An OFNC outing at Petrie Island

Eastern Amberwing

On August 2nd, 2015 I led a dragonfly outing at Petrie Island for the Ottawa Field-Naturalists’ Club. Because I would be leading it on my own, and because the small size of dragonflies and damselflies makes it difficult to point them out to large groups, I decided to limit the group to ten people. Fellow dragon-hunters and Birds Committee members Chris Traynor and Lorraine Elworthy signed up for the outing, as did Jakob Mueller, who led the reptile and amphibian outing at Sheila McKee Park earlier in the year. I recognized Lynne Ovenden from the OFNC; the others were all unknown to me.

I started our outing by talking about the differences between dragonflies and damselflies, as well as the different groups belonging to each family. We would be looking for spreadwing damselflies, which hold their wings out at a 45° angle instead of parallel to their back; emeralds and darners, which are most commonly found flying through the air searching for aerial prey; and skimmers, which tend to hunt from a perch and are usually the most approachable types of dragonflies for photography. As I was speaking, a bright green female Eastern Pondhawk was hunting from a perch in the vegetation, often flying out to snatch an insect from the air. At one point it even landed on one of the group members!

An OFNC Outing: The Flora and Fauna of Sheila McKee Park

Eastern Red-backed Salamanders

When I woke up on Sunday, I knew it was going to be a good day as soon as I looked out the back window and saw a Blue-headed Vireo and a Black-throated Green Warbler in a neighbour’s tree. Both species were new for my (seen from the) yard list, but that’s not what made me so happy; it is the fact that these birds appearing in my wide-open neighbourhood with no real tree canopy could only mean that migration had finally resumed! If I was seeing these kinds of birds in my own neighbourhood, who knew what birds could be found in more migrant-friendly habitat! That morning I planned to attend Jakob Mueller’s OFNC outing to Sheila McKee Park along the Ottawa River. I had never been there, but I was guessing that if it was anything like Shirley’s Bay, I might see all kinds of birds!

OFNC Trip to Opinicon Road

Northern Crescent

On Saturday, June 21, 2014, a group of OFNC naturalists led by Robert Alvo and Jakob Mueller visited Opinicon Road and the lands around the Queens University Biological Station (“QUBS”) for a day of birding and herping in the Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve. Although not even two hours away from Ottawa, this area is rich in fauna typically found in southern Ontario, and our goal was to see some of these species. Targets included Gray Ratsnake, Cerulean Warbler, Golden-winged Warbler, Yellow-throated Vireo, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Red-shouldered Hawk, Black-billed Cuckoo and Yellow-billed Cuckoo. The drive down to Opinicon Road was uneventful, and our first stop of the day was a beaver pond just south of Chaffey’s Locks.

An OFNC Outing in Gatineau Park

Marsh Bluet

On June 14th I attended the OFNC outing to Gatineau Park led by Justin Peter and Carlos Barberry. I had attended the same outing last year, and had so enjoyed the birds, bugs and scenery that I was not hesitant to attend this one.

The weather was a bit cooler this year; it was only about 14°C when I arrived at parking lot P8 along Meech Lake Road at 7:00 am. The sun was shining, and a few dragonflies were already flying – this time I brought my net in order to catch and identify them. Even better, this time I remembered to bring my camera’s memory card!

An OFNC outing: Frogs and Birds at Night

On April 27, 2014, I attended the OFNC’s “Frogs and Birds at Night” outing led by Bernie Ladouceur. This event had been postponed from an earlier date due to inclement weather; as I usually don’t go out birding at night, I thought it would be a terrific opportunity to find some nocturnal species that I wouldn’t see or hear otherwise. We spent a couple of hours in the Munster area, mostly along Munster and Kettles Roads. We pulled up next to a marshy area at dusk where we could hear the Spring Peepers calling from the cattails. It was still light enough to see at least 50 Canada Geese swimming on the pond, with more flying in. Red-winged Blackbirds and Swamp Sparrows were still singing; we also heard a Pied-billed Grebe and a pair of American Bitterns calling, one of which sounded very close to us.

Marsh at Dusk

Thanksgiving Goose Chase

Brant

The Thanksgiving long weekend is one of my favourite holidays. The fall colours are at their peak here in Ottawa, and the days are usually still warm enough to wear T-shirts. Migration brings an interesting assortment of birds, while a few butterflies and dragonflies are still flying. If the afternoons are warm and sunny, you may even see some frogs or snakes enjoying the last of the nice weather.

On Friday I visited Hurdman at lunch and was happy to hear the loud, ringing song of a Carolina Wren. This is likely the same bird I saw back on September 13th; the habitat is good in this section of the park, with lots of dense thickets and thick, deciduous woods, so it wouldn’t surprise me if he stayed a while longer.

An OFNC Dragonfly Outing at Mud Lake

Green Heron

On July 21st Chris Lewis and I led our second annual OFNC dragonfly outing at Mud Lake. Twenty keen participants of all ages joined us for a leisurely stroll along the northeastern corner of the lake and the shore of the Ottawa River to look for some of Britannia’s 71 odonate species. It was a beautiful day, sunny and warm without the humidity of last year, and not a raincloud in sight! While we were waiting for everyone to arrive someone pointed out a pair of Green Herons in the swampy area at the base of the ridge. I only saw one after the other disappeared into the vegetation; as we watched, it successfully caught a fish, gulped it down, then flew to another log to spend some time preening.

Birding in Gatineau Park

Chalk-fronted Corporal

On June 15th I participated in the Ottawa Field-Naturalists’ Club (OFNC) excursion to Gatineau Park led by Justin Peter. Although cool at first (it was only about 12°C when I left at 6:00am), the sky was clear and it quickly warmed up as the sun rose higher in the sky. We spent the first half of the outing birding along Meech Lake Road and the second half along the trail at the end of the Champlain Parkway. We met at a parking area (P8) along Meech Lake Road where we heard A Pileated Woodpecker, a White-throated Sparrow, an Eastern Phoebe, and an Alder Flycatcher as soon as we got out of the car. A lovely male Purple Finch landed in one of the large trees next to the parking lot, and we saw a Common Raven fly over carrying food in its mouth. A couple of Chipping Sparrows, American Goldfinches, Yellow Warblers, and Red-winged Blackbirds also made an appearance.

OFNC Trip to Amherst Island

Common Merganser

On Saturday, January 27, 2013, the Ottawa Field-Naturalists’ Club (OFNC) trip to Amherst Island finally took place after being delayed twice, the first time because of deer hunting in Owl Woods and the second time because of the weather. We couldn’t have asked for better weather for trip; although it was -20°C when we left, it warmed up to a beautiful -7°C with periods of both sun and cloud. The deep freeze had ended just in time.

We left at 7:30 am in order to catch the 10:30 ferry, stopping briefly at the Mallorytown service center to refuel our cars and our bodies. We saw at least three Red-tailed Hawks, one flock of Wild Turkeys, and two porcupines sleeping in a deciduous tree on the drive down.

An OFNC Dragonfly Outing

Spot-winged Glider

I had planned to lead a dragonfly outing on Sunday, August 5th with Chris Lewis for the OFNC, but by the time the weekend arrived I knew I was in trouble with a particularly bad sinus cold that left me feeling stuffed up, headachy and drained of energy. I went out for a little while on Saturday to see how I felt to be out; the beautiful day turned out to be a pleasant distraction, and I managed to last for a couple of hours before returning home to rest. I didn’t see much at Sarsaparilla Trail, but I did hear a Gray Catbird mewing somewhere along the water’s edge (a new species for that location) and see a couple of Pied-billed Grebes on the water. A Slender Spreadwing in the cattails at the end of the boardwalk was a great find, as I had never seen one here before.