November Winds and a Time to Remember

Lots of winds lately, but little to show for it in the way of birds.  With the exception of the odd good day this fall, birding has been dull in SW Ontario.  Lots of things have been reported all around and even in eastern Ontario, but time after time I have seen very little.
Over in Minnesota and Wisconsin, many "good" birds have been sighted.  A good summary is on Michael Butler's blog Northshorenature today.
Today was no exception.  With things slow at work before we get into winter work, I took the day off and headed to the Tip.  Strong westerly winds again today, but not a good bird to be found!  Quite often it is being in the right place at the right time, as was the case last Sunday when Cherise Charron (link)
photographed at Black-legged Kittiwake at the Tip parking lot around noon.  We had been at the Tip most of the morning!
I met the usual crew today for the Tip "love fest" plus a surprise.  Jeremy Hatt was down from Toronto.
We watched for a few hours and looked at lots of Bonaparte's Gulls, but no Franklin's or others.  Perhaps some Franklin's will show in the next day or two as a result of these strong west winds.

The Tip has severely eroded recently and there was little ground to stand upon.  The Tip lifering went for a swim as seen in the above photo!


Very few landbirds.  I found a few Fox and White-throated Sparrows plus the usual Robins and Waxwings near White Pine.
Several hawks were on the move, mostly Red-tailed.

It was thought Cave Swallows would show today, but I guess there is still hope in the next few days.                                             Now that they are off the Ontario Review List, maybe none will appear this year!

Strong winds are still forecast in the next few days, so hopefully something interesting will appear.





November is not only the time to honour and remember war veterans, but a time when many on the Great Lakes remember ships and sailors that have perished in storms.  Today is the 36th anniversary of the sinking of the Edmund Fitzgerald and loss of its entire crew of 29 men.  It was something that many believed unfathomable at the time, but it did happen.

Me, examining the Fitzgerald's lifeboat up at the Soo, summer 1978