'Winter' shorebirding

Yesterday I spent a bit of time checking out parts of the former Dover Twp, looking for waterfowl and hoping to find the first of season Snowy Owl.

As is typical of this time of year, Tundra Swans are fairly abundant. I noted at least 5000 birds scattered about in various locations.

There were a few Great Blue Herons in the fields, and likely a lot more in the wetlands.

 A flock of Wild Turkeys were out in a recently harvest field.

 Towards the north end of my route, I came across 5 Sandhill Cranes, three of which I got in this next photo.

I did not see any Snowy Owls. Perhaps that isn't surprising, as there have only been one or two reported so far in Ontario this fall.

But what a difference a day makes. The snowy forecast for today did indeed occur. And this is what it looked like outside our kitchen window this morning. Maybe this burst of wintry conditions will encourage Snowy Owls to move a little farther south into Ontario!

But some shorebirds either didn't get the memo for this change, or could have cared less. A bird alert in the early afternoon from Steve C indicated that the Blenheim Sewage Lagoons still had a surprising number and diversity of shorebirds, the most unusual being a juvenile Red Phalarope. This species is quite uncommon in Chatham-Kent, and along the lower Great Lakes in general. So in spite of the crummy driving conditions (I'm always reluctant to go very far during the first snowfall, since many drivers aren't driving according to the conditions!), I ventured out to the sewage lagoons. One other birder was just leaving, with a satisfied look on his face, and as I was leaving, two other birders arrived with anticipation on their faces.

The gloomy conditions and steady snowfall was anything but ideal for viewing, let alone photography. Looking through melted snow flakes on the binoculars, in addition to those unmelted ones that provided a steady white curtain across the viewing area, just wasn't what one likes to contend with. But it was either that or likely miss this bird. There were at least nine species of shorebirds, numbering almost 50 individuals that one could see. With the far pond being partly vegetated, it is likely there were even more taking shelter.

I didn't try photographing all species, but I did manage to get records shots of the following: (and note that the first three species shown are walking through slush, hoping to find some little morsel to keep up their energy.)

Dunlin

Pectoral Sandpiper

Wilson's Snipe

 And the main target species: Red Phalarope. It was actively moving around one or more of the sewage ponds, so it wasn't easy to get many photos. I found the most successful method was to hunker down along the edge, behind some vegetation and wait for the bird to swim closer. It wasn't always easy to get the best focus as it darted this way and that, but some turned out reasonably well considering the circumstances. With snow flakes landing in my camera's eyepiece, it was sometimes hard to look through and get the camera aimed at the right spot let alone locking into the proper focus.

 There were other shorebirds, including Least Sandpiper, White-rumped Sandpiper, Long-billed Dowitcher and Greater Yellowlegs, all of which I photographed here just a few days ago and featured in my previous post. There were a few other things that came along, so I dutifully captured their likeness on my camera as well.

Bonaparte's Gull

 There were at least two or three dozen American Pipits feeding along the edges, and this one flew almost right at me before landing.

American Pipit