Petrie Island and Mer Bleue

Belted Whiteface

I was off work on Friday, July 5th, so when Chris invited me to go out dragon-hunting with her, Bob and Mike Tate, I jumped at the chance to spend some time with them in the east end. I did not know that it would be the last time that the four of us would go dragon-hunting together or the last time I would see Bob.

We started off the morning at Mer Bleue. It was very warm and humid, and thick, dark clouds kept blocking out the sun. Although it constantly looked as though it might rain at any time, we were lucky that it held off until the afternoon, after our outing had ended.

Kingbird Nest Update

Eastern Kingbird Nestling

Since I first discovered the Eastern Kingbird nest on June 4, 2013, I have only been able to visit it a couple of times. This is probably just as well, since nesting birds are better off left undisturbed – even by amateur naturalists who have only the best intentions and birds’ best interests at heart.

When I first saw the nest on June 4th, one adult was present and was keeping quite close to the nest, although she was not yet incubating. When I returned on June 12th, she was sitting on an undetermined number of eggs. Eastern Kingbirds lay two to five eggs; the incubation period lasts 14-17 days and the nestling period lasts 16-17 days. When I returned on June 19th, the eggs had not yet hatched and one adult was sitting patiently in the nest despite the sweltering heat.

Breeding Birds

Eastern Kingbird

Migration is over, and most of our birds are engaged in the business of breeding. Though it’s rare for me to find birds nesting on structures that aren’t man-made (e.g. Osprey, phoebes, bluebirds) this year I’ve found two: an American Redstart and an Eastern Kingbird.

While kingbirds are known to nest out in the open, redstarts are usually more secretive, building their nests in the fork of a tree or a shrub at least two metres above the ground. The tightly woven open cup is typically made of grasses, bark strips, hair, leaves, twigs, or mosses, all glued together with spider silk. Male American Redstarts do not attain full breeding plumage until their second year and, while they may sing and defend small territories in their first year, they typically do not find a mate. Once they have attained breeding plumage, some males will mate with two females at the same time. These males hold two separate territories up to 500 metres (1,640 ft) apart. Once his first mate has finished laying all her eggs has begun incubating them, the male proceeds to attract a second mate in his other territory.

Chantry Island

My mother and I left MacGregor Point Provincial Park around noon on Sunday and drove north to Southampton for our boat journey to Chantry Island. This island has been designated as a Federal Migratory Bird Sanctuary, and during the breeding season there are as many as 50,000 birds (including chicks) on the island, the majority of which consist of the Great Blue Herons, Great Egrets, Black-crowned Night-Herons, Herring Gulls, Ring-billed Gulls and Double-crested Cormorants that nest here in large colonies. Because of its status, the number of people allowed on the island on any given day is strictly limited and tours must be booked through the Chantry Island Tour Base. My mother and I booked our tour shortly before the trip, and after getting some lunch in town, we arrived at the dock a little after 1:00.