2024 Big Year Ontario
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Reflections on the Big Year
Just my thoughts on different aspects of the Big Year, in no particular order...enjoy! Stats and Costs of the Big Year We drove 49,449 kms! and since we drive a hybrid plugin some of our travel was "free" so assuming average gas prices we figure we spent approximately...
Week 52 One Last Chase
I thought the year might be over, and then the stars all seemed to align after Christmas. Jerry's mom's unit in the hospital was locked down due to Covid and so, sadly, we could not visit for a week and then on Friday we finally found a memory care unit in Brantford...
Week 51 The Misses of 2024
Only out once to bird this week. Took a walk at Bayfront between hospital visits hoping to find the elusive Pacific Loon close enough for pictures. Met up with Barry and Doug and had a lovely walk in balmy temperatures. The Northern Mockingbird has returned to its...
Week 50 The Big Year Prize!
When we first announced our Big Year one of the first questions we got asked from non-birders, friends and family was "what will you get when you "win"?" They thought there was money, or a trophy, a prize of some sort, that surely no one would take on this task...
Week 49! Small Bird, Long Name
NOTE: Feel free to check the gallery again as we have added new pictures. Rather than leave blank spaces for the birds Jerry missed a pic of, we have added older pictures of the species, and added notes with the year, so non-birders can see what they look like. We...
Week 47 & 48 333!
We had a cousin staying with us from Germany most of the week and a celebration for Jerry's mom 93rd birthday so we didn't get out much. On Friday the winds were good on Lake Huron but we could not get out there as it was the Glen Morris Turkey Roll and we had some...
Week 46 Shearwater!!!!!!
Monday our youngest grandchild turned 6! We have had the good fortune to help care for all four of them from babies over the last 12 years and its been a delight to watch their personalities develop as they mature. Tuesday we had talked about birding in the morning...
Week 45 Cave Swallow!
Most years in late October, early November, birders get the chance to see Cave Swallows in Southern Ontario if the winds are right. Large numbers of Cave Swallows reside in Texas and if there are very strong South, Southwest winds that move up from the Gulf of Mexico...
Week 44 Short and Sweet
It is a quick blog this week as there was little birding happening. Winds were not good for lake watching and we had a lot of meetings as we continue to negotiate help with Jerry's mom. We did manage to take an hour and visit Bronte Harbour to take pictures of the...
Week 43 Sunrise Sunset
I posted my blog about needing to take a bit of a break to reset on Monday morning and a few hours later the universe responded with an "uh-uh". A Black-tailed Gull had been photographed on the 19th but had been initially identified as a Lesser Black-backed Gull and a...
Week 42 Hitting the wall
Monday was Thanksgiving and we had our family dinner so there was no birding happening and of course it was a beautiful day to bird with nice winds for hawk migration. I joked with Jason in the morning saying that since I wasn't going to be at a Hawk watch a...
Week 41 Ho-hum
Monday was our 46th wedding anniversary and what better way to spend the day then birding. The winds were favourable for a lake watch on Lake Huron at Kettle Point. I had contacted James who regularly watches from there and so we joined him and Bill in gusty northwest...
Week 40 Sparrow Hunt
Monday we birded a few local areas around Hamilton where Nelson Sparrows are usually found around this time but there were no little orange-faced sparrows hopping about. We knew we were likely early but we are also excited to add another bird to our list so checking...
Week 39 True North again!
The forecast changed overnight and the winds looked good again for Lake Watching so we headed to Hamilton Monday afternoon and spent 5 hours scoping and chatting with other birders. The winds were quite strong so I was hoping for something good but it was fairly quiet...
Week 38 Lake Watching Part 2
We headed to Grimsby Wetlands early Monday morning hoping the Cinnamon Teal remained and after 30 mins or so of scanning the bulrushes it was re-found! Finally our #320! The duck remained partially obscured for quite a while but eventually moved closer so that...
Week 37 Whew! What a week!
Monday we headed to Fort Erie because the wind was NW and Sabine's Gulls had been reported on Sunday. We didn't get there until afternoon because we needed to finally get an oil change done on our car in the morning. Fort Erie is at the east end of Lake Erie and the...
Week 36 Buffy!
Last week on our first lake watch Marcus had mentioned that he thought one of the birds we had seen might have been a Long-tailed Jaeger instead of Parasitic. They are difficult birds to ID, especially as juveniles and we often see them under poor viewing conditions....
Week 35 Lake Watching
Monday and Tuesday I waited for word of Buff-breasted at the Sod Farms but people had checked and still nothing. The new morning and evening ritual is to check the wind forecast for Hamilton and Sarnia. In Hamilton birders want strong NE winds and in Sarnia we want...
Week 34 The “F” Word
Yes, I'm talking about Fall, and this week started with a taste of it - cold, rainy and windy. We started the week heading into Eastern Ontario to get checklists in two more Counties and hoping that a Little Blue Heron that had been seen 3 days previously might...
Week 33 A Blurb instead of a Blog
As I said in my previous post, we had our 4 Grandkids for most of the week for our annual "camp" so no birding happened. We did see the Ripley's Aquarium with them, they ran their own Olympics, multiple games of hide and seek were played and there was an over...
Week 32 Hit and Miss
Most of this week we birded locally, stopping at shorebird habitat on our way back and forth to Hamilton for care giving. There were a few more reports of Baird's but we were still not able to confirm one. The juveniles will be coming through over the next few weeks...
Week 31 Misses
As we closed out July the birding was quiet under very hot conditions and south winds. Baird's Sandpipers started to show up in five or six places around southern Ontario and we decided to twitch (chase) some local sightings on Friday. The first place we checked was a...
Week 29 & Week 30 “Ruff” Weeks
Week 29 ended up being a non-birding week with only one backyard checklist added to ebird. We enjoyed a few days looking after our grandkids and we had a few caretaking tasks for Jerry's mom. It was also the week of rain and floods so I was not interested in trying to...
Week 27 & 28 The drought is OVER!
Canada Day we were at Confederation Park in Hamilton to cheer on our our daughter's family as they ran 1&5K races to raise funds for McMaster Children's Hospital. We did a bit of a Lake Watch at Van Wagners afterwards to just practise our skills at identifying...
Week 25 + 26 Heat Wave and Half-way!
The weather was the story during week 25. A heat dome covered most of Ontario bringing temperatures in the 30's feeling like the 40's. We had caregiving duties at the beginning of the week so no birding took place. I continued to work on planning the Canada Big Year...
Week 24 No new birds added!
On Monday it was very cool out and we just birded locally with no agenda of birds needing to be seen. It was nice to enjoy watching nesting/breeding activity and Jerry managed to get a few nice pics of birds. Northern Rough-winged Swallow Yellow-billed Cuckoo Many of...
Week 23 Rainy River and a Lifer!
We left early Saturday and drove to Wawa with a couple of birding stops along the way. In Thessalon we looked for Eurasian Tree Sparrows that we had tried for twice in the winter. Its been a few weeks since they were reported and we found nothing at the two known...
Week 22 A Welcome Reprieve and 300!!!
I'm ending this week early, on Friday and posting early so that I can write about the trip north in one blog. When I originally started the blog I imagined a few non-birding friends and family might be casually interested in what we were doing but during my weeks at...
Week 21
Monday was a holiday and we said we were not going to be on any highways and just take another day off. We spent Sunday doing some gardening and enjoyed a pool day at our daughters. But there were birds being seen and so just at noon we found ourselves on the road...
Week 20 You Can’t get them All
Monday found us at the Tip again for a bit of reverse migration but no great amounts of migrants and no rarities going off. Once we started up from the Tip with Theresa, Angela and Michael, we found our first of the year Philadelphia Vireo. It was high in the tree but...
Week 19 the week that feels like a month…
Monday we returned to Pelee, a bit late in the morning as we had a late night emergency with Jerry's mom and only got to bed at 2am. I wish we had left even later so that we were close to Long Point when a report came in for the first Ontario record of a White-tailed...
Week 18 It’s been wild!
Pelee Target Birds: Last week my targets were the Avocet and Willet. My targets now are birds that tend to overshoot their nesting grounds, show up at Pelee and then, I assume, return south not to be seen again. I don't get a second chance at these species in the fall...
Week 17 200! and Pelee!
Background on Pelee: Point Pelee National Park (not the Island) is arguably the best place to bird in Ontario because of the migration of 40 warbler species in the spring and fall and the 400 species of birds that have been seen there. The southern most point of...
Week 16
NOTE: Some of you might have noticed in my list of birds seen there was a question mark at #158. I can now add that this bird was a Varied Thrush we were invited up to Ottawa to hear because we are doing a Big Year. It was coming to a small yard for a number of weeks...
Week 15 Spring has Sprung!
Reminder! Keep checking the 2024 Gallery as we are continually adding and updating pictures as Jerry takes better shots of birds we had in the winter and finally gets pics of birds he missed earlier. With the eclipse on Monday we birded locally in the morning before...
Week 14 Bookend Birding
Monday, we headed to Niagara Falls to try for a Black-legged Kittiwake and make a concentrated effort for a Black Vulture. We have been in the Falls 3-4 times this year to visit friends and family so our time has always been limited to quick stops hoping to catch...
Week 13
The forecast for Monday was sunny and warm so we headed to Rondeau for the day and finally added 6 birds to our list! Blue-winged Teals were the last common duck species needed on the year list. We also had our first Eastern Phoebe and Field Sparrow along the Marsh...
Week 12 A Lifer!
Late Sunday night a post came in that 2 Barnacle Geese had been photographed a day or two before in Bowmanville. Birders were prepared to head out at first light to see if they were still in the same marsh. I was hesitant to take the drive knowing that in the past...
Week 11 Half-way Hawk Owl!
We finally saw a Northern Hawk Owl! and it was bird 150! Half-way to 300! We heard some intel that a Northern Hawk Owl was being seen near Ottawa and had been there for about a week and a half. Early Monday morning, 4:30am, we headed for Ottawa for our 11th attempt...
Week 10 A Golden Week
While the weather has been warm and springlike the number of birds arriving has been still quite low. Its a frustrating time for birders because most have all the winter birds on their lists and the weather makes us think more birds should be around and so we hike and...
Week 9 No (I mean Two) New Birds!
2024 Photo Gallery can now be viewed in larger slides ( just click on the pic) to enjoy the birds we have seen better! Check it out! It was bound to happen! The birding has been slower with my "needs" list shrinking and few new migrants arriving. We went 6 days...
Week 8 Bullock’s!
We started the week with a full day of birding to finish off the Global Backyard Birding Count. We walked 9.3 km, the most we have on any day this year so far. We didn't add any new birds but we did spend a delightful 20 minutes watching two Pileated Woodpeckers feed...
Week 7 Still adding birds…
We started the week with a drive into Middlesex (west of London) searching for a Golden Eagle that has been reported a number of times but had no luck, I am pretty sure I will see one during migration but its nice to get as many birds on the list now. We then headed...
Week 6 Warm and Quiet
We arrived home from our North trip late Monday so I included that day as part of the North Trip rather than day 1 of week 6. A Slaty-back Gull was found in Welland on the Sunday and then seen at the same location on Monday so early Tuesday morning we headed back out...
Week 5 The Far North and a LIFER!
We took a few days off at the beginning of the week except for a quick trip to NOTL for a Little Gull. It is a gull that is better identified in flight because it is black under the wings but it can be difficult to pick it out from the hundreds of gulls that fly up...
Week 4 Still averaging a bird a day!
So, the thing about birding is sometimes you travel three times and stand in freezing temps for 7 hours to get a bird, and sometimes you just have to roll out of bed at 5:30am and step out onto the porch to hear a Great Horned Owl hooting and then crawl back into your...
Week 3 Algonquin and Ottawa did not Disappoint!
We started the week going after a few common winter birds that can be tougher to find and had been reported locally. Snow Buntings are pretty prolific in the fields during the winter months and can be found in flocks of hundreds but there may only be 1-2 Lapland...
Week 2 – Limpkin Along!
January 8, 5:00am the alarm went off and we were out of bed and the house by 5:33. The Limpkin, a species rarely seen north of Florida was re-found in Wheatley Provincial Park after not being seen since December 26. A birder used a thermal imaging scope to find it...
Started with a whimper and ended with a triumph
Finally! It has begun...The goal for the first week was to chase any and all rarities. For the last month I have been following rarities in the province and hoping that some of them would remain into the new year. Most rarities at this time of year end up perishing...
2023 Brant County Big Year 200
In 2022 I ended the year with 199 species seen in Brant county, and Jerry managed to get 200. Did I mention I am competitive? and it bothered me, a teeny bit. I could easily have got the extra bird but I was lazy and let him go birding many times while I sat on the...
Ontario Birds 2024 Count
335 Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch 334 Black-throated Gray Warbler 333 Black-legged Kittiwake 332 Short-tailed Shearwater 331 Mountain Bluebird 330 Cave Swallow 329 Purple Sandpiper 328 Vermillion Flycatcher 327 Brant 326 Black-tailed Gull (LIFER) 325 Yellow-throated Warbler 324 Nelson’s Sparrow 323 Boreal Owl 322 Red Phalarope 321 Pomarine Jaeger 320 Cinnamon Teal 319 American Goshawk 318 Sabine’s Gull 317 Buff-breasted Sandpiper 316 Parasitic Jaeger 315 Long-tailed Jaeger 314 Baird’s Sandpiper 313 Marbled Godwit 312 Ruff 311 Stilt Sandpiper 310 Brown Booby 309 Blue Grosbeak 308 Great Gray Owl (LIFER) 307 Franklin’s Gull 306 Eastern Whip-poor-will 305 Western Meadowlark 304 LeConte’s Sparrow (HO) 303 Sedge Wren 302 Connecticut Warbler (HO) 301 Dickcissel 300 Acadian Flycatcher 299 Alder Flycatcher 298 Hudsonian Godwit 297 Red-necked Phalarope 296 Loggerhead Shrike 295 Red Knot 294 Arctic Tern 293 Neotropic Cormorant 292 White-rumped Sandpiper 291 Yellow-bellied Flycatcher 290 King Rail (HO) 289 Mourning Warbler 288 Canada Warbler 287 Black-billed Cuckoo 286 Willow Flycatcher 285 Gray-cheeked Thrush 284 White-faced Ibis 283 American White Pelican 282 Philadelphia Vireo 281 Whimbrel 280 Western Sandpiper 279 Common Nighthawk 278 Ruddy Turnstone 277 Western Cattle Egret 276 Olive-sided Flycatcher 275 Ferruginous Hawk 274 Bay-breasted Warbler 273 Red-eyed Vireo 272 Yellow-billed Cuckoo 271 Golden-winged Warbler 270 Semipalmated Sandpiper 269 Short-billed Dowitcher 268 Black Tern 267 Wilson’s Warbler 266 Blackpoll Warbler 265 Blackburnian Warbler 264 Magnolia Warbler 263 Northern Parula 262 Cape May Warbler 261 Wood Thrush 260 Bobolink 259 Piping Plover 258 Upland Sandpiper 257 Least Flycatcher 256 Tricolored Heron 255 American Redstart 254 Tennessee Warbler 253 Clay-colored Sparrow 252 Black-crowned Night Heron 251 Yellow Rail (HO) 250 Tufted Duck 249 Least Bittern 248 Brewer’s Blackbird 247 Least Sandpiper 246 Semipalmated Plover 245 Veery 244 Prothonotary Warbler 243 Yellow-breasted Chat 242 Yellow-headed Blackbird 241 Snowy Egret 240 Solitary Sandpiper 239 Wilson’s Phalarope 238 Long-billed Dowitcher 237 Scarlet Tanager 236 Chestnut-sided Warbler 235 Cerulean Warbler 234 Blue-winged Warbler 233 Orchard Oriole 232 Eastern Kingbird 231 Great Crested Flycatcher 230 Sanderling 229 Black-bellied Plover 228 Ruby-throated Hummingbird 227 Summer Tanager 226 Indigo Bunting 225 Rose-breasted Grosbeak 224 Black-throated Green Warbler 223 Prairie Warbler 222 Hooded Warbler 221 Ovenbird 220 Baltimore Oriole 219 Grasshopper Sparrow 218 Yellow-throated Vireo 217 White-eyed Vireo 216 Kentucky Warbler 215 Black-and-white Warbler 214 Lincoln’s Sparrow 213 Warbling Vireo 212 Palm Warbler 211 Cliff Swallow 210 Green Heron 209 Black-throated Blue Warbler 208 Nashville Warbler 207 Swainson’s Thrush 206 Eastern Wood-Pewee 205 Yellow Warbler 204 Common Yellowthroat 203 Common Tern 202 Willet 201 Blue-headed Vireo 200 American Avocet 199 Northern Waterthrush 198 Louisiana Waterthrush 197 Chimney Swift 196 Glossy Ibis 195 House Wren 194 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher 193 Broad-winged Hawk 192 Virginia Rail 191 American Golden Plover 190 Marsh Wren 189 Gray Catbird 188 Dunlin 187 Bank Swallow 186 Great Egret 185 Northern Rough-winged Swallow 184 American Bittern 183 Common Gallinule 182 Spotted Sandpiper 181 Black-necked Stilt 180 Sora 179 Brown Thrasher 178 Pine Warbler 177 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 176 Purple Martin 175 Eastern Towhee 174 Vesper Sparrow 173 Barn Swallow 172 Caspian Tern 171 Winter Wren 170 Savannah Sparrow 169 Black Vulture 168 Osprey 167 Lesser Yellowlegs 166 Pectoral Sandpiper 165 Forster’s Tern 164 Chipping Sparrow 163 Red-headed Woodpecker 162 Field Sparrow 161 Eastern Phoebe 160 Blue-winged Teal 159 Black-billed Magpie 158 Varied Thrush (HO) 157 Barnacle Goose(LIFER) 156 Wilson’s Snipe 155 Rusty Blackbird 154 Tree Swallow 153 Greater Yellowlegs 152 Fish Crow 151 Snow Goose 150 Northern Hawk Owl 149 Golden Eagle 148 American Woodcock 147 Eurasian Wigeon 146 American Pipit 145 Bullock’s Oriole 144 Wood Duck 143 Killdeer 142 Eastern Meadowlark 141 Swamp Sparrow 140 Yellow-rumped Warbler 139 Common Grackle 138 Hermit Thrush 137 Pied-billed Grebe 136 Sandhill Crane 135 White-crowned Sparrow 134 Greater White-fronted Goose 133 Northern Saw-whet Owl 132 Slaty-backed Gull 131 Ring-necked Pheasant 130 Sharp-tailed Grouse 129 Boreal Chickadee (HO) 128 Willow Ptarmingan (LIFER) 127 Spruce Grouse 126 Black-backed Woodpecker 125 American Three-toed Woodpecker 124 Canada Jay 123 Pine Grosbeak 122 Little Gull 121 Brown Creeper 120 Green-winged Teal 119 Tundra Swan 118 Eared Grebe 117 Red-shouldered Hawk 116 Snowy Owl 115 Rough-legged Hawk 114 Great Horned Owl 113 Eastern Screech-Owl 112 Harris’s Sparrow 111 Merlin 110 Lark Sparrow 109 Bohemian Waxwing 108 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker 107 Barred Owl 106 Western Tanager 105 Gray Partridge 104 Hoary Redpoll 103 Ruffed Grouse 102 White-winged Crossbill 101 Purple Finch 100 Evening Grosbeak 99 Redpoll 98 Ruddy Duck 97 Lesser Scaup 96 Black Scoter 95 Cedar Waxwing 94 Eastern Bluebird 93 Snow Bunting 92 Lapland Longspur 91 Brown-headed Cowbird 90 Long-eared Owl 89 Fox Sparrow 88 Northern Mockingbird 87 Surf Scoter 86 Pine Siskin 85 Short-eared Owl 84 Iceland Gull 83 Cooper’s Hawk 82 Song Sparrow 81 Red Crossbill 80 Pileated Woodpecker 79 White-throated Sparrow 78 Limpkin 77 Orange-crowned Warbler 76 Pacific Loon 75 Red-throated Loon 74 Western Grebe 73 Tufted Titmouse 72 Red-breasted Nuthatch 71 Redhead 70 American Wigeon 69 Red-winged Blackbird 68 Northern Shrike 67 Peregrine Falcon 66 Lesser Black-backed Gull 65 Glaucous Gull 64 American Tree Sparrow 63 Golden-crowned Kinglet 62 Common Loon 61 Red-necked Grebe 60 Horned Grebe 59 King Eider 58 Cackling Goose 57 Ross’s Goose 56 Turkey Vulture 55 House Sparrow 54 American Coot 53 Rock Pigeon 52 Ring-necked Duck 51 Canvasback 50 Dark-eyed Junco 49 Belted Kingfisher 48 Double-crested Cormorant 47 Harlequin Duck 46 Horned Lark 45 Townsend’s Solitaire 44 European Starling 43 Northern Flicker 42 Red-bellied Woodpecker 41 Bald Eagle 40 Sharp-shinned Hawk 39 Great Blue Heron 38 Great Black-backed Gull 37 Bonaparte’s Gull 36 Red-breasted Merganser 35 Hooded Merganser 34 White-winged Scoter 33 Greater Scaup 32 Gadwall 31 Northern Shoveler 30 Trumpeter Swan 29 Mute Swan 28 Northern Harrier 27 American Robin 26 American Herring Gull 25 Mourning Dove 24 Common Merganser 23 Barrow’s Goldeneye 22 Common Goldeneye 21 Bufflehead 20 Long-tailed Duck 19 Northern Pintail 18 American Black Duck 17 Canada Goose 16 Ring-billed Gull 15 American Kestrel 14 Red-tailed Hawk 13 Wild Turkey 12 Northern Cardinal 10 American Goldfinch 9 Carolina Wren 8 White-breasted Nuthatch 7 Black-capped Chickadee 6 Common Raven 5 American Crow 4 Blue Jay 3 Hairy Woodpecker 2 Downy Woodpecker 1 Mallard
About me
We caught the birding bug in 2013 and decided in 2023 to embark on three consecutive Big Years, 200 Brant County, 300 Ontario and 400 Canada. The Ovenbird Blog was set up to record our adventures.
