Birds of Chatham-Kent, Then and Now, Part IV

 

Great Black-backed Gull

Then: it was not considered hypothetical, but Wood had only seen this species on one occasion, and made no reference to it any earlier.

Now: Clearly things have changed. Great Black-backed Gull was considered mainly a north Atlantic region species, but over the years, the species found at least the lower Great Lakes to its liking. It was first recorded on the Blenheim/Rondeau CBC in 1948. Beginning in 1965 it has been seen on every count, with typically up to a dozen or so recorded during the first couple of decades following. The numbers kept increasing, but fluctuated greatly depending on the seasonal weather and the conditions of the day. The maximum number recorded on this CBC was 380, in 1991.

This species is a 4-cycle one, meaning it doesn't attain full adult plumage and breeding until its fourth year. Therefore sub-adults can be found in C-K almost any time of the year, especially if there is some open water. The two photos above show a full adult first, with a sub-adult, likely a first winter bird, below. Both photos were taken in the Jan/Feb period.

Herring Gull

Herring Gull nest, 1987

Then: Herring Gull was considered a common transient and winter visitor, with numbers of non-breeding birds remaining in the summer. Even during the early winter, when numbers were most commonly recorded for the CBC, the maximum number was about 200 in 1939.

Now: Herring Gull is a large, fairly aggressive gull, eagerly defending its food against even other members of its kind, as the first photo shows. The numbers have increased considerably since the writing of Wood's manuscript. Since the early 1960s, seldom are there less than 100 birds recorded on a Christmas Bird Count, and typically there are several hundred. In the last 15 years, the numbers have averaged almost 900 birds, with as many as 3779 recorded in 2008. One of the reasons for this increase may be due to the presence of Ontario's largest landfill just a short flight away.

Herring Gull has become an occasional breeding species as well. When the water levels of Lake Erie are such that the south beach of Rondeau is a good breeding site, gulls can occupy parts of it, as the above photos show. The middle two photos were taken in June, 1987, while the fourth photo was taken in May, 2013. The latter one wasn't on the south beach, but was taken from my kayak while I was exploring some of the exposed small islands at the south end of the marsh.

Ring-billed Gull

Then: Ring-billed Gull was considered a common spring and fall transient and a summer and winter visitor. Up to 30 birds were reported periodically in spring and fall, with late fall being the time when the largest numbers were recorded. Up to 75 birds were recorded for the first few Christmas Bird Counts.

Now: as with the previous two gull species, the numbers have changed considerably. It is typically the most abundant gull species most of the year. The same CBC in the last 25 years has averaged over 3300 birds, with a high of 12510 recorded in 2001. One of the reasons for this increase may be attributed to Ontario's largest landfill just a short flight away.

When conditions are suitable along the south beach of Rondeau as a nesting site, they will use it as the above photos show. The first and third photos were taken in July, 1983, while the middle photo was taken in June, 1987. 

Forster's Tern

Then: Forster's Tern was considered to be formerly a common summer resident at the St. Clair flats, but at the time of writing (1945), a very rare visitant. There was only one record for this species at Rondeau, that being May 13, 1946.

Now: It is a regular, but not abundant migrant present in spring, summer and autumn. When the marsh water levels are suitable, it has been known to nest, with the first known nesting occurring in about 1980. The nesting photo above was taken in July, 1981. Forster's Tern is generally considered a mid-western species, but with some local habitats in the vicinity of Lake St. Clair showing similarity to the tallgrass prairies and wetlands of the mid-west, this species and others have been known to occur and breed in C-K with some regularity. With Rondeau being a bit farther east, such mid-western species are generally less common either as migrants or breeders.

Common Tern

Then: Common Tern was considered a common summer resident, breeding in colonies on a sand spit in the McGeachy Pond area near Erieau, as well as being fairly abundant in the marshes along Lake St. Clair. Flocks of two hundred were seen foraging along the water. However in several cases some of the eggs have been lost to Herring Gulls, Bonaparte's Gulls and skunks.

Now: While Common Tern is quite regular and sometimes fairly abundant in Chatham-Kent, nesting has diminished substantially. I have seen an occasional nesting attempt along the south beach of Rondeau a few decades ago, but no one has reported them nesting anywhere in recent years. There were no confirmed breeding records in C-K in either of the first two OBBAs, although they did rank as 'Probable' in two squares at Rondeau. The changes are likely the result of three things: (a) a large increase in gulls, which are predatory; (b) the higher water levels of Lake Erie, making nesting sites less available; (c) the increased usage of boaters illegally using the south beach, causing disturbances.

Black Tern

Then: Black Tern was considered a common summer resident, breeding in all the large marshes of the county. An average of about eighty birds were reported at Bradley's marsh in the early part of last century, and was considered more abundant than Common Tern.

Now: In the Rondeau/Erieau area it is regular, but not common at any time. The two photos showing Black Tern nesting were taken in the late 1970s and very early 1980s. The upper one was taken at McGeachy Pond; the lower one was taken at the south end of Rondeau. The water levels at McGeachy Pond used to naturally fluctuate, allowing for functional habitat, but about thirty years ago, a water control system was put in, so the habitat has declined. 

In some of the larger marshes along Lake St. Clair, it is more common, but certainly not abundant. Eighty birds would be a huge increase nowadays! During the second OBBA, there were 5 squares in C-K that had this species 'Confirmed' breeding. There are likely several reasons for the overall decline: (a) high water levels thus reducing cattail habitat; (b) a huge increase in the extent of highly invasive Phragmites, choking out some of the high quality habitat Black Terns prefer; (c) some relatively minor loss of habitat due to farming.

American Barn Owl

Then:  The American Barn Owl was considered a permanent resident, and the first Ontario nesting record was at Charing Cross. Wood goes on to give details of other records of them nesting, being shot, or being observed, at many locales in C-K.

Now: a very scarce, very occasional resident. I have seen it on a couple of occasions, once at Shrewsbury in 1973 and near St. Clair NWA a few years ago where one was seen periodically by various people over the course of about three years (2006-2008). We managed to get it on the St. Clair NWA CBC those three years. I do not have any photos, other than in my memory. In spite of searches, its roosting spot was never determined. There have been a few other records in C-K over the years, but details have been kept quite secret due to the potential disturbance by numerous birders who would descend on them in order to add the species to their life list.

Snowy Owl

Then: Considered an irregular winter visitant, but the numbers fluctuate. Even as recent as in the first part of last century, birds of various species were shot for the taxidermy trade, or whatever, and this owl species was a common target. Wood goes on to say that the winter of 1945-46 was the heaviest visitation in recent years, and " Twenty birds were definitely known to have been shot in the vicinity of Chatham and hunters told of many others killed and left in the fields." An unfortunate entry.

Now: up until recently the species was still considered an irregular winter visitor due to the cycle of breeding success, which in itself, was based on the population of lemmings and other rodents available to them during the nesting season. Abundance of food was a critical factor in the courtship display and therefore nesting activity and success. When larger numbers of young were raised, more would migrate south to survive the winter. Those cycles continued, more or less, up until 2010, where for the St. Clair NWA CBC, 1-3 birds would be seen in successive years, and then missing them for one or two years. However beginning in 2011, Snowy Owls have been seen each year, with sometimes a dozen or more birds being counted. The 2022 CBC had an incredible all time high of at least 23 owls recorded. The Blenheim/Rondeau count has shown a similar trend, although overall in smaller numbers except for an amazing 26 birds reported in 2014. This trend begs the question of what changes occurred in their breeding territory to presumably make their food source more readily available.

Short-eared Owl

Then: This species was described as an irregular winter visitant and very rare summer resident. However there were some incredible numbers given for them at times, as about 50 were reported at St. Luke's Marsh (immediately to the north of SCNWA) in March of 1940, and in January of 1943, there were about 100 birds reported there! There was only one confirmed nesting record known at the time, in June 1944, in a large pasture in the former Raleigh Township.

Now: While Short-eared Owls continue to appear in late fall, through the winter and into early spring, it is rare to see even one bird without a lot of effort during those times. Clearly their numbers elsewhere have fallen off so that there are few to appear in C-K during these non-breeding seasons. Getting 1-3 birds is at best, the norm for CBCs in the area, and in some years one does not get them at all. There have been some blips in these numbers, as an amazing 24 were tallied on the Blenheim/Rondeau CBC in 2010.

There is breeding habitat present, especially in the vicinity of the larger marsh complexes associated with Lake St. Clair. The amount of pasture or hayfield habitat elsewhere in C-K has declined in the last few decades, although some remains. However there have been no breeding records at any level for either of the first two OBBAs.

Chuck-will's-widow

Then: considered hypothetical, based on a single encounter in a woodlot in the former Raleigh Twp in 1920.

Now: Currently a very rare species, although in the late 1970s and early 1980s, it was heard and seen annually at Rondeau. Indeed on one occasion there were up to 7 birds calling at various places along Harrison Trail both north and south of the Visitor Centre. It is believed that at least some of those birds were the progeny of the previous year or two. However in spite of efforts to try and locate any nesting evidence, this very cryptic species was never confirmed. There have been occasional records since that time, but very rarely, and almost entirely in May/June.

Whip-poor-will

Then: Considered as a common spring and fall transient and a rare summer resident.

Now: It is a regular spring migrant, but never common. A few can be heard under the right circumstances at Rondeau, for a couple of weeks in late May/early June. On occasion one or more will continue well into the breeding season, as they can be heard from the wooded ridges east of the Marsh Trail as well as along Harrison Trail. No doubt some have attempted to nest, perhaps successfully, although confirming this crepuscular creature would be difficult. The above photo was taken on Nov 4, 2012, of a bird high up in a White Pine along the South Point Trail. It is late in the season for an insect eating bird!
  

Common Nighthawk

Spring migrant

Autumn migrant

Then: it was considered an abundant summer resident, commonly nesting on flat, tarred and graveled roofs in cities and towns.

Now: while it is a regularly occurring species, it is anything but abundant. The open pine forests they breed in farther north are not available to them in C-K, so any attempts at breeding would still require the flat, tarred and graveled roofs. One used to be able to detect their 'boom' in the evening in cities and towns but not recently. Undoubtedly a few spring arrivals remain to at least attempt to nest. There were several atlas squares in both of the first two OBBAs recording them up to the 'Probable' level, but no 'Confirmed' records. Common Nighthawks are typically a bit more common in the autumn as they migrate southward from more productive breeding grounds.

 

Birds of Chatham-Kent, Then and Now, will continue in a future post.

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The Quiet Storm

It was exactly a year ago when a storm went through southern Ontario, with sustained high winds from the east. Wave action was impressive, as long as one didn't have to be out on the water! This first image is of the Erieau pier, with some of the waves almost obscuring the lighthouse.

Erieau pier, Oct 2, 2015

Birding was fun and productive for a few days especially between Sept 30 and Oct 2, at least in the sense that some less commonly seen species were around. There were several jaegers and at least a couple of Sabine's Gulls, my first for the Rondeau checklist area.

Sabine's Gull imm

Horned Grebes were abundant. Well over 100 would be seen in short order flying by, and on occasion up to a couple of dozen would be in the comparative shelter of the west side of the pier, close to shore.

A few shorebirds, including this Black-bellied Plover, were on the sheltered beach......

 .....as were a couple of White-rumps.

With the current brisk easterly winds these last couple of days and the reports of jaegers and even a shearwater emanating from postings by birders scouring the west end of Lake Ontario, local birders in southern Chatham-Kent were hoping for at least something out of the ordinary again at Erieau.

Certainly the weather conditions gave reason for optimism. Gulls normally well out on the lake were content to spend a lot of time loafing on the beach or passing by a little ways off shore.

Rondeau east beach, Sept 29, 2016

 The waves over the Erieau pier were impressive by normal standards, but not as much as a year ago.

Erieau pier, Sep 30, 2016

Erieau, Sep 30, 2016

And the birds? Well so far in the last couple of days there were no jaegers that I have heard of, let alone any shearwaters.

There have been large numbers of gulls in the Rondeau to Erieau area. Probably well over 6000 Ring-billed Gulls....by far the most numerous species. The other typical species were all present, including several Lesser Black-backed. But no Sabine's, not even a Little Gull. In fact of the smaller, hooded type gull, Bonaparte's was all there was, and even at that there were probably only 5-600, most of which were adults transitioning to their basic/winter finery.

There were sightings of other species, just to keep one interested. Caspian Terns are still around in small numbers.

Common Terns are as well, with several dozen flying by the Erieau lookout this morning, and heading east into the wind. Most were too far out to be photographed.

There were grebes, but only Horned, and no more than 15 or so, all flying east. At least one Surf Scoter was observed well off shore, and a few other ducks including Greater Scaup and mergansers.

So it hasn't been the banner couple of days for early autumn birding that we were hoping for, but that is the fun of it......if it was too predictable, why go out and look? The weekend is here, so maybe with more eyes scanning the water, beaches and wherever, something a little rarer will be found! And maybe that will be the subject of my next post!

Orchids, birds, contaminants, etc

Some mornings it has been great to get up early. One morning recently, I headed to Erieau hoping for some colourful skies to capture. I got to the waterfront well before sunrise. At first things didn't look too promising, but I got momentarily distracted with this sailboat that anchored just off the fishing boat harbour. It was attractive in the pre-dawn gloom, so I attempted to use my long telephoto lens on it. Keep in mind the focal length was the equivalent of 800mm, and I handheld the camera and telephoto and took it at 1/40th of a second. This was taken 15 minutes before official sunrise, and on a cloudy morning at that. I really didn't think it would be very sharp, but was surprised at how well it turned out. There was no wind to speak of, so the boat was quite still. I guess I was also.

Oh yes.....there was some colour in the sky after the sun came up.

I've had some recent requests about late season orchids. And now that autumn is not that far away, it is appropriate that Autumn Coralroot is being sought after by some botanists.

Autumn Coralroot (Corallorhiza odontorhiza) is a diminutive little orchid that not that long ago, was considered rare in Ontario. Its perceived rarity was likely due to its rather nondescript stature. As more and more people developed an eye for it, it has been discovered farther afield than it once was, even north to the lower Bruce Peninsula.

This first image shows it in all of its splendour, from a distance of merely one metre. Can you see it?

Maybe this will help. Note the mosquito for scale resting on one of the flowers....better there than on me!

 Even closer.....

This is about as large and colourful as this orchid gets. It can self-pollinate.....on occasion, the flowers won't even open so there is even less to see!

This colourful and distinctive Hedgehog Gall was on a White Oak leaf. One or more wasp larvae of the Cynipidae family are developing inside.

While walking the forested trails to see this orchid, I noted lots of spider webs criss-crossing the path. Most of them belonged to the Marbled Orb Weaver, a colourful medium to large spider that is most frequently encountered in the late summer.

Another spider that one frequently sees this time of year, especially in areas of old field vegetation or prairie vegetation, or even along shrubby edges of the woods, is the Black-and-yellow Garden Spider (Argiope aurantiaca). Normally you see the females which are full of developing young, and looking much fatter than this one.

After my little foray along the woodland paths, I decided to check out the southeast beach where large numbers of gulls frequently rest. With the moderate southwest winds, this day was no exception, and there were several hundred gulls, with increasing numbers of terns arriving as they prepare for migration. A few Caspian Terns were present, still giving their raucous calls.....

Caspian Tern

Caspian Terns

.....as were a few Common Terns, making things a bit more interesting than just the usual Ring-billed and Herring Gull mix.

Common Tern

Two immature Little Gulls were part of the larger group, but did not come close enough to even attempt a photo of. Maybe next time.

After leaving Rondeau, I often stop in at the Blenheim Sewage Lagoon, where the fall migration of shorebirds and waterfowl is picking up. On the way, I noted this small family group of Wild Turkeys. This seems kind of late in the season for the young to be so small. Presumably the first nesting attempt of the adult was unsuccessful, and this smaller group of small young is the result of a second attempt.

A Great Egret flew over. I particularly liked the backlit conditions. One can really see the detail in the individual wing feathers. The dark area on the leading edge of the wing indicates the flesh and skeletal structure of the wing from which the feathers emanate.

There are tons of Killdeer around the lagoons these days, particularly in the mostly dry sprinkler cell. But they make a racket, and when they flush, most everything else does as well. There have been some good birds present, even a Willet in recent days, but not on the days that I was there.

One doesn't normally see an American Goldfinch pretending to be a shorebird.

 This Lesser Yellowlegs is to be expected. This was a day when the water in this sprinkler cell  just covered one of the pipes which the yellowlegs was walking on.

In the centre, to the left of the rear end of the Lesser Yellowlegs below, is a young Solitary Sandpiper, easily distinguishable at this time of year with its dark 'wrist' area.

A few Wilson's Snipe have been around. This one sat tight after all the other shorebirds flushed.

Wilson's Snipe

 One can't help but notice the bright blue/green sludge around the perimeter of some of the lagoon ponds, as well as a buildup of green algae. I don't recall it being this vivid in previous years. Is it some new kind of chemical treatment to attack the undesirable organic matter? Or something more insidious?

I recently had a link to an article sent to me (thanks, Brett!), which described the results of some tests on bats which had spent a fair bit of time feeding on insects emerging from sewage treatment plants in the northeastern US. It was surprising to find out what was in the tissue of these bats: PBDE (flame retardant), salicyclic acid, ibuprofen, caffeine, DEET, triclosan, etc. You can read about it in this link. Although many things are removed during the normal treatment of water at such facilities (most of them I believe, are the organic elements, not the inorganic ones) it makes one wonder what is not being taken out. Consider all the things that end up being flushed down the toilet....old prescriptions, as well as the current prescriptions and drugs that so many people ingest, and eventually get excreted out and flushed into the system. Most of those chemicals, hormones, drugs, etc end up remaining in the system that ends up in coming back into our homes when you turn on the taps. Think about that next time you fill your water glass, coffee-maker or whatever.....yuk!

I digressed.......blame the blue and green sludge!

Amongst the typical waterfowl showing up at the lagoons, including Ruddy Duck, Mallard, both teal, American Wigeon, Northern Shoveler and Wood Duck, was this lingering Tundra Swan. It is usually near the edge of the water of one of the ponds. I don't think anyone has seen it fly since the spring, so presumably it can't. It will likely be fine until freeze-up and after that, its remaining days are probably in short supply.

 As one approaches it, it quickly heads towards the nearest pond.

The weedy edges of the pathways along the lagoons are good places to find Bobolink towards the end of August and into early September. Both males and females look alike at this time of year.

 A few days ago, Blake Mann and Josh Vandermeulen had seen a couple of Common Checkered-Skippers. I was there later that same day but didn't see any. But I will be looking next time I go. They are quite small, but colourful. This next image is of one I saw about three years ago, along an abandoned railway not all that far away from the lagoons. In real life, it is about 2.2 cm across.

Next time I get to the lagoons, you can be sure I will be on the lookout for this rare, little lep!