Labour Day Weekend Birding - Pelee Birding & Snowy Egrets at Holiday Beach

This could be a  is a Least Flycatcher  (ignore the image label)

Labour Day weekend is usually such a great weekend for birding. Southbound migration is in full swing and its the last long weekend of Summer.  I decided to go birding at Point Pelee and my first stop in the park was at Delaurier Trail. I found a really nice pocket of flycatchers and warblers just north of the parking lot. This recently managed area has lots of open cedar savannah with lots of brush piles. Blue grey Gnatcatchers, Nashville, Bay-Poll warblers were seen here as well as Eastern Phoebe, Yellow bellied Flycatcher (could have been a Least to be honest) and Eastern Wood Pewee were seen and heard. Overhead, three or four Common Nighthawks were foraging with spectacular arial maneuvers and showing there nicely marked white bars on their long wings. The octagon area of the Delaurier trail was nice as well with a few more warbler species (black and white), Hummingbirds and more Flycatchers.

Later at Cactus Field - I noted that it was birdy as well. Its really grown in since its grand opening this spring. Its hard to find the trail under all the Goldenrod. Lots of Blue Jays, Carolina and House Wrens, Common Grackels, Goldfinch, Cardinals were around. A Least Flycatcher posed nicely for me but my camera was at a +1 exposure, overexposing this beautiful little avian gem.

Hackberry Emperor in the White Pine Parking Lot.

 

 

 



I saw many birders at the park today including Steve Pike, Blake, Alan, Jeremy B & Josh. Josh and Jeremy invited me to go out to Holiday Beach with them so I joined, because I wanted to get better looks at Snowy Egrets than I had gotten in the last week or two.  On the way, I stopped in Kingsville to see a Common Checkered Skipper colony that is behind the McDonalds lot.

Sure enough at Holiday Beach - Trumpeter Swans were a highlight as well as a Solitary Sandpiper, Green Heron, Kingfishers ... but no Snowy Egrets in sight.  Until we were leaving... Josh called the Snowy in flight - as it landed in the pond adjacent to the hawk watching tower.

I only saw one Snowy Egret, but Kory, Josh and Jeremy had seen two as they left the park.

Good Birding!
Dwayne