Suddenly….there was song

Song Sparrow

Although it was supposed to rain on Saturday, I decided to go out birding when I saw that the rain hadn’t started yet. The sky was gray and overcast, and a strong, cold wind was gusting across the open fields, but I managed to spend three hours looking for new migrants before the wind drove me back inside. My first stop was Sarsaparilla Trail, where I heard my first Song Sparrow of the year singing from the edge of the woods. I also heard at least six Dark-eyed Juncos singing from various parts of the woods, though I wasn’t able to spot any. Four mallards had found a sliver of open water on the pond, while a single Purple Finch and several Red-winged Blackbirds called from the edges of the marsh. Three Common Grackles flew over as well. I checked the edges for Great Blue Herons tucked along the shore but came up empty.

Grundy Lake: The Trip List

Although Grundy Lake Provincial Park is beautiful, I didn’t see as much wildlife as I has hoped. I am not sure whether this is due to the time of the year, the weather, or the time of the day we were out. Altogether I saw 29 birds, 4 mammals, 7 reptiles and amphibians, 5 butterflies, and 12 odonate species.

BIRDS

Broad-winged Hawk

1. Canada Goose
2. Wood Duck
3. Common Loon
4. Great Blue Heron
5. Turkey Vulture
6. Broad-winged Hawk
7. Ruby-throated Hummingbird
8. Belted Kingfisher
9. Downy Woodpecker
10. Eastern Wood-Pewee
11. Red-eyed Vireo
12. Blue Jay
13. American Crow
14. Common Raven
15. Black-capped Chickadee
16. Red-breasted Nuthatch
17. Golden-crowned Kinglet


Canada Darner

18. American Robin
19. Cedar Waxwing
20. Ovenbird
21. Black-and-white Warbler
22. American Redstart
23. Magnolia Warbler
24. Chestnut-sided Warbler
25. Pine Warbler
26. Song Sparrow
27. White-throated Sparrow
28. Common Grackle
29. American Goldfinch

MAMMALS

1. Black Bear
2. White-tailed Deer
3. American Red Squirrel
4. Eastern Chipmunk

REPTILES & AMPHIBIANS

Bullfrog

1. Midland Painted Turtle
2. Northern Water Snake
3. American Toad
4. Gray Tree Frog (heard only)
5. American Bullfrog
6. Mink Frog
7. Northern Leopard Frog

BUTTERFLIES

1. Eastern Tiger Swallowtail
2. Great-spangled Fritillary
3. Mourning Cloak
4. White Admiral
5. Viceroy

ODONATA

1. Spotted Spreadwing*
2. Violet Dancer
3. Hagen’s Bluet
4. Tule Bluet*
5. Eastern Forktail
6. Lake Darner
7. Canada Darner
8. Dragonhunter
9. White-faced Meadowhawk
10. Autumn Meadowhawk
11. Slaty Skimmer
12. Twelve-spotted Skimmer

* not on the park’s checklist

Catching up in Ottawa

Northern Shoveler (male)

After returning to Ottawa I couldn’t wait to go birding and see what migration had brought in. On the day after we returned, I spent two hours at Jack Pine Trail. An Ovenbird and a Black-throated Green Warbler had returned to the woods; I heard both of them singing away. I also heard, but didn’t see, two new year birds: a Black-throated Blue Warbler and a Great Crested Flycatcher. This turned out to be my only Black-throated Blue Warbler this spring; hopefully I will see one in the fall. In the clearing near the feeder, which still had seeds in it, I saw two White-crowned Sparrows and a Black-and-white Warbler. It was chilly, so unfortunately no butterflies or dragonflies were flying.

Later that week I found my first Scarlet Tanager of the year at Confederation Park downtown, and found a second male at Hurdman Park later that same day. The breeding birds had all returned to Hurdman, including Yellow Warblers, American Redstarts, Warbling Vireos, a Baltimore Oriole, a Gray Catbird and a Least Flycatcher. A few migrants were still around; I found a White-throated Sparrow and a Black-throated Green Warbler foraging with a few Yellow-rumps; when I started pishing, a Common Yellowthroat and a Lincoln’s Sparrow popped out of a brush pile! The Lincoln’s Sparrow was new for my Hurdman list.

The Jack Miner Bird Sanctuary

Barnacle Goose

After leaving Point Pelee National Park we drove over to the Jack Miner Bird Sanctuary which is famed for the large numbers of Canada Geese that stop over here in migration. My mother has wanted to see the sanctuary for a while now, so we made the short drive to Kingsville to check it out. There is a large field on the south side of the road which contained a good-sized pond, but we only saw a single pair of ducks (likely mallards) on the water. Although this field used to attract thousands of geese during migration, numbers have decreased in recent years. As a result, the Jack Miner Migratory Bird Foundation is in the process of creating a new 10-acre wetland/pond.

Final Day at Point Pelee

Painted Turtle

While I had high hopes for our last day at Point Pelee, this turned out to be the slowest of our three days in Ontario’s deep south. The wind had fallen off completely, and while the warm, sunny weather was nice for walking around the park, it was not good for seeing many new migrants.

We started the day before the sun had barely risen over the horizon, and caught sight of three Horned Larks in the field next to the motel just as we were heading out. Our first stop was Hillman Marsh, where we heard at least one Sandhill Crane calling from somewhere to the east and a Ring-necked Pheasant in the grassy area between the parking lot and the shorebird cell. Although we looked for the pheasant, we were unable to spot him. This bird is extirpated in Ottawa, so it was great to hear one again after my trip to Nova Scotia last year.

A Day At Rondeau Park

Red-bellied Woodpecker

We spent our second day at Rondeau Provincial Park. The weather was essentially the same as the day before: sunny, though with less wind, which caused migration to slow even further. When we arrived in the park, we spent about an hour at the Visitor Center feeders, waiting for one of the Yellow-throated Warblers to show up. This southern species is very uncommon in Ontario, but usually can be found in the southern part of the province every year. Unlike most warblers, which dine chiefly on insects, the Yellow-throated Warbler will sometimes visit feeders for suet and sunflower seeds; at least two individuals have been reported at a couple of different feeders in Rondeau Park.

A Day at Point Pelee

Blue-winged Warbler

The next morning dawned bright and sunny with a brisk, cool wind blowing from the east. Knowing how cold it can be at the tip first thing in the morning, I put on my winter coat and hat and tossed my spring jacket into the back seat of the car. We were out the door reasonably early – but not early enough to see the Laughing Gull that was found at the tip by the first group of birders arriving in the park. After checking out the sightings board at the Visitor Center to find out where the birds were being seen, we headed outside to wait for the tram. A White-crowned Sparrow hopping along the ground was a year bird for me, and we were entertained by two male Orchard Orioles chasing each other in one of the trees next to the tram stop. The Orchard Oriole was a life bird for Deb; we don’t have them in Ottawa, though I wish we did!

En Route to Point Pelee

Pectoral Sandpiper

On Saturday, May 4th, my birding partner, Deb, and I set off on our first road trip and my annual spring visit to southern Ontario. My parents both live in Cambridge, and it has become a tradition for me to spend a week there in the spring, with a three- or four-day trip to Point Pelee and Rondeau Park to enjoy the spring migration. It takes five hours to drive there, but we arrived early enough to spend some time birding the area with my mom. First we visited the square near the Main Street bridge. The Red-tailed Hawk was still using the same stick nest on the same church steeple in the square; we didn’t see any fluffy chicks this time, but an adult was sitting in the nest. This is at least the third time the hawk has nested here in the last four years.

Finally: Spring!

Mourning Cloak

The weather has warmed up over the past week and the migrants have been pouring in. Since my last blog post on April 21st I’ve added nine new species to my year list, and seen my first butterflies and amphibians of the year.

I spent two lunch hours at Hurdman last week, and found some amazing birds each time. On Monday, a couple of American Tree Sparrows were feeding in the grass near the entrance to the woods; these are the first ones I’ve seen there this year, and were probably just stopping in on their way north to their breeding grounds. Also new for the year were a pair of Hooded Mergansers sleeping in a quiet bay along the river and at least three Ruby-crowned Kinglets singing energetically. In the woods, several Dark-eyed Juncos and White-throated Sparrows were singing as they foraged in the leaf litter.

Sparrows in Strange Places

Northern Flicker

It’s April 21st, and the weather still hasn’t returned to seasonal. Although it was about 22°C on Friday, gray clouds, high winds, and the odd shower made it an unpleasant day to be outdoors. Yesterday a cold front moved in, with more gray skies, intermittent snow/rain showers, ice pellets, and a high of only 6°C. I was cooped up indoors both days with an injured foot; walking had become so painful that I took Friday off so I could rest it. After spending two days on the couch with an ice pack and lots of Advil, the pain was only a shadow of itself when I got up this morning, so I decided to go out and do some “lite” birding.