been replaced and a new gate placed at the start of the lane way. The standard danger lagoon, no tresspassing signs have also been erected. There are now 2 gates(fences) to climb in order to enter the lagoons

Hello Mr. Gallant,

I got your email address from the Ontario Birding Page. I saw an American Avocet last Saturday on the shoreline at the Pinery provincial park, south of Grand Bend. It was a good, clear sighting, about 15 to 20 feet away. The bird was among some gulls. I did not think anything of it at the time as I'm from Saskatchewan and Avocets are pretty common out there, but I was speaking to my father on the phone after my trip and he mentioned they're rare in Ontario.

I hope perhaps this can be passed on to other birders who may be visiting the area, in case the bird sticks around and they get a chance to see it as well.

The Grand Bend sewage lagoons are hosting many different species of shorebirds. As of August 12th there was: SEMIPALMATED PLOVER, LESSER YELLOWLEGS(75), SPOTTED SANDPIPER(30), LEAST SANDPIPER(50), SEMIPALMATED SANDPIPER(15), SHORT-BILLED DOWITCHER(3), as well as TRUMPETER SWAN, NORTHERN SHOVELER, WOOD DUCK, CANVASBACK, RED- BREASTED MERGANSER and BONAPARTE'S GULL. There are four lagoons but most of the activity was in the farthest one.

Good Birding!

(details for previous related posting)

Stephen and I spotted the hooded oriole on Sunday, May 25, 1997. General location was at the end of Johnson Side Road, East of Port Maitland at Lake Erie.

The day we spotted this beautiful creature of nature we were cycling 60 klms along Lake Erie from Dunnville to the west. However, we also took our binoculars and camera to do some birding. We had seen 2 groups of cedar waxwings and managed to get a great photo of them in a small maple tree. They were quite tame and allowed us to get right under the tree to view them.

The hooded oriole we saw after our ride and we were walking along the Lake by Barbara's brother's lot. Unfortunely the camera was in our cycling bag and we did not have time to get it to capture our find on film. He was not banded so it was not the same bird Chauncey Wood told us was found five years ago.

To the best of our limited birding knowledge, we determined it was a male hooded oriole. The markings were identical to my Audubon Field Guide, however I would describe the colour as a bright yellow/orange rather than just orange. It proudly displayed the unmistakable "hood" around it's eyes, beak and throat. The oriole was on the ground hopping in front of us for about 20 metres. The grass was cut to about 4 inches. Since we were able to follow it for some distance we had the opportunity to check for every detail. We did not hear its call.

Neither Stephen or I are experienced birders, however this oriole was easily identifiable.

Even though we realized this bird was a rare find in this area, unfortunately other priorities stole our time and we did not think to report our sighting. I happened to be speaking to Chauncey Wood (an avid and knowledgeable birder I am told) and he told me that a hooded oriole was last spotted 5 years ago and banded on the Lake Erie shoreline. He is the one that told us to report this sighting, so here we are.

Hope this information is helpful. It was a real thrill to sight such a beautiful bird, even for just a few short minutes.

Sincerely,

Gord, I reported yesterday that Ruthven was by highway # 56 it should have been #54, my error. Yesteday, Aug. 8th there were 30/40 common shorebirds at Hewitt's pond on highway #6 (1 1/2 miles) north of Hagersville, best being a Pectoral. The same to-day at the Sandust Creek west of Cheapside.

Hi Gord, to-day at Ruthven Park a Blue-winged Warbler was banded. There were about 10 Blue-gray Gnatcatchers present on the grounds. At least 3 singing Yellow-throated Vireos are still on territory. Some may be within calling distance of Highway 56 near the hydro corridor.

August 4, 1997 Hi Gord. On the Sandust Creek west of Cheapside to-day were 30+ Semiplamated Sandpipers, 3 Leasts, 2 Pectorals, 5 Lesser Yellowlegs, a Semiplamated Plover, numerous Killdeers and Spotties plus 2 Great Egrets.

Hi Gord: Birding August 4/97 on Amherst Island,Shirley & Gerald Paul observed 62 species. Interesting sightings included: least bittern, family of moor hens, black-crowned and great blue herons, colony of black tern, common tern, Caspian tern, common loon, snipe, least sandpipers, semipal sandpipers, semipalmated plover, black-bellied plover, Wilson's phalarope, kestrel, red-tailed hawks, harriers. Alex Scott was with us at the KFN bar and was the first to spot the shy least bittern.We birded for three hours.

July 1997

We spotted one male hooded oriole on the shores of Lake Erie near Dunville.

and

Stephen Smith
stephen.smith1@sympatico.ca

Gord Gallant
gallantg@interlog.com

July 31th, Gord, I was over to the Ruthven Park Bird Banding Station just north of Cayuga this morning, several Yellow-throated Vireos calling on territory, numerous Blue-grey Gnatchatchers in the area, a Red-bellied Woodpecker landed in a tree near the banding lab. Along the Grand River there was an Osprey and a Caspian Tern. Yellow Warblers seemed to be moving through and numerous swallows are collecting over the river to move south.

Sitting in the backyard early evening July 28, all the regular backyard birds, doves, blue jays, chickadees, american goldfinches, sparrows, grackles, cowbirds, meadowlark etc. seemed very noisy and very active and in motion. They were definatly disturbed. Looking up I saw this bird soaring perhaps 50-60 feet overhead and could not recognise what it was, but I knew that I had not seen this bird before. Fortunately, I had my video camera and manged to get about 5-6 seconds of the bird. After replaying many, many times, and referencing a number of bird books, the shape was unquestionably that of a perergine falcon. My son saw the same bird overhead this afternoon, July 30. Are there more people sighting this bird in this area (Orono) ? It was a first for me.

Just west of the hamlet of Cheapside to-day on the limestone bed of the Sandust Creek were numerous Least Sandpipers, Semilpalmated Sandpipers, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Killdeers, Spotted Sandpipers and a Baird's Sandpiper. This is a good place for shorebirds when Lake Erie is high and there is no shore line.

On July 16th there was a Tundra Swan at the Townsend Sewage Lagoon alone with several Ruddy Ducks. A Great Egret nest was found in late June in the Backus Woods, the first confirmed nesting for Haldimand/Norfolk along with 2 nests of Acadian Flycatchers.

While camping at Awenda Provincial Park after the long weekend in July, we hiked along the snowmobile trail that runs through the south-east part of the park. During this hike we came across 2 Peregrine Falcon nests along the trail. They were about 500 yards from one another high up in the trees. I could hear the young ones quite well and saw and adult fly into one of the nests a number of times. The high, thick canopy made it difficult to make out any numbers inside the nest.

This is a report of a yellow billed cuckoo seen on July 1 at Cooper Marsh, a Ducks Unlimited area on Highway 2 near Lancaster Ontario (which is about halfway between Cornwall and Montreal on highway 401). I would have reported it sooner but only found this address today. I (and another person) saw the cuckoo at the edge of the woods on the trial just south of the centre.

Description

i) markedly curved bill (black on the upper bill closer to the base, the lower bill and the rest of the upper bill yellow)

ii) no red surrounding eye

iii) large round white spots on underside of tail

iv) back an even brown

v) did not make any sound.

I am an experianced birder and have seen black billed cuckoos before and since this bird (but never a yellow billed before), and used to be a member of the Hamilton Naturalists Club (bird study group) before I moved to Montreal. Please let me know if anyone else has seen this bird. Again, I appologize for not spreading this wider earlier.

Spotted a pair of Red Headed woodpeckers July 12 on Morrish church road which is a road a number of miles east of Newcastle, just north of the Wesleyville power station. Birds spotted on this road just north of the power station and south of the highway.

Hi Gord,

On July 5,6 1997 ~3 PM under good viewing conditions (with Peterson's Guide in one hand and the other on the scope) I observed a Tundra Swan in the Merlin sewage lagoons.

Lots of Yellow, Common Yellowthroat, American Redstart, Black and White, Black-throated green, and Ovenbird warblers; Red-eyed and Warbling Vireos; Chipping, White-throated, and Song Sparrows; Wood Thrush; B. Orioles; Marsh Wrens; GBH's, Green Herons, Spotted Sandpipers, a Loon, Mallards, and a single blue phase Snow Goose!

The Gray tree frogs are also in full chorus

Hi, just thought I would let everyone know that earlier today (June 21, 1997) I saw a Northern Oriole (a.k.a. Baltimore Oriole) in King City, just north of Toronto. I also saw one of the 3 Turkey Vultures that frequent the area.

Near the Ausable River -- American Redstarts, Chestnut-sided, Common Yellowthroats, Pine, Blackburnian, Ovenbirds, and Canada Warblers; Baltimore and Orchard Orioles; Yellow-throated, Solitary and Red-eyed vireos, Great-crested and Willow flycatchers, Phoebes, Peewees; Catbirds, Rufous-sided Towhees; Bank, Tree, and Barn Swallows; Hermit Thrush; and Cormorants on Lake Huron.

Well spring is virtually over, the leaves have exploded outwards and within the span of a few days bird watching has virtually ceased here. (Bird listening continues however!). Like the rest of Ontario spring came slowly, inching her way forward against the steady onslaught of north winds and cool temperatures. While migration was slow, it was steady, with the strong and the brave making it up here to nest at about their usual times. I offer below a list of dates for first sightings of these birds on their nesting grounds for you to compare with your sighting dates.

April 24th      - Belted Kingfisher

                - Chipping Sparrow

                - Pine Warbler - first warbler!!  foraging on ground beside snow

patches!

                - Winter Wren



April 29th      - Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

                - Yellow-rumped Warbler

                - Hermit Thrush

April 30th      - Ice finally goes out of Lake Mazinaw!

                

May 1st         - Northern Waterthrush



May 6th         - Solitary Vireo

                - Black & White Warbler



May 11th        - Ovenbird



May 12th        - Black-throated Green Warbler

                - Rose-breasted Grosbeak



May 13th        - Thrasher (probably around for awhile)

                - Veery

                - Wood Thrush



May 14th        - Barn Swallow



May 16th        - Ruby-throated Hummingbird



May 17th        - Chestnut-sided warbler

                - Redstart

                - Northern Oriole

                - Warbling Vireo

                - Black-throated Blue Warbler



May 20th        - Prairie Warbler

                - Nashville Warbler

                - Common Yellowthroat



May 22nd        - Blackburnian Warbler

                - Great Crested Flycatcher



May 23rd        - Magnolia Warbler



May 24th        - Catbird

                

May 26th        - Scarlet Tanager



May 27th        - Indigo Bunting



May 29th        - Canada Warbler



June 2nd        - Mourning Warbler

Some other interesting sighting include a White-wing Crossbill female on April 23rd and a male on May 16th. I may have been to hasty reporting them gone from their winter multitudes last report, obviously a few may be staying around. The Ravens nested successfully on the cliff again and the young where out of the nest by May 29th.

A Mallard was sitting on her nest from May 16th to June 2nd. It appears two of four eggs hatched successfully. A Hermit Thrush nest with 2 hatchlings and two eggs was seen on June 1st.

While not a good spot for seeing migrants we did record a White-crowned Sparrow on the 24th of May, and a Blackpoll Warbler on the 29th of May.

And where are the Mourning Doves coming from?? I have never seen this species here before yet I have seen several this year, including 3 calling (singing?) deep in the forest at my Forest Bird Monitoring Sites!

You may have noticed in the above list the number of Warblers. Bon Echo is an excellent spot to study Warblers on their breeding grounds. Fourteen Warblers are easily detected here including the COSEWIC listed Prairie Warbler, and another three can be picked up reasonably easily. Unfortunately the Golden-winged Warbler which used to be regular here in a few spots has not been detected in three years. I suspect this is a function of its scrubby forest edge habitat growing up rather then a decline in numbers. They can still be detected outside the park along a few roads.

You may have noticed I used the word "detect", not see. Breeding ground forest birding is not quite as easy as catching them in migration traps. The leaves are full out and birds while easy to hear are hard to spot. Throw in the dense clouds of mosquitoes (blackflies are virtually done by June) and bird watching here, like the birds, might be said to be for the strong and the brave. It can be immensely interesting and rewarding so you might like to give it a try before the other great migration (of campers) begins in July and the birds stop (or at least slow down) singing. Have a good summer.

David Bree
Park Naturalist
Bon Echo Provincial Park

Hi, Gord,
We have waited for this day all month..rather than mow the lawn, do the gardens or housework etc., my husband and I spent the day backyard birding off our deck in sunny Pefferlaw...40 species including 8 warblers... Nashville, Northern Parula, Chestnut -Sided, Magnolia, Yellow-Rumped, Black throated Green, Blackburnian, Bay-Breasted and Black and White warblers. Our necks are sore and we are exhausted from all the intense i.d.ing but we had a terrific day. Our two children take for granted species like the rosy-breasted grosbeak, oriole and hummingbird because they are here so often each day. Has anyone else noticed that the orioles are really low this year and trying to feed off the hummingbird feeders?

I am sure many other birders had a super day as "the migration" really took off this week! Great birding!

Hi Gord,
I was searching Gibboney Lake for Sandhill Crane nests, yesterday. No nests but a non-banded Peregrine circled over our canoe. It had an unusual plumage. It was an adult but the tail was rufous from the tip to almost white at the rump on the dorsal side. This bird is probably so distinctive it would not require banding. Our bird migration has slowed for the last two weeks. This is a list of what we saw for the day.

3 Double-crested Cormorant

1 American Bittern              1 Ruby-crowned Kinglet

1 Great Blue Heron              2 Red-breasted Nuthatch

1 Canada Goose                  2 American Robin

2 Green-winged Teal             25 Yellow-rumped Warbler

2 Blue-winged Teal              1 Rose-breasted Grosbeak

2 Gadwall                       2 Tree Sparrow

6 Bufflehead                    4 Chipping Sparrow

2 Hooded Merganser              6 Savannah Sparrow

2 Common Merganser              2 Song Sparrow

2 Turkey Vulture                8 Swamp Sparrow

2 Osprey                        4 White-throated Sparrow

1 Bald Eagle                    2 White-crowned Sparrow

1 Northern Harrier              5 Boblink

2 Broad-winged Hawk             10 Red-winged Blackbird

2 American Kestrel              6 Rusty Blackbird

1 Virginia Rail                 3 Brewer's Blackbird

55 Sandhill Crane               6 Common Grackle

1 Killdeer                      4 Brown-headed Cowbird  

3 Lesser Yellowlegs             3 Purple Finch

1 Spotted Sandpiper             1 Pine Siskin

2 Caspian Tern                  4 American Goldfinch

1 Ruby-throated Hummingbird     2 Evening Grosbeak

1 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker      

2 Common Flicker

2 Eastern Phoebe

1 Great Crested Flycatcher

30 Tree Swallow

1 Bank Swallow

5 Cliff Swallow

3 Barn Swallow

1 Hermit Thrush

Hi Gord.

While driving into Hagersville today, I saw a Phalarope(Wilsons?) just east of Hagersville. It was at a pond near the Hewitt's Dairy Bar. I'm not sure if anyone cares or if you already heard, so mail me if you need more details.

Later,

Hi Gord!
It was a very quite day at Wasaga Beach, The only thing to report is an immature Great Black-Backed Gull at beach one.

Bye for now

Hi Gord
Just got back from South Cayuga area, I saw a Northern Flicker,Eastern Meadowlark and on lake Erie about fifty Red-breasted Morganser ducks. Last weekend I saw an American coot at Stromness near Dunnville Ont.

Like your page.

A male euasian widgeon was observed by four members of the North Bay Naturalist Club on May 10 at the Callendar east sewerage lagoon site for approximately three hours. Another eurasion widgeon was observed by Dick Taffle last year and by Ken Smith some years ago at the Bracebridge sewerage(as reported on the Orillia Naturalist Club hotline).

Regards. Ken Smith. Bird Wing Division of the North Bay Naturalist Club.

Observed flock of approx. 150 red-breasted mergansers at Bondhead, with 3-4 common loons and just east on shoreline road saw 2 palm warblers and 8 yellow rumped warblers and two woodducks. All this in just a short time two hours before sunset.

Spotted 12 Oldsquaw and a pair of hooded merganzers today in Cobourg harbour. Travelling there, saw six turkey vultures and a pair of rough legged hawks.

Greetings all. I decided to do a half month update. If a waited until the end of the month all you people further south would be talking about warblers while I discussed sparrows. Best to get the sparrows in now. All the winter birds I have reported previously are still around but they are starting to get some competition. I find it interesting to note when spring migrants show up at different places. You might want to check the dates of our arrivals below with your sighting. If you live north of us, never fear, here are some birds that are on their way.

April 1st       - Robin

April 2nd       - Phoebe

April 3rd       - Song Sparrow

                - Grackle

                - Bufflehead

                - Mallard

April 4th       - Red Crossbill (have they been present all winter?)

April 8th       - Golden-crowned Kinglet

April 14th      - White-crowned Sparrow (I beat my own Lake Ontario date with

this one)

April 15th      - Wood Ducks

                - Flicker

                - Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

                - Grouse starting to drum

                - Woodcock (They have to stay close to running water, 

        the rest of the ground is still covered by 10cm hard-crusted snow!)

                - American Tree Sparrow

An interesting sighting on the afternoon of the 16th was seeing 4 birds under the feeder, they were a Song Sparrow, Tree Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, and a Junco. Four birds, four species of sparrow.

Now I have left the best for last. In addition to Grackles and Mallards on the 3rd I also saw A Great Grey Owl. It was more cautious then some I've seen, not allowing a super-close approach. But a magnificent bird and a new record for the park. They have probably been here before but not many people around in winter to note them. I wonder if this is the same bird reported on the "Recent Bird Stories" (Ontario) Website from Skootamatta Lake Road, which is only a few miles south of the park? In any event it either didn't stick around or has hidden. An extensive search on the 4th could not find him, but did turn up the Red Crossbills.

Well bye for now, I may wait until mid May for the next posting so I can have some warblers to talk about too. Take Care all.

David Bree

Hi Gord;
There was a lot of activity Apr 5th on the floodplains of the Nottawasaga between Angus and Edenvale in Simcoe County. All the better because I was leading a Brereton Field Naturalists outing, so lots of people got to see things. A WHITE-FRONTED GOOSE was still present among a very large number of Canadas. Jim Forrest got some photos. 5 SNOW GEESE were also seen, also one TUNDRA SWAN (both rarities for our area). 5 SANDHILL CRANES were spotted in a farmer's field. Nearby was a late GLAUCOUS GULL, and a large, late flock of SNOW BUNTINGS with 5 LAPLAND LONGSPURS in full breeding plumage. A wild TURKEY was also present at Brentwood.

Other notables, for being rather early for our area, were COMMON SNIPE (winnowing), PIED-BILLED GREBE, EASTERN BLUEBIRD, and SAVANNAH SPARROW.

Many novice birders had some really good looks at a wide variety of more common waterfowl as well.

Ian Cook

Bye for now,

I have seen two or three golden crown kinglets and an oven bird arrive in my yard in London Ont. this afternoon Sun. April 6. I hope this is not going to be a repeat of what happened last year with so many warlblers being blown in and then parishing. Hold your breath here comes the cold again.

Hi gord:April 6, 1997:Today, Alex and Elsie Lynch, my neighbors, informed me they'd seen a wild turkey in a field off Highway 10 near Glenburnie, ON, on Wednesday, April 2,97. While turkeys are often seen around Belleville, Trenton and the Ivy Lea International Bridge, this sighting near Kingston may be worth reporting.

Hi Gord;
Two White-fronted Geese were found by Alex Mills amongst a flock of 90 or so Canada Geese in a farm field flooded out by the Nottawasaga River just southwest of Edenvale.

Also present in various flooded regions of the Nottawasaga and Mad Rivers around the Minesing Swamp are Pintail, Am Widgeon, Green-winged Teal, Wood Duck, Mallards, Black Ducks,Gadwall, Ring-necked Ducks, a large number of Hooded Mergansers, Bufflehead and Common Goldeneye.

Turkey Vultures, E. Phoebes and Tree Swallows have also returned.

Barrie Ontario Canada

Hi Gord-
hope you're having a great weekend -with the warmspell the birds are really moving and it's great to see the air alive again. Yesterday, March 28 I was down on my parent's property (near Concession 12 Flamborough, between Campellville and Freelton about a 2 km south of the Mountsberg Wildlife Centre where Martin Wernaart lives) clearing some brush when I heard a sound that I thought was a raccoon high up in a tree but I couldn't see it- then I heard the distinctive graak of a crane- it was I assume a Sandhill because of the large numbers of them in North America compared to the Whoopers up about 2000 feet- what excitement ! It was heading north hitching rides on thermals.

Before we left home in the Orton area ( east of Hillsburgh) that same morning I also a lone Tree Swallow - my earliest record previously was April 8 for this area. Other birds seen were not as exciting - 6 Kildeer, 1 Northern Flicker, and 1 Meadowlark .

I returned to Bon Echo in the middle of March after a two week absence expecting to find winter on its way out. However I found conditions to be even more wintry then when I left. Certainly more snow, which continued to accumulate until there was 67cm of snow recorded in the forest on March 24th, a season high! Bird distributions have altered somewhat since my last report a month ago. Sadly the White-winged Crossbills seem to have departed. They became less numerous (at least quieter) as the month progressed and I haven't detected any since Mar. 20th. Their departure has been made up by the steady increase in Evening Grosbeaks. I detect them almost daily now but they are still reluctant to come to the feeder. Purple Finch are still present in average numbers and the males are starting to sing from the tops of many trees. Pine Siskins, while not as abundant as in late Feb., are still very common. The lone American Goldfinch seen in Feb. has not returned, no doubt moving on to greener (at least less snowy) pastures.

Black-capped Chickadees, White-breasted Nuthatches, Blue Jays, and Red-breasted Nuthatches remain conspicuous, though the latter rarely visit the feeder. I hung some suet up in the hopes of luring some Black-backed Woodpeckers out of the forest. These birds have been recorded regularly, if sparsely, here during the last 4 summers. But the feeder is probably too far removed from the red pine groves they prefer, and the only Woodpecker I've seen at the suet is a male Downy Woodpecker. This is actually quite a good bird for Bon Echo, being rather uncommon. This is only the second I've seen in 5 years!

Despite the snow some signs of spring are showing up. Today on the small patch of open water on Lake Mazinaw were 2 male and 1 female Common Merganser, and 1 male Hooded Merganser. A far cry from the wildfowl concentrations along the shores of Lake Ontario, but a very welcome addition here. Also today I heard a Mourning Dove (a very uncommon bird here at any time) and our first Red-winged Blackbird. Other birds seen this month were Ravens, Crows (more every day), and Ruffed Grouse. Have a good Easter Weekend. P.S. Saw a Turkey Vulture just south of park on my way home.

Although not rare, we have seen our first Cedar Waxwings of the year on Friday March 22 in Georgetown. They were seen both in the ravine and on our street.

Of course we have been seeing Robins all winter with some many of them choosing to remain year round, however we have been hearing them sing for about the past week and a half. Our first Red-Wing Blackbird was seen in the ravine on March 10. Since then they have become a regular sight on my train ride into work. Grackles appeared March 16.

Best Regards

All three of us are excited and awed by the sighting of a GREAT GREY OWL today, March 21, 1997, at Lake Skootamatta, near Cloyne, Ontario. The sighting occurred around 4pm, as my husband walked out the road to meet our son at the school bus, a distance of about 2.5 km. Suddenly overhead a very large bird! He watched it fly to another tree by the roadway about 10 metres off the ground. The owl was huge! John watched it until Tyler arrived. They both watched it and asked the wise owl a few questions before coming home to get me. All of us returned to find the Great Grey Owl still in the same tree, observing us carefully. We looked him up in the bird guide and were excited to find his appearance here rare. We count ourselves very fortunate to have glimpsed him in our area.

All winter we have fed a multitude of birds at our feeders but to see such a wonderful owl was truly a privilege!

Hi, Gord, It has been awhile but I thought you might like an update from this part of the world! At our feeder in Pefferlaw we have had a huge flock of finches...gold, purple and house eating us out of house and home! We have been visited quite frequently by a small group of Pine Siskins. Last week we welcomed our first red-winged blackbird back and a few starlings. To look outside right now you wouldn't think spring has sprung but the birds know better than I.

Yesterday, we drove north to the Petroglyphs Provincial Park to visit the Gray Jays and were not disappointed. Two jays were following my husband and my two children along the path from the petroglyph enclosure and began eating from our hands. I had forgotten how beautiful and large they really are. We also saw a Pine Grosbeak, a few Pine Siskins, red breasted nuthatches and lots of Chickadees.I am sure I heard a Pileated Woodpecker but no luck seeing it.

Always enjoy your site and appreciate all the birders who send in their reports,

Just seen the first Crow on our feeder. Spring can't be far behind. Our feeder this winter had, Pine and Evening Grosbeaks in fair numbers (50-50 apr) Hairy and Downy woodpeckers a Northern Shrike and a bunch of Black-c Chickadees. Small flock of Redpolls.

Good birding

Great Grey Owls have been spotted in Innisfil Township (Barrie area). First spotted mid-February '97. Still here March 5/97. Male and female.

Hi Gord;
Simcoe Co seems to be hosting two VARIED THRUSHES this winter, one has ben a regular for over a month just NW of Barrie; a more recent report has one north of Orillia.

A Red Shouldered Hawk was seen in Innisfil last week.

Red-winged Blackbirds are being reported in the southern parts of the Co.

A robin was spotted near Shanty Bay.

Great greys and Snowy Owls are still in the county.

For more details, call the Hotline at (705) 431-8798.

Hello Birders!! Today I noticed in Downtown London on top of the Canada Trust building the female Peregrine Falcon from last year is back. She was checking out the nest box. There has been no sign of the male at this moment. This has been kind of unusual because usually the male is the first to arrive. But no need for concern because it is still quite early.

Hi Gord.

Just a short note to report that last weekend a pair of Bohemian Waxwings were sighted in Rondeau Provincial Park. This is the first record of the birds in the Park. They were still in the area as of Thursday.

Hi David! Enjoyed all your birding news. I live just north of Sudbury, and have enjoyed the company of over 100 Goldfinches this winter. It seems that I have some of the only Evening Grosbeaks in the area as well (approx. 30-40). This winter is a first for me for a lonely Brown Creeper and Red-Breasted Nuthatch. Happy Birding! Valerie

I have had the opportunity to work up at Bon Echo Provincial Park (2 hours WSW of Ottawa) for the month of February. This is the first time I have spent any length of time here in the winter so I was looking forward to seeing what birds would be around. Only a few species as might be expected for this time of year but the birds present have been quite active. The occurence of these birds has been quite interesting. Two groups can be identified; those that go to the feeder and those that don't. Of the feeder birds in order of abundance/conspicuousness are Blue Jays, B-C Chickadees, Purple Finch, W-B Nuthatch, and one lone American Goldfinch on two occasions. The additional birds that don't go to the feeder (all sunflower seeds) are W-W Crossbills, Red-breasted Nuthatches, Pine Siskins, Juncoes, Brown Creepers, Hairy Woodpeckers, Ravens, Crow.

The W-W Crossbills have been a real treat for me. Like elsewhere in the region they are more common this year then most. The ones in the park are constantly singing. I wake up each morning to their trilling. It reminds me of spring!. Is this behaviour an indication that they are setting up territories/have bred? Or do they sing a lot normally?

The red-breasted nuthatches are also very numerous, and very vocal. Constantly both "yank-yank-yanking" and chittering more quietly. The Ravens are also a treat. I beleive they are courting now, they fly circles together along the large rock cliff above Mazinaw Lake. An extremely impressive setting to observe birds against!! I have observed them on their nests in the past on this cliff face.

Also of interest is the distribution of the other winter finches. The Purple Finches seem to have dropped in number after about the 18th of Feb, while the Pine Siskins have gone from nearly absent at the first of the month to being the most common bird in the park since about the 18th. Is there a conection between the rise of one and the decline of the other?

Notable by their absence have been the Evening Grosbeaks. Bon Echo is usually a sure thing for them in all seasons. One small flock flew over the park on the 17th. Is this the vangaurd of returning birds or mearly the few that have probably been here all year?

Finally a crow showed up on the 19th cawing early in the AM. Spring is coming! Any comments on my sightings, answers to, or musings about, my questions are welcome.

Howdy,
I am new at birding and have been keeping a list of birds at or near my house in Buckhorn. I live north of Peterborough on Pigeon Lake near Gannons Narrows. So far this winter season I have seen the following.

        Downy Woodpecker

        Hairy Woodpecker

        Pileated Woodpecker

        Great Horned Owl (sleeping in a tree, have pictures)

        Great Grey Owl (seen frequently)

        Red-Tailed Hawk

        Spruce Grouse

        White-Breasted Nuthatch

        Red-Breasted Nuthatch

        Black-Capped Chickadee

        Snow Bunting

        Purple Finch

        American Goldfinch

        Blue Jay

        Mourning Dove

        Bufflehead

I can't wait until the hotspots for the Peterborough Area gets filled. Until then its off to the Petroglyphs and the Peterborough Airport.

Tally-Ho

Bye for Now

Gord, Sorry we missed you. We played around on Wolf Island so long that it was too late to call when we finally checked in at Ottawa. The next day we met a young ornithologist whose first name is Michael. He showed us the Hawk Owl and where to find the Grey. It took us about 10 tries but we finally saw it sitting on a branch over the drain out in the open. It was a wonderful experience. This was right at 9 in the morning Sunday, Feb. 16.

In Algonquin we saw a Boreal Chicadee and lots of White-winged Crossbills among many others we had seen before. One exciting experience was having Black-capped Chicadees eat peanut kernels from our hands in Mew Lake camp ground. My son knew they did that so had brought along the kernels from his stash at home. All in all it was Great. Even the 30 below on Mon. morning didn't slow us down. Thanks so much for your help.

Ruby Williams

Hi gord: Today (Feb. 18/97) at 2:15 p.m.I watched an adult gyrfalcon fly across a field about 5 Km. east of Marysville on the south side of Highway 96.It was about 200 meters from the road and flying quite low.It was travelling very rapidly and in les than one minute disappeared from sight behind a tree island. I turned the car around but failed to spot it again.This bird was somewhere between a white and a grey morph--more white than grey.The temperature wws 2 Celsius with a light wind and partly cloudy.The only birds I saw nearby were: snow buntings, horned larks and starlings (no owls todaybut a rough-legged hawk, 2 red-tails and a kestrel).To get there from the winter ferry dock: at the intersection of the ferry road with Hwy 96 turn left(east) drive about 2 km and check the fields and trees on the south side.

A flock of Cedar Waxwings was observed in the vicinity of #58 & 60 Victoria Street in Colborne, Ontario on Sunday the 9th of February. At least one of the waxwings had a brillant orange tail bar vs the normal yellow. This form is rather rare I believe. The only reference I have to it is a note in the Ornithological Newsletter published by the American Ornithological Union, #61, December 1987, wherein it was noted that some Cedar Waxwings have appeared with orange rather than yellow tail tips since at least 1969!

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dr. Dennis G. Garratt                      e-mail: dgarratt@netcom.ca 

68 Weller Court             phone 905-373-8300 or mobile 905-373-7507

Cobourg, Ontario

Canada, K9A 5K3

                                 "Fallor ergo sum ... Cogito ergo sum"

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi, Gord, On the way home from work tonight about 4:30. my children and I spied our first awesome great gray of the year. After they were so plentiful last year in our area, I thought we would not see any this year! It was a HUGE bird watching the traffic just north of where Woodbine Ave. bends toward Sutton! Welcome back to a most inspiring species!

The short-eared owls have finally arrived! Three owls were seen on Saturday, February 1st on the northwest corner of the Kimble Side Road and Holt Line in Lambton County. On the same trip, we also spotted a Horned Grebe in the Bay just north of Sombra on the St. Clair River. Other ducks seen along the St. Clair River between Wallaceburg and Sombra include numerous Canvasbacks, Redhead, Common Goldeneye, Ringnecks, Common Mergansers, 2 Hooded Mergansers, a few Mallards and Scaup.

Owls abound west of Bolton. On Torbram Rd there are 11 Short-eared Owls roosting in the small conifers nearest the road at Mayfield Golf Course. A bit further north near Old School Rd is a Snowy Owl and at Centerville Creek Rd about 12 hydro poles south of Cty Rd 9 is a Hawk Owl. I saw these all within a few minutes of each other on Sunday.

In Muskoka Great Gray Owls are being seen all over, with the greatest concentration along Hwy 60 near Hwy11.

Hi Gord

What a great weekend in Simcoe County for owls!

Numerous GREAT GREY OWLS and SNOWY OWLS throughout the country-side.
Several NORTHERN HAWK-OWLS as well.
One BOREAL OWL in Orillia.
And a report of SHORT-EARED OWLS near Bolton.

I had the good fortune of watching a huge Great Grey being harassed by a much smaller but very pesky Hawk-owl, from a distance of about 100 ft. Eventually the hawk-owl chased the great grey away, but continued to put on a great aerial display for me before finally sitting down.

Check out the SIMCOE COUNTY BIRD HOTLINE at (705) 431-8798 for locations. The best bet would be Mara Concession 7, just west of Hwy 12.

Ian

Hello everyone I just got back from a day birding at the family cottage near Apsley, Ontario ( about 1.5 hrs northeast of Toronto ). I had several highlights for the day. On the way into the cottage I stopped after noticing several ravens flying back and forth from the ditch at the edge of the road. I walked to the edge of the road and looked over to see the remains of a road killed White-tailed Deer being fed upon by an adult BALD EAGLE and 22 NORTHERN RAVENS. At the cottage I observed for the first time around my cottage area a male BLACK-BACKED WOODPECKER. Also there were 45 WHITE-WINGED CROSSBILLS, and 5 RED CROSSBILLS feeding on the abundant Eastern Hemlock and White Spruce cone crop.

To top this great day of winter birding at the cottage, on the way out I had a GREAT GRAY OWL fly across the road in front of me. When I stopped to watch this owl I had another GREAT GRAY OWL fly up from the swamp beside the road. These owls were perched within 200 ft of each other. I find it does not matter how many times I have seen a great gray owl, they always have and probably always will captivate me.

List for the day Feb 2 1997



Bald Eagle 1                            Great Gray Owl 2

Black-backed woodpecker 1               Downy Woodpecker 2

Blue Jay 9                              Northern Ravens 29

Black-capped Chickadee 30+              Red-breasted Nuthatch 1

Evening Grosbeak 1                      Purple Finch 7

Pine siskin 3                           Red Crossbill 5

White-winged Crossbill 45               Dark-eyed Junco 3

American Tree Sparrow 16                Snow Buntings 50 approximately.

Weather-- +2 C, partly cloudy, calm conditions.
Observed;
- mature Bald Eagle in flight over the South Point Trail.
- Great Blue Heron on ice between the Lake Erie and Rondeau Bay

Hi, Gord, Just thought I would drop you a line as we have had a few interesting sightings today. We have all the usual winter birds at our feeders-red and white breasted nuthatches, Black-capped chickadees, House and Purple finches, Bluejays, Cardinals, American tree sparrow, Dark-eyed junco, Hairy and Downy woodpecker...but went for a short drive and saw a flock of 13-14 wild turkey crossing a field and a HUGE flock of Snow Bunting.We also sighted an American Robin in our trees this morning! It really makes you realize as a birder that you can never take any bird sighting for granted as we have had no Evening Grosbeak this year or Redpolls. We really miss seeing a Pine Siskin or a Pine Grosbeak once in a while ..I guess it is just "one of those years!"

Good birding!

Hi Gord

Russel Lake and I toured Algonquin Park along Hwy 60 on the 28th; arriving in the area at 0745h after leaving Cobourg at 0400h. While the weather along Lake Ontario and the first couple of hours of the drive had been blizzard like conditions, the weather in Algonquin was excellent.. clear skies -20 C.

The first birds of the day were Common Ravens. We purchased our day pass at the west gate station (new, $8 per day or $30 for the winter season, valid until the end of March). The park warden told us of a Great Grey Owl sighting in Hillside, approx. 20 min by car to the west. At Hillside turn right onto the road opposite the white church on Hwy 60. The owl was suppose to be by a barn approx. two miles down the road (i.e. to the N) on the left hand/east side. We failed to find it, but the day was not over.

Returning to the Park we saw numerous Blue Jays, Evening Grosbeaks, White-winged Crossbills and Black-capped Chickadees (no Boreals this time, but they should be there). Two Great Grey Owls were observed along the Hwy; both were hunting. Other observations included: White-breasted Nuthatch, Red-breasted Nuthatch, American Goldfinch, Purple Finch, and American Tree Sparrows. White-tailed Deer, Red Fox, and Red Squirrels were also seen. Moose, Wolf and Black Bear have also been reported, and numerous tracks were in evidence. The snow is quite deep in the bush; 1 metre plus. Off road travellers would be advised to bring snowshoes.

 

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Dr. Dennis G. Garratt                           e-mail: dgarratt@netcom.ca 

68 Weller Court                  phone 905-373-8300 or mobile 905-373-7507

Cobourg, Ontario

Canada, K9A 5K3

                                     "Fallor ergo sum ... Cogito ergo sum"

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So far in Parry Sound I have had reports of 20 Great Gray Owls and 3 Northern Hawk Owls. I am wondering if these owls are here as a result of looking for food or is this a result of increased population driving some individuals south.

I undertand that some of these birds died of starvation last year. We have had one die this year that the local vet. said was from starvation also. They are nice to see but at the same time it is sad if they are all starving, maybe they will move down to your area. I have also noticed that most of the other winter visitors are in small numbers or none at all ie. both types of Grosbeaks,usually we have hundreds of Evening Grosbeaks.

Today I am photographing a varied Thrush, a life bird for me and the first in this area that I am aware of.

Thanks

The last few days have been very active ones at our feeders on the North Saugeen in Chesley. In addition to House Sparrows, Mourning Doves, Chickadees and Goldfinches we have had a female Cowbird, a half-dozen American Tree Sparrows, both RB and WB Nuthatches, one Junco, two Downy Woodpeckers, a Coopers Hawk and, yesterday, a Red Tailed Hawk that has figurted out that about 4 PM each day a cock Ring Necked Pheasant flies in, lands on our property, hides under a spruce tree then moves to the neighbours to claen up under their feeders. The Red Tail watched the Spruce for a while then flew right under it. I will put on the snowshoes and go to see if there are Pheasant feathers there. Hope not.

At least 4 Great Grey Owls and a Hawk Owl have been reported in the Orillia area in the past week.

There was also an unconfirmed report of a Varied Thrush at a feeder just outside Barrie.

Check out the Simcoe County Bird Hotline at (705) 431-8798 for details

At 9:00 am this morning my wife saw a Snowy Owl and a Pileated Woodpecker in the ravine at Georgetown. Both birds were seen about a quarter mile down stream from the water treatment plant on Silver Creek, on top of the treed hill where the small tributary feeds into the creek.

On Sunday, in the same location were approx. a half dozen downy woodpeckers, several hairy woodpeckers, and a half dozen white-brested nuthatches. There was also a single white-throated sparrow at our backyard feeder (same area). Not as unusual birds, but just as enjoyable a sight (says the man who has never seen a Snowy Owl except for in the zoo.)

On January 9th Adrian Greenwood and I searched for owls on Wolfe Island, near Kingston Ontario. Despite earlier reports of large numbers of Short-eared Owls we found only seven Snowy Owls.

On a return trip on the 20th, under somewhat better weather conditions, we observed 36 individuals: 20 Short-eared Owls, 14 Snowy Owls, and 2 Great Horned Owls. Clearly weather places a major part. On the 20th the 36 owls were observed under anovercast sky, temperature approximately -5 C, whereas on the 9th it was considerably colder and snowing heavily. All owls were observed on the western end of the island between 1400 and 1700h!.

Other raptors of note were: American kestrel, Rough-legged Hawk (4), Red-tailed Hawk (2), and Northern Harrier (2 males, 1 female). Total species observed on the island so far this month = 31. Both Short-eared and Snowy Owls were observed "fighting" amongst themselves over food items, presumably voles.

Separate from the above, a northern Hawk-Owl was observed by the Peterborough Airport on the 18 & 19th of the month. It was apparently been there for over two weeks!

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Dr. Dennis G. Garratt                               e-mail: dgarratt@netcom.ca 

68 Weller Court                      phone 905-373-8300 or mobile 905-373-7507

Cobourg, Ontario

Canada, K9A 5K3

                                         "Fallor ergo sum ... Cogito ergo sum"

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Following a tip I went to the Peterborough airport to look for a Hawk Owl. I did see it at the east side of the airport south of the building down to where the road turns sharply west. I called our hotline and during the hour istayed 4 club members showed up and saw it also. It performed a beautiful low levelflight in front of us. This bird was a lifer for 3 of the 5 of us.

Take care.

Hi: Gerald & Shirley Paul birded Wolfe Island January 3/97 and enjoyed excellent viewing. Of the 33 species sighted, here are some of the significant ones: 3 Kestrels, 7 Harriers, 8 Rough-legged Hawks, 7 Red-tailed Hawks, 7 Snowy Owls, 32 Short-eared Owls,50 Lapland Longspurs, 60 Horned Larks, 35 Snow Buntings, 3 Tundra Swans, 1 Cowbird, 2 Song Sparrows.This is a good time to visit the Kingston Region as Amherst and Wolfe Islands offer excellent birding.