Birding along Lake Erie

I'll make it short since I'm short on time...currently I am parked outside of a McDonald's in Leamington making use of their wifi.

Today's birding took me along the lakeshore from Port Stanley to Point Pelee. Here's my Ontbirds post summarizing Port Stanley:

"I had about 16 species of shorebirds in the Port Stanley area this afternoon. There were 5 species on the 

East pier, including a juvenile Red Knot. On the beach west of the pier were thousands of gulls, including a

1st cycle and adult Little Gull.
At the lagoons, I ran into another birder and we had
6 A. Golden-plovers (j)
2 Baird's Sandpipers (j)
1 White-rumped Sandpiper (ad)
2 Red-necked Phalaropes (j)
1 Stilt Sandpiper (j)
1 Horned Grebe
 
While along the lake there was a constant stream of raptors including all 3 falcons.

I counted over 2500 Broad-winged Hawks in 1/2 an hour, so I am sure the hawkwatch

had huge numbers today.

1st cycle Little Gull

Bonaparte's Gull - Port Stanley

Horned Grebe - Port Stanley Lagoons

juv. Stilt Sandpiper - Port Stanley lagoons

world's crappiest photo (Red-necked Phalarope juv)

The rest of the day I hit up some spots between Port Stanley and Pelee, stopping at Ridgetown, Blenheim, Wheatley harbour, Hillman Marsh, and the Onion Fields. I didn't find anything really crazy, though another Horned Grebe (Blenheim lagoons) was weird.

Horned Grebe - Blenheim lagoons.

I finished the day with 84 species - not bad considering I had almost zero songbirds (only 2 warbler species, 1 thrush, etc)

Another day at the beach, plus some passerines in Guelph

Well, it looks like I picked the wrong day to go to Van Wagners! David Bell and I drove down for most of the day yesterday, but today a lot more stuff is being posted. At least 14 Sabines' Gulls have been seen, as well as jaegers. A good variety of shorebirds are being seen at Windermere too...

Anyways, here's a recap on yesterday's sightings. I personally saw about 10-15 jaegers by the time we left at around 1:30 PM. Most were too far out to identify, though we did get at least 4 Parasitic and 1 Long-tailed (intermediate/light juvenile). I managed to photograph 2 of the Parasitics that were relatively close - however they were still too far away for good photos.

juvenile Parasitic Jaeger - Van Wagner's Beach, Hamilton

sub-adult Parasitic Jaeger - Van Wagner's Beach, Hamilton

A number of shorebirds were seen, including a single Whimbrel (before Dave and I arrived) and a few Red Knots (after Dave and I left, of course). Still, it was an enjoyable bay out at the beach.

By the way, we did check Windermere and the Red Hill stormwater pond as well, but all we came us with were 2 Stilt Sands (Red Hill) and a single Black-bellied Plover (Windermere).

Late last week I checked out the Guelph Arboretum for the first time all fall. There was a good diversity of passerines, with Mourning Warbler highlighting the 15 warbler species. A Yellow-throated Vireo was nice, as was a few Philadelphia Vireos, a Scarlet Tanager, and a few Rose-breasted Grosbeaks.

Next weekend is the OFO convention at Point Pelee. I am going to be a hike leader this year, so I plan on heading down Thursday evening or Friday morning to do some scouting. Should be fun.

East winds at the beach

On September 7th I headed down to Hamilton to see what the forcasted east winds would bring to Van Wagner's beach. Due to the previous evening's festivities I was unable to drag myself out of bed til about 9:00, but eventually I was on my way and arrived at the beach around 10:00.

A few other birders were already there scanning the lake, including David Bell from Guelph and his girlfriend, as well as Brett Fried and Erika Hentsch. We spent some time scanning and eventually had less than satisfactory views of distant jaegers. Eventually, one pair came from the north close enough to identify as a Long-tailed and a Parasitic.

Later in the afternoon we checked out Windermere basin and the Red Hill stormwater pond, with little to show for it. A few Stilt sandpipers were the only noteworthy thing (they were at Red Hill).

The others left to go back home, so I returned to Van Wagner's for a few more hours in the afternoon. The rain had finally stopped which was nice, and we were rewarded with many jaegers. The few that came close enough to identify were all Parasitic. Brandon Holden had a nice spot with a Sabine's Gull not too far out that I watched briefly.

Other birds seen in the afternoon were 3 seperate sightings of Black Terns, small flocks of sanderlings, 2 Red-necked Phalaropes (flyby) at least 3 Lesser Black-backed Gulls (I only got on 2 of them), and a smattering of Common Terns and Bonaparte's Gulls. At one point 10 Green-winged Teal flew directly overhead. A few Purple Martins rounded out the sightings for the day!

All in all it was not a bad day at the beach. If the winds continue from the north-east, we might get larger numbers of Sabine's Gulls plus the first Black-legged Kittiwakes of the season. Stay tuned.

More from the maritimes

My next post will detail my first day back in Ontario, which I spent at Van Wagner's Beach in Hamilton. But until now, here is the full account of the rest of my birding adventures in "Canada's Ocean Playground".

As I mentioned, the day in Brier Island was a success. All said and done, I finished with 4 life birds as well as great looks at other seabirds.

Laura and I drove from our bed and breakfast in Digby down to Brier Island, arriving at around 9:00 AM. Since our whale-watching trip wasn't scheduled to depart for another 3 hours, we drove to the north end of the island to check out a good spot for 2 species of seals.

Laura checking out the seals - Brier Island, Nova Scotia

Common Eiders - Brier Island, Nova Scotia

We did see both species but my photos are kind of crappy so I'll spare you.... I did however photograph some Common Eiders and I saw a Great Cormorant, some Black Guillemots, and a few common shorebirds. The entire time, chip notes from Wilson's Warblers and the calls of Eastern Phoebes could be heard in the shrubby area behind us.

I stopped briefly to photograph this fritillary (ID forthcoming once I check my resources)

Laura and I made our way onto the ferry and actually ran into the couple from B.C. that we had met earlier in the week with Blake Maybank in Cow Bay. Small world!
The pelagic trip started somewhat slow, but before long we were swimming in phalaropes. Red was the most numerous by far, and by the end of the trip we estimated that we had seen well over 10,000! What a way to get a life bird.

Red Phalaropes - Bay of Fundy

Despite their abundance, it was hard to get passable photos due to their small size and our continuous rocking on the water. An extra 100mm on my lens would certainly help!

Not long after, we were buzzed by the first of many Great Shearwaters. My only previous sighting was a poor look at a single bird 2 years prior near Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. It was great to study the intricacies of their plumages.

Great Shearwater - Bay of Fundy

Somewhat spotted some whales off in the distance, and I quickly fired off a couple photos of what would turn out to be our only Fin Whales for the day.

Fin Whale - Bay of Fundy

As the day wore on, a few more pelagic species showed up, as well as some that aren't pelagic. I saw a single adult Pomarine Jaeger, 2 Sooty Shearwaters, and many Wilson's Storm-petrels. In addition, a Ruby-throated Hummingbird and Pectoral Sandpiper made brief visits to the boat.

Wilson's Storm-petrel - Bay of Fundy

Not long after, we came across a mother and calf Humpback Whale that had been known to be in the area for some time. We were all treated to a great show, as the calf swam up to the boat and lifted its head out of the water. I was limited photographically because I only had my 300 mm lens, so I tried a couple close-ups of the barnacles. The whales stayed with the boat for the better part of an hour.

Humpback Whale barnacles - Bay of Fundy

My highlight came as we were watching the whales. One of the birders on the trip (Elizabeth Doull) alerted me to a Northern Fulmar whizzing past. This was a target species for me, though I didn't expect to get such good looks at one! It also hung around the boat, hoping for a handout, for quite some time.

Northern Fulmar - Bay of Fundy

Northern Fulmar - Bay of Fundy

Our last new seabird for the trip were a few small groups of Atlantic Puffins. Despite missing Manx Shearwater, South Polar Skua (seen a few days prior), and Leach's Storm-petrel, we did quite well with pelagic birds.

Atlantic Puffins - Bay of Fundy

Home from the maritimes

My flight has arrived back in Toronto after a great trip out east. Birdwise, I saw 98 species this trip in about a day and a half of birding. Ill try to get the photos up in a couple of days.
In other news, judging by the recent reports it is prime shorebird and jaeger time! I'm looking forward to the 25+ km/h NE winds tomorrow and will probably spend some time at the beach in Hamilton. looking forward to birding my home province again!

Bay of fundy "pelagic"

I'll make it a quick post because I am using my phone - full report with photos will follow later!

Laura and I booked onto a whale- watching tour out of Brier Island this afternoon. This morning we briefly explored the northern part of the island, seeing a few various songbirds including Rose-breasted Grosbeaks and a Yellow-bellied Flycatcher.
The boat trip out was a success as we got to see up-close (within 10 feet) views of a mother and calf humpback whale, as well as other Cetaceans.
I was more interested in the seabird side of things and we weren't disappointed. Highlights:
~10,000 phalaropes, mostly Red
-100 Great Shearwaters
-2 Sooty Shearwaters
-1 Northern Fulmar (one of my top targets)
-60 Wilson's Storm-petrels
-7 Atlantic Puffins
-50 Black Guillemots
-1 Pomarine Jaeger
-2 Great Cormorants

Red Phalarope, Sooty Shearwater, W. Storm-petrel, and N. Fulmar were all lifers as I had never done any east coast seabirding before. Photos and a better write-up to come soon!

Day one in Nova Scotia - now with photos

I'll add the photos to this post once I get back home (September 6 or so)

I had about 6 hours today to take the car and go birding by myself as Laura had to work at the rehab from 10 till 4:30 today. My route was from Lawrencetown beach west to the Eastern passage near Dartmouth, and back to Lawrencetown via some of the back roads along the coast near Cole Harbour. The Lawrencetown area was very productive and I found a Nelson's sparrow which was vocolizing. Tough to get a good view though! Also seen here were Short-billed Dowitchers, Eastern Willets, Semi-palmated Sandpipers and Plovers, Least Sandpipers, both Yellowlegs, and a Belted Kingfisher.

shorebirds

The rest of the day was spent touring the Eastern Passage area, though I didn't see much. I did get my first Nova Scotia Vesper Sparrow, great views of Osprey diving and catching flounder not 20 meters away, and multiple Northern Gannets. Of course a nice variety of shorebirds were present as well.

Osprey - Eastern Passage, Nova Scotia

crab - Eastern Passage, Nova Scotia

juvenile Semipalmated Plover - Eastern Passage, Nova Scotia

juvenile Semipalmated Sandpiper - Eastern Passage, Nova Scotia

In Cow Bay I unexpectedly ran into a gentleman who introduced himself as Blake Maybank, one of Nova Scotia's top birders. It was really good chatting with him and he put me on a spot where he and his group had a Black-headed Gull earlier. While I was here I photographed a Common Eider that hauled itself onto a nearby rock. Common Eiders molt many of their flight feathers at one time, rendering them flightless for a time. Check out the crazy feather wear on this guy...

Common Eider - Cow Bay, Nova Scotia

I was running out of time so I checked out the Black-headed Gull spot at Rainbow Haven Provincial Park. I was surprised to find not one but two BHGUs! I had only previously seen this species once - a long distance view of one at Niagara Falls, so it was a nice opportunity to finally study this species up close. According to Blake, later in the fall at this location there are about equal numbers of Bonaparte's and Black-headed Gulls. On these birds, note the pale mantle, bright red bill, and large amount of black on the underside of the primaries to seperate it from the similar Bonaparte's Gull.

Black-headed Gull #1 - Rainbow Haven Provincial Park

Black-headed Gull #2 - Rainbow Haven Provincial Park

That's all for now. It looks like we will be going to Brier Island for some whale-watching. Apparently this is a really good place to do some sea-birding as well, with decent numbers of Great and Sooty Shearwaters, Wilson's Storm-petrels, both oceanic phalaropes, and the chance at Manx Shearwater, Northern Fulmar, Leach's Storm-petrel, etc. Should be fun!

Nova Scotia bound!

In about 24 hours I will be leaving Windsor (for good, this time) and driving back to Cambridge. Friday evening I have a flight booked to Halifax, where I will be spending the next 10 days or so with Laura. Nova Scotia is a beautiful place and I'm looking forward to breathing in clean ocean air, hiking up mountains, walking down beaches, sailing, and all sorts of other things, BUT this blog is about birds so I'll talk about that.

This will be my 5th visit to the place, with the other four visits split between August and December/January. While I haven't really done too much birding, the few times I have been out Nova Scotia has been really good to me.

On my first visit, Laura and I did a bit of shorebirding along the coast. We saw some decent stuff including what was at the time my lifer White-rumped Sandpipers. An afternoon of whale-watching also produced some seabirds (but no whales!) including Greater Shearwater, Black-legged Kittiwakes, a Razorbill, some Arctic Terns, etc. We were surprised to see some American Golden-Plovers on an offshore island.

On December 31, 2009, I spent a day along the coast west of Halifax with Laura and our friend and former Guelphite Dom Cormier, as well as local birder Fulton Lavender. We had quite a bit of luck, finding both species of Murre, a young male King Eider with all the Commons, a Double-crested Cormorants with all the Greats (they are rare in winter), and a flock of Purple Sandpipers. We also took a look at a long-staying male Barrow's Goldeneye. The highlight though was when some pishing along a lonely road caused a House Wren to pop up for a bit! They are rare birds in Nova Scotia, and even rarer in the winter.

Finally, this past January while checking out the wildlife rehab centre where Laura works, I came across a female Eurasian Wigeon in the pond! They are a little more common out there than in Ontario.

I'll be returning on September 5, just when the jaeger season really heats up in Hamilton (oh yeah, and classes).

More phalarope awesomeness

I decided to once again make the short trek over to Tilbury this afternoon while taking a break from work. Many of the same ducks and herons were still present, including the female Northern Shoveler (she was joined by 5 others on Saturday, but they were now gone), a handful of teal, a couple of Black Ducks, and a dozen Wood Ducks. While scanning the shorebirds, I was happy to see that the young Red-necked Phalarope had returned. It had been absent yesterday, apparently.

This is an awesome little bird and one of my favorite species. The lighting wasn't ideal at this time of day, but even still I slowly crawled down the embankment and grabbed about 100 photos of the little guy. Makes me wish I had an extra 100 or 200 mm on my lens!

juvenile Red-necked Phalarope - Tilbury lagoons

Every so often, the phalarope would spin quickly in a circle, creating a vortex that sucks tiny invertebrates up to the surface, which it promptly plucked off of the water.

juvenile Red-necked Phalarope - Tilbury lagoons

About a dozen total species of shorebirds were present including 4 juvenile Baird's Sandpipers, an adult White-rumped Sandpiper (the first of the fall for me at Tilbury), and 3 adult Long-billed Dowitchers.

adult Long-billed Dowitcher - Tilbury lagoons

While I was watching the shorebirds, I noticed that they all started lifting a wary eye to the sky. I took this as a hint and looked up, but the only raptorish shape I could see was a Chimney Swift way up high. About 10 minutes later the same thing took place.

juvenile Red-necked Phalarope - Tilbury lagoons

This time, though, the culprit was a juvenile Peregrine barelling in. It chased a flock of peeps around for a bit before eventually leaving. At one point the falcon was dangerously close to the phalarope, huddling close to the water! I found it interesting that the dowitchers and Greater Yellowlegs didn't fly when the Peregrine flew in - in fact the dowitchers never stopped feeding the entire time the aerial assault was on.

Peregrine Falcon - Tilbury lagoons

The flocks dissappeared, but over the next 20 minutes slowly started arriving and feeding. Here is a Lesser Yellowlegs trailed by a couple of peeps. I think the front two are Semi-sands and the back one is a Least.

shorebirds - Tilbury lagoons

Also seen was a single American Pipit, my first of the fall and first for Tilbury. I also heard a couple of Bobolinks as they migrated south over the lagoons (also new for my Tilbury list). I think I've seen close to 100 species of birds there over the last year.

Some forgotten shots from this summer

I was going through some of my photos today and realized there were quite a few that I had taken but hadn't taken the time to edit. Since I never made it out to Pelee as planned (work got in the way), this will be my only contribution of the day.

An awesome little bug that I tried to be "artsy" with.

This is one of my radioed females. She was implanted in early June, moved almost 1/2 a km to give birth (the farthest movement I've seen so far out of this species), gave birth in mid July, and then traveled the entire distance back back to her home range. Quite an accomplishment for a little snake that weighs just 50 grams!

Butler's Gartersnake - Windsor, ON

In early summer, I took some time to photograph some of the metamorph frogs. In some areas it was possible to have at least 10 of these little Northern Leopard Frogs hop away with every step one takes.

Northern Leopard Frog - Windsor, ON

One afternoon, a few of us went on an Eastern Prairie-Fringed Orchid hunt in Ojibway. This plant is Endangered in Ontario with only a handful of populations left. On our way to the orchids, I stopped to take some (very poor) photos of some metamorph Western Chorus Frogs.

Western Chorus Frog - Ojibway

And the star attraction of the day...

Eastern Prairie Fringed-orchid - Ojibway

July 2 was the Ojibway butterfly count. I met up with Tom Preney and we spent the morning scouring our area for whatever butterflies we could find. We didn't see much and I didn't photograph too many things, but here is a small sample of some of the insect life... Not photographed (but seen) was the endangered Rapids Clubtail near the Ojibway Nature Centre.

Robber fly sp. - Ojibway

Mourning Cloak - Ojibway