More Harbingers of Spring and Other Things

 There has not really been much new to report in the last week, so lack of subject matter here.  Migration has been sluggish so far this spring, but it looks like the floodgates will open up in the next few days.

It continues to be very windy every day.  We have had some calm mornings, but as the day progresses, the wind picks up!  Enough already.

Last Friday, I went out Lake St. Clair way on a fairly calm and cloudless morning.  No novelties!

Eastern Phoebe

Saturday I went down to Rondeau Park.  Nothing out of the ordinary to report!

Sunday, I once again went to Rondeau, but took a long walk out the marsh trail on a calm and cloudless morning.  Yet again, nothing new had come in.  It was for exercise I guess!

The Bay was as smooth as glass first thing.

Later, I swung by the Townsend's Solitaire spot, and the western creature was still working the property much to the delight of many birders who had come to see it.

On the 14th, I checked out the nature trail at Mitchell's Bay.  It was fairly birdy, but no rarities!  A couple of freshly-arrived Yellow-rumped Warblers were along the trail though.

There were hundreds of gulls in the fields around the area.  Some too far out to discern, but a couple of Lesser Black-backed Gulls were amongst them.

I continued on and ended up for a long walk at Reid CA.  I was not too successful in finding mussels along the riverbank.  A couple of Mapleleaf were all that I could muster.

Always looking for Harbinger of Spring.....which is fairly plentiful at Reid.

As always here, not many birds.  I did get a newly-arrived Yellow-rumped Warbler though.

Tuesday was a bit of a write-off with the crappy winter-like weather.  High winds again!

Today was much nicer, but I stayed fairly close to home.  I checked out the St. Clair River in case a Pacific Loon was around.  (I was optimistic!).  Of course, no such luck.

Afterwards, I headed inland and went to Moore WMA to look for mussels.  There were quite a few!  All were just dead shells of course, except, I did find one live mussel in the form of a Fragile Papershell. (I put it back in the water!).

Best find was a Kidneyshell (as far as I can tell), a critically imperiled species in Ontario.

Other things included a White Heelsplitter, not to be confused with the rarer Pink Heelsplitter.

And the fairly-regular Deertoe

Most common is Giant Floater (do they float?).

This afternoon warmed up quite nicely, and the wind died a little, so I went for a walk at Reid CA.  Things are picking up, as I found at least three Yellow-rumped Warblers, an encouraging sign of things to come.

A few insects were flying in the cool breeze today.

Eastern Comma

Mourning Cloak

Pink-spotted Lady Beetle

Furcate Dung Fly

Spring plants have struggled, but are slowly emerging.

Large White Trillium

Reid is quite abundant with ginger, and I found a few popping up today.

Looks like warmer weather is on the way, so things will be hoppin' now that Easter is on the way!

Waterfowl Times

 This is the time of year we usually concentrate on waterfowl watching.  Lots of stuff coming in on their journey north!

Last Friday, I checked out Lake St. Clair area.  There was still quite a bit of ice though.

The day before, a Eurasian Wigeon was along Angler Line, but did not show up for those looking Friday.  However, I did find a Ross's Goose which is almost as good.  A bit distant and looking into the sun did not help in the photographic department.

A couple of Sandhill Cranes nearby appeared to be in a mating ritual.

Saturday, I had the urge to head to Sarnia along the St. Clair River.  The river has completely cleared out, so not much in the way of waterfowl concentration.  Long-tailed Ducks were the most numerous, scattered all the way along.  There were no notables on my jouney!

Sunday, it was in the opposite direction where I headed to Hillman marsh for a long walk.  Water levels are quite low.

Still lots of ice there as well, but there was a good number of waterfowl and gulls by the hundreds.

At least five Trumpeter Swans were in the marsh.

Bald Eagles were nesting nearby, obvious to the very large nests they build.

On the way home, I checked out Balmoral Line.  Among other things, a single Greater White-fronted Goose was among Canadas.  Too distant though for a photo.  It was a first-of-year for me.

Monday, I did not do much, but spent some time along the river.  Went for a walk in Brander Park.

A large White Ash tree was a victim of the Emerald Ash Borer here.

Tuesday I went to Rondeau!  It was rather quiet for birds though.  I could see thousands of ducks on the far side of the Bay, much too far even for the scope.  No doubt a Eurasian Wigeon was among them!

Heading home, I swung over to Erieau and walked the marsh (rail) trail.  It was quite birdy with waterfowl.

Highlight, was a flock of eight Greater White-fronted Geese in the corn field.  Eventually, they got up and circle several time not knowing what to do next.

Today, was a cool, but sunny day, so I went for a long walk at Reid CA.  Practically no birds, but I did flush up an American Woodcock.  A first for the year.  I was quite happy with the long walk to get my mind off things of late.

The ice went out of the Sydenham last week very quickly and the water levels had receded by today.  I came across a couple of river mussels.

White Heelsplitter

Fragile Papershell

Now that ice is gone, I can look for mussels again after along winter!

In the history department:

March 12, 1907 was the launch date of the D. O. Mills lake freighter.  Later renamed G. A. Tomlinson, it lasted until 1979 when it was scrapped.

Back when I was very young, I took a photo of this vessel on the Detroit River while on one of the Bob-Lo steamers.

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.