Explorations of an Ecologist: December 2014

Wednesday, 31 December 2014

2014 in review (part 1)

I began 2014 in Nova Scotia visiting Laura and her family for the fourth year in a row. The year started well, as I discovered a Tufted Duck at the first location I hit up to start my first day of birding. This Eurasian species is annual in Nova Scotia, though it was the first one I had seen on this side of the Atlantic.

Tufted Duck (left) - Eastern Passage, Nova Scotia

For the next month and a half I was based in Ontario, though many weekends were spent birding. Photographing this Great Gray Owl near Brooklin, Ontario was a photographic highlight of the year for me.

Great Gray Owl - Brooklin, ON

In early February I joined David Szmyr and Tyler Hoar for a weekend road trip to a large burn just south of Timmins. That weekend we saw nine species of finches but the real highlight was snowshoeing in the cold, crisp and calm weather, watching Three-toed and Black-backed Woodpeckers forage for beetles under the bark of the recently burned trees.

American Three-toed Woodpecker - near Timmins, ON

By late February I left the cold weather behind to join David Bell and Steve Pike on an epic 2.5 week birding trip throughout central and eastern Panama, including five days in the Darien gap. Below are a couple photos of a few highlights...

Golden-collared Manakin - Pipeline Road, Panama

Geoffroy's Tamarin - Gamboa, Panama

Ornate Hawk-Eagle - Altos del Maria, Panama

Harpy Eagle - Darien Province, Panama

Glass frog species - Darien Province, Panama

Less than a week after arriving home, I was on a plane again - this time to Europe to visit Laura in Scotland. Since this was my fourth trip to Edinburgh I had already seen most of the local birds...it is fun to get re-aquainted with the birdlife though. European Robins, as common as they may be, are one of my favorites.

European Robin - Edinburgh, U.K.

A hike through the mist-shrouded Pentland Hills south of the city was successful in locating a most wanted bird for me...Red Grouse (or Willow Ptarmigan, depending on which side of the Atlantic you grew up on). Their strange calls provided the soundtrack to our hike that day.

Willow Ptarmigan - south of Edinburgh, U.K.

We flew to Portugal to spend the better part of a week, exploring the beautiful Algarve along the Mediterranean coast. Though the weather did not cooperate (for the most part), we had a fantastic trip and even fit in a bunch of birding! Some of the highlight species for me....Great Bustard, Audoin's Gull, Great Skua, Little Bittern, Black-bellied Sandgrouse, and Red-billed Chough.

Sagres, Portugal

"Sheep" Egret - Castro Verde, Portugal

Audouin's Gull - Ilha Deserta, Portugal

I returned home from Europe in early April - just in time for the arrival of spring. While the spring season was a busy one for me work wise, much of it was field work, allowing me to still get out a lot and do some birding on the side. I photographed this Osprey near Fenelon Falls during a cold sunny day in mid-April.

Osprey - Fenelon Falls, ON

I made it down to Point Pelee every weekend and lucked into seeing some great birds. Here is a small sample of some of the Pelee highlights...

Henslow's Sparrow - Point Pelee N.P.

Scarlet Tanager - Point Pelee N.P.

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher - Point Pelee N.P.

Cliff Swallow - Point Pelee N.P.

melanistic Eastern Gartersnake - Point Pelee N.P.

Between late May and mid July my life was consumed with work. As a biologist, the breeding bird season can be madness for me and days off are few and far between. However, despite long hours, mosquitoes, blackflies and minimal sleep, this is one of the my favorite time of the year. The days are long and I am outside almost all the time, wandering through woodlands and wetlands, being completely surrounded by nature. This photo represents one of the most satisfying moments of my summer. Discovering this Blanding's Turtle with a co-worker at a site in central Ontario essentially stopped the proposed aggregate pit. A small victory for the environment in the face of constant "progress" and development.

Blanding's Turtle - near Parry Sound, Ontario

Northern Ontario is a beautiful place...I have fond memories of jumping in this lake near Gogama, Ontario after a long day hiking in the bush.

Gogama, Ontario

Even on the few days off I try to take advantage of the long days to get out and see some of the species that visit Ontario each summer. This Upland Sandpiper is one such species, spending only about four months of the year in Ontario.

Upland Sandpiper - Millhaven, Ontario

Late June isn't generally a good time for rarities to show up in Ontario, but this year a male Lark Bunting took up residence on Amherst Island, persistently singing throughout the early part of the summer. Barb Charlton and I zipped out there one day after work and were treated to great views as it perched in the open, singing away. I had dreamed of seeing one in Ontario for quite some time!

Lark Bunting - Amherst Island, Ontario

This post is getting a little long so I'll end it here...stay tuned for part two.

Monday, 29 December 2014

Eurasian Kestrel near Dartmouth, Nova Scotia

I am back in Nova Scotia for just over a week to visit with Laura and her family. This is my 12th visit to Canada's east coast over the last six years, and my sixth visit over Christmas/New Years. Despite having a population under a million, Nova Scotia has certainly puts its name on the map when it comes to rare birds in Canada. Some of the rarest species that have ever been seen in Canada hail from Nova Scotia - Brown Shrike, Broad-billed Sandpiper, Bermuda Petrel, Tundra Bean Goose, and Western Reef-Heron are just a few of the goodies that have been discovered in Canada's Ocean Playground.

I must have timed this visit out east perfectly, as within two days of my arrival the news broke that a female Eurasian Kestrel had been photographed at Hartlen Point near Dartmouth, N.S. by Kyle Shay. With only about 20 total records for North America, this was a true mega!

I was not able to make it out to the location before dark when I first heard the news, but the next morning I was on site at dawn, hoping to relocate it. Unfortunately the bird did not show, perhaps due to the persistent steady rain all morning. However, the kestrel was seen by others before dark (at a slightly further away location), so Laura and I made plans to return today.

We arrived late in the morning to see a crowd of birders already assembled along Shore Road, about a kilometer from Hartlen Point. Apparently the bird had just been observed prior to our arrival! Almost immediately one of the 30 or so birders spotted the falcon, but by the time Laura and I realized that people were looking at it, the bird was far away down the coast. We watched the black speck until it disappeared to the east, but given the distance we were not confident counting the bird. I mean, the only field mark I could see what that it was a bird somewhere in size between a pigeon and a crow. Not ideal.

Fortunately, we would not be waiting long for an encore performance. After an hour of hiking around the general area, we were walking back to our vehicle along Shore Road when some nearby birders spotted the kestrel heading our way over a ridge. With the sun at our backs, the kestrel spent about 5 minutes hovering above the long grass, looking intently for rodents. After one failed attempt, it successfully caught a vole and took off to the north to enjoy its lunch. I snapped off a few photos of the encounter, but my camera/lens was having focusing problems, leaving a lot to be desired. Oh well! The views were killer, even if the photos weren't, which is all that really matters! I can always go back to Europe where its a lot easier to photograph them...

Eurasian Kestrel - Hartlen Point, Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia

Compared to American Kestrel, Eurasian Kestrel is larger and paler. Diagnostic is the single "moustache" shown by Eurasian, while American has two. Eurasian Kestrel is the default kestrel across much of Europe, Asia and Africa and can be quite common within its range. However, it is quite rare in North America with only about twenty total records. Of these, about half are from islands in western Alaska. Canada has two previous records - one in British Colombia in 1946, and one along the Nova Scotia/New Brunswick border in 1988.

Eurasian Kestrel - Hartlen Point, Halifax Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia

This Eurasian Kestrel is without a doubt the rarest bird I have seen in North America so far, and a great way to close out 2014. Our day was not done and we decided to hit up a few more locations before driving back home.

A quick walk at MacCormack's Beach failed to turn up much of interest, though I snapped a few photos of a Rock Pigeon as it obligingly sat amongst some rocks along the beach. This is one species that I have never really photographed before.

Rock Pigeon - MacCormack's Beach P.P.

We also visited Rainbow Haven Provincial Park to see what we could come up with. Often a little flock of Yellow-rumped Warblers over winters here and sometimes interesting birds will join up with them. Despite not seeing much for the first part of the hike, we eventually came across a little group of American Tree Sparrows and Yellow-rumped Warblers. As we were sorting through them, a Bohemian Waxwing trilled from the top of a White Spruce several times before flying off - my first for Nova Scotia.

Laura also spotted a lone swallow over the marsh, which upon closer inspection revealed itself as a Tree Swallow. This bird should be much further south than central Nova Scotia by now! It's not every year that one lingers into December in Nova Scotia. Given the relatively mild conditions during the first part of this winter it is not entirely surprising that this one is surviving.

As we were arriving back at the car we encountered another little mixed flock of Black-capped Chickadees, Golden-crowned Kinglets, and Yellow-rumped Warblers. Mixed in were two oddballs for the time of year - singles of Ruby-crowned Kinglet and Orange-crowned Warbler. Not a bad way to finish off a great half day of birding!

Saturday, 27 December 2014

Netitishi Day 10

Day 1: September 26, 2014
Day 2: September 27, 2014
Day 3: September 28, 2014
Day 4: September 29, 2014
Day 5: September 30, 2014
Day 6: October 1, 2014
Day 7: October 2, 2014
Day 8: October 3, 2014
Day 9: October 4, 2014
Day 10: October 5, 2014
Day 11: October 6, 2014
Day 12: October 7, 2014
Days 13 and 14: October 8 and 9, 2014

October 5, 2014
Weather: between 6 and 8 degrees C, wind SE to SW 20-40 km/h, overcast with brief periods of light rain
47 species
Ebird checklist: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S20221318

The cool conditions persisted overnight and by dawn it was six degrees with a brisk southwest wind. My notes tell the story of the day....

"Another sh**** day. No birds and some rain. Seawatching was a bust and the rain kept us inside for much of the day. The winds do not appear to be changing as the weather pattern is holding. Hope a good landbird drops in but we are starting to lose motivation to find them."

It seems like all my blog posts are starting to sound the same. Each day the weather isn't ideal, the seawatching is futile, and very few interesting birds are found. At the time it was easy to get disappointed with the sightings (or lack thereof). But looking back, while that may have seemed the case at the time, we actually did have a pretty decent trip and saw some awesome birds. Its just that these birds were seen on relatively few of the total days of the trip. Often on a trip like this, to a remote part of the province that is relatively unknown, the expectations are high to find a really rare bird or two. Given the time of year and track record of that place, anything is possible. But in reality, the weather doesn't always cooperate and the great birds just do not show up most days. The really excellent birds from earlier in the trip begin to seem like a distant memory with each passing day filled with southeast winds!

Since October 5 was a bit of a write-off, I neglected to take any photos for about the third day in a row. Instead, here a few photos of a male Northern Harrier hunting for songbirds one afternoon, taken earlier in the trip when our expectations and morale were both significantly higher.

Northern Harrier - Netitishi Point

Northern Harriers - Netitishi Point

In this photo you can see a few wayward feathers behind the harrier; a product of a successful hunt!

Northern Harrier - Netitishi Point

Wednesday, 17 December 2014

Netitishi Day 9

Red-eyed Vireo (photo by Kory Renaud)

Alan also found what was likely a very good bird while he was seawatching by himself. He got on a distant Sterna tern, though the views were too poor given the conditions to tell if it was a Common Tern or the more likely option of Arctic Tern.

Later in the morning Kory and I were birding in the opening just south of the shelter by the treeline when we heard the distinctive squeak of a Black-backed Woodpecker. A few moments later it appeared and flew directly right beside us, eventually landing in a nearby tree. I was pretty happy with the sighting as it was a long-overdue addition to my southern James Bay list.

Jeremy, Kory and I completed the usual afternoon trek along the coastline to the east in search of sparrows and other songbirds. The James Bay coastline is beautiful with wide open spaces, sun-bleached driftwood, and a variety of colors in the autumn plant life.

southern James Bay coastline

Good numbers of sparrows were foraging on the beach and in the grasses and it wasn't long until we came up with a total of 11 species, highlighted by a single Nelson's Sparrow. Dozens of Dark-eyed Juncos, American Tree Sparrows and White-crowned Sparrows made up the bulk of the sightings.

Despite the poor seawatching conditions, as a group we managed to see 56 bird species - the second highest daily total so far on the trip.

Saturday, 13 December 2014

Netitishi Day 8

After a few hours of seawatching our grand total for waterbirds included 7 Canada Geese ("local" birds on the mudflats), 10 Mallards, two flocks of Northern Pintails, and a Surf Scoter. When the rain finally abated, Kory and I walked the familiar route along the shoreline to the east. The warm temperatures and strong southeast winds over the past few days had given us hope that a new southern vagrant had arrived, to go with the Blue-gray Gnatcatchers we had already discovered in the previous days.

As were heading back to the shelter we startled a dove which flew into a nearby tree. The Mourning Dove caused a brief moment of excitement, though we would have preferred a White-winged Dove! While a common species through much of Ontario Mourning Doves are unexpected at Netitishi Point. This was only the second one I've seen here.

The other new bird for the trip was found by Alan as he sea-watched by himself later that morning - two Red-necked Grebes flying by at close range. This is another species that is only sporadically encountered along the southern James Bay coast.

While today was relatively non-eventful, slow days like these really help birders appreciate the good days. Or so I've been told! Personally I wouldn't mind a higher frequency of good days at Netitishi since it can be some of the best birding in the province when the weather co-operates.

Sunday, 7 December 2014

Niagara to Oakville - December 5, 2014

Dave Szmyr and I both took Friday off from our respective jobs and met up for a fine day of birding. He was at my place in Aurora by 5:00 AM, and the early hour afforded easy driving through the GTA and Hamilton. It was shortly after seven when we arrived at a residential address along the Niagara Parkway, just south of Niagara-on-the-Lake. Eventually as dawn arrived the first few birds attended the feeders - mostly Northern Cardinals and Dark-eyed Juncos, but a few other species mixed in. A Bluebird and a handful of Pine Siskins flew overhead, while a Cooper's Hawk made a brief appearance. Eventually a small flock of House Sparrows arrived and I spotted the target bird sitting on the roof.

Eurasian Tree Sparrow - Niagara-on-the-Lake

The long-staying Eurasian Tree Sparrow fed with the group of House Sparrows a handful of times over the course of half an hour. As usual the group was quite skittish, and combined with the dull morning light it was difficult obtaining sharp photos that weren't too grainy. Even still, I has happy to finally take my first photos of this species, and Dave was thrilled to finally lay eyes on his 300th species for Ontario.

Eurasian Tree Sparrow - Niagara-on-the-Lake

We checked a few other locations along the Niagara River, including Adam Beck and the overlook above Queenston. We birded the Fort Erie waterfront as well, making it as far west as Kraft Road.

Here there was a large group (250+) of Tundra Swans and a few hundred Canada Geese with no other goose species mixed in. Offshore was a large flock of Redhead, Greater Scaup, and two Canvasbacks. Some Dark-eyed Juncos and American Tree Sparrows were calling from some shrubs along the shoreline so I pished to try to attract them closer into view. One of the juncos that responded to the pishing stood out - it was overall somewhat pale with some light brown on its flanks and a sharply contrasting black hood. It was an adult male "Oregon" Dark-eyed Junco and stuck out noticeably from the nearby local "Slate-colored" birds! This form of Dark-eyed Junco includes seven subspecies found throughout western North America. Dave and I went back for our cameras and saw the bird a few more times, but were unable to grab photos as the flock was moving quickly and mostly staying out of view.

This was the first Oregon Junco that either Dave or I had seen in Ontario. Perhaps a dozen or more are reported each year in southern Ontario, though some of these are females/immatures that can be very similar to some "Slate-colored" or "Cassiar" Juncos.

We checked a few more locations along the Niagara River before deciding to drive to Oakville for the last hour and a half before dusk. Sedgewick Park was our destination as all six species of warblers were still hanging on, almost a week into December.

We arrived and met up with Tyler Hoar who had quickly seen all six species in the minutes before our arrival. Despite the fading afternoon light we had no trouble finding all the warblers within about 15 minutes.

The Northern Parula was perhaps the "tamest" of all of them. When birds are struggling to survive in places they really shouldn't be, such as a Northern Parula in southern Ontario in December, the need to find food takes precedence over just about anything else. The risk of foraging right next to potential predators was worth it, if it meant finding food. The parula appeared to be quite successful catching little centipedes and spiders in the leaf litter along the chain link fence.

Northern Parula - Oakville

The other warblers also made short forays to the fence line or to the edge of the open sewage treatment plant. The Wilson's Warbler was the skulkiest of them all, preferring to move slowly through the undergrowth. Two Orange-crowned Warblers were present, as was a single Nashville Warbler. Sedgewick has now held the latter two species into early winter in each of the last three winters.

The Tennessee perched in the open for an extended period of time about half an hour before dusk. The low light made things difficult but I cranked my ISO and hoped for the best. Even at ISO 2000, a shutter speed of 1/50 was about the bust I could manage.

Tennessee Warbler - Oakville

While the warblers are holding on for now, the clock is ticking and it is likely only a matter of time until they perish. While they are finding things to eat now, a good cold snap could put their fragile bodies over the edge. The Yellow-rumped Warblers stand the best chance of overwintering, followed by the Orange-crowned Warblers and maybe the Nashville, but the odds are certainly stacked against them. Most Northern Parulas, Wilson's Warblers and Tennessee Warblers are in Central and South America right now, not struggling to survive freezing temperatures each and every night..

We made one more stop before nightfall, going across the street to Coronation Park to look for a reported Brant, a species Dave had not seen yet this year. The bird was right where it was supposed to be, on the grass feeding with some Canada Geese.

We finished the day with close to 70 species including some great winter birds.

Monday, 1 December 2014

Netitishi Day 7

Day 1: September 26, 2014
Day 2: September 27, 2014
Day 3: September 28, 2014
Day 4: September 29, 2014
Day 5: September 30, 2014
Day 6: October 1, 2014
Day 7: October 2, 2014
Day 8: October 3, 2014
Day 9: October 4, 2014
Day 10: October 5, 2014
Day 11: October 6, 2014
Day 12: October 7, 2014
Days 13 and 14: October 8 and 9, 2014

October 2, 2014
Weather: 10 to 14 to 12 degrees C, wind ESE to S, 20-30 km/h, light overcast with occasional scattered showers
Ebird checklist: http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist?subID=S20220509
48 species

This morning we awoke to warm temperatures and almost no wind, but we headed out to the coast anyways to see what was going on. While ducks were few and far between, a group of 3 Horned Grebes passed by together and eight Snow Geese flew south, high up over the bay. By mid-morning I was sitting at the coast with Jeremy and Kory watching the relatively few waterbirds going by. Behind me, some sparrows were chipping - just the usual White-crowned Sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos, and American Tree Sparrows. As I was watching them a small gray bird flitted into some nearby alders. A quick look with the binoculars revealed it to be another Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. I quickly got Kory on the bird before it flushed deeper into the thicket. Unfortunately I did not get any photos of this one!

Considering that the other gnatcatcher was found only three days ago, and that many of the small flocks of songbirds seem to travel up and down the ridge, passing through the cabin area, it is likely that this could be the same bird involved.

While Jeremy and Alan decided to search for the gnatcatcher, I checked for it along the coastline to the east, while at the same time hoping to see what other birds may be around on such a calm day. Many sparrows were feeding in the grasses and on the beach in front of the treeline, and while relatively skittish, it did not take too long for a group to get accustomed to my presence and fly back out onto the open sand. Quite a few White-crowned Sparrows were around, joining the ranks of the American Tree Sparrows and Dark-eyed Juncos. Some of the sparrow species, such as White-throated and Fox, tended to stick to the dark understorey of the spruces along the edge.

Fox Sparrow - Netitishi Point

Occasional groups of Boreal Chickadees passed through as well, remaining elusive at the top of the spruces. Some would venture out into the open, providing great looks of this somewhat shy species.

Boreal Chickadee - Netitishi Point

As the birding was excellent, I continued on past the point to follow the coastline to the southeast. This area is sheltered on days that are either calm or with southwest winds and birds can be found all along the stretch. After a while some shrubby willow/alder stands grow along the edge of the treeline, and they too can sometimes hold birds. As I passed by the second stand, another small gray bird suddenly appeared! It too flitted quickly, soon after I had identified it as a Blue-gray Gnatatcher. Luckily it did not go far and I was able to take a few distant record photos. I ended up observing it about five times over the coast of half an hour or so as I foraged for insects in the branches.

Blue-gray Gnatcatcher - Netitishi Point

While the first bird today may have been the same one seen on September 30, this second bird was new. While I was photographing this bird, Alan and Jeremy had just finished photographing the other one near the opening north of the cabins. Additionally, this bird stuck to the same small patch of bushes the whole time I was there, and was later seen by Kory in the same area. It certainly looked like a small "invasion" of Blue-gray Gnatcatchers may have arrived - small sample size and all! Blue-gray Gnatcatchers have an established period of vagrancy to the north in the autumn, and now there are six or seven records for the southern James Bay area of which most have been during September/October.

Eventually the gnatcatcher disappeared for a while and so I continued on down the coast to sift through more sparrows and maybe find another southern vagrant. While that did not happen, I did flush this Clay-colored Sparrow from some tall grasses. It ended up sitting tight in a tree along the edge of the grassy area, allowing decent, though somewhat distant views and photos. This bird is likely a local breeder - considering the relatively mild fall up to this point it is not surprising that some Clay-colored Sparrows could still be around.

Clay-colored Sparrow - Netitishi Point

A few other odds and ends were around today - Alan had an Orange-crowned Warbler near the camp, several Purple Finches were vocal in the spruces in the afternoon, and two Ruddy Turnstones flew by the shoreline, heading west.

That evening the temperature was still hovering around 12 degrees, the wind was warm out of the south, and some Mink Frogs and Spring Peepers called away from the wetland beside the cabins. The blackflies and mosquitoes were still biting, making it feel more like a late summer night than an October night.