Spring Birding Bonanza

 It has been awhile since my last post. Life continues to be a challenge in various ways, but fortunately I have been out and about these last few weeks, with a good variety of exciting birds to try and track down, as well as to watch for the arrival of normally expected ones.

Certainly one of the bird highlights of recent weeks has been the presence of a beautiful male Tufted Duck hanging out at Erieau. It is native to northern Eurasia, but as it is a bit migratory, it can show up elsewhere.

 This is actually the second one I have seen in the Rondeau checklist area. The first one was back in 1983 when I had one off the east beach of Rondeau, a day or two before the Christmas Bird Count in December. However it was the only time it was noted by anyone at the time. The one in the photos above remained in the Erieau harbour area for several days, allowing many birders from Ontario and beyond to have some excellent views.

Upon returning from Erieau to see this Tufted Duck, a male Yellow-headed Blackbird had been seen just before the village, and I stopped and got this highly cropped photo.

 It isn't super rare, as they do nest regularly in some of the cattail islands in Lake St. Clair, and I have been out in my kayak getting some fine shots of them perched on the vegetation. Nonetheless, they are always fun to find away from their usual nesting area.

Another extreme rarity was the occurrence of a Crested Caracara. One had been seen in southern Essex for a day or two, and then it disappeared. Then one was seen in Chatham-Kent, presumably the same bird, where the word got out and a dozen or more birders were able to see it. However only the two birders who first encountered it got some very nice photos. The bird then moved to the edge of a nearby forest, where it remained for an hour or so before moving on. Due to the distance, and the presence of some branches in front, it was hard to get good focus. The photo that follows was taken and cropped to the equivalent of about 100X, and was the best I could get.

This is the first one I have seen in Ontario, although I missed seeing one that quickly flew over Pelee Island back in May of 1994 even though I was on the island at the time. I have seen them in southern Texas and in Costa Rica years ago.

When the bird left this perch, it flew southeast, and right over the farm at Guilds where I was raised. It would have been a yard bird had I still been there and seen it! When it left, the birders present headed out in various directions to see if it could be re-found. It wasn't, but someone did discover a Townsend's Solitaire coming to some berry bushes in the front yard of some former high school classmates of mine. Fortunately there were enough berries to keep it around, and when I went out the next day, managed to get some photos.

It does show up in the area from time to time, although the last time I saw one was in April of 2011 at Rondeau.

Another couple of rarities have also been seen in recent weeks, although I haven't been out to see them. One species, a Varied Thrush which is a western species, was only seen by one other birder, and fortunately photographed, in spite of the quick arrival of several other birders who were not successful. This species has shown up before, and I remember seeing one coming to a feeder in the Cedar Springs area back in 1979. Another somewhat unusual bird was a female Harlequin Duck, another western species that does show up in the Great Lakes area on an almost annual basis, and one or more have been seen in the Erieau area periodically over the last few years.

Who knows what will turn up next? And that is a reason that birders like to get out to scour areas to see what might be around, especially during the early part of the migration season when things periodically get off course. Maybe my next post will have a few more to show!

But there has been a steady arrival of the expected species, which are always nice to see, and also to photograph, if only to capture the intrigue and beauty of the natural world around us. Here are a few of the ones I have managed to photograph in my recent outings.

 American Tree Sparrows are typically most abundant in the winter, and are infrequently seen this far south by this time of year. Some may linger, as did this one. 

Belted Kingfishers are present near quiet water, on the lookout for a meal. They will breed in the area.

Brown Creepers can occasionally be fairly abundant as they are passing through to points farther north. They are constantly on the move going up a tree trunk hunting for insects, and are often hard to photograph.

Waterfowl are plentiful, and some like this Blue-winged Teal, are more abundant these days. Some may remain to nest.

Female and male Blue-winged Teal

Warblers are one of the highlights of spring migration. I saw this Yellow-rumped Warbler, my first warbler species of the year, just a day ago, along the road near St. Clair NWA. 
 

Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers are fairly regular right now, but will be diminishing as May rolls around.

Turkey Vultures are frequently seen. Some even will remain in C-K for the breeding season.

Northern Flickers are increasing in number, and some will remain to nest.

Hermit Thrush is one of the earliest of the Thrush family to arrive, and will be continuing to their more northerly breeding grounds so as to be almost entirely gone from the southwest by mid-May.

Great Egrets can be seen in some areas, especially those wetlands adjacent to Lake St. Clair, as they nest in some of the high quality wetlands in that vicinity. 

The following two owl species are year round residents. This first one, the Eastern Screech Owl, can sometimes be seen in a hollow in this American Beech tree along Bennett Ave in Rondeau. It has been somewhat irregular there this winter.

Great Horned Owls are more often heard than seen, and their nests aren't always easy to find. This one nests regularly in a woodlot at the edge of Chatham, and although its nest site varies from year to year. can sometimes be found. I didn't see this one at first as the adult blends in well from a distance, but noted the round, whitish fuzzy head of the young moving around at the edge, which gave it away.

There have been a few non-bird highlights in recent outings. I saw my first Mourning Cloak butterfly a few days ago. It was just flitting along the trail, so I didn't get a photo, but used one from my archives to show here.

I did manage to see and photograph this Spring Azure. Some butterfly specialists have lumped the Spring and Summer Azure into one species as they are difficult to separate and their seasons overlap. Apparently one needs to have a specimen to look at under a microscope to see how the wing scales overlap. However given that the season at Rondeau is delayed due to the lake effect of the cold water, keeping the temperatures at the park several degrees cooler than the mainland, this is about as early as one could expect, and so I choose to call it a Spring Azure.

 

 

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A mix of regular and lingering birds and an adventurous butterfly

 The Christmas Bird Count (CBC) season is upon us, and the Blenheim/Rondeau count is on Dec 17. As the weather can be a big factor in the number of birds seen, there is a three day period before as well as after the actual count day, where birds can be included in the overall count database. However birds seen during the count period but not on the count day, will not be included on the count itself. Therefore there is a bit of effort to scout around during the count period to see what might be seen on the day, or could have been seen.

With this in mind, I try to get out a bit more prior to or during the count period, and with the unseasonably mild weather of late, who know what is still out there? Recently there have been things such as Blue-gray Gnatcatcher and White-eyed Vireo seen. Just before the count period, I encountered a Great Egret at the Keith McLean Conservation Lands. It moved around a lot, probably because it was likely wondering just what it should do with itself this late in the season, but probably also because I tried to get a bit closer at times. While there is no hunting taking place at this location, it may have encountered hunters elsewhere, which made it extra cautious when humans were in sight. It was sometimes sitting right out in the open....

...and at other times, moved to a more secluded and out of the wind location. If it is still around, and I have no doubt that it is, it would be a first for this count. However there are more than enough places where it could be that are inaccessible for birders to see it.

A Great Blue Heron was also quite close by, with its feathers being rustled around in the wind.

With all of the mudflats being available and temperatures sometimes getting well above freezing, it is inevitable that there may be a few lingering shorebirds. There has been the occasional Dunlin around, as well as Killdeer. I came across a scattered group of 10 Killdeer at the Erieau Marsh Trail recently, which gave me some quite good photo ops.

It was fairly windy, and a cold wind was coming off the lake nearby. This individual came quite close to me, and hunkered down behind a raised clump of mud, to get some protection from the wind, I presume. Even at this spot the breeze was blowing its feathers as you can see.

Others seemed to be okay with just standing out in the open at the water's edge, facing into the wind.

The south beach of Rondeau can be very good for lingering shorebirds under the present conditions. Last year on the CBC we had Killdeer, Dunlin, Spotted Sandpiper and Western Sandpiper. I will not be covering that area this year, others will, and the weather looks less than ideal for being out in such exposed conditions. However some shorebirds may still be out there nonetheless. Stay tuned...

Meandering around Rondeau has had a variety of results. I've not only encountered, but photographed Pileated Woodpecker on a couple of occasions. The sky background can play a huge part in the satisfaction of the photos.

Cedar Waxwings are declining in abundance, but are still around. This one spent all of its time in a fairly dense stand of shrubs.

Dark-eyed Juncos are fairly plentiful, and widely scattered.

House Finches are year-round residents, so not all that surprising to see.

female

male

White-breasted Nuthatches are also permanent residents, but seemingly not all that common.

White-throated Sparrows are often the most numerous sparrow species at this time of year.

There are a few lingering Yellow-rumped Warblers, most likely to be encountered in the semi-open north campground where there are lots of red cedars.

On the lake front, diversity of waterfowl varies, but at this time of year large numbers of Ruddy Ducks are often seen. There were at least 450 of them within my view, but out quite a way, so this photo shows a greatly cropped view of a few of them that were a little closer, so I didn't have to crop the photo as much.

Tundra Swans are either out in the lake or bay, or feeding in fields.

Due to the milder than normal weather, I came across this Eastern Comma on December 15, which I believe is the latest in the year I have ever seen this species. Presumably as the weather cools down, it will find a safe place to over winter.

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October wind, waves and more birds!

 October can be one of the windiest months of the year. When strong east type winds occur, I like to get out to Erieau and watch the power of the waves hitting the pier.

It can be impressive, to say the least. One must be careful with the camera to protect it from wind-blown sand and spray. The first two photos were not taken this October, but on another occasion when the conditions were just right for these photos. Maybe later this month, or when the gales of November arrive, I will be photographing there again.

I did get out to the southern part of Rondeau a couple of days ago, and the wind direction was from the south, and brisk. This next photo shows the wildest ones I was able to get. Nice, but nothing like a strong east wind at Erieau.

Rondeau is the place to be almost anytime of the year, but I particularly like it in the autumn. The changes happen steadily. It was only a couple of weeks ago when most of the forest looked like this next photo.

Just a couple of days ago, the changes were quite obvious, as shown next, but in the next week or two, the colours will be much more dramatic.

Birds have been steadily arriving, and departing, as they should. Blue Jays have been passing through in large numbers, and making good use of the abundant crop of acorns on many oak species this year.

Yellow-rumped Warblers are by far the most common warbler species now, and with a good crop of berries on things like Red Cedar, have lots to keep them happy while they build up reserves for the next leg of their southward journey.

White-throated Sparrows are increasing in abundance......

...as are Rusty Blackbirds. It is a species at risk overall, but can be reasonably common for a short time in the autumn.

One of the most common members of the thrush family is the Hermit Thrush, next.

There are some lingering species, such as this Eastern Phoebe, a flycatcher that has to deviate from flying insects once the cold weather arrives. However with the impressive hatch of midges in the last week or so, there is lots of food for flycatchers in the short term.

Lots of the summer sparrow residents have gone, to be replaced by the autumn/winter species, but sometimes some of the summer ones linger, such as this Chipping Sparrow. Of course the weather conditions haven't been all that bad yet, so there will be a few species and individuals reluctant to move any farther south than necessary.

Robins, with their diverse diet, will stick around for quite awhile yet, even well into or over the winter.

I had intended to stop at the Keith McLean Conservation Lands to look for, and hopefully photograph, one of the Nelson's Sparrows that is currently there. However since I neglected to return the flash card to the camera after having downloaded the images from the day before, my camera was not functional! Oh well, live and learn (I hope!). Maybe this coming week I will have my act together better, and it will coincide with a cooperative Nelson's Sparrow or two. One can always hope, since this species can be quite elusive even at the best of times.

I've been to St. Clair NWA and the Mitchell's Bay lakeshore trails a time or two recently, partly because they are closer to home than Rondeau. With much of the habitat in these areas being wetland, it is not surprising that quite a few Swamp Sparrows can be found.

An occasional Eastern Phoebe may be lingering in the shrubbier areas close by.

Rusty Blackbirds, a species that prefers wet woodlands and similar habitat types, will be around.

Sandhill Cranes continue to be in the area. Their yodeling calls can be heard from quite a distance, enabling a photographer to get ready if they come close enough.

On one occasion I saw at least a dozen in the area in about an hour's time in the late afternoon. Overcast skies do make it a bit more challenging to photograph.

A few Great Egrets continue to be seen. Their numbers are diminishing but as long as there is open water, a few may continue to be in the area. I have even seen up to three in early January in the past!

The Lake St. Clair Marshes are well known for attracting waterfowl, and therefore hunters. In fact it was in part due to hunt clubs of the past to protect some of these wetlands over the years, and we are enjoying the benefits of those efforts nowadays, even while some private wetlands continue to be used by hunters from both sides of the border. Due to no hunting at St. Clair NWA, it is a great place to observe the huge numbers of ducks and geese making use of this protected wetland. On one occasion recently, I saw anywhere from a few dozen to a thousand or more birds in the air all at once, and it was like that continuously for most of the hour and a half I was walking the dyke trail.

I will be out again, to be sure!

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