Friday, February 14, 2014

Valentine's Birding



After work today I took my usual Friday route upriver a ways and through the countryside.  There is quite a bit of open water along the village of Port Lambton just off the shoreline.  It started forming on Wednesday the day I found the Red-necked Grebe.  I did not find the grebe today, but it could have easily been overlooked.  That bird could have been around for some time, but was not detected until recently.
Quite a few ducks were present including at least 5 White-winged Scoters.  A surprising number of Red-breasted Mergansers are also around.  Usually this species is quite rare on the river in the winter.

White-winged Scoters at Dusk



I went as far as just north of Stanley Line.  In front of the CFIndustries outfall was a dead Canvasback on the road.  One wonders what events transpired there.


On Holt Line, the lighter Snowy Owl was perched atop a pole.


I decided to head home via Lambton Line and Kimball Road in hopes of seeing more Snowy Owls.  One was atop a barn along Lambton Line at Becher.  A darker bird was atop a pole on Charlemont Line just south of Becher.
I continued east to Pretty Line just to turn around. Just before I got there, I caught sight of a "white" bird in the distance to the south.  I though Snowy Owl, but......wait for it.......a male Common Merganser!  It came off the field and headed NW.  A rather strange sighting!



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