Weekend Washout Wanderings

Saturday morning I headed down to Rondeau Park.  It was not raining when I went out the door, but starting pouring soon after.  However, by the time I got to the park, it stopped!  Thankfully it stayed dry for a few hours to walk around.

It was evident that there was a sparrow fallout this week.  Hundreds of sparrows, including juncos littered the roads and trails.

chippie (dozens of those!)

At key areas like the yacht club and tennis court, there were several Vesper and Savannah Sparrows.

Juncos were in big numbers, but I did not see any Oregon, Pink-sided, White-winged,
Gray-headed or intergrades.

I first walked south point trail, which was surprisingly out of the wind.  Some Brown Thrashers were singing and a couple of Yellow-rumped Warblers were flitting about.  The Yellow-rumped were scattered about the park, and I probably came across about 20.
It is interesting to look back on past records to see what we have seen by this date.  Several warbler species, vireos, etc. have all appeared.  This year migration is very held back.

I added several FOY birds though.

The White-winged Dove had not been seen in several days.  One wonders if it is still nearby or what.  Mel's Diner has not been open yet, unlike last year.

After the park, I checked the lakeshore south of Morpeth, where the lake was very angry.

Ruddy Duck riding the waves!

The water levels were very high, especially at Erieau.

Back near home, a Snowy Owl was still along Langstaff Line.

Today, the mind-boggling weather was even worse.  Freezing rain coated everything, but I headed out to the St. Clair River.
There was a fair number of things to see, including the lingering male King Eider at Sombra.  It was exactly where I found it Friday morning.

A White-winged Scoter was in Sombra Bay, among other ducks.

Ring-necked Ducks

Several Common Loons were along the river, as well as a couple of Horned Grebes.

I drove some back roads, and came across a large group of Savannah Sparrows along Pretty Road.  They were probably looking for the pastures that were here 20+ years ago!

Tomorrow will be much nicer (but cold) once the weekend is over.....as usual!