A bone-chilling cold arrived this week with temps at -18 with a wind chill of -28. On Monday we just had time to do a drive locally through the fields on Paris Plains Church Road. It is a winter home to hundreds of Snow Buntings and usually there are a few Lapland Longspurs hanging with them. We found only a few Horned Larks with one Snow Bunting in a group. Jerry got his better pictures of a Snow Bunting and that was it.
Horned LarkSnow Bunting
On Tuesday we headed back to Toronto, I know, I know, I was NEVER going to bird that way again. BUT, the King Eider and Ross’s Goose were still being seen, a Common Eider was still hanging out near Peterborough and we had a location of an OWL! So I convinced myself to try again, it would be different this time and an OWL! It was the only day we would have available and it was, of course, cold and windy. We got to Tommy Thompson Park at 7:30 and trudged the 4 kms in the bitter cold, on the slippery, rough road. Did I mention it was BITTER COLD!? When we got out to the side with the lake the winds were gale force strength and trying to see anything while holding the scope somewhat stable was a ridiculous task. Not to mention my eye freezing from the onslaught of the wind. It is in these moments that my thoughts go to “what the F are we doing this for?” The ducks were reasonably close to shore and we scanned, and scoped, and scanned again. We moved from Pen D to the Pen C area where it had been reported. We took a break on the warmer path out of the wind, then went back out again. NO EIDER! Grrrrr! It was happening again just like last Tuesday. When we could not take the wind any longer we glumly gave up and trudged back to the car. There is nothing you can do to change the fact that the bird is not where you hoped it would be. One hour later a birder we met coming in when we left found the Eider in Pen B a further walk into the park! UGGGGG!
Our next stop was a newer location for the Ross’s Goose in a field instead of the lake and as we pulled up we could see the field was full of Canada Geese. We were looking for the small white goose among them. More scanning, more driving slowly the length of the field. The field was not flat so we knew there were hills that the small goose could be hidden from us but we tried our best to hit all the angles. Then a helicopter flew over and every bird took flight. Our job was easier as we quickly scanned through hundreds of geese looking for something white. NOTHING! Sigh! We were again dipping on the Ross’s Goose too, just like last week. Time was flying by and we still had two destinations so we opted to leave hoping to re-check the field late in the day. The Common Eider is a bird that is, well, common out East, so we will see this bird and I definitely do not need to chase it for this year but it is a great addition to our Ontario Life List and apparently it is the northern subspecies which is different than the eastern species. All that too say, birders can rationalize chasing any bird, LOL. We arrived at the Common Eider spot, pulled off the road, looked across the river with bins and saw a large duck in front of the yellow house as had been reported over a number of days. Jerry took pictures for two minutes, I scoped the bird to confirm and we were back in the car and driving off in 6 minutes. The one bird of the day I did not need and of course we got it. Why oh why could the King Eider not have been so predictable and stayed in one place?
The view from the carCommon Eider
The final stop was for an owl. I’m not even going to say what species it is. Birders can and will deduce what I am talking about. Owl locations are guarded and kept very quiet in the birding communities especially for the sensitive species. But, one person tells one person and they tell a friend and eventually two weeks later a whole lot of people know about the owl. We try to keep these locations on the down-low to protect the owl. I hope to get this species of owl out west in the summer but when you are counting birds you should take the opportunity when you get it, so we went. On the way we saw a woman taking a pic from the side of the road and stopped and saw a beautiful Barred Owl perched just off the road. Jerry got a couple of pics and we left. Barred Owls are plentiful and not on the sensitive species list. We have already seen a Barred Owl this year but Jerry got a great picture of this one.
Barred Owl
We got to the location for the other owl and joined a couple of other birders hoping for a glimpse…and an hour later, NOTHING! BIGGER, LONGER SIGH! We left to give ourselves time to get back to the field for one final check on the Ross’s. There were even more geese, probably 600 or more and just at dusk a helicopter went over again so all the geese lifted up with most leaving and no white goose was seen. So last Tuesday we were 0 of 4 and this Tuesday 1 of 4! That is dismal birding my friends, DISMAL! The drive home was quiet but at least the traffic, for once was good and we got home by 7. I swear to all of you right now that I am absolutely NOT making another attempt on that King Eider at Tommy Thompson. I can only hope that another appears anywhere else at year end.
Wednesday morning we had a meeting with the staff at Memory Care and then we headed up to Kitchener for the annual Snowy Owl hunt. I was a tad nervous that the bad karma from Tuesday would carry over but we went anyway. Last year it was very difficult to find a Snowy anywhere in Ontario as they did not move down from the Arctic but this year they are back in some abundance and there had been a number of reports from the Linwood area. Hunting for Snowy’s involves driving up and down gravel roads looking at fields covered in snow for a lump of white with black “bits”. It was still windy so we were also dealing with blowing snow. There were many false stops for buckets, bags, snow covered rocks that looked like owls. There were a couple of other cars driving around and we stopped and shared info. No one had seen any. I had 3-4 spots that had been reported on ebird and we know the regular roads to find them. At the end of the second area I saw a lump near a fence, lifted my bins, and it was a Snowy! Yes! the curse had been lifted!
Can you see the Snowy?Snowy Owl
I was also scouting for Jude who was on his way to try for Snowy’s too so I quickly sent him the pin and pics hoping the owl would remain in that spot a bit longer. We continued up the road and turned onto the main road and both of us saw another lump in the first field. Sure enough, a second snowy minutes after the first! Things were looking up.
I was happy with seeing two and after sending Jude the second location we headed home. A Short-eared Owl had been seen in Brant County the last couple of nights 10 minutes from home so we wanted to try for that at dusk. We headed out at 4:30 and went up Paris Plains Road first and had a flock of about 150 Snow Buntings fly out of the field around our car and then back into the field. It happened too quick for photos but what an awesome sight those birds make. A bit further along the road we saw this strange bird flying low over the field, it had a strange lob-sided flight and the shape and size were strange to us. We both said “what was that?” and I quickly turned the car around to follow after the bird. It landed in a tree, we got bins on it to realize it was a Northern Shrike with a dead Junco! That was why it looked so strange in flight. It pecked at its dinner a few times, perhaps the death blow, and then hopped down into the thicket with its dinner. Jerry got out and walked over hoping for a pic and the Shrike popped up and sat for a minute and Jerry got some nice pics of it before it dropped back down and we left it to enjoy its meal. This bird is known as the Butcher Bird as it preys on small birds, lizards and frogs and it often impales its victims on thorns or barbed wire to keep for later and I assume making it easier to eat.
Northern Shrike with feather from Junco dinnerLook at that deadly beak!
We then stopped to chat with a birder that had seen the Short-eared Owl the night before and got the exact location and Jude arrived, having gotten the Snowy and decided to join us in the Short-eared hunt. We headed down to show him the Shrike and he got pics of that. Jude has been going full speed this year and the Snowy and Shrike were year birds for him. He says he is not doing a Big Year but I think he will end up doing one by default. He is already in the number one spot. We headed over to Watts Pond Road where the owl was seen the last few nights and waited. I was nervous about where we were parked, it didn’t give very good “long” views and the evening before it was seen farther down the road. We drove down and back and then around 5:20 we drove down again. On the way back up the road we stopped at an open area near the beginning of a large berm. Jerry said wait here, it has good views and 30 seconds later a Short-eared Owl flew right out and near our car before turning back and moving through the field. I quickly honked for the guys further down the road and they moved down to see it. Jerry got pics, I watched the owl and a few more people arrived. We have always known there were Short-eared Owls in Brant County but we have never had consistent reports from one location. Perhaps this area might become that spot where they are reliable each winter.
Short-eared Owl
We were all cold, hungry and happy to have seen the owl and we were happy to have seen two owls added to our list. The Short-eared owl was Judes 130th bird of the year! We headed home and as we turned off West River road we saw a bird up on the wire above the road. It was dark by this time and hard to see but we could tell by the shape and tufts that it was an Eastern Screech Owl! A three owl species day! and it put me at 100 birds for the year. Jerry took some pics in the dark and we continued the short drive home. What a difference from the day before. From low, low to high, high. And I guess that is why we do this – always a mystery as to what will happen, and what you will or won’t see…
Eastern Screech Owl
The next few days we had things to do for Babi and to organize for our BC trip next week. We needed to buy a tripod that we could fit in our carry on bag as we hate to check luggage when we fly and had to head to a store in London to get it. On Sunday we took a few short local hikes and went out to see a Greater White-fronted Goose in Brant Waterworks Park. Last week we had driven to Simcoe to see one for our list and of course this week one showed up 20 minutes from home. It is a Brant County Life bird for me though so worth the walk in beautiful sunshine and warmer temperatures.
Week 4 4 species added Ellen 100 species Jerry 99 species
The strategy for these early weeks is much the same as last year in that we don’t want to chase common species just to up our numbers quickly. There are birders that go full out in January and amass as many species as they can as fast as they can but the reality is eventually everyone else catches up as they see and add the common species. Our time is still somewhat limited as we deal with Babi things so we are trying to be efficient with when and where we bird.
On Tuesday we opted to try for a couple of rarities that we need to get in Ontario and that have been reported since the new year. A Ross’s Goose has been hanging in Whitby for awhile and a King Eider has been seen off Tommy Thompson park in Toronto. Instead of fighting traffic we made some stops along the way to see what else we might add to our list. The Lakefront Promenade in Mississauga has been host to a Snow Goose and Harlequin Ducks and usually has some good numbers of birds around so we stopped there first. We don’t particularly need Snow Goose or Harlequin as we will likely see both somewhere else but the more we take off the list now the easier it is later. It was a frigid -10 feeling like -18 but we set up our scope and started going through the Geese hanging around and did not find the Snow Goose. We then walked quickly along the lake and did not turn up the Harlequin Ducks either. Uh-oh, not a great start to the day. We added a few common species for our year, Redhead and Winter Wren, and then we opted not to spend any more time as they were not the target for the day and we headed off to Whitby Harbour in hopes of the Ross’s Goose.
There were about 500 Canada Geese to sift through in Whitby at scope distance away and we were looking into the gusting west wind making it difficult to keep our scope steady so we could view the geese and again, no white goose. There were a number of other spots that it had been seen so we heading back to the car when we spotted a raptor in the channel. It was a Peregrine Falcon hunting the gulls and it spent a number of minutes right in front of us chasing the gulls as they squawked and flew and tried to evade it. We had fantastic views with Jerry snapping pictures and I totally forgot to pull my new 16Pro phone out and take a video! I think I could have gotten some decent video as it was super close to me. It never managed to get a gull and gave up and landed in a tree.
Peregrine Falcon
After checking a few more spots for the Ross’s Goose which involved looking through hundred’s more Canada Geese we headed to our next destination, Tommy Thompson Park in Toronto. This is a premier destination for birders but it is a huge area and requires a looong walk in to get to the birding spots. Luckily the King Eider had been seen just past the marina so only about half-way in. We added Ruddy Ducks on the way in and then American Wigeon but alas, once again we came up empty with this duck too. What can you do? Timing is what it is all about. We scoped thoroughly, was it just diving and we kept missing it or was it farther out? At 4:00 we gave up and headed back to the car.
Tommy Thompson Park with the Toronto skyline
Out of 4 species we had hoped to add we found 0! To add insult to injury we were leaving Toronto at 4:30 and due to construction sat in gridlock for an hour before getting on the highway so we arrived home at 8:00! Ugggh! we swore never to bird in Toronto again. LOL, or at least until the next rarity .
On Friday there were milder temperatures and we opted to bird for the day so we started checking a few spots in Brant County as we worked our way to Simcoe where a Greater White-fronted Goose had been reported. The park area in downtown Simcoe has been there since the 50’s and I have fond memories of family picnics there in the 60’s with my family and a stop at Hewitt’s Dairy on the way back to Hamilton. There were about 500 Canada Geese to look through to find the “one thing that was not like the others”. Our first scans turned up nothing and Jerry moved further up the canal while I turned back to give the area we had just scanned another look and suddenly there was the orange bill of a Greater White-fronted Goose in my bins! I called Jerry to let him know and then could not re-find the goose! It blended in so well and so it took a few minutes to find it again and by then Jerry was back so we both had great views of it. Last year our views of this goose was across the bay at Rondeau and we could barely make out the orange, but here there was no mistaking it.
Greater White-fronted Goose
We then headed to Hamilton, driving farm roads through Haldimand towards Hamilton but saw nothing too much and ended up along the Lake. We found two more year birds, Black Scoter and Surf Scoter off of Millen Road but too far out for pictures. Decent scope views though. We then called it a day around 2 and headed home. Just as we pulled in the driveway, a text came in from Bill letting us know that he had found a Northern Saw-whet Owl in Brant Park and giving us directions. We had missed one last week when we were moving Babi so it was nice to get another chance. We made a quick bathroom stop and headed back out again. We met up with Jason and Jenny who had also missed it last week and we walked quickly to the area we know these owls often roost in. Neil was there looking and told us that he had not found it and the owl must be gone. We all stood in the area and I glanced up at a cedar right beside me and I saw that familiar lump and there was the tiny owl sitting near the trunk of a cedar tree! It is always super exciting to find or re-find one of these owls. They are only 5-9″ tall and weigh in at 2.5 ozs so it is difficult to find them when they are tucked into evergreens. We backed up to allow viewing without encroaching and the ones with cameras took a few photos and then we left the owl to its rest.
Northern Saw-whet Owl
So unlike Tuesday when we batted 0 of 4 we managed 4 of 4 on Friday. You just never know what kind of birding day you will have when you head out. We opted not to make the Cochrane trip because we have a very good chance of seeing Willow Ptarmigans in Newfoundland in the Fall or even BC in the summer and most of the other birds we would get on the trip can also be had somewhere else. The Quebec trip is on hold for the moment and might not happen until the end of the year depending on what is still around later in February. We have booked our flights to BC leaving in a week to get winter birds and there are a few rarities that we hope will still be there when we go. My focus has been on reading ebird reports and setting up where we need to go in Vancouver and on the Island so that we can maximize our time there. Barb introduced us to David out in BC, who has been most helpful in giving us information not always readily available.
We had our Grandkids for a sleepover on the weekend so didn’t get out to bird again this week. Oh, and the ducks we missed on Tuesday were all seen the rest of the week so it was just timing that we missed them. And it probably means we do have to make another trip back to Toronto to try again…
Week 3 11 species added Ellen 96 species seen Jerry 95 species seen
Monday we had to be in Hamilton so we went early to Fifty Point and try and do a bit of lake watching to get some common ducks but the winds were coming off the the lake so fast that it was next to impossible to see anything in the waves. So we opted to search some pines for a Northern Saw-whet Owl that are often found in the area but came up empty. We decided to check more sheltered areas along the lake and added species as we went and ended up at LaSalle Marina where the proximity of the ducks makes it easy to get decent pictures. We ended up adding 11 new species for the year, all common.
The next five days were a whirlwind of getting things ready to move Babi into memory care but we managed to see a few species new for the year. On Wednesday we picked up a Northern Mockingbird that is spending its 3rd winter in my brother’s backyard when we dropped some things off. Heading home from the hospital late afternoon we were on Bay Street when a discord report of a Cackling Goose at Bayfront Park came in so we detoured quickly, grabbed our bins and saw the Goose within 15 minutes of the report! One of those great twitches! Jerry added Turkey Vulture on Thursday while I was at home and then I saw one the next day to even us out again. These early months are when it is most likely that we have different numbers because we know the other will see these common species soon enough.
Babi moved into memory care on Friday after a month in hospital and it gave us an immediate sense of relief that it is no longer just us trying to care for her. It will be a huge adjustment for her as she grieves for her apartment and all her precious belongings but we hope that she will eventually enjoy the social aspect of the place.
On Sunday we met up with Jason and Jenny for a walk through Brant Park hoping to find owls. It was a lovely day with some sunshine and warm enough as long as we kept moving. We spread out and wandered through the evergreen trees looking for any tell-tale owl shapes in the trees. Jerry was lucky enough to find 2 Long-eared Owls but they flushed as Crows mobbed them, Jason saw one of them flush but both Jenny and I missed them. We walked further down the road and went back into the trees where we heard Chickadee’s mobbing something and again Jerry got to the spot and saw a Long-eared Owl and I managed to have a quick look at it before it flushed. We stopped looking at that point not wanting to bother the Owl as it was obviously being irritated by the birds around it. We continued our walk and over 4 hours we ended up seeing 28 species, 4 new species for my year list and 7 more to my Brant County list. Jerry missed a couple of birds, Pileated Woodpecker and Red-Shouldered Hawk that the three of us heard so he will be behind me for a bit and I still need to see them as well. We ended the walk seeing a beautiful adult Bald Eagle, one of the pair that nest on the Grand River and Jerry got a lovely picture of it.
Bald Eagle
We should be able to get out and bird a bit more over the next week and see if we can catch up with some more of the common winter birds that are around. I had hoped to be taking a trip to Quebec for winter owls and ducks but I think that might not happen at this point. We are talking of a trip to Cochrane because the Ptarmigans are back up there this year and it would be easier than trying for them in Quebec. We are also starting to plan a winter trip to BC. More to come next week…
Week 2 20 new species added, no rarities Ellen 85 Jerry 83
We started 2025 in Kirkland Lake and headed out to see if we could get the Rosy-Finch for this years list. Each species is a “new” bird for the year and so the day is one little hit of dopamine after another LOL. There are lots of happy shouts – “Blue Jay, first of the year!”, “Black-capped Chickadee, first of the year!” and so it goes. Our first bird of the year was a Ruffed Grouse, two actually, on the side of the road as we drove to the Rosy-Finch location. We expected to be the first ones there but Barb had driven up from Hamilton and had already had great views. The Rosy-Finch was in a tree when we arrived which made us very happy! Jared’s yard was full of birds with a few we normally would not be counting on January 1. There were Pine Grosbeaks, Evening Grosbeaks, and Canada Jays as well as the usual species we get in our backyard. It was great to share the start of our year with Barb and Jared, the homeowner. We took pictures and video of the birds and then we headed out for the long drive home.
Pine GrosbeakCanada JayEvening GrosbeakGray-crowned Rosy-finch
Normally, our January 1 would take place along Lake Ontario as it does for many birders in Southern Ontario. Most of the duck species are present and you can rack up some good numbers usually expecting to see 50-70 species on the first day. With being up north and spending 7 hours driving, our first day count was low – only 25 species but I would say we had some quality birds that are not always easy to see and two rarities. On the way home we took a quick detour at Orillia and headed over to Scugog where a rare Harris’s Sparrow has been frequenting a feeder for quite a while. We only had to wait about 10 minutes before it appeared under some cedars and we added a few more species that were coming to the many feeders the homeowners had filled. We also added a Northern Shrike Jerry spotted on the wires and when we got home at dusk a Great Horned Owl was hooting in the backyard. I ended up being a bird ahead of Jerry because I saw a Bald Eagle near Huntsville while he slept. I’m sure he will see one tomorrow.
Harris’s Sparrow
January 2 we stayed at home and ran a list for the backyard and then took a hike down the trail to walk instead of drive. We added 13 more common species to our list with Jerry getting his Bald Eagle. We are even again. On the 3rd we had errands to run and so we did a quick drive through local spots and went for a short walk at WFR Dickson CA to see the resident Tufted Titmouse. It is also a great spot to get closeup pictures of many of the common birds as they are used to humans and being fed by hand. We added 6 more species.
Tufted TitmouseNorthern CardinalAmerican Tree Sparrow
On Saturday we opted to head to Wolfe Island and try for our nemesis bird last year, the Eurasian Tree Sparrow. We tried multiple times for that bird and there were a few other sightings in the province but we missed them or the owners chose not to have the public visit. I was determined to add it to our Canada list. You need to take a ferry from Kingston and we arrived just in time to catch the earlier one and as we were driving on the ferry a Discord report from the homeowner said the bird had just been at the feeders. We drove the 15 mins but had to stop along the way for a Golden Eagle!, a Rough-legged Hawk and a Northern Harrier. All first of the year birds and nice views of them.
Golden EagleRough-legged Hawk
When we arrived at the home the owner Mark stepped out to let us know it was at the front feeder and we both got a quick look at it before it hopped back into the tangle of vines nearby. It was -12C with a strong wind so conditions were not great – frigid would be an apt term. I climbed back in the car for a few minutes and Jerry walked down and saw the bird at the side of the house where we both got great views as it sat out in the open for a bit. We drove around the island a bit and then opted to go back to the mainland and head west to take another ferry onto Amherst Island.
Eurasian Tree Sparrow
Amherst is also an IBA (Important Birding Area) and can be a mecca for migrating raptors and owls. It is not always easy to find said raptors and owls but we are assured that they are there. After getting off our third ferry of the day we headed to Owl Woods, an area where a number of species are known to roost. We met up with Dorlisa, Colleen and Geordie and Dorlisa was kind enough to give us directions to where they had seen a Barred Owl minutes before. We found it and spent a very few minutes taking some pictures and looking at it with bins from a distance away before heading out to leave it in peace.
Barred Owl
A Discord report came in of a Tufted Duck in Toronto and we discussed whether to try for it but after checking the travel time we realized we would not get there before dark. We drove a bit and walked a bit more of the island but had no luck finding other owls or many raptors. The drive home ended up taking 4.5 hours because of snow squalls going through near Colborne. It was a messy, slow drive so we didn’t get back in the door until 8. Hungry and tired we were happy to sit down to a very quick dinner of tomato soup and grilled cheese. Apparently, we are back on the “birding diet” of eating one meal a day!
On Sunday we had committed to doing the Brant Christmas Bird Count and while I very much wanted to be getting the Tufted Duck, we picked up Jeff, a local friend, and headed out to do the count. We knew our area would only take the morning so there would be time for the duck later. It was snowing and around -8 so it was a quiet start to the morning with a lot of the birds still tucked into their roosts. We saw 26 species of birds at 2 different locations and finished just after noon. The highlight was Jerry finding a Yellow-rumped Warbler that is probably wishing it was in south America with all its friends.
Yellow-rumped Warbler (fall plumage)
Reports had come in that the Tufted Duck was close to shore at Colonel Sam Smith Park in Etobicoke and many people were getting nice close looks at it. We headed there after a quick stop to drop Jeff off and arrived at 2 to find out that it had flown off about 5 minutes before! We hung out for a bit as many Scaup (it was hanging with them) were flying back in but we also knew that yesterday it had flown in late afternoon and had ended up just further west in the lake and viewable from a small park about 10 minutes away. We opted to go and check that place out. We set up our scope and started scanning the large raft of Scaup (ducks). Scaup and Tufted look very similar but the Tufted Duck has a black back and the Scaup have a grey back so you are looking through hundreds of ducks for the one with the black back. I found it! but by the time Jerry looked in the scope it had dove. As others arrived we now had 5 of us looking for it, scanning the raft and not re-finding it. Minutes went by and I was beginning to wonder if I had imagined it when Dorlisa saw it. Thank goodness, it was there! It took many minutes more for everyone to finally see it as it was actively diving for food and was only on the surface for 30 secs and then gone. More birders arrived after we sent the Discord report that we had found it.
Can you find the Tufted Duck?Tufted Duck
We stayed for a bit longer as more birders arrived and helped as many as we could get looks at the duck in the scope. Always wanting to add that good birding karma! and I love helping people get on the birds especially if it is a lifer for them – the next best thing to getting a lifer is helping someone else get a lifer! There were plenty of high fives and then we headed for home. Thankfully a fast drive home with no snow squalls and we celebrated with one of my fav meals. Taco Rice Bowls! Yum
I have got in the habit of doing my blog on Sundays/Mondays so even though we are only 5 days in I am calling this Week 1 and then I’ll keep going with blogs ending on Sundays. Five days in we have seen 65 species of birds with 4 rarities. We still have lots of ducks and common species to add this winter but we are not in any hurry. Its been a good week.
WEEK 1 65 species added 4 rarities J&E 65 species seen
I’ve decided not to call this a Canada Big Year because we are not going to be in a position to fly all over trying to get rarities, nor try for the record that currently stands at a whopping 480. We simply want to visit all the provinces during the year and try to get to 400 species of birds seen during 2025. It will not be the crazy chasing like Ontario was. I hope it will be almost leisurely traveling with lots of birding LOL. This is not to say that we will not willingly go past the 400, but it will not be the priority. Birding and lots of birding is the priority and seeing Canada’s top birding spots along the way. Because we will get Western and Eastern birds on trips to other provinces we do not need to chase these birds as rarities in Ontario so we can wait and get them in their usual ranges. The only birds to chase in Ontario will be species from outside Canada that might show up.
In any given year there are about 535 species of birds seen in Canada and hitting 400 is much more of a challenge than getting 300 in Ontario because of the vast distance of our country. In 2024 there was only one person at 405 and in 2022 4 people, the most in one year, managed to get over 400. Many years there has been no one over 400. In 2022 when we drove out West and birded Ontario as we normally do we saw 370 species so we know we can likely get the 400 by adding an Eastern trip and getting a few more Western species.
So the plan at the moment is this:
Start the year in Ontario with a winter trip or two into Quebec for owls, rare ducks, seabirds and Willow Ptarmigan. In early February we will take our one flight out to Vancouver and the Island for a week or two to pick up winter birds that we will miss in the summer.
Back to Ontario for spring and 2 weeks at Pelee in May and then we start driving out west at the beginning of June – Rainy River, Grasslands National Park, Waterton National Park and out to Grand Forks (my brother lives there) which will be our home base for the summer. We will cover the Okanagan, Vancouver and the Island again, then a bit into the Interior and north to Jasper National Park before heading back through Alberta and heading home for August.
We will stay in Ontario for August/September and then in September/October (not decided yet) we will head out East for our first trip to Newfoundland with visits to the other eastern provinces.
Then back to Ontario for the rest of the year but quite willing to chase into Quebec for any rarities or misses.
I’ve got excel lists done and I have some lists of where to see what across the country but I will also be watching my Needs Alerts lists for the provinces to decide when and where to do some of the trips depending on what birds are being seen. So some things will be last minute. I don’t like last minute. I like everything booked and planned way in advance but I am not sure that strategy will work for this year. I might have to be flexible and spontaneous…ugggh! I did get lots of practice last year with being flexible every time the Discord beep would come and my plans changed in an instant so maybe it won’t cause me anxiety to do this year in the same way.
Basically in Ontario we are just repeating our Big Year but chasing less rarities and since we know where we ended up seeing most species we will just repeat a lot of those plans. I don’t really need to hit the 300 mark this year but it would be good to be in the 290’s for sure.
We still have responsibilities with Babi ( Jerry’s mom) and are hopeful that she will be in her care home in the next week or so but we still have to decide what to take and move everything in and then we will need to support her in the transition so that she is happy with the move. We then have the task of emptying a very full 3 bedroom condo to get it ready to rent. I’m hopeful we can still get in quite a bit of birding in these next months but if not we can leave the Quebec and/or BC trip until the end of the year and get those same species then. There is flexibility and if I learned anything last year it is that many of the expected rarities return at the end of the year so there is always another chance. I’m not going to stress over it.
I hope to keep the weekly blogs going but if things are slow I’ll lump a few weeks together. Thanks for reading along!
