Winter Walks and Wanderings

 A couple of days ago I took a drive along the St. Clair River up to Willow Park.  Slush ice has almost filled the river due to the recent cold weather.  We did not see much of this last year!

Port Lambton

Some ships are still working including the Algoma Compass.  One of the nicer-looking ones.

Near the brine barge at Seager Park, I noticed an odd duck swimming about.  Turned out to be a Surf Scoter.  Not the most classic-looking one, but apparently it has been around for some time.  Of all the times I have been out to the river, this was the first time I encountered the creature.

We rarely seen a Surf Scoter in the St. Clair River!

Afterwards, I went for a  walk at Reid CA.  Hardly any birds as usual, but I enjoyed the fresh air and exercise, and always enjoy walking through the woods.

View from my favourite spot

Saturday, I joined the annual OFO field trip along the Detroit River.  I always enjoy this one since I rarely get down that way.

This year, we had more seasonal weather for a change!  There was a good concentration of birds around Peche Island, including about 36 Great Blue Herons on the edge of the ice.  They looked like sentinels! 

Lots of Hooded Mergansers were here.

A Trumpeter Swan, not all that unusual for here, was also seen.  A pair was Wood Ducks was a decent sighting.

There was a good concentration of waterfowl along the shoreline of Peche Island, the majority of which were Canada Geese and Mallards.  There were about 800 geese, but we could not pick out a single other species!

Here is a link to the eBird list for this location:

https://ebird.org/checklist/S208884570

Of course, I noticed the Bob-Lo boat Ste. Claire slowly taking shape downriver.  Although it does not look much different than a year ago.

Summer Memories!

The tanker Iver Bright flushed a couple of hundred Common Mergansers a bit downriver.

Our next stop, per tradition, was the Little River Corridor Park and the pollution control plant area.  There is always a concentration of ducks in the canal.  Among the hundreds of Mallards, were four more Wood Ducks.

Other birds included the expected Belted Kingfisher and a couple of American Robins.  As well, Jeremy Hatt spotted a junco which appeared to be an Oregon.

Here is a link to our bird list for this location:

https://ebird.org/checklist/S208919641

We then moved to the park.  At the parking lot, I spotted a Sharp-shinned Hawk which all in the group were pleased to see.

There were lots of juncos and other birds in the park.  The highlight was probably the Hermit Thrush we saw.  Lots of Northern Cardinals as well.  One perched motionless right beside the trail.

There was no surprise like last year, when we found the Northern Waterthrush.  Things were quite frozen, unlike last year, so obviously any bird like that would be foolhardy to stick around.

Here is a link to the eBird list for this location:

https://ebird.org/checklist/S208901950

After this walk, I headed back home, as there was not much else that interested me further downriver.

I drove a few backroads on the way home.  There were hundred of Snow Buntings and Horned Larks as one would expect.

Today, I aimed my car towards Rondeau.  I first went towards Stefina Line.  Along Mull Road, I encountered a couple of Eastern Meadowlarks.  A couple have been seen further along Stefina, so not sure if these are the same ones.  There are bound to be more out there!  Unfortunately, I could not obtain proper photos.

It is always nice to see these in winter.  We have seen them along Stefina before in the past.

The Harris's Sparrow was still present as expected.

I had been itching to get out Rondeau's marsh trail for a long walk for quite some time.  The cold north winds of late were too unbearable to do this walk, but the winds switched to the south for a change.  It was actually quite pleasant as I walked out to the half way point.

View at the half-way boardwalk

The Ruby-crowned Kinglet was still in the cottage area tirelessly looking for morsels of food.  Lots of Swamp Sparrows were encountered.  Nothing special seen during my walk, but it was just nice to get out there.

I decided to head homeward after this walk.  I thought of going to Erieau since there are now three Harlequin Ducks (!), but I bypassed that.

More Adventures and More Mussels

 Sunday, I decided to head down Windsor way to join in the OFO field trip on the Detroit River led by Jeremy Hatt and Kory Renaud. As usual, the weather forecast was wrong and it was yet another dreary day.  However, at least there was no precipitation.

The starting point was Lakeview Marina across from Peche Island where there is always a concentration of waterfowl.  Unlike most and normal years, there was no ice and the waterfowl was not concentrated.  There was a lot to look at though!

Hooded Mergansers numbered nearly 100, with other ducks mixed in such as Gadwall, Canvasback, Redhead, Common Merganser, etc.

In the distance, I knew I would see the old Bob-lo steamer Ste. Claire.

The Good 'Ole Days!  Ste. Claire

A few years ago, it burned due to a welding mishap.  That was unfortunate as the original structure was destroyed.  However, the owners are carrying on with a cosmetic restoration.

Our next stop was Little River Park and the pollution control plant.  There are always some ducks here, and often a Wood Duck or two can be found in winter.  This time was no exception.

Among other birds, we often seen Canvasbacks flying overhead in large flocks.  On this day, we saw over 2500.

The Detroit River and area is one of the key wintering spots for Canvasback.  We used to get lots on the St. Clair River, but not so in recent years.

After birding this park, the plan was to head down to Ojibway Park.  I decided to break off and head home at this point, as there was nothing to interest me at Ojibway.

Yesterday turned out to be a rare sunny day!  In the afternoon, I decided to go for a long walk at Reid CA and explore the south end.

One of the outlets of the old oxbow

There were not many birds as usual, but a pair of Great Horned Owls was nice to see.

Along the riverbank, I noticed lots of mussels.  Most were Giant Floater, a common species.

There were a few Mapleleaf as well.

I also found a large White Heelsplitter.  It was very flat!

Today, I had the urge to go and see the long-staying Harris's Sparrow near Northville in north Lambton.  It basically appeared right away when I arrived around 10:00.

Seed has been put out all along, so I suspect it would not have stayed this long without that food.  Lots of White-crowned Sparrows are at this spot as well.

I actually arrived earlier than that, so decided to go for a walk at Ausable River Cut CA to start things off. It is always quiet for birds this time of year, so I looked at river mussels.  There were lots, but one stood out.

I thought it was a certain species called Black Sandshell, but I later learned it was a very similar species called Spike.  I have never found one of those before!

On the way home, I stopped at Wilkesport, as I often do for one last walk.  It has been quiet this year, but I did find some birds.  A couple of Eastern Bluebirds were nice to see, but they did not co-operate for a photo.

After I got back to the car, I ate my lunch, but then decided to check one more area.  I lucked out and found a Long-eared Owl quietly roosting in a spruce tree.

I have had Long-eared here before, so that was not a surprise really.  It was a nice way to end today's outing in Lambton County.

Late Winter Duck Details

I decided to check out Lakeview Park Marina in Windsor again this morning.  It is an excellent spot to view waterfowl on most days right now.  The St. Clair River has been uninteresting of late especially with the ice situation.

There were thousands of ducks, many of which were out of range for viewing.  Many were in close though, looking for handouts.  A lot of waterfowl is clearly in distress with this very harsh winter.  Dead ducks can be seen in many spots littering the ice.

Deadhead

Even on Friday as I drove up to Corunna along the St. Clair River, I saw a number of carcasses.

That dismal stuff aside, some healthier ducks were quite close today to get good photos.  Several Windsor area photographers were present taking advantage of the situation.

I did quite a bit of scoping and found the White-winged Scoter that Kory reported yesterday. It was very distant though.

downriver

Ian Woodfield, a friend of mine, came along and had not yet seen the White-winged Scoter.  I could not re-locate it for him, but he later got one closer to the Ambassador Bridge!

Lots of swans, most of which were Mute, were seen.  I later picked out 3 large swans in the distance with the scope, namely the Trumpeters.  Tundra Swans were also present, obviously a bit smaller in size.  A couple of Trumpeters were in close yesterday according to one of the photographers.  There were 3 Tundras in close to the breakwall this morning.

Wintering Tundra Swan

I picked out 3 Long-tailed Ducks, which are certainly less common than on the St. Clair River!  One was a resplendent male.  Very distant though.

Here are some more photos.

Greater Scaup

Hooded Merg

Redhead

Common Goldeneye

Canvasback