Backyard Sparrow Bonanza Continues (Part 2) Oct 17th

 

Wow,,, So yet again, I spent 30 - 45 minutes birding from my kitchen table this morning, looking to my back yard through my back patio - and the birding was surprisingly good! This weekend's birding has provided the following sparrows:

House Sparrow
Chipping Sparrow
Field Sparrow
Song Sparrow
White crowned Sparrow
White throated Sparrow
Dark eyed Junco
Vesper Sparrow (*new yard species)
Clay colored Sparrow (*new yard species)

And today:

Lincoln's Sparrow (*new yard species)
Purple Finch (*new yard species)

Recap of yesterday's Sparrow Highlights: 

Today's Lincoln's Sparrow:

The previous blog posting from yesterday featured a nice selection of sparrow species, highlights being Clay Coloured and Vesper Sparrows - but today - I had a Lincoln's Sparrow! I also had Purple Finch, a pair of Red bellied Woodpeckers as well another Hermit Thrush. 

I have a mental bird list of species I've seen in/from my backyard --- and I think I need to make a page dedicated page to keep track of those species. I think I also should have a small bird bath pond or water fountain as I've noted a small flooded area behind my fence has attracted many species. 

Good Birding!

Dwayne

Sora and Virginia Rails at Point Pelee's Marsh Boardwalk

I took a quick trip out to Point Pelee this morning. After checking out Hillman Marsh, I quickly headed for Point Pelee. The first stop was the Marsh Boardwalk. I rarely walk the marsh boardwalk, but figured I would give it a try today. That turned out to be a good decision.

There were two buses in the marsh parking lot and about 50+ people on the marsh observation tower. I think they were from Dan Minnill's U of W Ornithology class, but I could be mistaken. On the boardwalk, the first two birds I noticed were Eastern Phoebes and Swamp Sparrows. Other highlights included: 5 Rusty Blackbirds, 5 Sora,  1 Virginia Rail (lifer #306), 10 Eastern Phoebes, and a pair of Ruby throated Hummingbirds.

Very Exciting to see this Virginia Rail. About the same size as Sora. I thought it would be bigger.

Rusty Blackbirds.

I saw 5 Soras today! It was a Sora Fallout.

After the marsh boardwalk, I did a quick tour of the Delaurier path. I ran into Kory Renaud and we birded the path together. Lots of Golden crowned Kinglets, Ruby crowned Kinglets, Winter Wren, White throated Sparrows (some singing "oh sweet Canada") a few seasonal warblers, Red breasted Nuthatches, Swainson's Thrush, Yellow bellied Sapsucker, Northern Flicker were seen as well. A Brown Creeper was seen as well as several Sharp shinned Hawks flying right above us. Kory and I both wanted to see Blue headed Vireo but it wasn't to be on this path today. Today I realized what the female call of an Eastern Towhee sounds like (Towhee?).  On the way out of the Delaurier, I ran into Rick & Dan from Leamington and Gerry Peltier. Good times!

Ojibway Park this week gave nice views of 3 Yellow bellied Sapsuckers, Tennessee and Nashville Warblers, Ruby crowned Kinglets, White and Red breasted Nuthatches, Red bellied and Downy Woodpeckers. Always nice to walk Ojibway after work on a weekday.

Seeing the Virginia Rail today was very exciting. I have wanted to see this bird for at least two years. I think I saw one at Pointe Mouillee once, (I remember flushing a small bird which flew a short distance with its legs dangling) and I think I heard them in Carden Alvar's Sedge Wren or Prospect Marsh. My view of it was a fleeting 3 seconds. I'm amazed I even obtained a photo of it.

I'm looking forward to October. I'm dying to see Saw Whet Owls as well as American Pipits. Like the Virgina Rail above, they have eluded me for too long! Any winter finches would be nice to see as well.

Good birding!
Dwaynejava

Recent Lifers:
American Bittern #300
Willow Flycatcher #301
Upland Sandpiper #302
Bank Swallow #303
Cliff Swallow #304
Olive Sided Flycatcher #305
Virginia Rail #306

Birding Point Pelee and Hillman Marsh in Late October

Its been almost two weeks since I've been birding. Last weekend, I just couldn't make it out and this last week, I was either working or studying for an exam I had to write this morning. I wrote the exam this morning at 9am and drove directly to Hillman Marsh and Point Pelee. Nothing overly exciting although I did get good looks of all the seasonal migrants that are moving through right now. The highlight was a pair of Orange Crowned Warblers as seen at the end of this posting.

Hillman Marsh*
Wow, just driving into the entranceway, I stopped at the self pay area because of the number of birds around. White crowned, White throated Sparrows, along with a few Lincoln's were around. Pelee had these sparrows as well as  Song and Swamp Sparrows. Hermit (many) and one Swainson Thrush were seen as well as a Grey Catbird. Ruby Crowned Kinglets are very common right now as well (obviously).

 

 Along the water, a Belted Kingfisher and Eastern Phoebe were hanging out. Sharp Shinned Hawks and American Kestrels streamed above Hillman as well. Flocks of Blackbirds (mainly Red-winged) were going by as well.

Point Pelee***
I also stopped by Point Pelee after Hillman. I headed towards the tip parking lot but on the way, couldn't help but stop at Sleepy Hollow due to the shear number of birds that were skulking in the roadside foliage. Myrtle Yellow Rumps and Ruby Crowned Kinglets along with seasonal sparrow species were around. A Red bellied Woodpecker was hanging out there as well.

The Tip of Point Pelee was not overly active today. I did get a chance to run into my friends Rick & Dan from Leamington though. One cool thing about this tip this morning was a whirl-wind of butterflies. Mainly Monarch but some Question mark, Comma, and Red Admiral. They were reluctant to leave the tip and cross the water towards Ohio. Some hawks were flying overhead but basically, I soon left the tip of Point Pelee to check out Shuster Trail.

As you can see below, Shuster Trail had Winter Wrens, a gorgeous Red-Shouldered Hawk and Bald Eagle were seen. More Kinglets, Sparrows and Hermit Thrushes as well. Many Sparrows were around (some singing) and I noted a Swamp Sparrow as well in the bunch. Some trees near the end of Shuster had Rusty Blackbirds and Robins perched. An Eastern Comma butterfly was alone on the East Beach.

 

As I left Point Pelee, I stopped near the "meadow" at Sanctuary Pond. I checked out a Heron initially but then heard a Caronlina Wren (Breeeeet, Breeet Breeeeett) and followed the sound. Golden crowned Kinglets greeted me along with a late House Wren and an Awesome look at two Orange Crowned Warblers (male and female). These warblers have been very rare to me. I've only seen a female OCW last fall from a great distance and it was pointed out to me. Today, this sexually dimorphic pair of Orange Crowned Warblers were at close range, giving great views. They have a very distinct colour, almost yellowish-green with very distinct spectacles on the male and crisp, sharp beaks.

 Not a bad afternoon of fall birding. Winter Wren was nice to see. I wanted to see a Yellow bellied Sapsucker but good looks at Orange crowned Warblers was a nice consolation.

Good birding!
Dwaynejava

More Point Pelee Birding

Happy Easter & Earth Day!

I just thought I would give a really great link to a Youtube video that Jenna (100 birds in a year blog) posted and I can't help but re-post it:

It's only 6 minutes long but very well worth the time. It was produced by the Cornell University Ornithology department on  the one-year anniversary of the BP Gulf Oil spill. Right click link (open in new tab)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLVCr9-ZFQw&feature=feedu

Ruddy Ducks

Well, today (Saturday) was a pretty great day out. The weather forecast for this long holiday weekend was initially really glum, but Saturday just really opened up for us at the last minute! I'm a little sun-burnt from today's walk! Today I did my typical Hillman Marsh/ Point Pelee trip with an added stop off at Kopegaron Woods.

This is the very first photo and blog lifer for a Horned Grebe. I was approaching the Shorebird Cell at Hillman Marsh and noticed many Rudy Ducks fly away as I approached the edge of the cell. I was thinking... "I wish they would install some blinds so birder could enjoy some birds without the use of a scope... Every time I walk up to this field, everything within 100m flushes. Perhaps a local greenhouse can take some scrap polyethylene sheeting and some posts and create a cheap, makeshift blind". Just as I finished with that thought, I notice a single lone duck (Grebe) just 20-30m from me. Awesome! (I ended up seeing another Grebe 20m off shore at the West Beach... very cool!).

Hillman Marsh:
Horned Grebe
American Coots,
Great Blue Herons
Blue Winged Teal
Ruddy Ducks
Spotted Sandpiper
Northern Shoveler
Northern Harrier

I spotted this "lump" driving through the onion fields. It is a lifer... #235

Looking for loons in all the wrong places....

This Common Loon was spotted in a ditch near the Lakeside Dr road where the Hillman Marsh sign is. Its funny how I spotted it. I noticed about 8 Great Egrets on a ditch to the right, and two Great Blue Herons in the drainage ditch to the left about 15ft away from me. One GBH was about to "spear" his dinner, so I was setting up my camera to take video, (from my car) when in my peripheral vision, I see a strange, Black object. It was so surreal, it must have taken 10 seconds for me to realize what I was looking at. The first time I saw a Common Loon, it was from about 50m off the west beach of Point Pelee and it was pointed out to me by someone else. It was also in non-breeding plumage. Seeing this today blew my mind!!!

View Larger Map
Onion Fields:
Great Egret
Common Loon
Great Blue Herons
Ring necked Pheasant (Lifer #235)

Surf Scoter -... I had confused these with Black Scoter

Point Pelee:
Surf Scoter 
Great horned Owl
Northern Watherthrush
Yellow bellied Sapsucker
Blue grey Gnatcatcher
Rusty Blackbird (or Possible Brewer's?)
Horned Grebe
Lesser Scaup
Hermit Thrush
Ruby Crowned Kinglet
Golden Crowned Kinglet
Red Breasted Merganser
Brown Creeper
Northern Flicker
Yellow Rumped Warbler
Sharp Shinned Hawk
Double Crested Cormorant
Various Terns & Gulls
Tree Swallow
Field Sparrows

One great thing about today's PPNP visit was meeting up with Rick, my good birding friend from Leamington. It was also nice to see John, one of the park employees, who informed me about the short-lived flowering of the Bloodroot plant found on Woodland Nature Trail. John informed me that this plant only flowers for about 3 days then the flower petals fall off.

~~~Frustrating Birding Observation~~~
Have you ever spotted a bird skulking in a thicket, and spent great amounts of time and effort to pish it into view and then realize that its a Darked Eyed Junco? I've come to almost dislike this bird at this point in the year. Its like ... migrate north already!!!
~~~End of rant~~~

This thrush has strong spotting, all the way down its belly. I don't quite think its a Wood Thrush (too early?), but seems too heavily spotted for a Hermit Thrush. Does not seem to be a Swainsons... Does it default to being just a Hermit thrush?

~~~Final thought for the day~~~
I think many people this year at Point Pelee are going to take the 100 species challenge. This naturally will involve birders keeping lists... But is there a list of local birds that should be assumed? For example, did see Red winged Blackbirds today but did not mention them above. Hence, I propose the base assumed list for your 100 count:

1. American Robin
2. House Finch
3. American Crow
4. Blue Jay
5. Northern Cardinal
6. European Starling
7. House Sparrow
8. Dark Eyed Junco
9. Field Sparrow
10. Song Sparrow
11. American Goldfinch
12. Ring billed Gull
13. Red winged Blackbird
14. Brown headed Cowbird
15. Common Grackle
16. Black Capped Chickadee
17. Red Tailed Hawk (hwy 3)
18. Turkey Vulture
19. Downy Woodpecker
20. Tufted Titmouse (If you start at ojibway)
21. Red Bellied Woodpecker (If you start at ojibway)
22. Mallard
23. Killdeer
24. Morning Dove
25. Rock Pigeon

There... now you only need to find another 75 bird species!

Good Birding!
Dwaynejava

Ojibway Prarie Reserve Bluebirds

Ruby Crowned Kinglet in a Pussywillow Tree

The last two days have been so beautiful out weather-wise, I couldn't help but get out there and take some photos. I have a new camera body and I'm still trying to learn its ways before May arrives. There will come a day where I will go birding without my camera but I guess for now, lots of pictures will be taken! :-) I think the reason I take photos was because when I started birding almost 2 years ago, I did not know one bird from another, so I would take photos then post-identify. I didn't even have binoculars or a field guide till about 1 year into the hobby. It started off with just a Camera and www.allaboutbirds.org. Blake Mann's blog as well as Paul Pratt's blog and nature tours really spawned my interest in nature. I thought about this question: "when did I start birding?" recently and the answer is the day I saw a Green Heron at Ojibway on May 2nd, 2009.

Birder or Photographer?
One or two people have told me that I'm a photographer, not a birder! One woman at Pointe Mouillee told me that without even knowing me! I found it odd that she said that because she had a white-bodied Canon "L" lens, and I was rockin' a Sigma! I think I'm a birder that loves to photograph nature. A photo-naturalist? But, I concede, I'm not an ornithologist. I would like to take the Ornithology course at the University of Windsor with Dr Mennill but I don't know if people working 9-5s can have the luxury of taking such courses.

 Tufted Titmouse just singing his heart out. This is one of my favorite birds. Rare in most of Canada but common at Ojibway. Many Carolinian species are slowly having there northern bounds creep further north.

 I really hit a nice pocket of birds in the Ojibway forest on Tuesday. I saw Kinglets, Yellow Rumps, Thrushes, Tufted Titmouse in the span of 20 minutes.

 My first Mourning Cloak butterfly. I did not feel like venturing far off the path. They are easily seen at Black Oak Heritage Park at this time of year. I've also seen many Eastern Comma butterflies this week as well. These two species are the first to appear in early spring, so its easy to ID them. It's funny, I've learn so much about butterflies as well from the many excellent blogs in the area. In mid summer when the breeding birds of May have left for the Boreal Forests, the butterflies get more attention. This spring and summer, I will also make more of an effort to identify trees and plants.

Today I saw three separate pairs of Bluebirds in the park. I typically find them by first hearing them.Listen for a depressing sounding mur-mur like warble.

 

See the above photo in full size!

I don't think I'll ever tire of seeing these wonderful birds. Today, I just leaned against a giant Oak tree for 10 or so minutes watching the above pair sallying and flycatching in a beautiful meadow. I put the camera away and just quietly watched from a safe distance of 30-40m. Very cool!

In the Tallgrass Praire park of Ojibway, I saw/heard some really strange mating behaviors from three treetop Northern Flickers. The photo below shows the Flickers with their tails spread out and they were barking up a storm.(This photo reminds me of John James Audubon's drawings of them). I tried to take video of them, but of course, they were quiet by the time I started recording.

 

 

This was a beautiful Yellow Bellied Sap Sucker but it was foraging Aspen Catkins and difficult to photograph.

 Yellow-rumped Warblers were seen several times on both Tuesday and Wednesday this week. I had my first Ruby Crowned Kinglet as well (see first photo in this posting).

 Lastly, I finally saw an Eastern Towhee, although he was being shy in a thicket and refused to entertain my vocalizations. I also found a Winter Wren near the Milk Ponds of the Tallgrass area. Almost not worth posting. Almost! The Winter Wren holds a special place in my birding memoirs. I would almost say it is a better bird to see than say, a Painted Bunting. Sure the Painted Bunting is colorful and mind-blowing. But the Winter Wren is understated and tiny. It's local. Canadian. Hard to find unless you understand its habitat.

 

Winter Wren...

Good birding!
Dwaynejava

Bonus Video: (sorry, its shaky... its at 500mm x1.6 magnification, handheld)