C-K hotspot action and a migrant magnet

These last few days have been interesting, with lots of spring migrants putting in an appearance. The cold, rainy windy weather of last week is all but forgotten.

Visits to Rondeau (of course!) as well as Mitchell's Bay area, Wheatley Provincial Park and Paxton's Bush have all been productive. In looking at the number of entries on ebird, it is clear that there are a lot of birders, too, and checking out parking lots at the usual hotspots have proven that. At times if the birds aren't abundant, it is a great time to visit with folks along the trail that you sometimes see only at this time of year.

At the tail end of the windy weather, Great Egrets were seen well away from the waterways, and in some cases, they had to hunker down and face the wind like this one below, just to keep from being buffeted by the wind.

 Some Bald Eagles were not bothered by the windy weather, as at least 4 were noted soaring overhead along the Mitchell's Bay trails. The wind must have kept the Yellow-headed Blackbirds under cover, as they were not seen by the dozens of intrepid birders who were searching for them. Perhaps they have moved out to their preferred stand of cattails, which isn't in a highly visible location, ready to get the nesting season underway.

Rusty Blackbirds still linger, as a few persist in the wet woods of Rondeau. In many years, they have moved out of southern Ontario by about this time. They appear in various plumages, making one look carefully to see if a rarer species is mixed in. Some appear relatively glossy compared to their winter attire.

Red-breasted Nuthatches are still moving through.

Hairy Woodpeckers are permanent residents, but seem to be less common than they used to be. Two males were vying for territory along Rondeau's Tuliptree Trail.

The always popular Prothonotary Warbler has been cooperating for most viewers, and some of the time for photographers as they are setting up their territory. The bird spends a lot of time popping in and out of the branches and debris at the water's edge, making getting a photo rather challenging.

 A bit of patience rewards the watcher, and the photographer, with less obstructed views.

 On several occasions, the male has been observed taking moss to one of the nesting boxes.

Yellow Warblers are likely the most common warbler around these days, and will remain so for the entire breeding season.

 Black-throated Blue Warblers have arrived in good numbers. It is not uncommon to see a dozen or more in an outing.

There have been many other warblers appear, but as the weather warms and the insect activity is greatest higher up in the trees, getting a decent photo is next to impossible. But things like Blackburnian, Northern Parula, Chestnut-sided, Black-throated Green, American Redstart, Blue-winged, etc have all arrived much to the satisfaction of birders. Species like Yellow-breasted Chat, Golden-winged and Hooded are all present as well, but getting a glimpse rather than a photograph is about the best most people can hope for.

While searching the tree-tops for warblers, one might miss an intriguing item at ground level. This is the season for morels, and they blend in well.

On the outskirts of Blenheim there is a grassy industrial lot along with a low wet spot which has sometimes attracted a few shorebirds. The grassy area has a few Bobolinks....

.....and Savannah Sparrows.

On a recent visit, there were two Solitary Sandpipers. Which begs the question, if you see two close by, are they not really Solitary anymore? And if so, what would they be?

A not-so Solitary Sandpiper

 Earlier today I decided not to drive off somewhere else to look for birds, but to visit Paxton's Bush, a 20 acre or so woodlot on the north side of Chatham and only a 10 minute walk from home. Turns out it was a great idea. With so little forest cover in this part of Chatham-Kent, a woodlot this size can sometimes be a magnet for migrants. Along a trail no more than a kilometre long, I tallied 19 species of warblers, including First of Year Magnolia, Orange-crowned and Golden-winged. There were also lots of Rose-breasted Grosbeaks, several Veerys, FOY Swainson's Thrushes and FOY Scarlet Tanagers,  well as FOY Philadelphia Vireo and FOY Alder/Willow Flycatcher.

Veery

Who knows what tomorrow will bring? Enjoy the spring migration....the fall migration will be starting in about a month!

Celebrating 123 years

No, it is not my birthday, although there are some days when I may feel close to this age (I think).

No, May 5 is the birthday of Rondeau Provincial Park. It was on this day in 1894 when an Act to establish a Provincial Park at Rondeau was assented. And technically, Rondeau is the oldest provincial park in Ontario. While Algonquin normally gets credit as being the oldest provincial park, it was originally established in 1893 as a National Park under The Algonquin National Park Act. It was superseded by the Provincial Parks Act in 1913, so has been a legislated national/provincial park since 1893. But Rondeau has been a provincial park since 1894.

If one really wants to get technical, the first provincial park in Ontario was Queen Victoria Provincial Park, established at Niagara in 1885. However it was transferred to the Niagara Parks Commission a number of decades ago. So Rondeau is technically the longest lived provincial park in Ontario.

So here is to Rondeau....the grand old lady of the Ontario Provincial Park system!

East Beach

Rondeau Road south (now the South Point Trail)

Harrison Trail

Rondeau Road

Tuliptrees

Hump Day Happenings

Yesterday was Hump Day. With rain and wind before and after this day and the weather being beautiful, it was a perfect day to spend at my favourite birding location: Rondeau.

Ruby-crowned Kinglets continue to be one of the most abundant songbirds anywhere you go. On occasion, they will sit still long enough, without too many branches in the way, and allow for a recognizable photo.

Blue-gray Gnatcatchers are relatively abundant. I had at least 15 that day.

Warblers, those brightly coloured feathered jewels most birders look forward to seeing in large numbers during May, are arriving as they should be. Not like birders hope they might, dripping off the trees, but at least with enough around that a solid effort will result in 10 or more species on the day's list.

Black-throated Green Warblers are scattered about.

I finally saw my first Black-and-white Warbler of the spring. It is usually an early one, but they have not been plentiful yet in this area it seems.

One warbler highlight was this male Hooded Warbler. They used to be quite scarce in Ontario, and one didn't even see them every year, but they have been doing relatively well in the last couple of decades. They aren't quite the novelty they used to be, but are always a treat to see. Another warbler highlight, although it did not result in any photos, was a brief glimpse of a Yellow-breasted Chat as it skulked through the shrubbery along the South Point Trail. It is entirely possible given the amount of habitat there, and with the regularity of spaced out sightings, there may be two or more chats. Hopefully if that is the case, they will stick around and nest as they have done in the past. Other new for the year (to me) warblers included Ovenbird and Northern Waterthrush.

Hooded Warbler

Vireos are becoming more common. Blue-headed (formerly Solitary) Vireos are probably the most common at the moment, although none of this species has been known to nest in Rondeau.

I heard a Yellow-throated Vireo as I was driving slowly along Rondeau Road, but never saw it. I got a glimpse of the much rarer White-eyed Vireo as it flitted about some dense shrubbery along the South Point Trail, but this is the only photo I got!

The very south end of the South Point Trail continues to change due to the relentless wave action. This first image was taken from about where a bench overlooking the lake used to be, but got undercut by wave action a few years ago. Now the waves are throwing up sand over the road and obliterating it.

 At the very southwest corner of the South Point Trail, a bit of water is over the road due to the waves coming in over the sand beach and emptying into the adjacent slough. At the moment, there are only about 8-10 cm of water over the road. This does happen periodically. On more than one occasion, however, I have seen up to half a metre over this section. On one occasion, at least half of the South Point Trail between Lakeshore Road and this corner was under water!

On a final note, the 'resident' White-winged Dove continues to deposit nesting material to the top of the sloped stove pipe at cottage lot 17168. It will be interesting to see how long this behaviour continues this year.

Mixed Monday

It was cloudy, rainy, breezy and even sunny at times on this first day of May. At least there wasn't any snow!

The heavy overcast conditions along with rain convinced me to not take my camera with me during the first part of the day. My umbrella was going to be of much more use!

A couple of warblers caught my attention along the South Point Trail, both of which were the first of the year for me: Cape May and Northern Parula. They were feeding high up in the trees. A Yellow-breasted Chat which had showed up from time to time a little farther down the trail eluded us, but I caught up to a White-eyed Vireo. From the old Dillon Trail, I added Sandhill Crane and Broad-winged Hawk.

I walked the Tuliptree Trail, but it was very quiet, so I stopped in at the Visitor Centre and chatted with staff, along with friends I hadn't seen for years. The feeders were busy with birds.

A return along Lakeshore Road turned up the long-staying White-winged Dove, as well as my FOY Orchard Oriole.

As the day wore on, the rain lessened and there were mostly precipitation free times, so I put away my umbrella and got out my camera. A few House Wrens were scattered here and there.....

 .....as were Field Sparrows.

A Killdeer, which had had its first nest fail, was trying again.

The sun actually came out quite nicely later in the afternoon. I had heard that some birders and a film crew had some fabulous looks for several minutes of a cooperative Sedge Wren in the beach dunes at the northeast corner of the park. (I know, I know.....one doesn't often read Sedge Wren, fabulous looks and cooperative in the same sentence!) I wasn't too far away so off I went, but it was not showing itself for me, and with the wind and waves making lots of noise just a few metres way, there is no way I would have heard its faint buzzy song. As consolation, not too far from where I parked the car I had Tufted Titmouse as well as a smattering of warblers including Black-throated Green, Yellow, Palm and Yellow-rumped.

Black-throated Green Warbler

Yellow Warbler

Over the course of the day, I noted at least 5 Red-headed Woodpecker. This is the most I have seen in one day for quite awhile. In fact it is the first time in probably decades, where I saw more Red-headed Woodpeckers (5+) than Red-bellied Woodpeckers (3).

I had also heard about a few Willets seen around mid-day at Shrewsbury. Willets seem to have been blown well of their normal course this spring, since several dozen or more have appeared in various places along the lake shore of southern Ontario. With the sun out and beginning to dry up the rain, it was rather foggy at times. As soon as I got to the boat launch area of Shrewsbury, I noted a group of large shorebirds flying through the foggy sunlight along the west side. As they flew by and banked, their overall gray appearance with the vivid black-and-white wing pattern conclusively identified them as Willet. They flew, circled and landed several times, affording some great views. The nine of them eventually settled at the water's edge, which is where I left them.