Monday, September 26, 2022

OFO Convention Weekend 2022

 This past weekend, many of us were pleased to return to an in-person Ontario Field Ornithologist's convention, after three years.  It was centred at Point Pelee.  Everything was pretty-much back to normal!  Indeed there was some concern with over 200 people mingling in a building, since COVID is still out there.  However, life must go on.

The convention is always a three day event where everyone is out birding in many different areas.  Friday evening has a dinner meeting with a speaker (this year:  Mike Cadman about the Breeding Bird Atlas), and a unique and famous bird quiz designed by Sarah Rupert.

Saturday evening is the main event with vendors and displays, a super dinner, bucket draw, AGM, Distinguished Ornithologist Award, Certificates of Appreciation and a keynote speaker.  It is a wonderful social event, and this year it was especially nice to see and talk to fellow birders after COVID shut things down two and a half years ago.

The bucket draw is especially popular, raising funds for the OFO.  I lucked out this year, winning three times!  I guess it made up for past years where I did not have have luck with me to get anything.

Besides winning a calendar from Hillardton Marsh, ironically, I won some things from Algonquin!



The keynote speaker was Merilyn Simonds, author of Woman, Watching, a biography of Louise de Kiriline Lawrence, an early citizen scientist who retreated in midlife to a log cabin in the bush to study songbirds.  Available on Amazon!  



After being home for one night from my recent trip, I started Friday by checking out the Mitchell's Bay South Shore nature trail.  There were a lot of warblers, but most were streaming north and difficult to ID.

Northern Parula

I then headed to Point Pelee for some birding. Around mid-day, things looked good for butterflies, so I checked out west beach trail south of the VC.  I walked the one section three times!

I found lots of Fiery Skippers (~12) and a few other things.



On my first pass, I noticed a brown skipper, but I was looking into the sun.  Hmm, there is not much choice this time of year for a brown skipper, but this one had longish wings.  I knew what it was!  I was looking at an Ocola Skipper!  A good rarity, but not entirely unexpected this time of year.



This was my third for Point Pelee, and fourth overall.  I once found one at Erieau Marsh trail, a first Chatham-Kent record.

Birding was fairly good the rest of the day.

Saturday was overcast most of the time and there were fewer birds around as we scoured the landscape.

Sunday was rainy (yep, the weekend!), so I headed to Erieau for a lakewatch with Steve Charbonneau.  The only highlight was a Trumpeter Swan, not all that common in C-K.

After some time, we decided to check out the Marsh trail, and it was a good choice!  The sun was coming out by this time, so it lightened the mood.

The OFO group was just starting there, so we forged ahead.  Just past the viewing stand, Steve got excited and shouted out Brant!  I took a look and it sure looked like one, a Holy S**t bird!  Good photos could not be obtained though.



I kept eyes on it, while Steve went back to the OFO group to inform them.  The Brant took flight and I lost it over the edge of the Bay.  We eventually found it further along, but views were not stellar.

The OFO group did manage to see it, thankfully.  It again took flight and we lost it.  Steve went to the church down the road to scope the shoreline, and sure enough it could be seen for others to tally.

Brant is really a mega-rarity for Chatham-Kent!  It is only seen every few years, and I think I have only seen it once when three were at Erieau in late October 2002.

It was seen again this morning for some local birders. I think it is the best bird of the convention!

With many birders scouring the area over the weekend, almost every bird out there will be recorded.  Although I do not have the totals, it may be a record tally for the convention.

Next year's convention is at Peterborough, where it was supposed to be in 2020 before the COVID mess shut things down.  Looking forward to that!

OFO official logo:






No comments:

Post a Comment