Tuesday we took a walk on our local trail not expecting to see anything much and that was exactly what happened from a bird perspective. We did, unfortunately, end up witnessing a young woman attacked and bitten by a dog and had an ugly confrontation with the dog owner ourselves. We stayed with the young woman until she was picked up and then hung around until a bylaw officer came to take our statements. I realized later that I had Merlin running in my pocket so I ended up having most of the events roughly recorded on the app, something to keep in mind for other birders out there that might find themselves in an ugly situation. I also forgot to stop my ebird checklist until later that night so I had a 10 hour checklist going that I had to adjust back.
Wednesday was a rainy day and I stayed home trying in vain to loosen my pulled back and trying to book as much of our BC trip as possible because hotels are filling up fast in the popular vacation spots. Later, while I was talking to Marg on the phone Jerry shouted to me from the other end of the house that there was a Sharp-shinned Hawk in a tree so I grabbed bins and sure enough there was a tiny hawk trying to dry off at the top of a tree. I’ve been watching our feeders for weeks, like a hawk, for a Sharp-shinned Hawk and finally one had arrived. We pulled out the scope and had great views of its skinny pencil legs, its straight tail feathers and buggy eyes, all tell-tale signs that it was a Sharp-shinned instead of a Cooper’s Hawk. I am finally even with Jerry in the count again!
Sharp-shinned Hawk
There has been a little bit of movement of birds as the weather warms. Red-winged Blackbirds, Grackles have arrived and Tundra Swans have started their migration. It is still early days but it will not be long until migration begins in earnest and we will be adding many more birds.
Thursday and Friday were taken up with appointments, the condo and household chores. Late Friday Jerry managed to finally have a sit in his fav chair with a view of the yard and just like the Sharp-shinned , he watched a hawk fly into the trees, he yelled to me and I got to the window in time to see a beautiful Red-shouldered Hawk fly over the pond, into the field back and forth and then finally into the large conifers behind the field. This is the 6th year in a row that a Red-shouldered Hawk has stopped in our yard. Some years we have seen it multiple times and days, other years we have only seen it once. We assume it is the same bird and this has become a winter stop or a stop on its migration path. Some years we see it in November/December and other years it has been January/February. This is the first time we have seen it in March. It will be nice if it sticks around but since we are rarely home we will probably not know if it does.
Saturday the weather was promising for a trip up to Algonquin Park to see about adding a few boreal species. The birding has not been good in Algonquin this winter because there are almost no cones on the conifers and no cones means no boreal species that eat them. But the birds we need have been seen occasionally and so we decided to take a chance and head north – at our usual 4:30am. We were in the park just after 8 and started towards the visitor centre. Most winters we would be seeing flocks of crossbills, redpolls, siskins eating grit on the roads but we drove the 35km without seeing a single flock and only seeing one Raven. Yikes, that was not good. The Visitor Centre has a few feeders that they keep stocked and most years you can stand out above the feeders and see almost all the boreal species but the only birds there were American Goldfinches, of which we have plenty at our own feeders. We did see a Creeper, Downy , Chickadees and Nuthatches in the trees but nothing that we needed for our list. Even the resident Ruffed Grouse was absent and we need a picture of a Ruffed Grouse for the year. We chatted with staff and renewed our seasonal pass and then headed over to Spruce Bog Trail. On the driveway out one bird was out picking up grit. A Red Crossbill! We heard this species out in BC but did not see it and obviously also need a picture.
Red Crossbill
When we got to the trail we fed some Chickadees and watched the Nuthatches but again, no boreal species, no Spruce Grouse, no Black-backed Woodpecker. It was a gorgeous day, bright blue sky, sunshine, white fluffy snow on the trees and being out on the trails kinda made up for the lack of birds. The trails were very narrow with packed down snow but one misstep off the path and you sunk up past your knee in snow. I know this because I did it a couple of times. Thankfully my sore back did not seize with the effort and we managed to hike 6 kms through the day at a few different trails.
Spruce Bog TrailSpruce Bog Trail
Mid afternoon we decided to pack it in with one last stop at the Visitor Center but still nothing much around. The Crossbill ended up being the highlight of the day and the only bird that we added as seen and got a picture of and was added to our Ontario year list. Oh well! You cannot always expect everything to go your way when you bird and even though it seems like a “waste” of a day, neither of us felt that way at all. We loved being out on the trails, the weather was fantastic, we talked to nice people, we still saw birds and enjoyed watching them so it is never a waste of time birding.
Sunday with another sunny day forecast we headed to Niagara for our first attempt at a Black Vulture. This is the only place in Canada to reliably see them so this is one we absolutely need in Ontario. The bonus with Niagara is we could also look for Iceland Gull, Little Gull and Red-throated Loon. Of the four birds we were hopeful for we only saw one, a Little Gull. A bit disappointing but it is still forward movement and next week just may prove to be better as more warmer weather arrives.
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 river entrance is a good spot to view gulls when the winds are from the NW. Buffalo is directly across the river but most of the water is on the Canadian side at that point. Barb and Jean were near the parking lot and having a great time following the Sabine’s and Little Gulls flying into the headwinds again and again. We got our scope on them and had distant but easily identifiable views of Sabine’s Gull for bird #318. While we had nice views with the scope, getting a picture was much more difficult. It was overcast, the gulls move quickly, they are quite a distance away but Jerry managed to get something that is identifiable as Sabine’s. The “M” pattern across the wings and back with the wide black on the wings is a text book juvenile Sabine’s Gull.
Sabine’s Gull
Here is the video view we had looking across to Buffalo and watching gulls flying into the winds. As you can see Jerry had a challenge getting that picture. You cannot even see the gulls flying above the water with the naked eye.
We also had some Little Gulls come in very close so we had lovely views as they played in the wind. These were the best looks we have had of Little Gulls and their distinct jet black underwings.
Little Gull
Jean and Barb have both been a huge help this year, sharing information and cheering us on. Jean is an expert on shorebirds and gulls and we have her Shorebird ID book in the car all the time. I’m not sure how many years she has birded but she still is always enthusiastic and thrilled to watch any and every bird she comes across. I hope I can retain that same joy for many years to come. Barb, an excellent birder too, regales us with stories of past chases and fantastic rarities we dream about seeing. It is always a lovely, fun time birding with these two!
Jerry, Jean, Barb and Marcie enjoying the show!
We watched the show for a few hours until heavy back clouds appeared and it started to rain. As we headed home tornado warnings came up on our phones for the Niagara area but we managed to navigate our way out of the worst of the rain and heavy winds.
On Tuesday we caught up with some household tasks and late afternoon I got an ebird report that a Goshawk had been seen in Cambridge 20 minutes from us. Jerry was out getting groceries and I texted him to hurry home as this hawk might be chaseable. I didn’t really expect it to still be there but hawks do tend to rest for long periods after they have had a successful hunt so we had to give it a try. This was the closest report we have had that wasn’t a flyover and from a reliable birder. We arrived at Shades Mill Conservation Area at 6:10 and spent a few minutes driving around, having not been there for many years and trying to figure out the location of the main building. The hawk had been sitting in a tree behind the building at 4:15. We found the building and slowly walked up the road and then stood in front of the building and suddenly a hawk burst up from behind the building flew up almost over top of me and then higher over a large tree and then was gone. I had a good look as it flew over but Jerry had been looking the other way so only got on it about halfway. We don’t have much experience with American Goshawk having only seen it a few times but I have been studying pictures and the fact that it came from the exact spot the birder reported it made for a pretty definitive ID. Unfortunately, no picture. BUT bird #319! Two new birds two days in a row! things were looking up!
Wednesday morning we headed back up to Shade Mills with Jude and Margaret to see if we could refind the American Goshawk and get some pictures. We spent an hour checking the main building again and the area around it but could not find the hawk. We did have some nice warbler activity that kept us amused. We headed down to the Lake for a bit of a watch in the afternoon even though the winds were fairly weak from the SE. The good birders will tell you that sometimes these winds can still bring in rarities, so we sat. Birders had had Sabine’s the day before late in the afternoon but we did not see anything close enough for us to identify. To be honest, it was more social than watching. We chatted with each other and people who walk along the Waterfront Trail and are curious as to what we are looking for. Birds is not always the first guess by the way, we have had aircraft, whales (yes, whales), boats etc. We educate and point them to the large signs complete with pictures of the birds we are looking for.
That night a report on Discord detailed a possible Curlew Sandpiper (a Eurasian species) that had been seen around 5 at the Exeter Sewage Lagoons. It was a fairly detailed report but the birder was not sure about the ID. We decided with nothing else to work on we would go and see if we could refind the bird and maybe get a huge rarity. Thursday was my birthday and what better way to spend it than walking around a sewage lagoon!
Exeter Sewage Lagoon
There were many shorebirds to go through and we tried to be slow and methodical so we did not miss anything that might be close to what we were looking for. We have never seen a Curlew Sandpiper so we were relying on pictures from ebird and that Barb sent us to help with our search. We were looking for a bird with a long down-curved bill so we could eliminate any bird with a straight bill. We never found the bird but we did have great fun looking at all the shorebirds fairly close to us. Jerry had fun taking lots of pictures even getting down on his belly in the grass so he didn’t spook the birds. In the process of getting up his phone dropped out but thankfully he noticed it missing just a few minutes later and a quick look on my phone of “his” location guided us back to it easily enough. Whew!
Greater and Lesser YellowlegsAmerican Golden PloversPectoral SandpipersWilson’s Snipe Stilt Sandpiper
Late Thursday a report came in that the American Goshawk was back in the same tree behind the building but just briefly so we still might have a chance at a picture. Then a report of a possible juvenile Yellow-crowned Night Heron in Hamilton came in and I was very happy. I had missed one in the spring because it was up in Thunder Bay so we were excited that there might be one in Hamilton. The description sounded accurate but they are similar to a juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron and the bird was quite a distance from the birder who posted it. Below you can see the difference in shape, posture, bills and head shape. There are also differences in plumage if you are close enough.
We were in Hamilton around 9:00 with Grandkids, who had a PD day, and Margaret had been watching a Heron for about an hour with Angela and Michael. It was across the small bay at Princess Point and there was no way to get closer to the bird so scoping and poor camera pictures was all we had. The posture of the bird seemed right – tall upright, long neck and it walked quite upright. It flew minutes after we got there so we only had those bried looks through the scope and the pictures Margaret had taken. We sent a couple of back of camera pictures to “What’s this Bird” on our Discord channel and got back a pretty quick reply that it looked good for Yellow-crowned! I got another positive for Yellow-crowned from another birder too. We were super excited, high 5’s exchanged, pictures taken. We had bird #320! BUT, I felt a bit concerned and wanted better looks and, of course, pictures. I also got a couple of skeptical texts a bit later that confirmed that I needed to see that bird again. We decided to stay around Princess Point trying to refind the bird for better looks. Another report came in an hour later that the bird was seen by a very good birder so we felt better. At lunch time we dropped our Grandkids off and returned to Princess Point to scope the area it had been last seen. There were many juvenile Black-crowned Night Herons to go through and watch carefully for a bit to eliminate. Bob Curry joined us and with his superior knowledge we went through the herons we could see once again. There was one bird we thought had a very good chance of being THE bird, long legged and thin with what appeared to be a long neck but in the end when it came out in the open it was determined to be Black-crowned. The picture below gives you an idea of what we were dealing with in trying to determine ID’s. Our scope view was a bit better than that but it still was short what you would want to be able to ID a bird correctly. I kept wanting to zoom my scope in just a few more turns to see more detail on the birds.
The Yellow-crowned Night Heron look-a-like
Margaret had looked at her pictures on her computer late afternoon and it was apparent that the bird in the morning was also a Black-crowned Night Heron. WE DID NOT HAVE #320! I had to include the picture we took when we THOUGHT we did though because how cute and happy we all looked and the kids were super excited for us!
We left having spent a total of about 7 hours searching along with other birders and despite a couple of reports there were no confirmed pictures or a bird that others could get on and be able to confirm as a group that the bird was a Yellow-crowned Night Heron. Could there still be one around? We will keep checking and hoping. On the way home we decided to make one last quick stop at Valley Inn where a Wilson’s Phalarope was giving great photo opportunities.
Wilson’s PhalaropeSemi-palmated Plover
When we got home I sent a public retraction to the Discord server about my morning report so that others would be aware the Yellow-crowned Night Heron was not seen by me. I’m ok with making mistakes, and making them publicly, I figure it is the best way to learn LOL. Public humiliation is a good teacher! I spoke with other birders and they also thought they had a Yellow-crowned only to realize it was Black-crowned when they viewed their pictures so in the scheme of things this was not a huge mistake. If I had not reported it and the bird was really there then people would be upset too so there is no right answer. Hopefully there is another one found and more accessible.
Saturday was supposed to be a lake watch with NE winds in Hamilton but while we were at Jerry’s mom’s in the morning for caregiving we got a complete flat tire. We tried the compressor and sealant they supply you with now (no tire or donut anymore) and it did not work so we had to call for a tow truck and waited almost 4 hours to then find out that the tire could not be repaired and they had no tires for our car until Sunday or Monday. Thankfully our best friends Marg and Lawson came to our rescue and lent us one of their cars. We owe you big time! And so no lake watch happened but we did not miss anything we needed.
Sunday was a day with family so we spent the afternoon at the pool and out for dinner with our kids and grandkids. Late afternoon a report came in of a rare Cinnamon Teal (western species) at the Grimsby Wetlands! A very nice rarity and I had to just let it go because the first rule is “family always comes first”. Hoping the Teal is still there tomorrow morning. Whew! what a week!
