Point Pelee | The Ovenbird Blog

Pelee Week 2

by Ellen Horak | May 17, 2026 | 2026

May 9

Traditionally the middle Saturday of the birding festival is the busiest as many birders expect it to be peak migration. The talk was the park would be closed once 750 vehicles were in the gate. I’m not sure it reached that number but It was packed. We made sure to get up and in the park for just after 5am. We walked to the tip as we have done most mornings so I can warm up a bit from the chilly mornings. There were some migrants in but still nothing like a fall out or even multiple birds of one species. This has been such a strange, late year. It was bound to happen sometime. More people than birds.

Still, birders were happy to look and look again at the same species or the same bird multiple times and of course there is a big social element to this festival. There are some birders we only see at Pelee every year and so it is a time to catch up with old friends and meet new people. Most of us recognize names from ebird lists and Discord so it is always nice to meet new people that you feel like you already know. While we walked 11 km of trails the rest of the day we added only 4 new birds for the year, Yellow-throated Vireo, Swainson’s Thrush, Bay-breasted Warbler, and Black Tern. We had some nice looks at Red-headed Woodpecker and went to see the Yellow-breasted Chat again.

We also stopped to take pictures of the celebrity Eastern-Screech Owl that is on everyone’s checklist as it has chosen to nest right along the main road of the park so that almost every birder, I assume, will have it on their list or a picture of it.

In order to see the Black Terns we had to stop along the east shore of Hillman Marsh where we had distant views of them feeding over the water. Our next stop was one of our favourite places, Kopegaron Woods. This Carolinian Forest has a boardwalk meandering through a wetland and forest of large trees. There were reports of Summer and Scarlet Tanager but we only managed to see the male Scarlet Tanager.

Scarlet Tanager still molting from its winter/juvenile plumage of green

I was super hungry having not eaten much and we had walked the the usual 15km so after Kopegaron we headed to Taylor’s Seafood for perch. It was sooooo yummy that I could eat it every day.

Taylor’s 12 perch plus 2 fries – Yes we shared!!! Although I was hungry enough to eat all 12!

May 10

Mother’s Day is also a busy day in the Park but most birders opt to not go in or just do the tip first thing and get out by noon as many families arrive to enjoy Mother’s Day picnics and hikes. This year we went to the tip but no birds again and then opted to stay in the park for most of the day sticking with the seasonal paths that are less used by the other visitors. We only added American Pipit at the tip and no other new species. We managed to see 77 species in the park so there were birds around but again, not the quantity we expect at Pelee. The weather was lovely and we covered the usual trails for 15 km and chatted with birders we met along the way so the number of birds did not matter. We opted to have dinner in as it is always busy at the restaurants. They were handing out complimentary bags of veggies at the festival food desk so we had a lovely fresh salad with our meal of American Goulash.

May 11

It was 6:15 when we got into the park but since it was Monday we still got into the visitor centre parking. There are fewer birders than normal so we even got onto the tram as there was no line-up. Many birders will not show up until they know that there has been a substantial migration flight. The tip, as it has been for the previous 8 days, was quiet with no discernible migration. We did a loop of the beach and interior paths and saw two Clay-coloured Sparrows in a tree but not much else so we then headed up to the Visitor’s Centre via the road and Post-Woods.

We stopped birding at noon because we were not seeing many birds and decided to go back to the cottage for a rest and showers. While we were at home reports of a co-operating Worm-eating Warbler kept coming in on the Rare Bird Alert. It was annoying us to the point where Jerry said we should just go and see if we could see it. We went back to the park and pulled into Park Orientation which was jammed with vehicles. There was a spot at the curb that was not a parking spot but I could see people with cameras and bins looking at something a few feet away. Jerry stopped the car, we both jumped out and ran over and had beautiful views of a Worm-eating Warbler. Just stellar views! The best we have ever seen in Ontario. Jerry snapped some pictures as it landed on a branch right beside him and then the other photographers and birders moved in around him. He took a few more photos and we jumped back in the car and left so others could use the space. it was a 2 minute twitch (chase)!

We then headed to Hillman and saw some shorebirds but nothing new. We had some lovely looks at Short-billed Dowitchers allowing us to practice our identification skills between Long-billed and Short-billed.

When we left Hillman I wanted to stop at Pelee Wings to rent some binoculars for our friends arriving the next day but they suggested we had to go to the Marsh store in the park to get the bins. While that was happening an Ash-throated Flycatcher had been found in the park near Dunes and we were now just 1.5km from there getting the bins so we had to go for that bird, a mega rarity from Arizona/Texas and an Ontario first for us. We walked over from the Marsh boardwalk taunting the bird to leave by taking our time but I’m a bit curious this year to see whether most rarities have to be chased right away or not. When we got to the beach it was not being seen and after some chasing from beach to seasonal path we found the group that had seen it and ended up with wonderful views from the beach. So far the three rarities we have “chased” later have all been seen.

Ash-throated Flycatcher – first for us in Ontario – should be in Arizona or Texas

We had originally planned to meet Dorlisa for dinner but she went for the Ash-throated and then we went so we were texting back and forth and eventually met for dinner at 7 instead of the original 5:30. Birds before anything else! We ate at Crave Bar and Grill – the food was very good – Jerry tried their Jackfruit Tacos and I had the Perch tacos and once again I forgot to take pictures. What is happening to my brain?

We added only two new birds to the Ontario year list on the 9th and both were rarities. This is really unprecedented for spring migration. A few migrants each day but nothing like the numbers we are used to. There are 3 billion less birds in North America since the 70’s and so each year the number migrating is less. Sometimes they bypass Pelee but all along the lakes it is the same story right now – few warblers. The talk now is it might not happen until Friday/Saturday and we leave on Saturday so we might have to make it a very late day on Saturday before heading home. We will see what tomorrow brings.

May 12

Still nothing at the tip. Ten days and not one day of a decent influx of birds. We did have our best looks at Ruddy Turnstones close to the birders instead of down at the tip.

We walked the familiar trails and added nothing to the year list. There are birds but the same birds we have been seeing for the last few days. Our friends Marg and Lawson arrived at noon and spoiled us by bringing lunch. How nice it would be to have a personal chef LOL. Thanks Marg! Marg has been my editor extraordinaire for all the blogs I have posted from 2023 on which has been awesome for me as I hate making errors in these posts. I owe her bigly! We took them into the park and did the touristy things since this was their first visit to Pelee and their first “bird-watching.” We took the tram to the tip and walked out a ways to take the obligatory selfie at the southern most point of Ontario and the 42nd Parallel sign. The guys walked up the tower while Marg and I sat on a bench and caught up.

We took the tram back down to the visitor centre and walked through Tilden. It was birdy and they saw 12 species of warbler including a Red-headed Woodpecker. We had nice low looks at Black-throated Blue, Chestnut-sided, and a Cape May having a bath in one of the sloughs.

Dinner was at Freddy’s and the Fattoush salad and Perch dinner were excellent as they always are. The forecast was for SW winds and rain in the night so maybe something will arrive if there is anything on the other side of the lake. Fingers and toes are crossed.

May 13

We got to the tip later than normal but there had been little there and still limited migration at the tip. Later it was obvious there were more birds that had come in further in the park. But the tip was pretty empty- Day 11. Places along eastern Lake Ontario had mini fallouts of warblers so they are finally starting to move. We took the tram both ways and walked the trails with Marg and Lawson seeing some different warblers from yesterday. They were getting better with using binoculars and getting better at spotting movement and seeing the bird. It was fun to share our passion with them. We saw a beautiful Scarlet Tanager with a bit of yellow/green still on it.

We finally heard a Canada Warbler but did not find it in the tangle of leaves and branches. We spent a bit of time in areas that Wilson’s Warblers were being heard and seen but we could not hear the song or see one. At noon we took them back to the cottage so they could head home and we had some lunch and a short rest and then headed back in for another walk around Tilden. It was still quite birdy and while I was looking at an area I sensed movement beside me and saw an American Woodcock beside me that had walked across the path and then went into the forest leaves. So wonderful to have that experience. It was 6 inches from my foot.

We saw another Red-headed Woodpecker and watched that for awhile. We have seen one almost every day. We talked about going to Hillman Marsh and then back into the park to try for Whip-poor-wills but both of us were tired and just needed a bit of a break from it all. There are clearly birds in the park and we can bird tomorrow and hopefully catch up with a few of the species we are still missing.

May 14

Oh it was a very good day! The trickle of birds everyday and some substantial input through the night made birding very enjoyable with multiples of most warbler species finally seen. I decided to try for the 100 species in a day again. We opted not to go to the tip but started at the top of the park. Then a report came from Hillman that a Willet and a Wilson’s Phalarope were being seen so we opted to drive over and at least get those two rarities that would also be year birds for us. When we arrived people were searching for the Phalarope but the Willet was easy to see. We scoped for a while and then opted to head back to the park. We passed Jean on the way in and just as we were driving out Jean called to say the Phalarope had just been found so we did a u-turn and retraced our steps to find a distant but nice Wilson’s Phalarope. I got Jean her Prairie Warbler and she repaid with this bird. That is the birding karma I talk about in action.

We returned to the park and continued birding down the west and east sides of the park managing to add a few birds and getting nice views of others we have seen. I have not been carrying my camera for a week now and instead am taking all the video you see on my Iphone 16 Pro. I am quite pleased with it and while the birds have to be really close the quality seems to be better than my camera was. At least for showing it on a blog like this.

We finally tracked down a Green Heron at DeLaurier and as always Jerry took some very nice pictures of it.

We also heard the Wilson’s Warbler a few times but did not get eyes on the bird. I imagine we will see it at some point. And we also added a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher to the Ontario list.

When we had exhausted the Pelee Park trails and we were also exhausted we headed out of the park to get some well deserved Mexican food. I managed a picture of the guacamole at Salsa Caliente but can you believe that I forgot to take a picture of my yummy enchiladas? How does this happen? I have birder brain and hunger takes over LOL. Anyway, trust me when I say it looked and tasted delicious! While waiting for our food I put together a trip report from the day so I could see what my species count was. I had seen 90 species at that point.

After dinner we headed to Kopegaron Woods because I thought I had a good chance to add a few birds there that I did not get in the park. Sure enough there were Swainson’s Thrush and then a Rock Pigeon from the farms outside the woods. A bit further along the boardwalk we saw a Hairy Woodpecker. Now I was at 93. A few minutes later Merlin suggested it had heard a Rusty Blackbird. We had not added this bird for the year yet so we retraced our steps and actively checked every blackbird we were seeing. Jerry spotted something a bit different and we both got on it with bins. I confirmed it had a yellow eye and we had our Rusty. #94. It took a bit to get a picture as it was back in tangles but Jerry managed a record shot.

When we reached the end of the loop I opted to start walking the loop again just to see if the Prothonotary had appeared. I had missed seeing it in the Park and it would be a nice bird to add for the 100. As I started down the boardwalk I saw a couple with cameras raised and as I got close they showed me an Eastern Screech Owl sitting in its hole sunning. #95 as the one in the Park had not been visible.

I was getting excited. We still had to go back to Hillman and we planned to walk the Couture Dyke at dusk for rails so I was getting more confident by the minute that I would hit the 100. Jerry took some owl pics, we checked further along the boardwalk but no Prothonotary and so we headed out of the woods to find a group at the entrance with bins and cameras raised – a Golden-winged Warbler! #96 and still two places to visit.

When we arrived at Hillman there were plenty of birds in the marsh and we started scoping right away. I knew I had missed Green-winged Teal earlier so I quickly found those for #97 and then a Greater Yellowlegs for #98. Merlin suggested a Black-bellied Plover had called but we could not find any as we scoped. I found two Ruddy Turnstones for #99. We took turns scanning and suddenly Jerry said he had a Semi-palmated Plover! He tried to get it in the scope and after a few minutes he had it #100 for the day! Woohoo! And it was a year bird for us too. We then added two more species for 102 and one more stop.

Couture Dyke is a walk around a huge marsh land that we visited last year. It is a good place to listen for rails. We ended up hearing Least Bittern, perhaps the one from last week at the tip and a Virginia Rail. While these were not birds we needed to add to our Ontario List they did get added to our day list along with an Osprey and a Field Sparrow giving us a total for the day of 106 species seen! I was more than happy with that and while I was tired I was not exhausted the way I usually am after these 100 day adventures.

May 15

With the ups and downs of this migration it was no surprise to once again have a quiet tip with only a few migrants. We did manage to see a possible Acadian Flycatcher. Flycatchers can be a challenge to ID and so we will wait to hear what others think of the photos taken. It is easiest to identify them when they are singing as their songs are all unique but many look very similar and that causes difficulty in the field with different lighting, distance etc.

With it being our last full day in the park we were not too worried about trying to find the few birds we have not seen this migration. Those left we know we can see elsewhere in the province if we want to do that. Instead we met up with Judy and Cindy and spent a delightful few hours walking the trail chatting, laughing and occasionally birding. There were still birds in the park but the warblers were up high in the trees and so there was little incentive for us to crane our necks to see warblers that yesterday had been seen beautifully at eye level.

Just after noon we decided to leave the park and headed over to Hillman to see a White-faced Ibis that was being seen. As we walked down the path a couple leaving told us that the birds had all flushed, including the Ibis. Oh no! but we continued on and when we arrived at the water the Ibis was just flying back in and landed quite close to us.

We helped a few people see shorebirds in the scope and then opted to call it a day. We had dishes to clean and things to pack at the cottage. We had a nice meal at Freddy’s and spent the evening relaxing. Usually, on our way home we stop at Rondeau but we are going to go to the Tip in the morning to just see if this heavy migration that is forecast actually happens here.

May 16

Well there was migration in the night but the majority of the birds missed the tip and landed further up in the park. We checked out the tip and as it was quiet and rain was forecast we opted to say our goodbyes to the regulars Keith, Jeremy, Cindy and Judy and head for home. We arrived home before noon and the news from Pelee was of a Kirtland’s Warbler that Keith found around 10am. Oh well, that is the way it goes, you get some, you miss some. We were happy to be home after 2 weeks of continual birding. Pelee is always great no matter when you go or how long you stay. While we felt the quantity of birds was less, the quality of our interactions was fantastic this year. We had so many wonderful, up close interactions with these jewels that briefly stop in our area.

We spent 1 day at Rondeau, 13 at Pelee. We went to the tip 11 mornings and walked a total of 167km over the 14 days. The day I got the 100 species we walked 16.6km. The cottage we rent cost $2,200 for the two weeks and our meals out cost around $400 plus gas there and back. We used electric every day in the park. We added 90 birds to the Ontario Bird list for the year and 58 to the Year List of Birds. So at the end of this trip we had seen 223 in Ontario this year and 582 birds seen for the World List this year.

The numbers of birders choosing to go to Pelee has dropped over the last few years with many suggesting it is too packed with crowds but the Park is very large and while there are crowds around the celebrity rarities for a short time most of your time at Pelee can be completely alone on the trails. For those that like to socialize and meet friends you can hang around the more popular trails but there are countless opportunities to be alone too. Hopefully this blog gives you a little taste of what awaits at Pelee. It is a very special place…until next time…

Pelee! Week 1

by Ellen Horak | May 10, 2026 | 2026

May 2

Yes, it is finally that favourite time of year for all birders, no, not Christmas, Spring Migration! We anticipate and dream of trees dripping with warblers and rarities at our feet but usually the actual experience is quite different. We are however, easily mollified with the odd precious, beautiful looks at a few warblers where a dreary, cold day becomes “the best day ever”.

This will be our first two week trip to Pelee not having to chase birds. Before our Big Years we only spent 3-4 days at Pelee each year and the last two years have been grueling marathon two week chases for many birds. This year we can truly relax and just enjoy the birding experience. And so true to our “relaxed” birding instead of our normal 4:30 am departure we slept in and left at 5:45 LOL! The laziness is kicking in already!

We stopped in Chatham-Kent on the way, which is our usual practice. Rondeau Provincial Park, Keith McLean Conservation Area and Blenheim Sewage Lagoons all have migrating birds stopping in and we were sure we would pick up some Ontario year birds there.

Shortly after we arrived at Keith McLean we saw a bird we did not immediately recognize, which does not happen often anymore, we know Ontarian species. Initially we said Grasshopper Sparrow? but it did not fit that, too big, different bill, It was bright with fresh feathers but we could not place it. I sent a pic to Steve and he could not really tell from our horrible back of the camera shot but confirmed it was not Grasshopper. After looking at a few more of Jerry’s pictures and putting it to Merlin it suggested a female Bobolink! Of course! This is a female species we have struggled with before and I’m not sure why it does not seem to stick with us. Maybe this time?

We ended up also adding Marsh Wren, Dunlin and White-crowned Sparrow to our list and Jerry was happy to be taking pictures that did not require blowing out the exposure to compensate for dark rain forest. We finished the hike circling the property and headed around the corner to Rondeau Provincial Park.

The Park was really quiet, we knew it would be having seen reports over the last few days but Yikes! it was QUIET. We managed to add Gray Catbird, Northern Yellow Warbler, Baltimore Oriole and Palm Warbler. Then we opted to move on to Blenheim Sewage Lagoons.

We had so much fun walking through a sea of Tree Swallows as they flew back and forth feeding over the grass and water of the lagoons. We added Cliff, Bank, and Northern Rough-winged Swallow to our list. Then we scoped through many shorebirds to find a Baird’s Sandpiper that had been reported previously.

It was another hour drive to our cottage at Pelee to “check in”. Once we were unpacked and sorted out a bit we opted to head into the park. We needed to renew our park pass. We buy the family pass as it lets you use the fast lane that opens a gate for you instead of waiting in line behind people who are asking questions and buying passes. It is worth it to us to use this rather than saving on the senior rate. The person manning the booth happily let us know that they have extended all those passes until November of this year so we did not need to buy a pass this year! How cool is that? Thank you Point Pelee National Park!

There are so many places to go to in Pelee but I picked the spot that most of the reports had been coming from – Tilden Woods. It is generally the go-to if you are short on time and usually has the most birds. Just along the trail a short distance is a water slough and we stopped to see what someone was photographing. It turned out to be a Lincoln’s Sparrow and as we watched and Jerry took pictures a Northern Waterthrush flew in and then a bright Yellow Warbler and after that a Swamp Sparrow. They were not all new birds but they were right in front of us offering great views of all of them.

We moved on and chatted with people we knew along the way eventually ending up at a slough off the seasonal footpath that we had been told had a Louisiana Waterthrush. We waited a bit and suddenly saw a Waterthrush that looked quite a bit whiter and cleaner than the Northern. It was very far back and behind an assortment of twigs, shrubs and broken branches. Many photographers were trying to get pictures as I and another birder called out its location. Going left on the log, now behind the tree, oops coming right now, in the open on the black log. You get the picture? While we were mostly on the Waterthrush, a Prothonotary Warbler dropped in and a Blue-winged Warbler teased us all with stellar views in front of our faces. An Eastern Phoebe also started feeding at the back. We were there about 45 minutes helping people that arrived see the bird and trying to take video and pictures of the stunning Blue-winged Warbler as well. These kinds of views are why people come to Pelee.

There are many years when you “see” a bird with glimpses behind logs, peeks through leaves, but the views we were getting from all the birds were extremely good. We did eventually move on as a group and worked our way down the path. We had been talking to a few couples who were trying to get their 100th species to get a Pelee pin and a few people walking past overheard the conversation. Minutes later the woman rushed back to us to say they had seen a Hooded Warbler back where we had just come from. We all rushed back en masse and had great looks at a Hooded Warbler that was racing up and down a tree trunk, not the usual way we see a Hooded at Pelee.

We once again moved towards the parking and along the way saw a Black-and-white Warbler, some Baltimore Orioles and heard our first Wood Thrush. It was now almost 8 and light was fading fast. We were more than happy with our 20 species for the day to add to our Ontario year list.

May 3

It was a cold morning, 8C feeling like 4C and because we are keeners we were in the park at 5:10am when it was still dark. It was a full moon and we hoped we might hear a Whip-poor-will on our walk to the tip. We did not but others saw one on the path and heard one in another area before we got there. Oh well, not a necessary bird to hear or see. It was a beautiful sunrise.

When it was light enough to discern what was out on the tip we added Black-bellied Plover and a cute, tiny Piping Plover to our year list.

With no warblers dripping off the trees we walked back towards the Visitor Center birding along the way and chatting with many people that follow our blog or we have met on previous years to Pelee. To be honest, with the lack of birds it was more socializing than birding. We met up with Amy and enjoyed a walk through Tilden together. The sun came out a bit and things warmed up and we managed to add 7 more birds to the Ontario year list with great views of Northern Waterthrush and Blue-winged Warbler.

We left the park around 2 and got back to the cottage to rest a bit, drink water, and update pictures for a couple of hours. Then went to and early dinner at Salsa Caliente our fav Mexican food restaurant in Leamington where you get authentic Mexican at inexpensive prices. I was so hungry I forgot to take pictures. The plan had been to head to Hillman Marsh but we we were sooo tired! Showing our age! Judging from the migration forecast and favourable south winds I suspected that the next day would be very good so it was better to be well-rested for the “good day” .

May 4

Oh, it was a good day! Not those dripping off trees day but more birds finally in the park and sunshine and warmth as well. Lots of happy, smiling birders moving from sighting to sighting along the paths. I decided to try for the 100 species in a day pin. Well the pin is 100 species between May 1 and May 18 but I like to challenge myself to 100 in a day. The rule is within the Pelee birding circle which included Leamington and Hillman Marsh. We were in the park at 6am. There were not many new warblers at the tip but I was intent on counting everything we saw, which is the only way to get to the 100. We were in the park at 6am and stayed for almost 9 hours seeing 69 species. The highlights being a few new warblers at the DeLaurier Trail. We had nice eye level views of Cape May, Northern Parula and Chestnut-sided Warblers.

But at 69 species I knew I was in trouble and not likely to get the rest at Hillman Marsh but I was not giving up so off we went. We stopped along the road and then at the East Beach Access to Hillman where we met up with Paul and Joanne and added 6 more species for the day. At Hillman Marsh we added another 15. At the time I actually did not know how many species I had because I had not even finalized the Park list and figured there might be birds that I had missed adding, still I knew I was close but not over 100. Shortly after we had left DeLaurier there was a report of a Prairie Warbler being seen and so after we finished at Hillman we opted to go back and see if it was still there and add a few more species. When we arrived Jean, John and Victoria told us they had been waiting 2 hours trying to re-find it with no success. We walked the boardwalk and saw an Orange-crowned Warbler to add to the list and decided to hang around a bit longer. Shortly after we found a Least Flycatcher. The others had left and after 15 minutes we decided to leave as well. There were two choices to leave as it is a circle trail. Jerry started towards the shorter, south route and I said why not take the north longer route? Maybe some more new birds. As we walked on a birder coming our way stopped to tell us a Prairie Warbler was ahead on the boardwalk! We rushed for the first time on this trip and sure enough the Prairie Warbler was feeding in small trees right beside us on the boardwalk. The rest of the birders watching were on the far side of the bird. I got eyes on the bird, had some good looks and called Jean to let her know it was still being seen. Then I posted to What’s App as the new location had not been posted and it was quite a way from the original spot.

Of course it flew back and out of sight shortly after. Jean and others arrived and we waited. I felt bad that the bird had left, I know I don’t have control but I want everyone to have a happy ending. After 15 minutes Jean saw a bird further back and we all got on it to find out it was the Prairie! Many high fives and hugs! A super happy ending to the day. It was after 7 and the light was dimming but I did have another hour maybe to add more birds but I was DONE! Birded non-stop for 13 hours, walked 15.6kms, I was happy to call it a day and get my 100 pin for birds seen over the 2 full days we had been at Pelee. I knew that number was over the 100. We headed back to the cottage and I finally put all the lists in to find I had ended up with 96 species for the day and had 107 species for the two days. Good enough for the pin and if there is another day with lots of birds I might give the 100 another try.

May 5

The forecast was for rain starting around noon so we knew we might not have a long day to bird. We were in the park at 6:30am – do you notice how each day has gotten later and later? The park has not been as busy as it has in the past as the weather and lack of birds has kept people from coming so we are not having to rush in early to get parking at the Visitor Center. That will change as the weekend nears and the bird numbers increase. We took the tram to the tip thinking we would take our scope and then forgot to get it out of the car. No problem, there was not much to see by the time we got down there anyway. Again, no birds dripping off the trees. A FOY (first of the year) Red-eyed Vireo was well-photographed by a fairly large group that had deemed it a Tennessee Warbler until I corrected the ID.

There are many new birders out at Pelee and I think many species get misidentified like that and put on ebird in error. Certainly as a newer birder I would never have spoken up to dispute an identification but I feel pretty confident to do so now. The highlight for many at the tip might have been the flock of Avocets that quickly flew down the side of the beach. We, and many others were looking into the woods with our backs to the water but I noticed a few people coming onto the beach raising their bins and cameras to the water behind and spun around in time to see them whiz by.

We left the tip fairly quickly and walked up the west side (in the raging wind) and found nothing new (not surprisingly). Can you tell it was Jerry that wanted to walk up the west side? And that I always follow the birding rule that birds are on the opposite side to the direction the wind is coming from?

We walked Woodland, then Tilden and spent much time catching up with fellow birders, Greg who we had met in Costa Rica, Barry and Dave from Hamilton, Grant and Lindsay. It has been rewarding hearing from people using these blogs to help plan their own trips to birding destinations. It was one of the reasons I opted to put as much detail into them as possible. We ended up only adding another 5 species to the Ontario list. We opted to beat the rain and headed back to the cottage before the rain started and spent the afternoon writing this blog and getting pictures added through a very slow internet.

For the non-birders I should clarify about the “lists”. Our year list right now stands at 557 species seen because we went to Costa Rica. And in Costa Rica we saw some of the birds we also see here in Ontario like Baltimore Orioles and Chestnut-sided Warblers so my “Year list” is different from my “Ontario List” this year and so now we are at home we are working on our “Ontario List” although many of these birds are also added to the Year list of course. I also have a Point Pelee Birding Circle List that is the one I can use to track the species for the 100 pin. Our Ontario list is at 183 species and the Point Pelee Birding Circle is at 118 species seen. All of this is kept straight by ebird – for free! It makes life infinitely better!

May 6

We opted not to go to the tip as the forecast for migration was low and instead started at the top of the park just in the gate and worked our way down the west side stopping at all the small access areas along the way. We would park the car, do a loop along the seasonal paths, return to the car, drive to the next area and do a loop there. It was still relatively quiet but we did see birds that we had already added. Northwest Beach was the birdiest and we spent some time doing a loop. We had nice views of a White-eyed Vireo and a few other warblers and then decided to head down to the tip because a Cerulean Warbler had been reported. It is a warbler not always seen well. Hundreds of birders saw it in the morning and there were only a few people around looking for it. We heard some intel that it had been seen out along the beach but was going north. We opted to split up with Jerry going onto the beach and me staying in the interior where it had last been noted. After a bit I checked out onto the beach and Jerry was way south and 3 women were way north with large lenses up taking pictures of something. I decided to check it out. They could have been just photographing a Gnatcatcher but it was, of course, the Cerulean! I took a look, called Jerry and then took an Iphone pic in case he did not make it in time. The bird had flown back further by the time Jerry got there but he did get some pictures before the bird moved deeper into the woods along the path.

We walked out to the tip after that because after 10am you can. Before 10am there is a line that humans cannot cross to allow the migrating birds time to rest without being flushed by humans and dogs. After 10 you can walk out and most birders do their utmost not to get close the birds. Tourists, not so much. Jerry took some pictures.

Friends Angela and Michael from Hamilton joined us a bit later and we went back to try and see the Cerulean again. With no other reports we started walking north on the path figuring it would be a long shot to re find it but soon a birder coming toward us told us they had been watching it for about 20 minutes just up the trail. He was kind enough to take us back and show us the spot but the bird was no longer there. We continued to walk north and shortly after I saw some movement in the shrubs and it was the CERULEAN! It is crazy to think you can re find these birds in the vastness of the woods. It was right along the path and we all had great views of it.

We had a nice walk through the park adding a few more birds along the way and then headed to Hillman Marsh for shorebirds. There were American Avocets! Shortly after we arrived a Peregrine came through hunting and lifted all the birds and everything was gone. We chatted with people, waited and watched a few birds and left to go to dinner when none of the shorebirds returned.

Dinner was our fav Mexican food and again I forgot to get a picture! After dinner we opted to go try for the Whip-poor-wills and heard American Woodcocks but no Whips.

May 7

We went to the tip, no surprise LOL. You just do not want to miss birds so everyone goes. The same birds were on the tip and things were quiet so Jerry wandered off down the beach as I chatted with all the birders around the scopes. A few minutes later he called me, one of the few places there is signal, and just said “Least Bittern”. I hung up said “Least Bittern” loudly to people around me and we all left en mass. It was high up in a tree on a narrow path and a few hundred people were trying to see it. It is a very good bird to see like this as it is usually tucked away in a marsh were you are more likely to just hear it.

After the excitement of the Least Bittern people found a Scarlet Tanager, Red-eyed Vireo, Warbling Vireos and lots of the same species we had seen before.

We eventually left the tip to walk up through the woods but things were quiet. A few warblers here and there. When we came out to Woodland Trail a young boy let us know he had just seen a Chat and so we walked slowly further down the path paying more attention. I saw the underside of a bird hanging on a branch just above the ground with a white underbelly and i could see some white. I had my bins on it and called the others to take a look and it turned out to be a CHAT! Woohoo! Another great bird. We all had good looks and another few birders close by saw it and then it was gone. I reported it later to the Visitor Center hike leaders and others re-found the bird a few times. Jerry did not get a picture but we did see a lovely co-operative Rose-breasted Grosbeak.

Angela and Michael headed off to check out Delaurier and we decided to go back to the Tip as a Yellow-throated Warbler, a rarity, had been reported earlier. We went out on the beach and no one was on the bird. There were a lot of birders milling around and looking into the trees. Way down the beach I saw a man waving his arms over his head in the universal language of “its over here”. Unless he was just trying to get his wife’s attention LOL. I yelled to the group to head down the beach and we all had spectacular looks at the Yellow-throated Warbler.

We still walked our regular 10-11kms but saw less birds and decided fairly early at 4:00 to call it a day and not head to Hillman Marsh. Of course I was just out of the shower and reports came in of a Black-headed Gull and then a White-faced Ibis that had arrived at Hillman. Sheesh! But both of those birds we have seen in Ontario and so I opted not to chase. This is the chill, non-urgent birding year so limited chasing. Maybe we will still come across them organically in the next week.

May 8

Guess what was at the tip this morning? The Black-headed Gull! Not the great views they got at Hillman but we at least got to see it flying around with the Bonaparte’s Gull. It takes a bit of patience as you are looking at 30 gulls and waiting to see one with black under the wings. It did eventually land and I took a quick view in the scope of someone to confirm the sighting. So there you go! Not chasing, in this circumstance, paid off and we saw one of the birds anyway.

There were definitely more birds at the tip but not much variety and all species we had already seen. Still you have to check the whole area in case you are missing something. The numbers of birders have increased substantially and the beach is very crowded with people and cameras. You will think a group of 20 people all taking pictures means a great warbler only to find they are photographing a Kinglet or a Gnatcatcher. Nothing against these very cute birds but there are MANY of them in the park. And yes, I understand that they are lifers to maybe many of these birders, just pointing out what it is like traveling the beach trying to find anything rarer.

It was Angela and Michael’s last day so we were trying to help get them both to 100 for their pins. Angela hit the 100 before we left the tip but Michael took until lunchtime. A Brewster’s Warbler, a hybrid between a Golden-winged and a Blue-winged Warbler, was reported on Redbud and even though it is not countable as a species many people want to see them in case they are ever added. We joined many other people and eventually had some very nice views. The pictures, not so much.

Brewster’s Warbler – Cross between Golden-winged/Blue-winged Warbler

We then headed through Tilden and finally saw our first Black-throated Blue Warbler, one of my favourites. Jerry managed to get pictures of a Louisiana Waterthrush that is very similar to the Northern Waterthrush. The clear white throat with no streaks makes it a Louisiana over Northern.

We heard that there were Yellow-breasted Chats giving great views at Cactus Field so we headed up to that area even though we had seen one yesterday. You can never get enough of looks at Chats. The birds were singing (loud burbles, rattles and clucks) and then we saw the two chasing each other through the cedars and for a bit one posed on a branch for us. In our 13 years at Pelee we have never had looks like this year.

We said goodbye to Angela and Michael and headed over to Hillman Marsh to see if there were any new shorebirds. We added Short-billed Dowitchers and then decided to get pizza in town.

Cattle Egrets had been reported near Hillman but they were gone by the time we went by so I was watching the fields and lawns as we drove to town for the small white herons. While we waited for the pizza a report came in of the egrets just 10 minutes away and on the road I had just carefully scanned. Obviously not well enough! We ate a few pieces of pizza and then headed back and stopped and saw 3 of them off the road in a wetland area. We had to next stop for milk on the way to the cottage and while I was waiting for Jerry a report came in of a Black-necked Stilt just 15 minutes away so really not a chase LOL just a drive over. I didn’t get the right directions into google but we did find the pond after some help from Discord and sure enough a Black-necked Stilt was wading along the shore. It flew to another pond minutes after we arrived but Jerry managed a few pictures before we went back to the cottage. A long day, but a good day.

Some extra pics of the birds we have seen…

and creatures…

In the last 7 days we have walked 79.2 km or 122,537 steps and we have added 70 birds to our Ontario List and 46 birds to our Year list. Whew! One more week to go and south winds forecast tonight!

Week 19 Pelee!

by Ellen Horak | May 12, 2025 | Canada 400

Migration happened! When we arrived at the tip at 6:30 Monday morning there were warblers in the trees and birders were pointing binoculars and cameras in every direction. Multiple Northern Parulas, Cape May, Black-throated, Chestnut, Blackburnian, Yellow, Yellow-rumped, Palm Warblers and American Redstarts were everywhere you turned. It was lovely after a few days of rain and few birds but it was foggy and misty so the lighting was not great for pictures and most of us had to keep wiping glasses and lenses.

We stayed at the tip for a few hours and then twitched (chased) a Yellow-throated Warbler just outside the park and across from the cottage we are staying at. It was the 15th rarity (4th & 5th ranked birds on my list) and I need at least 20 of those ranked birds to hit the 400 if I get all the common species (1st, 2nd & 3rd ranked birds) so I was happy to add another that inches me closer to knowing I will make my goal.

We went back in the park and spent the rest of the day leisurely strolling the trails and for the most part seeing the same warbler species from the morning but better views and lighting made for some lovely encounters with these little colourful birds. We were hoping to catch up with one Golden-winged Warbler of the 3-4 reports that came in throughout the day but we never managed to be in the right place at the right time. We did manage to chat and catch up with many birders who we only see at Pelee, which is the second best thing about Pelee, the birds being first, of course. Late afternoon we decided to head back to the cottage for an early dinner when another Golden-winged report came in so we drove over to the trail and made another attempt along with about 10 other people but again came up empty. On the way out of the park we stopped for a Clay-coloured Sparrow that had eluded us on previous days and finally saw it to add another bird to the list.

Just as we were about to leave once again for the cottage a Glossy Ibis (rarity) was found and off we went 10 minutes out of the park to twitch that bird. Many people arrived at the spot suggested on the post but no Ibis was seen. Texts were sent to verify the spot and then some cars drove off to check the other end of the road. No Ibis at that end.

We decided to head to the cottage for food and hope the Ibis would show up at Hillman Marsh later. While we ate two more reports came in quickly followed by reports that it had also flown. We ate quickly and by then it was back at the original spot and we drove over and saw it with many other happy birders. A nice way to end the day. Rarity #16.

Monday night just at dusk I changed into pyjamas saying “I guess its safe that nothing else is happening” and all three of us started working on blogs and photos. Discord notifications at this time of night are generally more chatter and less sightings but I looked at the notification immediately and saw Chuck-will’s-widow near the tip. Jude was off the couch and heading to the door in seconds. This is a rarity to Ontario that has been non-existent here the last few years. We did not follow Jude out. He had a bike. We would have had to do a 4 km walk there and back with no tram running after 8pm. A thunderstorm complete with crazy lightning started about 30 minutes later. Jude got back very wet but elated that he had heard and seen the bird flying around. The bird is from the Nightjar family and spends the day roosting on branches and then, like owls, flies at dusk and through the night catching insects and moths in their huge mouths.

Tuesday morning we were once again at the tip with even more fog and fewer birds. Early birders had heard the CWWI (birder code for the Chuck-will’s-widow) singing again at dawn and had watched it fly into the trees and disappear. Many people scanned logs and branches in the area, some even using thermal imagers to find heat but the bird was not found during the day. We met up with Angela and Michael from Hamilton and birded with them for the morning. More warblers were high up in the trees so the views were not great but we had a few at eye level. Most of the morning was spent laughing as Michael loves to deliver zinger after zinger generally in my direction. We always have a good time with them. At noon I went into the visitor centre to use the washroom and came out with two extra hikes to lead! The Friends of Point Pelee who organize and run the Festival of Birds offer hikes for novice birders and for some reason our names were suggested as potential leaders. So we will lead our first hike at Pelee tomorrow afternoon.

We left the park to have lunch with another group that is leading a hike up in Carden that we have volunteered to help with too. I believe in giving back and we had so many birders help us when we started I want to pay that forward a bit by sharing our scant knowledge and enthusiasm with newer birders. In the afternoon we had a lovely encounter with a Scarlet Tanager.

At dusk we met up with other birders and went back into the park to try and see the Chuck-will’s-widow. We took the final tram down to the tip and then waited patiently with about 30 birders by the spot it was last seen in the morning. The atmosphere was nervous expectation as we strategized about whether it would show or would our noise or mere presence keep the bird from appearing.

As the sun set the group got quieter and phones and camera were readied to record anything. It had started singing at 8:40 the night before and that time passed. And then at 8:50 the bird flew from the north east side of where we had thought it would be, zooming over a birder’s head and then landed directly in front of us just a foot or two from the forest floor and just a short distance off the road. There was an audible gasp from the group and then we surged forward till we were shoulder to shoulder to enable everyone to see the bird. I helped a few people get to a better spot to view it and the cameras clicked away in the dark. The bird then flew up and around, landed back in the same area, flew around a few more times and then landed out of sight.

Just after seeing the CWWI a number of us heard an Eastern Whip-poor-will singing further down the road but Jerry missed hearing it. We will hear and see this bird up in Rainy River but for the moment it is on my list and not Jerry’s.

Wednesday was quieter with less birds to see and we had to lead a hike in the afternoon so only added one species, the Prothonotary Warbler. Thursday a large number of birds arrived even though the winds had been from the north. A heavy rain storm early at the tip put a damper on people seeing the warblers there but the birds moved into the park and we were seeing larger numbers of warblers, thrushes and flycatchers. Jerry fell on his knee at the tip and while he said it felt fine it swelled up enough to be uncomfortable by lunch and so we opted to spend some time back at the cottage icing it. We then went out and drove the fields in the afternoon and then went back into the park and drove into each picnic area and got out and birded a short distance and then back to the car. We managed to see 45 species in that short time and lots of warblers at eye or ground level. It was a fantastic time and we managed to add 3 more species despite the down-time.

Friday it appeared many of the birds had fed on Thursday and left the park during the night. We were back to lots of walking with nothing much to show for it. We opted to leave the park and drive to some of the shorebird spots and got our first Black Terns of the season. We also went back into the park at night hoping to hear a Whip-poor-will so Jerry could add it and we would be even in species again but we did not hear one. It is crazy to me that we are in the peak weeks of migration and we are only managing to add one to two birds a day. Granted, I have a lot of birds already and we are down to needing only 18 more of the common species and a few more of the 2nd ranked birds. Some we will be more likely to get in the fall but the ones we still need just are not showing up in large numbers yet. And so we wait…we walk the park, we talk and commiserate with other birders and we wait. Saturday was the warmest day yet and also the busiest in the park with weekend birders arriving for what is traditionally the peak of migration. Many of the “hard-core” birders find other places to bird after they visit the tip as the paths and trails are packed and people are excited about the usual birds we have already seen many times.

We walked a bit in the morning and helped people identify what they were seeing and then we opted to head to Holiday Beach for a quieter birding experience. We had three Prothonotary Warblers together in a slough and Jerry had fun photographing them. I’ve added some other great pictures from Pelee in the gallery.

Sunday was Mother’s Day and the park is usually even busier so we opted to stay at the cottage and have a day of rest and catch up with photos, blog and a bit of housekeeping. We said that we would not bird at all but by 9:15 we were in the backyard of the cottage listing 18 species of birds including 4 warbler species. In the afternoon we headed to Hillman and stayed for a few hours as more bird species continued to be found. We added 2 more sandpipers to our list and spent some time letting other birders see things through our scopes.

Every year Point Pelee National Park runs the 100 Species Challenge. If you see 100 species in the Point Pelee area during your stay in May you get a pin with a different bird on it each year. I’ve collected a few of them and generally try to do the 100 species in a day but this year I opted to just get 100 over a number of days. Many of the people coming to Hillman are a few birds away from their goal of 100 so we had some fun finding ducks and shorebirds for them to add to their lists to get them to 100.

Pelee 100 Pins ( Jerry got one in 2018 too)

Week 19 13 species added 281 Ellen 280 Jerry

Week 18 A Week that feels like a Month!

by Ellen Horak | May 4, 2025 | Canada 400

We started the day at the tip of Pelee National Park just after sunrise. Despite south winds overnight there did not appear to be any influx of birds. We stayed for a bit witnessing some reverse migration and added a few birds to the year list. I got a report that an American Bittern was in a tree behind the washroom so we walked over to view it and got some nice pictures.

We then heard about an Olive-sided Flycatcher up at Sparrow Field so we walked up the road to that area but the bird was not being seen. We met up with the Hunters, birders from England that come to Pelee most years and chatted with them until Barb, Garth and Nancy arrived and it became quite social for a bit. We saw our first Baltimore Oriole of the year while we were standing there and then decided to take the interior path back up through Sparrow Field. As soon as I turned on the path I saw a bird in the very top of a tree and just knew it would be the Olive-sided. A quick look with bins and then I shouted out to the people on the road. Everyone was happy to see this very early Flycatcher.

With things being quieter in the park we opted to leave around 11 and visit another favourite spot, Kopegaron Woods. It was noisy with bird song but not with any new species. Around noon a report of a Ruff up in Alliston came through on Discord and while I would love another chance at a Ruff (we missed that one by minutes in BC) I just could not leave Pelee and drive the 4 hours for it. We stopped for an early dinner at Freddies for delicious perch and that perked us up enough to go back to Pelee for another round of Tilden Woods where we managed to find our first Ovenbird (namesake of my blog) of the year and maybe Jerry’s best pic of one yet.

With lots of light left we opted to head over to Hillman Marsh and see about adding some new shorebirds and we were lucky enough to have Jean Iron, renowned shorebird expert, arrive just as we did. With Jean’s assistance we managed to add American Pipit, and a Least Sandpiper that I found but Jean confirmed. We managed to add 6 birds for the day and while not fantastic for spring it was a pretty good day.

Monday night Birdcast had predicted strong migration through the US and so Tuesday we were back at the Tip. There was more reverse migration than yesterday and it was clear there were more birds in the park as we started to see species along the beach in the shrubs. It was a great birding day where we added 10 more species and had the chance to get views of other species we had just had glimpses of.

We were due to head home so decided to leave Pelee and head to Rondeau where there were a few rarities including a sighting of another Yellow-throated Warbler. They seem to be everywhere except where I am! When we got into our car it would not start and we had an error message that our battery was dead. We had stupidly charged our phones while we ate lunch. We have CAA but there is literally no cell service at the Pelee Visitor Center. I went in to talk to staff and they kindly gave us a small self boost thing which we tried but with no instructions we were not sure if we were powering it or not. Anyway, the other staff member was Cam, who helped me out last year many times at the Tip with bird ID’s and where and when to find things, he offered to get another booster from his car which was a bit bigger and it did the job of getting us started. By this time an hour had passed and we just decided to head home. We will be purchasing one of those self boosters to have with us from now on.

Wednesday we had the Lions Bottle Drive and our house is the sorting centre so we spent the morning crushing 1,500 beer cans and sorting hundreds of wine and liquor bottles. We make around $250-300 each drive and hold 2-3 a year. Then another oil change was on the agenda, with all the kilometers it seems like we change the oil every few months. While that was happening a Scissor-tailed Flycatcher from the deep south was found on the Toronto Islands. I started doing the calculations and looking at ferry schedules but it was apparent that we would be battling rush hour traffic and it would be late to arrive there so we thought we might do it Thursday. Instead we headed down to Long Point after a Summer Tanager that had been hanging in someone’s yard all day. It only took us about 10 minutes of chatting with the owner before the bird once again arrived. Bob is not a birder and at first thought the all red bird was a Cardinal but realized after taking pictures that it was different. He put out (some oranges and the bird kept returning. While we did not get stunning close views, we managed to see the bird very well until it was chased into the trees by a Cardinal. We took a walk at the banding station and saw our first Ruby-throated Hummingbirds of the year and then added a Black-throated Blue Warbler that was foraging high in the trees. I had not expected to add any birds with the items on our calendar but 3 new birds anyway.

Our hopes of going for the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher were dashed by a sick grandson who we needed to watch on Thursday and so we spent the day packing for our return to Pelee on Saturday hoping we could get to Toronto on Friday if the bird remained. And then, a crazy afternoon happened – a Painted Bunting was found on Pelee Island, another ferry ride needed to that bird, shortly after, ANOTHER Scissor-tailed Flycatcher at Pelee on the Tip!!! UGGGGGH , how I wish I was still there! Then a Franklin’s Gull on the Tip! The storms and winds had definitely brought rarities to Ontario. A Little Blue Heron and White-winged Dove showed up in Thunder Bay. All of these birds are usually in the southern US. While I would love to chase them all and they would be great birds to have on the list if I am going for 400 I do not need to chase every rarity. Jude was busy trying to stay ahead of everything and chase everything, as I was last year. I had the plans set for the Flycatcher and then a report came in that 8 birders had just witnessed it being caught and eaten by a Cooper’s Hawk! Poor bird. And sadly, just like that I didn’t need to get up at 4 to be in Toronto by 6.

Friday we had some errands, and needed to see Babi but we took a few hours in Burlington birding some local hotspots hoping for warblers but there were few around. If I had given it more thought I would have contacted the cottage owner for Pelee and seen about adding a night and gone early so we could have strolled up the beach and viewed the Scissor-tailed Flycatcher at Pelee but my personality is such that I often cannot imagine deviating from the “Plan”. Anyway, I didn’t and so we focused on getting ready for the trip and then went out in the evening to Safari Marsh and saw our first Sora of the year.

Storms came in Friday night so when we arrived at the beach at Pelee it was windy and rainy and really not ideal for a southern flycatcher to be flitting about catching insects. Hurricane winds came to mind as I struggled down the beach in thick wet sand. So, no Flycatcher. Instead we focused our sights on exploring some of the birds out and about at Pelee despite the drizzly rain most of the day and managed to add 8 more species to our list. The most excitement was a report of a Worm-eating Warbler at Rondeau only an hour away, but we know how difficult they are to re-find so we opted not to go for it.

With more rain in the forecast for Sunday we decided to head to Rondeau for the day as it is better for getting off trails to your car than at Pelee where you can often be 30 minutes or more from your car. We slept in till almost 6 LOL and then stopped at Blenheim Sewage Lagoons to see a Wilson’s Phalarope in beautiful breeding plumage but as we got inside the gates a report came in that the Worm-eating Warbler had been re-found so we opted to head there as we were only 15 minutes away. It would be a lovely bird to add to our list as we missed seeing it last year. There were many birders on the trail and so no shortage of eyes looking enabling us to look at other warblers around and add birds to our list. After a couple of hours we were behind a couple who stopped to look at something and Jerry and I saw movement in the underbrush but could not identify a bird. I asked her what she had seen and she said Worm-eating Warbler! I thought she was joking! But we looked into the area where the “bird” had gone and Jerry thought he saw something with the right colouring, I saw something as well that could have been but unfortunately nothing definitive. It might be the bird that got away, who knows…we passed the info to Jude who arrived minutes later but the bird was not seen again. We ate a leisurely lunch in our car and then the most amazing news arrived! Another, the third, Scissor-tailed Flycatcher was found at Long-Point! Another chance, how could that even be possible that we would get a third chance at this species. It was 2 hours away, we immediately started driving. As we drove, a report that a Prairie Warbler was at the same place. Double bonus!

When we arrived and got out to the beach where the Flycatcher was being seen there was only one birder to tell us it had not been seen for about 30 minutes. Ahhh, the highs and lows of birding, excitement on the drive, disappointment it might be gone. We scanned the trees, more birders arrived, and suddenly Jax, way down the beach started waving and running towards us pointing to the trees, we all started sprinting (in my mind) but it was more like a slow plodding because of the deep sand. He went up into the dunes, some of us followed, the bird flew out, we ran down the dunes. It would have made a very funny video watching all of us birders with binoculars and cameras, coats flapping, hats askew, all trying to chase this very fast bird. Finally, it perched. We managed to stop gasping enough to take pictures and enjoy seeing this beautiful bird. And then it was off again and we headed to see the Prairie Warbler that was just a minute away. We heard it before we saw it and that led us to the shrub it was in. Woo-hoo! two great birds at once.

Totally worth the 5 hours in the car, because now we had a 3 hour drive back to Pelee. We stopped at Blenheim again on our way home where we had started our day and saw the beautiful Wilson’s Phalarope. We took some pics and drove the final hour.

We picked up pizza and just got in the door of the cottage, ate 2 slices and a report came in of a Snowy Egret only 40 minutes away. It was pouring rain, but a Snowy Egret is a good rarity to have. I drove as Jerry had driven the last leg and just as we got close he realized that he did not have his camera! Agggh, we were in such a hurry to leave he had not grabbed it. The Egret was off a bridge on a roadway so there was limited space to park but we pulled over, jumped out, saw the Egret, took some pics with my Iphone and then hopped back in the car in 4 minutes. One of our faster twitches and while I would have loved to stay and enjoy the bird the reality was it was pouring, the bird was hunkered down, I was hungry and tired. We headed back to warm up the pizza and to write this post.

Whew! what a week and we have just been at Pelee for two days! It already feels like a month!

Week 18 36 Species added 268 J&E

Week 17 Pink Feet!

by Ellen Horak | Apr 27, 2025 | Canada 400

Monday we decided to go to Pelee in the hopes we could add a substantial amount of birds in one place rather than traveling around from place to place adding 1-2 birds at a time. There was rain in the morning so we took our time and arrived at 10:30 just as the sun was coming out. We worked our way to the tip walking through Woodland trail and started adding birds – Eastern Towhee, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Rose-breasted Grosbeak, Green Heron. We were happy that it looked like it was going to be a good day! When we got out to the Tip there were many tourists walking out. During bird migration people are asked not to go out to the end until after 10am to allow birds time to rest and birders opportunities to see the birds. It was well after 10 so we also walked out to the end and took the obligatory selfies at the most southern point of Canada.

By the time we made it back from the Tip to the Visitor Center it was after 2 and we had added 10 species. We sat to eat our lunch and Rick (Pelee ambassador extraordinaire) joined us for a chat. He commented on how relaxed we looked compared to how we looked last year while doing our Ontario Year, haha. We had to agree! This year has a totally different feel partly because of the external issues we had last year and also because I’ve made it just the 400 goal. He also told us that there were two vireos at the Tip which we had somehow missed seeing. So after our lunch we took the tram back down and walked up the east side of the beach again where there were a number of warblers moving around. Sure enough we eventually found the Blue-headed Vireo and a White-eyed Vireo. Awesome looks at both of them as they moved along the beach and Jerry got some lovely pictures. It turned out to be a 3-Vireo day.

We had to leave because the last tram left at 5pm and I did not want to add another 2.5 kms of walking to our total of 13.4 km. At the end of the day we had added 16 species to our Canada and Ontario lists, had some great looks at birds and Jerry took some great pictures.

On Monday reports floated around on Discord that a very rare Burrowing Owl had been photographed on Sunday somewhere in Wellington County and apparently intrepid local birders took the day driving around trying to find it since no one was sharing where it had been seen. Late in the afternoon someone managed to find it! A few local birders got the first calls and got out to see it. I got the location a bit later but there was not enough time to get there before dark. I expect to see this owl out in the grasslands in Saskatchewan and we have seen them before in a few places so it was not a lifer but I figured it would be a good Ontario bird to get. By late evening the OBA and OFO decided since the location was being shared like wildfire that they try to at least enact some protocols for viewing. It was posted where to park, to keep quiet, to only view from a certain area away from where the owl had been seen, to be courteous with the locals and of course to bird with respect and integrity. Owl sightings are notorious for bringing out the worst in birders and photographers and most sightings seem to end up with some drama and confrontations. I have kinda stopped going to many of the major sightings because I just don’t feel good about it. I don’t like to think that I am contributing to the problems, but of course we are just by choosing to go and see the bird. Against my better judgement, I decided the Burrowing Owl was worth it. We arrived at 6:45am on Tuesday and there were maybe 20 cars with more arriving every minute. Many people were spread along the road with scopes and cameras. The wind was very strong and it was cold! Not really conducive to a small owl from the south coming out to enjoy the day I thought. We spent 30 minutes chatting quietly with birders and searching the grasses a long way away but no sign of the tiny owl. We decided to leave and return when it was sunnier and warmer later in the day, if it was seen. It was not seen again.

When we left we decided to check out the Glen Morris Pond, as we have been for the last week or so, hoping Virginia Rail and Sora had arrived. As soon as we opened our windows we could here the kid-dik, kid-dik calls of the Rail. We stopped for a bit and Jerry got out to see if he might get a picture but the Rail flew up and then back down before he could get his camera up. We heard 2 Gallinules as well but no Sora yet. As we headed home we stopped at a small wet area in a farm field and did a quick scope and found another species to add to the list, a Solitary Sandpiper.

Jerry had a dentist appointment in the afternoon so I went along and we stopped at the Desjardin Canal to add a Black-crowned Night Heron to the list. Before we left a report of a Rock Wren at Pelee had come in but again we will get that species in BC so I don’t have to rush for it as I would have had to last year. A few hours later though a report came in of a Yellow-throated Warbler at Pelee, exactly where we had our lovely vireos yesterday. Ugggh! The vagaries of this hobby! That is the second Yellow-throated Warbler I have missed and there are not that many in any given year.

Wednesday we decided to take our youngest grandchildren out of school and do a birding outing to Long Point. Yes, we wanted to be in close proximity to any potential rarities but also we wanted to spend some time with them before we leave for the west. We visited the banding centre and had a good time seeing all the birds close up. Hannah felt very sad for the birds in the net but they both were happy to follow a netted Blue-headed Vireo patiently through the banding process until it was released again.

Thursday morning we were up at 5:30am and in Dundas by 6:30 to make our 3rd attempt at the Louisiana Waterthrush. We carefully walked the trail along the stream and after about 20 minutes we heard the familiar song! It continued for the next 20 minutes while we attempted to actually find the singing bird in the trees across the stream. It is so frustrating, It sounded like it was coming from directly in front of us but despite scanning with our bins and looking for any movement we could not find it. For the moment it will go in as a “Heard Only”. We headed back home, changed quickly and were on our yoga mats for class just after 9am. The temperature continued to rise and we opted to stay home and get our porch set up for summer with our mosquito curtains attached and the furniture all placed.

Late Thursday (they always arrive late in the day) a report came in of a Blue Grosbeak up near Lake Simcoe so we were ready in the morning to leave as soon as it was confirmed to still be there. On Friday we were on the road just after 7 and arrived at 9:30am. We met up with Margaret who had just seen it and gave us detailed instructions for viewing this skulky bird. It had been flushed many times by people, dogs and vehicles so we tried to stay back. We did manage to find it deep in the shrubs and tangles but it was quite a while before it came out onto the grass to feed and allowed everyone to get great pictures. A group of school kids on a field trip were heading to the area the bird was so I went over to explain what was happening and asked for the their cooperation in not flushing the rare bird. They were very curious and we ended up letting kids use our bins, Jean got out her scope and we had a little impromptu class on bird migration and Blue Grosbeaks!

We decided to head home but stop on the way for a reported Least Bittern in a park in Mississauga. Like all the rails, they tend to be heard but not always seen so I was hoping we would get a chance to see it in a small pond where it was likely very hungry from its flight over the lake. I brought out our scope and scanned all the reeds along the edges but could not see anything. Then I scanned again, and again and saw a slightly darker colour that did not fit the reed colour. It was the back of the Bittern. It moved around a bit but did not give us great views. We waited, scoped and scanned. Finally, it ventured out of the reeds for a full look at it in the scope and Jerry was able to take a picture. Within a minute or two it disappeared back into the reeds.

Saturday the phone was pinging as people got out on a blustery cold Saturday with lots of good birds being found: Summer Tanager, American Avocet, Golden-winged Warbler, and Hooded Warbler. We stayed local and added a Bank Swallow on a quick stop at the Storm pond on our way to see Babi. Our plan was to head to Pelee Sunday and Monday since south winds were in the forecast for a prequel to the big two week adventure starting the following week. I wanted to prepare some food and pack but at 3:00 the “ping” was a Pink-footed Goose 2.5 hours away near Wasaga. We didn’t go for the Ottawa one as I hoped to get the species out in Newfoundland but with one that close we had to go for it. We were in the car in about 5 minutes and arrived at 5:20. It was windy, really windy, and raining. There were a few birders huddled with scopes between cars so we joined them and got our first glimpses of a Pink-footed Goose! A lifer! Henrique found the bird and stayed around helping everyone get onto the bird. Thanks so very much Henrique! It was very far back in the field and not the most satisfying looks but at one point, once I had it in my own scope, it stood up and stretched its wings and I had a lovely view of the bird for a few seconds. Unfortunately, we did not get to see its incredible pink feet! Jerry tried to take some pictures but the rain and distance made it difficult. Hopefully, we will see the Newfoundland bird and get a nice picture then, pink feet and all.

View from the road for the Pink-footed Goose

Sunday morning we arrived at Pelee at 8 am and walked through Tilden because a road race had blocked off the Woodland Trail and the tip until noon. We were hoping to refind a Kentucky Warbler and get a picture of a Louisiana Waterthrush. We did a few loops and heard Louisiana as well as Northern Waterthrush. There are subtle differences between the two and there is often controversy over what species people are seeing. We had it on good authority that there was a Northern and Louisiana showing together in a wet area but by the time we got there only the Northern could be seen. Jerry got pictures and then we waited patiently until we saw another small brown warbler with very white underparts. Unfortunately, it was a quick look and no picture just like last year. We will try many times over the coming weeks to see if we can get a picture. We ended up seeing 4 White-eyed Vireos, a bird we added on Monday’s trip to Pelee. Jerry managed great pictures again.

We headed back to the visitor centre and passed a birder we spent lots of time with at the tip last year and he let us know that a Chat had been found. We had to work around the closed area for the race, found the footpath and waited with another group of birders for another skulky bird to show itself. It only took about 10 mins and the Yellow-breasted Chat popped up. Jerry was down the path and there was a second where I thought, “do I call him?” Of course I would never! So I whisper-shouted immediately and he got back in time to see it and to get some pictures. We will get Chats out in BC but they are sometimes hard to find out there too so anything I can do to limit what I have to find in the heat of June/July is good. A report then came in that the Kentucky Warbler had been re-found in a spot we had walked by twice today so we headed back to that spot and waited again, patiently. After about 10 minutes it popped up a bit further away but everyone waiting got on it and we saw it multiple times as it worked its way across in front of us. Two very good, tough birds to get, and we had them – it was a good day! And Jerry got pictures!

After that things got quiet. We walked 13.8km total for the day. We headed to our hotel around 4 and went out for some yummy Mexican food at our favourite spot in Leamington (Salsa Caliente) with Jude, who also got the Chat and Kentucky for his Big Year. South winds predicted for tonight so hope we start week 18 off with a bang!

Week 17 30 species added 232 species E&J

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