Labour Day Birding

I headed back to Rondeau Park on Monday to feed more mosquitoes.  Once again there were lots of birds to look at, and the lake was rather active.  It is nice to see lots of birds, even if one does not find anything rare.  There was a bit of wind for a change, so things were moving.
I spent quite a bit of time watching the lake off south point trail.  Unfortunately most of the gulls were rather far out, and even if I had a scope it would be difficult to discern anything of note.

 Bonaparte's Gulls dominated the scene, some coming in rather close.   I had hopes of a Sabine's Gull since I still need it for Rondeau!  There are only three records for the entire circle that I am aware (one at Erie Beach, one off the park's Dog Beach, and one at Blenheim Lagoons).
Still not a single duck was seen by me this weekend at the park.

Among the many warblers, Swainson's Thrushes and Red-eyed Vireos certainly dominated the scene. I ended up with 17 species of warblers, including a nice Golden-winged on south point trail.  Bay-breasted and Blackpoll were plentiful, as were redstarts and Magnolia.

I skipped the VC area and went up to maintenance and Harrison Trail.  Just out of the car, a Philadelphia Vireo was working the dogwoods.

After getting a sandwich at the store, I decided one more walk was in order. I picked Black Oak trail which is lesser known for birding.  I have had some good days there in the past.  A few warblers were on the trail, including a Blue-winged.  The birds were quite active on this day, so I never got any photos of them.

Since lots of shorebirds are on the move, I headed over to Blenheim Lagoons.  It was a different mix of birds than the previous day.  In the sprinkler system, a number of American Golden Plover were in.  I counted eleven.

Other birds included four Wilson's Snipe with their prominent long bills.

Also present was a single Baird's and three Stilt Sandpipers.

Of course, some of the other usuals were present, but still no Buff-breasted which I was hoping for.

Today, some Sandhill Cranes were near home with three on Langstaff Line late this afternoon.  I had not seen any there for almost two weeks.
Two flew over Port Lambton early this morning from Michigan while I was taking a brief look at the river.

Perhaps later this week with the cooler weather, we will see a new mix of birds.