Pelee Big Day

Last Saturday I joined up with some friends and we did a Point Pelee Area big day. I thought it was a huge success! Due to the rain/cold/lots of action, I didn't take too many photos, so visuals may be lacking, but I'll try to get into as much detail as I can!

We started around 5:30 am. At the Visitor Centre we picked up a few early birds, including American Woodcock, a target of ours for the VC.

Our first stop was the Tip of Point Pelee. It was quite miserable at first, especially with the wind, rain, and lack of birds, but soon it picked up. One of our first highlights of the morning were the groups of terns flying by. While the majority were Common Terns, early on we managed to pick out four Black Terns in with the Commons. Certainly a nice bird to "get out of the way".

We managed to pick out both Common and Red-throated Loon. The Red-throated in particular was a nice surprise, and personally my first bird that I have seen in the spring.

Red-throated Loon

Plenty of small birds, especially warblers, were around. There was actually what some people were calling a mini-fallout. I didn't take any photos, but we managed to see probably close to 12 species of warblers, including Chestnut-sided, Black-throated Green, Black-throated Blue, Bay-breasted, Black-and-white, and Wilson's. Plenty of Baltimore Orioles and a female Scarlet Tanager also made an appearance.

After spending some time at the Tip, we made our back to the VC via some trails through Sparrow Field and Post Woods. We came across a few birds of note, including Warbling Vireo, Scarlet Tanager, Lincoln's Sparrow, and Spotted Sandpipers. Plenty of warblers and Least Flycatchers were around as well.

Black-throated Blue Warbler

We walked a little bit of Woodland Nature Trail on our way back, and were rewarded with a flyover Great Egret and a roosting Common Nighthawk.

After a quick stop for a break at the VC, and quickly tallying our total thus far (90 species or so in the first few hours!) we went back out to Woodland to have a look for Prothonotary Warblers. Although we missed the Prothons (in fact, despite trying again later, we missed them for the day!) we managed to see a few new birds for the day list. There was a Northern Waterthrush singing, as well as our first and only Red-headed Woodpecker of the day. It is a miracle we even saw the Red-headed, as I had been looking at a Black-and-white Warbler, and in behind the warbler I managed to spot the woodpecker through a tiny opening in the branches!

Horrible picture of a Northern Parula

There was a nice Canada Warbler on Redbud trail.

 There was also a very cooperative Chestnut-sided Warbler, which entertained us for a bit.

Despite the pouring rain, we did a quick run of Tilden's, where we managed to pick up a Solitary Sandpiper. We also found an active Carolina Wren nest with four young birds.

We got a message about a cooperative Hooded Warbler behind the VC, so we went over to check it out. There was no crowd (very strange for Pelee), so we almost walked right past her. She was all wet, and the lighting was horrible, but thankfully the white outer tail feathers were obvious, which sealed the identification.

Just as we were about to leave the park for Wheatley, we got another message about a cooperative Mourning Warbler on Woodland, so we took a little jog for it. Unfortunately, by the time we got there it had hunkered down, but we managed to see a White-eyed Vireo and a Cooper's Hawk, which were decent consolation prize.

I saw my 100th species for the day, Field Sparrow, behind the Visitor Centre. Pretty convenient to go and claim my 100 species challenge pin!

We headed out to Wheatley, picking up Red-tailed Hawk, Short-billed Dowitcher, American Golden Plover, and Black-bellied Plover along the way. When we arrived in Wheatley we were soaked to the skin, but happy, because as soon as we pulled up the Dickcissel, the rare bird we had driven to see, was singing.

Ruby-throated Hummingbird

Satisfied, we moved on to the harbour, which was just down the road. There were a few birds, including Sanderling, Ruddy Turnstone, and Chipping Sparrow. Just as we were about to leave, a Whimbrel flew by, definitely a highlight of the day.

We took a drive down Mersea Road 21, where we managed to find a few good things. Highlights included Short-billed Dowitcher, Least Sandpiper, Semipalmated Plover, Savannah Sparrow, American Pipit, Horned Lark, and Lesser Black-backed Gull.

Short-billed Dowitchers

Semipalmated Plovers

Great Black-backed Gull

Hillman was pretty quiet, but we managed to find Forster's and Caspian Terns. Just outside the marsh, as couple of us managed to pick up Trumpeter Swans and a Green Heron.

We returned to the park, where a couple of us managed to find Indigo Bunting and Yellow-throated Vireo. Also a few more warblers were around.

Northern Parula

Our last trail of the day was Woodland Nature Trail. The highlight here was definitely seeing a Mourning Warbler (we'll just disregard the whole "is that a Connecticut?!?!" thing) This was the first time I have been able to get some photos of this elusive warbler.

And with the light fading, we called it a day. As a group we saw just over 130 species, myself personally seeing 127 of them. It was certainly a big day!

It is going to be another busy weekend...I will be birding the Bruce Peninsula!

eBird checklists:

Point Pelee National Park (morning)

Onion Fields

Wheatley Harbour

Mersea Road 21

Hillman Conservation Area

Point Pelee National Park (evening)

Early May Big Day

Yesterday was the eBird Global Big Day, and I had a jam packed day of birding planned!

I awoke (sort of) at five in the morning, and then went out and scoured my neighborhood for some birds. My first stop was to a spot where American Woodcocks are known to perform their "dance". Unfortunately when I arrived, they weren't peenting, but I managed to catch one flying from the display grounds back into the forest. Also seen was a flyover Wood Duck.

Next stop was a patch of forest and wetland. Quite a few birds to sort through! There were a few warblers, including Orange-crowned, Blackburnian, Yellow, Palm, Magnolia, and Nashville.

Palm Warbler

Blackburnian Warbler

There were a couple vireo species as well, Blue-headed, and a White-eyed Vireo. White-eyed Vireos are quite rare in London, so I was very happy, and surprised, to find this individual a few days ago. thankfully it stuck around for yesterday, and it was still there this morning!

Blue-headed Vireo

White-eyed Vireo (photo from May 4th)

I made a couple more quick stops, and I managed to pick up Warbling Vireo, my first one of the year.

Next up, Rondeau!

I started with the maintenance loop, where I found a few more things such as Swainson's Thrush, Gray-cheeked Thrush, Black-throated Green Warbler, Gray Catbird, and Northern Waterthrush.

Swainson's Thrush

Gray Catbird

I got word of a female Cerulean Warbler not too far away, so I walked over. She allowed for some close up looks!

I was about to go to the Pony Barn when I got a text from Blake about a Summer Tanager in the campground, which I just so happened to be driving through! It sure wasn't hard to find, as there were almost a dozen people looking at it! I think that may have been one of the highest concentrations of birders I have ever seen in Rondeau :-)

Next I went to check out a reported Kentucky Warbler on Water Street. I missed it by about two minutes! We spent about an hour looking to no avail. I did manage to see a few other birds, including some more thrushes, warblers, and a Tufted Titmouse.

Gray-cheeked Thrush

The Pony Barn was mostly quiet, but I did mange to come across a few things.

Baltimore Oriole

Wood Thrush

Next stop was the Blenheim Sewage Lagoons. My intention was just to quickly run in to get Savannah Sparrow and Eastern Meadowlark, but I noticed a crowd back by the sprinkler cell. I ran over to investigate, where I was told there were three Long-billed Dowitchers! They were a lifer for me, so I ran back to the car to grab my camera. Thankfully, they were very cooperative!

There were a few other shorebirds in the sprinkler cell as well.

Least Sandpiper

Greater Yellowlegs

Dunlin and Lesser Yellowlegs

My next stop was the Pelee area, where I was going to meet up with a few friends. We first checked out Hillman. There were a few shorebirds to be found, including Black-bellied Plover, American Golden Plover, Dunlin, yellowlegs, Ruddy Turnstone and 27 Long-billed Dowitchers.

Long-billed Dowitchers

Next up was Pelee. My friends went to get something to eat, so I got a head start on Tilden's. I managed to come across a few things, including a Blue-winged Warbler, Hermit Thrush, and a singing Louisiana Waterthrush.

Blue-winged Warbler

Carolina Wren

Wood Duck

I did the trail a second time once my friends showed up. We manged to find a Northern Waterthrush near where the Louisiana was.

We decided to try our luck with the Kentucky Warbler which had been spotted on Tilden's. As it usually is by 7pm, the trail was more or less deserted, so we'd have to find it ourselves! We had almost given up when my friend spotted it practically on the path! It flew to a tangle just off the trail, where it sat, allowing us to have some great looks!

After our success, and my fourth lifer of the day, we continued on, managing to find a Dark-eyed Junco and a Solitary Sandpiper on Tilden's, and a few Wild Turkeys on Woodland Nature Trail.

Solitary Sandpiper

Dark-eyed Junco

I said good-bye to my friends (I'll see them again next weekend!) and then started to head home. Last stop of the day was Hillman, where I found some woodcocks, and my last two new birds for the day list, Trumpeter Swan and Great Horned Owl.

It was an amazing day, and I finished with a total of 126 species, completely obliterating my previous personal big day record of 108.

Stay tuned...I'll be tackling Point Pelee next Saturday!

2017: A Year in Review

Well, another year has come and gone. It seems like just yesterday I was writing a similar post about 2016! This past year has been quite amazing in Ontario for birds, and although I didn't get to witness all of it first hand, I still had an amazing year! There was never a dull moment in 2017!

Much like last year, I will spread out the full review and goals for the new year over a series of posts, of which I will decide the topic of when it comes to writing it!

For now, I will do a quick re-cap of the year with monthly highlights.  There was no shortage of them!

January:

The year started with a bang by heading down to Long Point on January first to see a Smith's Longspur that had been hanging around. I also got to see over 500 Sandhill Cranes, which is quite the sight! It was also fun to hand feed some chickadees and nuthatches, as well as visit Sarnia later in the month.

Smith's Longspur (Long Point)

Sandhill Cranes (Long Point)

Black-capped Chickadee (London)

Assorted ducks (Sarnia)

Species Total for January: 66

February:

The highlight this month was no doubt my trip to Algonquin Park. I encountered such things as White-winged Crossbills, Red Crossbills, Pine Siskins, Boreal Chickadee, a Common Redpoll, a Pine Grosbeak, and my lifer Gray Jay! 

Evening Grosbeak (Algonquin)

Boreal Chickadee (Algonquin)

Gray Jay (Algonquin)

Pine Grosbeak (Algonquin)

Red Crossbill (Algonquin)

Species Total for February: 47

March:

I saw quite a lot this month! It started with Tundra Swans, Cackling Geese, and a Snow Goose in Aylmer, then I went to Virginia for March Break, where I picked up nine lifers! I returned to Ontario, where I found my 250th Ontario birds, a Northern Shrike!

Cackling Goose (Aylmer)

Laughing Gull (Virginia Beach)

Brown Pelican (Virginia Beach)

Snow Goose (Aylmer)

Species Total for March: 89

April:

April was awesome. I did quite a lot of birding around my home here in London, and found some cool species! Later in the month, my dad and I went down to Rondeau, where we got to see plenty of cool species, including a Yellow-breasted Chat. Later in the day, we went down to Essex, where we saw some Willets and a Black-necked Stilt. 

Northern Flicker (London)

Great Horned Owl (London)

Blue-winged Warbler (Rondeau)

Willets (Hillman Marsh)

Stilt Sandpiper (Hillman Marsh)

Black-necked Stilt (Tilbury)

Species Total for April: 115

May:

May was pretty darn awesome. I visited Pelee twice, spotting over 100 species on both days (107 and 108). Probably the biggest highlight of the month was seeing my biggest nemesis bird at the time, the Prothonotary Warbler! Later in the month, I went up to the Bruce, where I got to hear American Bitterns for the first time, photograph Sedge Wrens, visit a Piping Plover nest, and see my very first Black Bears!

Prothonotary Warbler (Point Pelee)

Ruddy Turnstone (Wheatley)

Dunlin (Wheatley)

Black Tern (Point Pelee)

Barn Swallow (Point Pelee)

Sedge Wren (Bruce)

Piping Plover (Sauble Beach)

Black Bear (Bruce)

Species Total for May: 170

June:

Despite what others say, for some reason I find June to be a relatively "quiet" month in south western Ontario. Well, at least that is what I used to think! This month, I got to catch up with Dickcissels in my home county, which was definitely a highlight. I also got to explore the Rondeau area for a day, and I managed to see some pretty cool species, including Prothonotary Warbler, and breeding Eastern Meadowlark. I also got to see an arrangement of cool butterflies and dragonflies.

Racket-tailed Emerald (Ipperwash)

Unicorn Clubtail (Arva)

Dickcissel (London)

Prothonotary Warbler (Rondeau)

Common Grackle (Erieau)

Species Total for June: 103

July:

What a month! I kicked it off with the Skunk's Misery butterfly count, where we found things such as Grey Comma, Compton Tortoiseshell, Great Spangled Fritillary, and Delaware Skipper. Then, I went on a 3000 km trip to Thunder Bay, where we wanted to look for the reported Violet-green Swallow. We didn't find the swallow, but we saw some other AMAZING things such as American White Pelican, Northern Goshawk, Ruffed Grouse, and other boreal breeders. Soon after we got back, I went to the OFO Young Birders camp in Algonquin, which was in memory of Alan Wormington. We saw things here such as Moose, Black Bears, an Eastern (Algonquin) Wolf, a River Otter, Gray Jays, a Boreal Chickadee, Black-backed Woodpeckers, along with an assortment of other warblers, thrushes, vireos, and much more!

Compton Tortoiseshell (Skunk's Misery)

Ruffed Grouse (Thunder Bay district)

Clay-coloured Sparrow (Thunder Bay)

American White Pelican (Thunder Bay)

Common Goldeneye (Thunder Bay)

Beaver (Algonquin)

River Otter (Algonquin)

Gray Jay (Algonquin)

Moose (Algonquin)

Olive-sided Flycatcher (Algonquin)

Species Total for July: 142

August:

With August came shorebirds. I was lucky enough to spot quite a few species, along with a few surprises! The big story this month was a WOOD STORK in Point Pelee. If I am not mistaken, this was the 12th record of this species in all of Ontario, and the 1st record for Point Pelee. When I got the news of the bird, I made plans to be in Pelee the next day. Fortunately, I got to see it! This bird is no doubt the bird of the year for me! Later that same day I got to see 14 phalaropes of two species, Wilson's and Red-necked. Fast forward a couple weeks, I got to see two more Red-necked Phalaropes in my home county, as well as an Eared Grebe. Near the end of August, I managed to see a Yellow-headed Blackbird in Perth county, and did a day trip down to Long Point.

Solitary Sandpiper (Mitchell)

Wood Stork (Point Pelee)

Red-necked Phalarope (Essex)

Wilson's Phalarope (Blenheim)

Short-billed Dowitcher (Blenheim)

Eared Grebe (Strathroy)

Common Gallinule (Long Point)

Yellow-headed Blackbird (Mitchell)

American Bittern (Mitchell)

Species Total for August: 134

September:

September was the end of summer vacation for me. Although I didn't know it at the time, it was the beginning of an epic fall! I did quite a lot of patch birding, finding close to 100 species just riding my bike around! It is amazing what you can find if you look! I also did the "Charity Big Day" with my friend Owen, where we recorded 103 species. Later in the month, I went to the Ontario Nature Youth Summit in Orillia, and then the same weekend caught up with a FORK-TAILED FLYCATCHER in Toronto. In the last weekend of the month, I went to Algonquin Park, and we saw some finches, a late Eastern Phoebe, a Gray Jay, and a friendly Common Raven.

Green Heron (London)

Caspian Tern (London)

Fork-tailed Flycatcher (Toronto)

Algonquin Park

Leopard Frog (Orillia)

Species Total for September: 135

October:

October started the way September ended, in Algonquin Park. Not much was seen except a couple of late Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers. On my birthday, I was pleased to be able to go see a lingering American Avocet in Blenheim, definitely a highlight. I also went to Hamilton with some friends where we got to see a Brant. I also had a Golden Eagle fly over my backyard late in the month!

American Avocet (Blenheim)

Dunlin (Erieau)

Brant (Hamilton)

Species Total for October: 114

November:

November was one heck of a month! Although I didn't get the chance to chase many of the rarities that had shown up, I still managed to track down a few! Early in the month, I found a late Common Gallinule in the Forest sewage lagoons. I also got to see a trio of Red-headed Woodpeckers in the Pinery. Later in the month, while attempting to chase the Townsend's Warbler, I got to see the Ross's Goose in Bate's Subdivision north of Rondeau. Later the same week, I went back in saw the Townsend's Warbler, which is a very rare bird to Ontario. The following weekend, I went to Burlington, hoping for the Northern Gannet. I didn't find it, but I did see a Pacific Loon and numerous Long-tailed Ducks, scoters, and other loons. Afterwards, I went and saw a Mountain Bluebird in Waterloo.

Red-headed Woodpecker (Pinery PP)

Ross's Goose (Rondeau)

White-winged Scoter (Burlington)

Mountain Bluebird (Waterloo)

Species Total for November: 87

December:

December has been pretty good for birds! This month I participated in two Christmas Bird Counts, the London one and the Rondeau/Blenheim one. The Rondeau one was particularly exciting because the long-staying Townsend's Warbler was seen, making it a first record for any CBC in Ontario! Blake and I also recorded at least two Red-throated Loons, making this the second year we have seen them! I mostly have been birding around home as of late, but in the last few days I have made an attempt at some last minute "year birds". I have successfully seen Greater White-fronted Goose, Iceland Gull, and Northern Mockingbird, bringing my Ontario year list to 263 and my ABA year list to 272. It is a total to be proud of!

Hooded Mergansers (London)

Townsend's Warbler (Rondeau)

Glaucous Gull (Sombra)

Snowy Owl (Toronto)

Northern Mockingbird (Toronto)

Species Total for December: 79

Thanks for making it a great year everyone! See you in 2018!!!