Prowls, Owls and Other Things

 It was a fairly quiet week, needless to say.  The weather has certainly been the talk of the town lately with the lack of sun and dismal conditions.  We finally saw some blue sky and sun this afternoon after an absence of 13 days!  

I prowled around to various spots this week, just to keep occupied.  

Robins seem to be everywhere.  A few were at Reid CA on a walk on Wednesday.

We always have some wintering, but seems to be more than usual this winter.

Not many birds, as usual, so one looks at other things.

Crowded Parchment

There are lots of Tundra Swans around (they never left!) and some are heading north already as spring migrants it seems.

Lone Tundra Swan at Ridgetown

After I visited Rondeau for a lakewatch (lots of White-winged Scoters and Red-throated Loons are around!), I swung around to Ridgetown lagoons.   An obvious wintering Green-winged Teal was on ice.

There was only a small open water section, where a few ducks were hanging out.

It was  dark and gloomy day, and only got worse as the  day wore on.  (Lots of snow in north Chatham-Kent!).

Wednesday I attended a meeting at Sarnia in the evening, so I headed out early in the afternoon to check out the St. Clair River.  Although a touch better than last year, it is terribly disappointing again.  With climate change upon us, I think it is something we have to get used to.  There is no need for waterfowl to congregate in the river when the lakes are open.

Not a Common Gull!

At dusk, I made an effort to look for Short-eared Owls at a known location.  I was not disappointed, but unable to get proper photos, after seeing three individuals.  This was the best I could do as it was getting too dark and the bird was distant.

There seems to be quite a few around in various locations this winter, but not like it used to be.  There is so little habitat left for feeding opportunities, they are difficult to find.  In the past it was not a problem in pastures north of Wallaceburg.  Try and find a pasture anymore!

Everybody likes owls, but we tend not to post locations anymore as there seems to be too many over-zealous birders/photographers anymore.

Here are some photos from the past.

Yesterday, I needed to check out a different area.  Near home, it was just the same-old, same-old!  I went into Elgin County, and went as far as Port Stanley.  There are lots of little areas to check out, but I stuck to the main roads.  It was a better day, with a couple very short bouts of sun.

I first stopped at Port Glasgow, then went to John E. Pearce Provincial Park for a walk.  The Storey Wetland is here, and I thought of World Wetlands Day (for this day, February 2).  I saw no groundhogs either!

I encountered Eastern Bluebirds in a couple of spots for the first time this year.

Near Port Stanley lagoons, I saw three Turkey Vultures.  For whatever reason, 'TV's' winter in the Port Stanley area (there was even a Black Vulture a few years ago!).

a quick photo from the car window

The Port was not too productive.  A pair of Ruddy Ducks are hanging out in the harbour.

A lone Bald Eagle was standing vigil on the breakwater.

I did quite a bit of driving around on the way home, but nothing of note came my way.  But after-all, it is a "quiet" winter.

Today, I was due for a long walk, so opted to do the marsh trail at Rondeau.  Although still cloudy (what's new?), it was dead calm and quite pleasant.  It was good for hearing things at long distances.

I walked all the way to Long Pond.  The marsh was still mostly frozen though, so waterfowl was limited.

Distant Tundra Swans in Long Pond

American Tree Sparrows were quite numerous, and a few Song and Swamp, as well as a couple of White-throated Sparrows rounded out the sparrow department.  A pair of Eastern Towhees was a highlight, but they stayed hidden in the underbrush after a brief view.

Perhaps more notable was a Common Raven that I could hear croaking all the way across the Bay!  I found out that another birding party, whom I had just met a bit earlier, heard it as well.  Goes to show how quiet the air was today.

Ravens have expanded their range south considerably in recent years.  One only has to look at the eBird or atlas data (which was shown on a Zoom meeting the other night).  They are still quite rare in Chatham-Kent, but it is not unusual to find one in Lambton County where there are now numerous nesting records.

Rondeau Raven from the past

After some good exercise out marsh trail, I briefly checked the north end of the campground which was very quiet.

It was then over to Keith McLean Conservation Lands where there was some activity.  Lots of Cedar Waxwings and American Robins were working the grounds back of the house.  They seemed to like the Bradford Pear tree (terribly aggressive non-native species) which was bearing fruit.

The waxwings also were around the pond where the Yellow-crowned Night-Heron was last year.

I optimistically look for Bohemian in any waxwing flock, but to no avail during today's encounter.

While there, three Pine Siskins came in.  They have been scarce this winter around here, so nice to see.

Lots of blackbirds are around, many of which never left!  Today a male Red-winged Blackbird was in the neighbour's yard, which is likely a spring migrant at this point.

November Notes-Birds, Mussels and Trees

Saturday morning dawned clear, calm and crisp.  I headed down to Rondeau Park and walked south point trail first thing.  I like these type of mornings for birding.

Lots of Pine Siskins are around right now, and lesser numbers of Purple Finches. They were everywhere on this particular morning.

Speaking of finches, one wonders if we will get some redpolls this winter.  Usually they show up by now.  I doubt we will get big numbers, if any, but these creatures of the north are always nice to see.  Speaking of redpolls, the Common Redpoll I had last week at St. Clair NWA was the only one recorded in the county this calendar year (according to eBird).

Lots of Fox Sparrows are around right now as well.

A few Yellow-rumped Warblers are kicking around Rondeau, likely ones that will attempt to winter.

After checking out the park, I started heading out and received word that the Eurasian Wigeon was seen at Erieau.  As I had not seen one yet this calendar year, I stopped by the firehall to scope the raft of ducks.  Lots out there!  It took a while, but I did manage to see the male European version of wigeon. (And a hybrid as well!).

As usually is the case with these, it was too distant to photograph.  Here is a photo from the past in a similar situation.

It was quite warm by this time, so I walked the marsh (rail) trail briefly.  A Red Admiral, perhaps the last one I will see this year, was along the trail.

Sunday, we had a northerly wind so I headed north!  I first went to Sarnia, but there was not much moving there.  An Iceland Gull was patrolling the shoreline, which is likely one of the same birds that is here every winter.

I became a bit bored, so headed up towards Kettle Point.  The wind was quite brisk out of the north there, but surprisingly, not much was moving.  Quite a few Red-throated Loons were moving though.

A Black-legged Kittiwake was seen at both Grand Bend and Ipperwash to make things interesting for birders.  

I briefly stopped at Ipperwash as well.  Not long after I left there, another kittiwake was seen!  I was not far from Highland Glen CA when the alert went out, so I pulled into the place to watch the lake.  One gets a fairly good view of the lake there.  Not long after my arrival, I spotted a kittiwake moving down the lake!  Perhaps it was the previously-reported one from Ipperwash.

I was unable to get a photo as it was well out, but here is a photo of this attractive gull from a past experience.

There were three of these reported at Ipperwash.  Perhaps some of these along the lake involved the same individual moving down the shoreline.

One last walk before getting home was at Wilkesport.  Fairly warm, so Autumn Meadowhawks were flying.

Today, we woke up to another nice day.  I had no intentions of going anywhere, so just went for a long walk at Reid CA.

Along the riverbank, I found a few mussels--usual ones for the location.  Mapleleaf and Deertoe are considered vulnerable in Ontario, but quite regular along the north Sydenham.

DEERTOE

MAPLELEAF

GIANT FLOATER

I looked at trees as well.  Blue Ash is fairly abundant here, but I found this small tree in a spot of the property I had not seen one before.  This species is easily identified by the squarish stems and twigs.

Lots of impressive big old trees on the property.  Here are a couple of scenes.

The tree with the large side branch is a Chinquapin Oak

large Burr Oak

There are a couple of old wire fences one has to watch for while walking through the woods.  I have tripped on them a couple of times!  Today, I noticed this section growing right into a tree trunk.  Shows how long this fence has been there!

Rainy tomorrow......

Rambles to Rails

 Little to report as the dull winter rambles on.  It is one of the quieter winters we have had for birds, so we have mainly been out just for exercise!

I have been rambling around locally.  Some redpolls are here and there.  A walk at Wilkesport a few days ago revealed a couple.

I have been to Reid CA a couple of times and it certainly was not for birds!  Hardly any.  I happened to notice a flicker sitting very quietly in a tree.  Unfortunately the usual weather was at hand so lighting was horrible.

The pair of Pileated Woodpeckers is still there, always nice to see.  However they do not want to be photographed.

Yesterday morning was a rare day (for more than two months) where we had clear skies!  The afternoon clouded up though, so it was too good to be true.

I have had quite a few Pine Siskins coming to the yard lately.

The nuthatches also take advantage of the feeders.

With not much to cover lately, I will divert to some local history....again!

I have an interest in railroads and railroad history.  Recent events led me to look into the story of a steam locomotive (CNR 7470) that once worked in Wallaceburg.  I just realized that it is 100 years old this year!  It is close to my heart as I remember this engine sitting in Wallaceburg on the old Canada and Dominion Sugar Company property in April 1966.  I was only three years old (!) when my father took photos of it with me at his side.  The top of my head in the lower left corner, cut off.  I still have the original negative which does shows my face!

 

 It was sold to a couple of different owners and eventually moved to Sarnia where it sat for about two years.  Nothing ever transpired though, until it was sold to Dwight Smith the spring of 1968.

Dwight Smith, who eventually formed the Conway Scenic Railway with partners in New Hampshire, made preparations for transport.  As the photo shows, a man was dismantling the engine in prep for travel in 1966.  I suspect my father knew it was leaving Wallaceburg and wanted to get a photo. 

My initial interest in the engine was back in 2012, when I was looking at the old photos my father took.  I thought about it and wondered what ever happened to this engine.  I went to the internet and simply typed in “steam locomotive 7470”.  Instantly, several things came up showing that it still existed and was working as a tourist attraction with the Conway Scenic Railway in New Hampshire.  I could not believe it!

I wrote to Conway Scenic and sent the photos.  Paul Hallett, Operations Manager, responded and was quite pleased to receive the photos and said operating 7470 was “the BEST part of my job”.  At the time, 7470 was still in running condition, but he said if I ever made it that way, he would personally take me into the roundhouse to see the engine.

Not long after 2012, the 7470 went into the shop for restoration.  It came back out in 2019 to steam again!

The 7470 has a storied history starting with its construction in Montreal in 1921.  It was built as a “switcher”, a smaller type of locomotive that is used in yards for switching or moving rail cars.  It worked all over Ontario, and eventually spent its last years in Wallaceburg shuffling coal or sugar beet cars at the sugar factory.

 

Recently, I was referred to a story of 7470, well worth reading.  Here is the link:

https://issuu.com/wiseguycreative/docs/mwv-vibe-fall19/s/161701

 It covers the history of 7470 very well and provides a nice colour photo of it at Wallaceburg (the exact same location as the B & W photo above).  

Interestingly, after Smith bought it, plans were to go to the east coast via the States.  It was sent over to Michigan, but things changed and it went back to Sarnia then across Ontario on its way to the east coast of the US, ending up in Maine.

One can find several YouTube videos on the internet of 7470 operating on the Conway Scenic.  What a thrill to see it in action!

Here is one:

Conway Scenic 7470