Lacklustre Lakewatches and a Visit by Frank

 Weather was unseasonably warm this week, and birding was on the slow side.  We need some real November weather to stir things up!

Friday and Saturday I spent at or near Rondeau, starting with a lakewatch each day.  The winds were decent, but once again, nothing spectacular showed up.  The woods were very quiet!

On Friday, I checked some other spots, including Blenheim lagoons.  Lately, Franklin's Gull was heavily on my mind, so I ended up finding one!  As soon as I walked into the lagoon complex, I saw hundreds of Bonaparte's Gulls.  Had to be something with them....

One gull stood out.  I hummed and hawed for a bit, but soon decided it was a first year Franklin's Gull!

I watched it for a while, and contacted Steve.  After his arrival, we could not find it at all.  I had to leave for other matters, but just before getting home, Steve texted that the gull had returned.  It comes and goes, but "Frank" was still around for a bit today as well.

Nearby, the long-staying Spotted Sandpiper was still present.  Must be something wrong with it!  Also, two Lesser Yellowlegs have been lingering.

Saturday's lakewatch had more Bonaparte's Gulls, finally, and lots of ducks.  One gull stood out.

It was likely from the far north, where for whatever reason, these Herring Gulls are very dark.  A eye-catching bird!

Sunday, a change in scenery was in order.  I was not sure what to do, but ended up at Point Pelee.  Winds were not as strong as forecast (nothing new), but I did a Tip watch anyway.  Not much happening again. I am about to give up on lakewatches!

Herbert C. Jackson

Some things were flying off the Tip, including a young Red-headed Woodpecker.

I did not have the camera ready enough when it flew over.

Quite a few Black-capped Chickadees were seen.  As alluded to before, there is a movement of them this fall.

Last stop was at Sanctuary Pond lookout. It was the most interesting place with things flying over, and shorebirds on the mudflats.

It is Cave Swallow season, but I did see five Tree Swallows at least.

Shorebirds included American Golden Plover, Black-bellied Plover, Wilson's Snipe, Pectoral Sandpipers, White-rumped Sandpiper, and of course Killdeer.

Before getting home, I stopped by Mitchell's Bay south shore nature trail just for fun.  It was exactly a year ago I found the Sage Thrasher here!  Like most places this weekend, it was extremely quiet for birds.  No birthday bird this year!

Some butterflies were out in the balmy weather.  I found this Fiery Skipper at Rondeau this weekend.

Red Admiral at Mitchell's Bay

Bay to Blenheim on Sunday

Not feeling overly ambitious on Sunday, I headed out to Mitchell's Bay south shore trail early Sunday morning.  I always find it good with the lighting early morning.  Couple that with the NE wind, it seemed a good bet that some migrants would be flitting about.

Right out of the gate, I spotted a Wilson's and a Blue-winged Warbler.  Many others were seen along the way, totalling 13 species in the warbler department.  Most were quickly moving around and not photogenic.  Quite a few birds remained unidentified.  Best was probably a Canada Warbler.  Due to lighting and the active birds, I did not get any quality photos.

Black-throated Green

Chestnut-sided

The Olive-sided Flycatcher was still in the same area as two days previous.  Olive-sided is one of my favourite regular flycatchers.  "Quick-three-beers!"

Hundreds of blackbirds were moving north along the shore, so who knows if one with a yellow head was amongst them.  Probably.
Here is my eBird list:
https://ebird.org/view/checklist/S59243004

After spending more than a hour there, I was not sure where to go to next, but my car somehow aimed towards Blenheim despite being in some need of fuel. After getting some gas in Blenheim, I headed over to the lagoons where I met Steve Charbonneau.  He was just on his way out, so after some chatting I moved on to check out some shorebirds.

There was a lot to sort through in the sprinklers, but nothing of OBRC quality was there.

One of two Snipes

There were lots of semisands and overy 60 Lesser Yellowlegs.  At first glance one would not think that many were present, but when you get a count, it is surprising.

Stilt Sandpiper

This was my last visit to Blenheim in my trusty car, as I will be getting a new vehicle tomorrow (Tuesday).  Try and find me now!

🚙

Mid-July Pelee Visit

I decided to head down to Point Pelee today since I have not been there much this year.  This time of year can be interesting for birds, but more-so for butterflies.  However, it was dismal for butterflies, as most places have been this year.  (blame it on the crappy spring weather!).
Next weekend is the BioBlitz, so I hope things pick up in that department!

On the way to Pelee, I came across a Snowy Owl atop a pole along Queen's Line just west of the road to Prairie Siding.  Although I did not stop to take a photo, I believe it is the first one I have seen in July!  There are still a number of Snowy Owls spending the summer in Southern Ontario.

I spent some time at the Tip until tourists started to arrive and scaring away the birds.  Quite a few Black Terns were on the move today, and many went by the Tip.

There is even a decent sand spit and some sand on the west side!

Lots of bonies are now showing up.  Nothing unusual mixed in with them though.  I have still not seen a Little Gull this year!

After some three hours in the park, I headed over to Hillman marsh.  I walked around the shorebird cell looking for butterflies.  It was practically void of butterflies--highly unusual for this time of year.  I suppose the drought has some bearing as well.
I did find Broad-winged Skippers in a known spot.

A Dickcissel briefly sang on the path towards the cell.  It was first reported back on July 3.

Dickcissels were singing near Camper's Cove Road as usual, as I headed east. 
My next stop was Blenheim lagoons.  We are well in the midst of shorebird migration, but there is not as much habitat yet there as last year.
The sprinklers work occasionally, so that will help.
Shorebirds included 6 Least Sandpipers, 1 Greater Yellowlegs, 7 Lessers, and a Short-billed Dowitcher.

The male Lesser Scaup was still present from earlier in the summer.

On the way home I swung by the Dickcissel sites behind Canadian Tire and along Campbell Line.  Males were still singing away.

Blenheim Blunders to River Rubyspots

It was another fine day as I headed down to Blenheim early this morning.  There was still a good selection of shorebirds, but nothing spectacular that I could find.  A nice-looking Baird's Sandpiper was near the start, but a bit out of range for the camera.

the one behind the yellowlegs!

One must examine the shorebirds carefully, as last Sunday there was a Western Sandpiper present.  On my way out, I photographed a shorebird in the one corner which suspiciously looked like a Western.  I thought no more of it, and even posted the photo on my blog last Sunday in case anyone noticed.  I sort of expected a comment on it!


Garry Sadler got a nice photo of the bird, as shown on his eBird list of August 20.





More ducks had come in, including a large number of Blue-winged Teal.  The crazy Ring-necked Duck was still in the same spot.

I had not been down to Erieau all summer, so I first stopped at the rail trail.  A decent array of warblers was working the trees along the trail.  However, they were not easy to photograph.

Northern Waterthrush

Blackburnian Warbler

And some flycatcher...

Great-crested Flycatcher

Yellow-bellied Flycatcher

I also walked McGeachy Pond dike where a few more warblers were seen.  There was also a Yellow-throated Vireo that eluded the lens. A chestnut-sided Warbler was co-operative though.

The tip of Rondeau at Erieau had lots of birds, but no Laughing or Franklin's that I could find! In due time.
A quick stop at Ridgetown revealed an odd-looking goose.

I wanted to check on the rubyspots at Thamesville again, so that was my last stop.  There were not as many American Rubyspots as last week, but more Smokey Rubyspots were along the steep riverbank of the Thames.

American Rubyspot

There was a unique-looking clubtail patrolling the edge, but of course never landed.  I wonder what it was....one can only speculate.

Shorebirds to Rubyspots

Today, August 5, I checked out some familiar spots during a several hour trek.  First stop was Blenheim Lagoons.  It seems to be peak shorebird time, and I was not disappointed.  Somewhere in the neighbourhood of 300 shorebirds were present!
Most numerous were Semipalmated Sandpipers.



The middle pond has some very good edge where many of these shorebirds were feeding.

I found at least  a dozen species, but perhaps others were present as I found it a bit overwhelming to sort through all of them.

Highlight was a Red-necked Phalarope, first reported a couple of days ago.

Strangely, it was the first phalarope of the year, as Wilson's were scarce this year and I had not yet seen one.

There was no Baird's or Stilt Sandpiper that I could find, but I did see at least one White-rumped.  I had a good look at it, but it flushed as soon as I raised the camera!

I think there is potential for a good shorebird to show up soon!

I headed east and briefly stopped at Ridgetown Lagoons where nothing of note was seen.
Moving eastward, I decided to stop by the old quarry at Clear Creek nature reserve.  It is a good spot for some dragonflies, including Calico Pennant.

Heading northeast, I next stopped at Wardsville Woods.  It seemed a bit quiet today.

A few butterflies were seen including a Wild Indigo Duskywing in the same spot as a couple of weeks ago.

Some Common Ringlets were flying.

I found some Cardinal flower around the ponds, which is nice to see.

Skunk's Misery is nearby, so that was my next stop.  I found a couple of Hooded Warblers along
Centreville Drive, and one female showed nicely.

One of the better trails to walk is off Sassafras Road.  Here I found many butterflies and birds.  Highlight was a White-eyed Vireo, constantly singing.  I could not get it to come out for a photo, but this Warbling showed instead.

A scruffy Chestnut-sided Warbler also made an appearance at the same location.

Two Blue-winged Warblers were also flitting about, while a male Hooded Warbler was chipping the background.



I did find this nice Great-spangled Fritillary.

Last stop was at the old bridge at Thamesville.  American Rubyspots were numerous along the treacherous riverbank.

It is a tad early for the rarer Smokey Rubyspot, but it will show soon.
While there, a Tawny Emperor blew in, but I was not in a good spot for getting a decent photo.

It was an interesting tour in nice weather.  I think Blenheim deserves another visit.....