Rarity Chasing In Ontario

When Laura and I made the decision to return to our travels this fall, one of the inevitable consequences was we would miss some really great birds in Ontario. Ultimately, this tradeoff was of little concern to me. Three months of exploring Panama and Mexico and becoming acquainted with so many new and interesting species more than made up for the handful of new Ontario birds that I would have seen, had I stayed put in southern Ontario. My Ontario bird list is important to me, but not so important that I would hesitate to explore other regions of the world. 

The first miss was Rufous Hummingbird. Ontario has seven species of hummingbirds on its list, and all but Ruby-throated Hummingbird are rarities. Of these, Rufous Hummingbird is by far the most likely with well over 30 OBRC-accepted records. It is surprising that I had yet to see one in the province, given that the species is nearly annual in recent decades. This autumn, three Rufous Hummingbirds have shown up and stuck around long enough for many birders to view them. The first was in Wheatley, Chatham-Kent but it appeared in September a day or two before Laura and I were slated to depart for Panama, and thus, I could not chase it. Two other Rufous Hummingbirds were observed by hundreds of birders - one in Lambton County, and one in Oakville, Halton Region. The Lambton bird was last seen during the week prior to our arrival back home in Ontario, while the Halton bird was only publicly available for viewing on a few days when we were still out of the country (who knows, it may even still be around?). I'm sure I'll get a Rufous Hummer one of these years!

Rufous Hummingbird - San Jose del Pacifico, Oaxaca, Mexico (November 17, 2021)

The second miss was a Sage Thrasher that Blake Mann found at Mitchell's Bay, Chatham-Kent on November 6. It frequented the same section of trail and was last observed on November 18. Sage Thrasher, while rare in Ontario, has been found over 20 times previously in the province. It is another one that will likely appear semi-frequently in the future, if the past is any indication. 

The third miss stung a little bit - a Groove-billed Ani found by Kyle Swanson on his family's property near Stratford, Perth County. Groove-billed Ani has a track record of vagrancy to the Great Lakes. Between 1963 and 1988 Ontario saw six records of this southern species, spanning the dates of October 8 to November 1. There have been no other reports in the intervening years so the Stratford bird made waves in the birding community. Of course, Laura and I have seen hundreds of Groove-billed Anis in recent weeks but none were quite as special as one in Ontario would have been...

Groove-billed Ani - Coclé, Panama (March 6, 2014)

If the Groove-billed Ani was the highlight of the autumn, most birders would have been quite satisfied. But we have grown accustomed to astronomical rarities appearing in recent years, in no small part due to the explosive growth in the size and coverage of the birding community. Last autumn produced goodies like Variegated Flycatcher, Tundra Bean-Goose, Plumbeous Vireo, Scott's Oriole, Black-headed Grosbeak, Tropical Kingbird, Glaucous-winged Gull and Common Gull, for instance. 

Variegated Flycatcher - Brooklin, Durham Region, Ontario (November 16, 2020)

But the rarities kept coming in 2021! The next great bird was a probable Glaucous-winged Gull that Justin Peter discovered in Barrie on November 27. I say probable because Glaucous-winged Gulls hybridize frequently in the Pacific northwest, and most individuals probably have some Western Gull genes. But, assuming that the Barrie bird is determined to be a "good" Glaucous-winged, it would represent only the second record for Ontario. 

Laura and I returned to Ontario just in time to make a mad dash up to Barrie to try our luck. Unfortunately, the bird was a no-show, having last been observed a few days earlier. The visit was still worthwhile as we were able to spend some quality time with our good friend David Szmyr. Still, the Glaucous-winged Gull would have been the cherry on top. 

Braving the ice pellets - Barrie, Simcoe County, Ontario

The final miss was a Burrowing Owl that was discovered at Tommy Thompson Park in Toronto. This bird was first seen in early December and a handful of Ontario birders were able to see on December 5. Searches on December 6 and later were unsuccessful. Burrowing Owl has occurred at least six other times since 1982; the most recent being a Pelee Island record by Mike and Ken Burrell on April 25, 2008.

So for those keeping track, that is five potential new Ontario birds that I missed out on this autumn, but that is life! 

Laura and I have been busy upon our return to Ontario in mid-December but we have managed to get out here and there in search of birds. Our main goal has been to find some year-birds for Laura. She has become quite the birder this year and she was sitting at 993 species for North America in 2021 after our hugely successful autumn in Panama and Mexico. In a bid to reach 1000, we birded around Lake Ontario, from Niagara to Scarborough, over two days.

We spent the afternoon of December 17 in Niagara Region, our old stomping grounds. A few Razorbills had been hanging out at the mouth of the river in Niagara-on-the-Lake, no doubt remnants from the large push of Razorbills into Lake Ontario in late October. Before visiting NOTL, however, Laura and I made a quick stop at Dufferin Islands so that I could add the long-staying Black-bellied Whistling-Duck to my winter list (yeah I know, us birders and obscure lists...). 

Black-bellied Whistling-Duck - Dufferin Islands, Niagara Falls, Niagara, Ontario

Black-bellied Whistling-Duck - Dufferin Islands, Niagara Falls, Niagara, Ontario

The Black-bellied Whistling-Duck unexpectedly appeared at Dufferin Islands on August 20, 2021. It must have taken a liking to the local Mallard flocks since, four months later, it hasn't left! 

Black-bellied Whistling-Duck - Dufferin Islands, Niagara Falls, Niagara, Ontario

Black-bellied Whistling-Duck - Dufferin Islands, Niagara Falls, Niagara, Ontario

We only lingered for a few minutes since there were other stops to make. Next up was a quick check of the Adam Beck power plants since Laura needed Iceland Gull. Check! And we motored down to NOTL in hopes of re-locating one of the Razorbills. 

This was a successful endeavour. At least one (and possibly two) Razorbills were in view, diving frequently with the sea ducks far offshore. They were too far for photos but I managed a few poor digiscoped snaps. I had seen Razorbill in Ontario once before (at this exact location, no less!) but this was the first time that I had photographed a Razorbill here. It represented my 386th bird species photographed in Ontario, out of 399 in total. 

Razorbill - Niagara-on-the-Lake, Niagara, Ontario

In addition to the Razorbill, we enjoyed great scope views of a Little Gull lazily flying around, year bird #996 for Laura. Surf or Black Scoter would have also been new but, try as we might, we couldn't turn any of the distant White-winged Scoters into our desired species. 

On December 22, Laura and I braved the strong winds and cold temperatures in search of the last few species required to bring Laura's year list up to 1000. We began the day at the end of Green Road in Grimsby, a sure location for three species of sea ducks - Black Scoter, Surf Scoter and King Eider. All three fell in quick succession, bringing Laura within one species of 1000. 

We motored around the lake and ended up at Marilyn Bell Park in Toronto where a young male Harlequin Duck had been hanging around. The wind was so strong we were nearly blown into Lake Ontario, but we succeeded with killer looks at the bird from only a few meters away. Success!

Laura (and Harlequin Duck) - Marilyn Bell Park, City of Toronto, Ontario

Our final stop for the day was a small community garden near the lakeshore in Scarborough. Karl Konze had discovered a young Golden-crowned Sparrow here on November 19th and it had frequented the same area in the weeks since. Despite no reports in a few days, Laura and I gave it a shot. We were glad that we braved the Toronto traffic since the Golden-crowned Sparrow appeared under its preferred bird feeder 20 minutes after we arrived. Luckily, it provided fantastic views, allowing us to soak in its subtle, yet unique plumage. 

Golden-crowned Sparrow - Scarborough, City of Toronto, Ontario

The Golden-crowned Sparrow looked right at home beside the Dark-eyed Juncos and White-throated Sparrows. It seemed to be doing just fine, gorging on small seeds that it easily found in the grassy patches. 

Golden-crowned Sparrow - Scarborough, City of Toronto, Ontario

Golden-crowned Sparrow - Scarborough, City of Toronto, Ontario

This was a new species for Laura, while it had been over 10 years since my last observation. I have seen one previously in Ontario - a bird that was attending a bird feeder in Ottawa in October, 2010 - but that was before I carried a camera with me. This Golden-crowned Sparrow was my 387th bird species photographed in Ontario.

Golden-crowned Sparrow - Scarborough, City of Toronto, Ontario

Laura and I may get out birding once or twice between now and the end of the year, but otherwise we will be busy with several other projects. We have some exciting travel plans in the new year - stay tuned - while I still have a mountain of content from Mexico and Panama to publish on the blog.