Spring migrants trickled in the beginning of the week with continuing warm weather but by weeks end bone-chilling cold and wind returned. We took the opportunity to finish the condo work so we could post ads to rent it. We finally finished that job on Thursday! The relief was immense as we delivered the last boxes for donation and scrubbed the last area of the condo! Lets hope it rents quickly.
Friday we decided to spend the day birding as I was anxious to add birds to our Canada list. We drove up to Grass Lake to see the first Eastern Meadowlarks back in the fields and already singing. They were very skittish though and Jerry did not manage a decent picture although he tried. Further along we came across a group of Turkey Vultures enjoying a breakfast of road-killed raccoon. The birds or a kind passer-by had flung the carcass into the field so they could enjoy the feast without the danger of becoming a statistic themselves. Jerry often performs this service (with gloves and paper towels) when we come across animals dead on the road. Not a pleasant task for sure.
Turkey Vultures
We birded our way to Burlington to find the Fish Crows that live and nest along the lake. They were not at the usual Sioux Lookout Park so we drove towards Bronte checking out other parks with windows open listening for their distinctive call. On the way back I suddenly heard that short nasal call and swung the car around to see if we could find it. We pulled into a parking area and the crow landed in a tree close by so Jerry heard the call as well. He got out to try and get a picture but the crow moved off. We continued to drive and check out any crows but none called and so we ended up without pics or audio which means another trip back at some point to get that confirmation. Below is a call from last year of a Fish Crow and below that is the call of an American Crow.
Fish CrowAmerican Crow
We continued to stop and bird at a few places along the lake into Hamilton and then stopped in at Windemere where we quickly saw our first Tree Swallow of the year. He had already decided what box was going to be “his” and would not leave it despite us walking right by it.
Tree Swallow
Next we headed up the escarpment hoping to find some Blue-winged Teals, but they were not at their usual spot on 5th road. We managed to add a Greater Yellowlegs to our Ontario list but little else was visible with very strong winds making scoping and birding difficult. We decided to continue across Haldimand and eventually ended up at Long Point to see if anything new had arrived since last week. The wind on the causeway was strong and chilly and we quickly headed for the more closed area of Crown Marsh and Old Cut but could not manage to add anything else for the year.
The weekend continued cold and windy and we opted to stay home and enjoy the first few days in a long time where we had nothing to do. Next week the weather is not supposed to be much better with SNOW! and rain and negative temperatures. We may head south (Point Pelee or Rondeau) for a day trip just to get out and catch up with some more spring migrants. At this time of year we are all itching to get out and see new birds and so I scan the weather reports for those warm south winds that will bring more migrants back to Ontario. Unfortunately, none are forecast until next Sunday so things might still be slow.
Last year at this time we had already seen 157 species in Ontario and this year we have only seen 122. A crazy difference of 35 birds. Mind you, we saw a number of early migrants in BC this year so I am not rushing to add them to the Ontario list knowing we we will get them over the next few weeks but still, it does show the difference in the amount of time we spent birding. It will be interesting to see where we end up at the end of the year with our Ontario list. My friend Jude is doing a Big Ontario Year and is currently at a whopping 164! I wish him the best!, we had a great time last year often going for the same birds at the same time and we will try to help him as much as we can this year. He has a great shot at getting over the 340 mark.
We are currently in 5th spot in Canada with birders from BC ahead of us because they already have migration starting. I anticipate catching up over the next month or so and we should be near the top by the time we head out west in June.
Fingers crossed for a change in the forecasts next week…we want spring weather!
Monday, we headed to Niagara Falls to try for a Black-legged Kittiwake and make a concentrated effort for a Black Vulture. We have been in the Falls 3-4 times this year to visit friends and family so our time has always been limited to quick stops hoping to catch sight of one. The vulture that is most common in Ontario is the Turkey Vulture and the Black Vulture is a southern species that is very rare in Ontario. It just happens that a very small population reside in Niagara Falls New York and so any birder in Ontario who wants to add Black Vulture to their list heads to Niagara Falls Ontario and hopes to see the US birds in Canadian airspace or some count them for Ontario if they see them in the US but are standing in Ontario. Because this is a Big Year I wanted to make sure the birds themselves were in Canada.
We arrived at 8am and between scoping for the Kittiwake and looking for the Vulture the time passed. By noon I decided we had to stay the whole day and just keep trying different areas and trying back and forth for the two birds. We made 3 attempts for the Kittiwake, scoping about an hour each time and feel confident that we did not miss it. Basically, we were looking through 40 Bonapartes Gulls for one that looked identical but had a black collar on the neck. Not an easy thing to see with waves and wind but by late afternoon it was very calm and we still could not find a Gull with a black collar. We will have other chances for that bird in the fall and winter. While standing at the Queenston Heights overlook for vultures we had our first Osprey fly over but did not get a picture. Bird #168
Everyone knows the key places to see the vultures, at the Overlook and the Locust Picnic Area, but we were not having any luck so we stopped at a picnic area by the Lewiston Bridge and walked along the river as we had seen a few Turkey Vultures in the area. We saw 6 Turkey vultures on the cliffs of the river and then on the way back to the car I saw a smaller black vulture flying downriver with just the silver tips on the wings. We raced back along the path trying to keep up with it and get pictures. The bird was along the river and hard to determine if it was in Canada or the US. We decided to head back to Locust Grove Picnic Area as we know they roost there and see if it might have tucked in again. No vulture but I suggested we sit for a minute and check what other birds were around and it had warmed up. After sitting for a bit, as we got up to go, a man was moving quickly with a camera through the area and as we watched him a Black Vulture appeared in the picnic area – in Canada! Much excitement, the birder had seen it down where we had and was trying to get pics too. Jerry managed some more pics and suddenly a second Black Vulture appeared as well as another local birder who told us they have seen as many as 6-9 Black Vultures at a time. We were very happy to see two.
Black VultureTurkey Vulture
And then Tuesday to Saturday was a combination of bad weather, caregiving, spreading wood chips on our garden areas and some social time with our granddaughters and the family. Few new birds were arriving so I felt comfortable to wait it out knowing these are birds that I will eventually come across. Have you all heard that enough over the last 3-4 weeks? Are you all silently yelling at me, “Get out birding!”?
It cannot always be about birding!
Saturday after brunch with our kids we did a quick drive to Paris Plains Church Road to view the Lapland Longspurs that migrate through each year at this time. We added them to the list a while back but Jerry wanted to get better pics if he could and of the males in breeding colours. There were many birders on the road watching and the birds were not too far away giving nice scope views. Camera pictures were still a challenge as they blend into the corn fields extremely well.
Lapland Longspurs Males in breeding colours
Sunday was a gorgeous day with temps hitting into the high teens and we decided to do a birding blitz before dinner with his mom. We wanted to focus on areas where the birds that have arrived might be. Fields for sparrows, forest for Wrens and Towhees, water for Terns, Egrets and Herons. We started with another trip to Paris Plains Church Road (10 mins from home) for new sparrows and quickly heard a Savannah Sparrow, bird #170, near the spot we had been viewing Lapland Longspurs late Saturday. We searched for a Vesper Sparrow but came up empty again. We know they are there, reports have been coming in, so next time we are by hopefully we see it. We then headed to Dundas Conservation Area on the way to Hamilton and walked the 4km main loop trail that winds up and down the valley giving me 17 floors on my pedometer. It is a gorgeous, strenuous walk. We finally added Winter Wren! It was singing very loudly from some scrub near a stream but we could not see it. Wrens are tiny little birds with big voices and they blend extremely well with the branches they love to sit amongst. Hopefully we will catch up with another one so Jerry can get a picture.
Dundas Valley Conservation Area
After shedding some layers as the day warmed we headed to Windemere Basin, a water area known for Terns, Egrets and Herons but came up empty. Jerry did get some nice pics of the Tree Swallows that have just arrived and were already choosing nesting boxes.
Tree Swallow
Next stop was Princess Point where we walked around the water area and had a Caspian Tern fly past – Jerry got a quick pic and then we noticed some swallows and realized that one of them was not a Tree Swallow but a Barn Swallow with its forked tail and dark underbelly. Another new bird! We walked back into the forest around the Point to an area we often have seen Eastern Towhees but they have not arrived to that spot yet. All in all a pretty good blitz day, adding 4 more birds for a total of 6 for the week. Only two real days of birding, one at the beginning and one at the end – bookends.
Next week is a full on birding week, with local birding of marshes and wetlands, Long Point and maybe even Pelee or Rondeau or both near weeks end or weekend. Things are picking up nicely and we are going to be very busy…
