Hawks on the move, Baird's Sandpiper and a late season orchid

 When I haven't been out with the black light, there are always lots of other things to enjoy. Just a few days ago, Marie called my attention to a large group of birds swirling overhead in the back yard. Given the time of year, I immediately thought of Broad-winged Hawks on the move, so I grabbed my camera and headed out. 

Broad-winged Hawks, indeed. One could see them arising from a woodlot east of home, likely Paxton's Bush or another one even farther east at the edge of town. They weren't in full kettle mode, so they were just lifting off from their overnight accommodations.

This first image just captures a part of a group. I counted 158 birds in this one, but there were many more beyond what I captured. There were  probably 200-250 birds in this single group. Over about a 30 minute period, there were quite a few groups of various sizes, some at least as large as this one, along with numerous smaller groups and even a few singles.

Quite a few flew directly overhead as I stood in the back yard, or just outside the fence to get a less obstructed view.

Of course there was a mix of birds, including adults, shown next....

....and sub-adults, like this one.

Overall, I estimated there were at least 2000 birds that flew over the yard, or within sight of it. It was certainly the largest number of Broad-wings I had seen from the yard in many years. There was an occasional Turkey Vulture and Red-tailed Hawk mixed in with them, and likely others.

Broad-winged Hawks in these numbers are not typical in this immediate area. Usually they make their way to the north shore of Lake Erie, using the thermals of rising air to soar and glide. But the lake doesn't produce these thermals, so they use northwesterly winds to carry them along the lake shore to where they can cross at the narrowest point, which is at the Detroit River, before continuing southwards to their wintering grounds. However when they are on the move and the winds are predominantly easterly, they may travel farther inland, resulting in the occasional soaring over places like our yard, before continuing west and southwest.

Sticking with bird highlights, I have been to Rondeau on occasion, but sometimes more for some exercise and botanizing, although always keeping an eye open for birds. There have been various warblers, but they were most often seen darting across the trails from one dense stand of shrubbery to another, so getting a photo was next to impossible. I did manage to get a quick, back lit shot of a Blackpoll Warbler, which seemed to be the most common species when I was around, so not surprising that it was one I managed to photograph.

There were a few vireos around as well, including this Red-eyed Vireo.

Rose-breasted Grosbeaks were scattered here and there, and occasionally sat on an open branch long enough for a photo.

There are other things to see as well, including this Tall Bellflower, which has normally finished flowering weeks ago....

...and this White Snakeroot, which is in more or less peak flowering condition these days.

Another one that is usually fairly common these days is White Rattlesnake Root.

 

I was in the vicinity of a known population of the endangered Red Mulberry, so grabbed some photos of its characteristic large, pie-plate sized leaves, with long drip tips.

In some of the recently mowed areas, there were a few of these Great Plain's Ladies' Tresses in various stages of flowering. It is not officially rare, but is not common either. It is widely scattered across southern Ontario, and can be fairly abundant if the conditions are right (open sandy grassy areas, that have not been mowed for several weeks).

It has a characteristic strong fragrance, reminding me of a particular type of hot plastic. Another feature is to see the humped shape of the individual flower and the yellowish centre of the down turned lip.

A visit to the Blenheim Sewage Lagoons can be worthwhile, although sometimes it is anything but. However on one of my returns from Rondeau I stopped here and found it worthwhile. There were quite a few gulls hawking over some of the ponds, mostly Ring-billed Gulls. There must have been a large number of insects flying about to get their attention. As expected, both adults and sub-adults were in the mix of a couple of hundred gulls.

I saw this Red-necked Phalarope from quite a distance. The light was better for this photo, but due to the distance it was greatly cropped.

I did manage to get to a closer spot, but the bird was back lit, so even with a bit of extra processing, this is the best I could do.

A dozen of more Northern Shovelers were swimming back and forth with their characteristic 'bill in the water'  style as they swam around, their wide bills scooping or filtering small items to gobble down. Again, most of the time they were back lit.

Some of the local Ruddy Ducks were at a distance, but this one was trying to keep a low profile in a build-up of floating vegetation.

It eventually must have realized that it wasn't as well hidden as it thought, so sat up a little more and swam away.

Lesser Yellowlegs were, as usual, the most abundant shorebird.

But the highlight for me on this visit was to get a fairly cooperative Baird's Sandpiper in view, and I was able to get a few shots. The somewhat brownish colour of this 'peep' along with the longer wingtips that extend beyond the tail, are key features for identification. It is not a common species at any time, but typically show up in ones or twos in the autumn migration. The greenish colour in the water is a result of some kind of chemical that is used for the sewage lagoon water treatment process. I do not know what it is, and I hope it is not detrimental to any birds there.

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Recent Rondeau and Erieau foray

It is amazing how time flies, and I hadn't been to either Rondeau or Erieau for awhile. A recent trip to both made up for that.

At Rondeau, I headed for the South Point Trail, where there is often a buildup of warblers and other passerines at this time of year. That was a good choice. The bushes were loaded. Unfortunately the bright sunlight, caused many shadows in the dense shrub growth, and hawks in the vicinity kept the birds low and partially hidden. So photos weren't all that rewarding. Blackpoll Warblers were by far the most common.

 I got about 15 species in all, including the occasional Black-and-white Warbler. They aren't usually this green, but being in the shade of the greenery will do that.

There were also sightings of things such as Northern Parula and Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, but no photos. No Connecticut Warbler either that I could find, although one or more has been seen by others along this trail in recent days. Seven Bald Eagles were noted overhead, including five of which were flying much higher and drifting with the winds in a southwest direction, so presumably migrants.

It wasn't that many years ago when seeing a Bald Eagle was a real highlight, but due to their rebounding population in the last couple of decades, is an expected sight.

I always keep an eye out for other things of interest, and came across a variety of pollinators on goldenrod. One that particularly caught my attention is this Feather-legged Fly (Trichopoda sp.), named because of the feathery appearance of the lower part of its hind legs. It is a little more obvious in the second photo.

I got lots of photos of other pollinators, but as yet are still working on their identification. Maybe it will be fodder for a future post.

What used to be a rare orchid but is now just considered uncommon with a restricted range, is this Great Plain's Ladies'-tresses.

A later trip to Erieau proved worthwhile. Nothing really unexpected was seen, but it is always nice to see what is around.

There was a flock of at least 50 Sanderling feeding and resting on the beach.

A Ruddy Turnstone was feeding on the pier and area.

Not a Rock Sandpiper

At the west end of McGeachy Pond is a butterfly bush next to the parking area. On this day, it was very busy, with more than a couple of dozen caught up in a feeding frenzy. There were at least 15 Monarchs and 7 Painted Ladies as well as Question Mark, Red Admiral, Silver-spotted Skipper and the usual Orange Sulphur and Cabbage White butterflies, all seen in about 20 minutes.

Monarch

Orange Sulphur

Painted Lady

Question Mark

Question Mark

Silver-spotted Skipper

A brief stop at the Campbell Line pasture on the way home did not have much bird life. Aside from the typical Turkey Vultures passing by overhead, there was a family of Eastern Kingbirds on the fence by the road.

 This immature Brown-headed Cowbird, below, was hanging out with the kingbirds, so I assume it thought it was part of the family due to it likely being raised by them. No doubt it will not make the southward migration with its 'family', but hook up with other cowbirds before long.

May is.....

A) A month too busy to post blogs!

B) Lyme Disease Awareness Month. Many of you will be aware of the challenges of dealing with Lyme Disease which I have shared over several posts. If you haven't seen them, you can check some of them out here, here, and here.

Black-legged (a.k.a. Deer) Tick

I periodically get questions about LD testing and such. In my opinion, current LD testing in Canada is hardly worth going through, since the spirochete which causes LD can move around, and isn't always detected in the blood, therefore giving a potentially false result. If you find a Black-legged Tick (a.k.a. Deer Tick) embedded in you, carefully remove the tick and keep it in a hard plastic container. An old film cassette container works well. (I have had ticks chew their way out of a zip lock bag!) Take the tick in to your local health unit to be sent away for testing, but keep in mind that it can take five weeks or more before you get the results back. In the mean time, carefully monitor the tick bite site to see if any rash appears (that may take a week or more) and also monitor yourself to determine if you experience other first stage symptoms such as chills, fever, aches and pains that you might normally associate with getting the flu. If those occur, see a doctor asap, and hope that the doctor is Lyme Literate enough to give you an antibiotic.

Also keep in mind that not all Black-legged Ticks carry LD....some experts suggest that fewer than 40% do.....so even if you are bitten, you might escape contracting LD. The best advice is to be aware and be cautious, which I have outlined in some of those previously written posts.

C) A great time for birding. I haven't been out as often as I would like for birding.....what birder has :-).....due to energy levels related to Lyme Disease, as well as other commitments which unfortunately coincided with days when birds were most plentiful. But I have been out to enjoy some great times with birds, and other birders.

I noted this sub-adult Lesser Black-backed Gull during a recent visit to Wheatley Harbour.

On one of my times checking out the Erieau waterfront, I came across this Red-throated Loon. It was quite cooperative, at times popping up from a dive too close to focus! As I was processing the photos on the computer at the end of the day, I noted that one of its eyes seemed to have been injured, which may have explained it being so approachable.

One time along the Erieau Rail Trail, I saw a Sora. Often when one encounters a Sora, the best view you get, if any, might be like this:

 Or this:

 But on this occasion, the bird was quite willing to come out in the open. I watched and photographed it for the better part of an hour, and when I left, it was still out. These images are hardly cropped at all.

Songbirds, and warblers in particular, are a highlight of the spring migration. I've been able to catch up to most of the usual warbler migrants, but not all that many have provided the kind of photo op that a photographer would like, since the birds are often high up in the trees searching for insects to replenish their energy so they can go on the next leg of their journey.

Blackburnian Warbler

Blackpoll

Black-throated Green Warbler

Cape May Warbler

Of course it is always a highlight to see nesting Prothonotary Warbler, an endangered species in Canada which has its Canadian stronghold at Rondeau.

The most common warbler by far is Yellow Warbler.

Colourful non-warbler highlights include:

Scarlet Tanager

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

 Just yesterday, I managed to catch up to both Yellow-billed Cuckoo and Black-billed Cuckoo, although the former was the only one I got decent photos of. Note the distinctive yellow bill, the rusty patch on the wing, and the bold black and white pattern on the undertail, none of which occur on the Black-billed.

D) Nesting season. Some species have been underway for weeks, as this recently hatched Killdeer would indicate.

 Blue-gray Gnatcatchers are busily nesting. This one below was building its nest when I caught this adult heading off for some more nesting material.

 On a recent hike along Spicebush Trail, I noted a peculiar lump on the branch of an American Beech tree. It is a Ruby-throated Hummingbird nest, barely 4 cm in diameter. Hopefully I will be posting some nest action photos in the near future.

Birds aren't the only types of wildlife nesting. When you see a large Snapping Turtle out crossing roads, well away from water, you know it is a female looking for a place to lay her eggs.

E) Orchid season. One of the first orchids to appear is now out. This is Showy Orchid (Galearis spectabilis), an uncommon orchid of rich woodlands. I keep an eye on a small colony of them at Rondeau, and normally they begin to flower on about May 21. However the exceptionally warm weather earlier in the week brought this one to flowering a bit ahead of schedule.