Scenes From The Past Week

 Nothing earth-shattering came my way in the past week, as the "nice" weather continues.

Last Tuesday, I walked out Rondeau's marsh trail to the half way point.  Bird of the day was Dark-eyed Junco!  I tallied about 280.

Yellow-rumped Warblers were numerous as well, with close to 200 of those.

There were not all that many sparrows.  This Chipping Sparrow stood up at one point.

Thursday, I headed up to north Lambton for a change in scenery.  It was a nice calm and clear morning, but I heard no crossbills!  Purple Finches were numerous, as they have been this past week everywhere.

One of the stops was Ausable River Cut CA.

A Cooper's Hawk stirred things up a for a while.

Heading back home, I stopped at Forest Sewage Lagoons.  I had not been there in a long time.  There were some shorebirds including several Greater Yellowlegs, a couple Lesser Yellowlegs, and a couple of Pectoral Sandpipers.

There were very few sparrows. Seems to be the trend everywhere lately, so lots are likely to come.

One last stop was Moore WMA.  I did not find much in the way of mussels.  It has not been a good summer for finding them!  Other than many Giant Floater, this White Heelsplitter stood out.

Friday was rather uneventful.  A stop at Peers Wetland revealed many Rusty Blackbirds.

The wetland has been the driest I have seen it in a very long time.  Lots of mud. Not much water for ducks!

Yesterday afternoon I went for a walk at Reid C. L.

At one point, I came across a patch of small Blue Ash trees, far removed from where I usually see them.  The square stems are a dead give-away.

Today I headed down to Rondeau.  Not much variety in the way of birds, but lots of Yellow-rumped Warblers kept me busy.  There were a couple of other species of warbler including Tennessee and Blackpoll that I saw.

I walked a bit of the dune area near the light beacon.  Lots of Seaside Sandmat which is only found in a few places around the Great Lakes that have appropriate habitat. Rondeau is one of the better places.

Over at McLean's, there were some shorebirds, including a Long-billed Dowitcher on the "island".

Walking back, I managed to see a Nelson's Sparrow pop up.  I was not able to focus on it very well, but at least I photographed one!

One more target for the day was the party of five Western Cattle Egrets in a usual pasture north of Erieau.  Nice to see multiple birds!

We see at least one Cattle Egret here every year.

All for now during this spooky month.

Mid-October Skies

 The last couple of days have been quite nice with clear skies.  I was out and about as usual to take advantage of the great October weather.  Today I visited some conservation areas north of Wallaceburg.  Nicholl's Memorial Forest and Wetland at Wilkesport is one of my favourite places for a walk, even if there are not many birds.  Today, several birds were flitting around.

View looking west

A couple of Black-capped Chickadees were quite curious about my presence.

Next stop was the McKeough Dam.  Some Purple Finches were flying over, but no other finch types seemed to be present. 

A Blue-headed Vireo was in the mix of passerines.

In the afternoon, I went for a walk through the woods at Reid C. L.  Many of the leaves had already fallen, so I missed some opportunities to photograph colours.

A few butterflies are still around, including Painted Lady.

I saw some type of darner at one point, but it flew off before I could ID it.  Autumn Meadowhawks are still around of course.

And, in the last day or so, Common Checkered-Skippers have shown up in my yard.

Yesterday I visited Keith McLean C. L.  A Yellow-billed Cuckoo showed nicely at one point just before I left.  It is getting late for them, but not unusual to get them at this date.  Seems it has been a good season for them, as many have been seen of late.

There have not been many good days for lake watches this season.  Saturday seemed promising, so I went up to Sarnia and spent over four hours there.  I was first to arrive!

The previous evening, a Sabine's Gull had been seen (not a good year for them in our area this year!) so I thought there would be a good chance it could still be around at first light.  I was right!  Too distant for a photo, but I was lucky to see it as it flew out onto the lake never to be seen again.  

Several birders were present for a lakewatch, but nothing of note showed up.  However, it was a good day for ducks, especially Northern Pintail.  Perhaps up to 400 were migrating through that morning.

A Short-eared owl did appear, as it migrated over the lake and landed near the lighthouse on the Michigan side.  We often see them come in over the lake this time of year!  Always a treat to see.

Some ships were upbound as well to keep up my interest..

John J. Boland

John D. Leitch

Last Thursday I needed a long walk so went out Rondeau's marsh trail.  As usual, nothing of note!  But I needed the exercise.

The following views of the shoreline are from the end of the boardwalk at the half way point.

And, during a visit to Rondeau last week, spring was in the air.....or so it seemed.  There was a lilac in bloom beside the pony barn.  I think they are supposed to bloom in early May!

Till next time....

Early October Things--Usually Nothing Of Note!

 Time sure is flying by.  It has been well over a week since my last update--not that there has been a lot to talk about.  Birds are certainly thinning out, but it is the time of year we could have some rarities.

Brander Park, Port Lambton had been good around the end of September and beginning of October. More like the days I remember it!  I would usually stop there before and after work.

Pond Area

I have not been to Peers Wetland much for various reasons.  Zach's bench is going to a more natural state.  Fan-shaped jelly fungus is growing on it!

For those who follow Adam Shoalts, Zach was a friend that sometimes accompanied Adam on adventures.  Their trip  is featured in the book The Whisper on the Night Wind.

Last weekend was the annual Ontario Field Ornithologists convention, this year held at Leamington.  I just did the Saturday thing, starting with birding at De Laurier in Point Pelee National Park.  It was actually a "Big Sit", where we try and record as many bird species in one spot.  We ended up with an impressive 70+ species! from the parking lot!

It is amazing what you can see in one spot, as opposed to running around all over the place.

In the afternoon, I looked around for butterflies.  Some of the usuals were seen.

Common Buckeye

Common Painted-Lady

Highlight was a Cloudless Sulphur.  It fluttered around for the longest time, but eventually settled.

In the evening we attended the dinner and meeting at the Roma Club.

The next day I finally had a chance to go and see the young Purple Gallinule at Keith McLean C. L.  It took a while for it to pop out, but was in bad lighting.

There was rain to the north that made for an interesting sight.

I then walked Rondeau's marsh trail to half way, but did not see anything of note.....as usual!

Monday--nothing of note.

Tuesday was a nice day for going out Rondeau 's marsh trail.  Large number of Yellow-rumped Warblers, but as usual, nothing of note.

In the afternoon I went for  a walk locally.

Eastern Phoebe

Lots of Painted Lady around lately.

Wednesday I was at Brander Park.  Highlight was a Red-headed Woodpecker, but it took off before I could get close.

It was my first record for there, bringing my Brander Park species total to 214.  (Includes the river and lagoons adjacent).  I have a good run there since 1988!

Thursday I went to Mitchell's Bay. Not much to see.  While there, word came out that a pair of Hudsonian Godwits was at McLean's.  After going home and gathering gear, I headed down for those.

Northern Parula

I had a good feeling that some would show this week.  I missed them last year, so had to go!

Friday morning I went for some walks locally.  A few birds here and there.  A Tennessee Warbler was decent at McKeough.  Lots of robins there, but none of their cousins.

In the afternoon it was nice to go for a long walk at Reid C. L.

Nothing of note....of course!

Today was a fine day to check out Keith McLean C. L.  I spent over two hours looking around there.  The godwits were still present first thing, but soon took off never to be seen again (at least for today).

Lots of sparrows around.  I found only two Nelson's Sparrows, but as usual, no time to get a photo.

That was my main event for the day, other than a walk at Peers Wetland in the afternoon.  As usual there, nothing of note, and certainly not much!

Differential Grasshopper

Stink bugs have been plentiful lately.  A couple on the back porch today included these:

Green Burgundy Stink Bug