Some Early January Birding

 I have been out to see what around as the dismal weather continues.  Monday it was off to Point Pelee once more before it closes for the deer reduction program tomorrow.

I first checked the west side for the ongoing redpolls.  Two Hoary Redpolls have found a place to stay for some time recently.  Although I eventually found them, I was unable to get decent photos.  Some Common Redpolls were around as well, always scarce within Point Pelee.

Next stop was the Tip where there was an impressive showing of ducks.  All were flybys, but there were hundreds of mergansers, mostly Commons.  White-winged Scoters were around in good number as well.

I checked the Cactus Field and found quite a few birds including Yellow-rumped Warblers and Eastern Bluebirds among others.

On the way out of the park, I stopped at Sanctuary Pond, where there was still some open water.  Northern Shovelers and Gadwall, uncommon this time of year, were present.  As well, some of the usual Mallards and Black Ducks and a few Hooded Mergansers.

I headed home via Gracey Sideroad and veered over to Lighthouse Cove after a failed attempt to find the blackbird flock.  

It can be interesting this time of year, especially when there is ice.  However, as the mild winter continues, there was none!  Often we get lingering birds such as Great Blue Herons and Double-crested Cormorants here in winter.  The Cove was almost devoid of birds, so I went over Jeannette's Creek where one can go to the boat launch at the river. 

Cormorants on a Log

Here, I found one of the target birds, a Great Egret!  On January 2, Ken Burrell reported two at Lighthouse Cove which were probably around the day before on the CBC.  They were on the C-K side of the river though for him.

I saw the one on the marina property which is actually in Essex.  The borders get dicey around here, but it was indeed in Essex, albeit a distance.

Nearer home, I spotted at least five Snowy Owls in the usual area south of Mitchell's Bay.  They were far out in the field, as they often are.

Tuesday the usual weather continued.  It would be nice to see this end as it has been around about two months!

I went along the St. Clair River, seeing very little. It is probably the "quietest" I have ever seen the river for this time of year.  Climate change sure has made a difference!

It was too early in the day to see many gulls at Guthrie Park.  Later in the afternoon is better, but it would be even better if we had ice.  A couple of Glaucous Gulls were evident.

The rest of the day was a bit of a write-off as there was not much out there.

Today I decided Rondeau needed a visit.  As usual the weather forecast was wrong yet again....still no sun!  There was even a bit of fog and light wet snow which was not on the radar either.

I did my usual route starting at south point trail.  The lake was dead calm and virtually no birds on it.  I did see one Red-throated Loon.  Obviously a couple of days ago was better when about 200 were on the lake!  

There has been even more severe erosion along south point.  Soon the shoreline will be at the trail which used to be well inland.  As the shoreline recedes, structures from the past are revealed.

At the "washout" which was even more washed out, the bird of the day was hopping around.  An American Pipit!  Not often they are seen in January around here.

It was dragging its right wing, but was still able to fly.

I checked the campground before leaving.  Most birds were at the north end, but seemed to fly in while I was there.  Many juncos were on the move, and I caught sight of one Chipping Sparrow.  Could have been other things, but they were moving quickly.

I also found the standard Yellow-bellied Sapsucker.

It was on its favourite tree, which we call the "sapsucker tree".

A couple of Yellow-rumped Warblers were roaming the campground as well.

Photos were not good today, but with the gloomy weather that is the way it will be.

I had enough of the damp weather after the campground walk, so headed home.

This afternoon I made a quick run out to Stewart Wetland.  Timing was just right, as the 100+ Sandhills Cranes were heading back to Michigan for the night!

Redpoll to Waterfowl on Saturday

For the most part, today was a waterfowl type of day.  I decided to head down to Point Pelee to see what was around the Tip.  Lots of people!  The Ojibway group was quite large today as they were on one of their weekend outings.  Other than lots of mergansers, White-winged Scoters seemed to be the duck of the day.  Not many, if any, are up Sarnia way so I guess they are down that way.
After the group left, it was just Alan, Richard and myself.  The most interesting bird was a quick flyby of a redpoll.  However, it continued on out over the lake.  It was more than likely a Hoary Redpoll based on its flight call (which I heard well) and the whitish appearance.  It was alone as well which leads one to lean toward Hoary.
A Horned Lark flew over unseen, an early spring migrant.

I did not stay in the park, but checked the onion field area and Hillman Marsh.  A couple of flocks of starlings that I checked had lots of cowbirds and a few Red-winged Blackbirds.
Another gyr, I mean Northern Harrier was roaming the fields.

I stopped at south Hillman and checked the scaup on the lake.  Lots to look at but the main raft headed south before I had a good look.  Maybe the 'Tufted' was still out there....probably.  However it appears that is was a Tufted X Lesser Scaup.  Listers beware!
Lots of geese in Hillman and a few Mallards, Black and Ruddy.  Nothing new.  The puddle ducks (spring migrants?) from previous had vanished.  I was surprised not to see some puddle ducks around with this warm weather.  And, not a cackler amongst them!

I took a brief look at the Long-eared Owls (thanks Rick!) that have been wintering at Hillman and headed towards Wheatley (not much there!).

As I was getting into Wheatley I received a call from Mike Bouman about a male Harlequin Duck at Courtright.  I was going to stop at Lighthouse Cove, but decided to try for the Harlequin instead on the St. Clair River.
After the long drive, I finally found the Harlequin after a brief search. (nicest one I have seen!)

I am quite sure it is the same duck seen around Christmas north of Mooretown. It finally became accessible!
There is a long stretch from the north end of Mooretown to the north end of Corunna that one cannot see from the parkway.  Who knows what is along there!  A pair of Harlequins was along there last year which I did not know about until recently.

After the duck, I headed down to Cathcart Park to look for the Trumpeter Swan.  It was a bit distant, but its large size was obvious.  Most of the waterfowl must have been scared off as there was very little compared to yesterday.  Some local resident was out on the mud anyway! (note pail in photo).  Not sure what they were gathering, but there was even an ATV out there!

Nice to see the swan today.  The only other Trumpeter I have seen on the river was way back late January 1994.  That one had a green wing tag which I think indicated it was tagged in Minnesota.  This one has no tags or bands.

Not much else to see on the river as birds were quite spread out.  Glad I did the waterfowl survey a week ago.

A Redpoll!

Late yesterday (Thursday) I noticed a pale bird at the feeder. I looked a little closer and realized it was a redpoll. The more I looked at it, I realized it was likely a (female) Hoary! A redpoll at this time of year here is quite decent, but to have a Hoary is even better. I have never had a Hoary in the yard before. Even last year with all the redpolls around, I never saw a Hoary!

It was at the feeder again first thing this morning, and late today. I managed to get closer looks and it appears to be a Hoary. The size is a bit larger than the Common Redpoll. The rump is prominantly white with no streaking, and there is little streaking on the flanks and no streaking on the undertail coverts. The bill is stubbier and has the "pushed-in" look characteristic of the Hoary. The overall appearance is simply frostier-looking than what we usually see in a Common Redpoll.

I did get a few photos at some distance this evening.

Christmas Season Summary

I guess it is time to reflect on the Christmas Bird Counts now that the holiday season is over. Weather was certainly a significant factor in the counts this year. Some had decent weather, while others had horrendous weather. Overall, the numbers of birds were down from previous years, but some species did reach record highs. I'll go over the counts that I participated in.
The first one was Kettle Point on December 15. It was quite cold and a bit breezy, but fairly decent weather-wise for a count. Total species for that count was 69, probably a bit above average. Likely the best bird on the count was an adult Golden Eagle that was observed by myself near Rock Glen. Hoary Redpolls were recorded on this count, just like almost every other count this year. Strangely, no Bohemian Waxwings, no Pine nor Evening Grosbeaks were tallied even though the Pinery area is good for them. I worked my usual area of Rock Glen CA and had the fewest number of birds ever.
The next day was supposed to be Rondeau/Blenheim. Needless to say, it had to be cancelled due to the snow storm. It was held one week later on the 23rd. Unfortunately, the weather was horrendous! Heavy rain and very high winds were the word of the day. As a result, numbers were down from average. One new bird for the count was an Eared Grebe at Erieau. Once again, I saw the fewest number of birds that I ever did in the south point trail area of Rondeau. I also had to check out south beach, and it was brutal! There was no beach to walk on due to the high waves. Wind gusts were up to 80 km/h.
However, when all the reports were in, 100 species was the total.
The day before on the 22nd, I worked the Port Huron CBC on the Canadian side. The weather was very pleasant with no wind and some sun. I did well with 38 species in my area, including 3 Gadwall ducks, and two Peregrine Falcons. I am told the species total for that CBC was 74.
The 22nd Wallaceburg CBC was held on December 27 in decent weather. It was cloudy for the most part, but a clear day for the count. I worked the south part of the circle as usual, and tallied my lowest number ever (no surprise!). I have been doing that area for 20 years, so I have some idea as to what to expect. The count ended up with 86 species which was very good. New for the count was Hoary Redpoll just like many other counts.
The final CBC was St. Clair NWA. Weather was poor for this one with high winds and periods of snow. However, the storm brought in record numbers of Snow Buntings and Lapland Longspurs. They seemed to be every where in big numbers! 14,592 Snow Buntings were recorded and 155 longspurs. Redpolls were plentiful as well with a record of 617. However, strange as it may seem, not one Hoary Redpoll was seen. The trusty Barn Owl was seen again, but not until the compiler was driving home! Many people have seen this bird over the years, but you have to be at the right place at the right time. A minute either way will make the difference! One new species for the count was Wild Turkey. The species total rang in at 81. Once again, I have to say that I saw the fewest birds ever in my designated area. Is there a trend here?
Anyway, CBC's are always fun and interesting and something to look forward to each year.
Butterfly counts are next!

Recent Birding

Another Christmas Bird Count (CBC) has come and gone! Wallaceburg's was held on December 27 under gray skies. Final tally at the end of the day revealed that we had come in at 86 species. That was an excellent total, including one new species for the count history. Hoary Redpoll was added. It was seen in only a flock of about eight redpolls! I think it was no surprise since practically every other count in southern Ontario is recording this northern visitor. As I mentioned before, it is likely to be a record year for this species.

Another new species, Evening Grosbeak (4), was seen two days prior to the count. Therefore, it can be included in count week. For some reason these grosbeaks never stay in one spot. Every one that I have seen or heard of in this area is only seen for one day. I have had singles here on three occasions, and they were only one day wonders. That seems to apply to Purple Finches as well.

Finch types are rare around Wallaceburg. Purple Finches have only been recorded three times on the CBC. Evening Grosbeaks, never. Crossbills, never. (although I have had White-winged in the yard on two occasions). Redpolls are only recorded in irruption years. Pine Siskins have been recorded only six times, including this year. (I usually get them at my feeder, and this year was no exception).

Other good birds on the Wallaceburg count included Cackling Goose (1), Surf Scoter (2), Saw-Whet Owl (2), Common Loon (1), Pileated Woodpecker (only the third time).

Some types of birds were rather scarce. Hardly any gulls were around. As I always say, they like cold weather and ice, and it has just been too mild the last two weeks.

Swans are always increasing in numbers. More and more Mute Swans are seen every winter on the St. Clair River. Tundra Swans now winter regularly on the big river. They never used to.

Our highest species total ever was 89 in 2005, so this year was very good considering the fact that some birds was rather scarce.

The Rondeau/Blenheim CBC managed to scrape up 100 species when all was said and done. We could not win with the weather this year, and that was certainly a significant factor. However, 100 species is an excellent total.

The last CBC in the area is St. Clair on January 1. It relies heavily on waterfowl. With the recent mild weather, there should be some open water to hold ducks and geese and water-related birds.