Winter owls and fungi

 Okay, owls and fungi aren't a normal mix of topics I cover. But it works for the moment. Owls have become more visible at this time of year, and are always highly sought after by keen birders and even casual ones. Some are year-round residents, such as this Eastern Screech Owl.

It shows up regularly in the cavity of this American Beech tree at Rondeau, although it can be frustratingly absent for long periods. I managed to photograph this on the day of the Christmas Bird Count, as well as a day or so afterwards. Speaking of the CBC, this count totaled 102 species! Considering the windy, cool and rainy weather, that was quite remarkable, but with a good number of excellent birders out to cover their territories, it turned out quite well. This count regularly ends up in the top one or two counts in Ontario.

Continuing with the owl theme, a Barred Owl, usually a resident of much more northern areas, showed up at a small conservation area within the count circle, where a good stand of pine trees were established a number of years ago. It was only seen on one day, and fortunately it was within the CBC count period although not on the count day, so it gets to be added to this year's overall count. I went out to look for it the following day, but was unsuccessful in finding it. Another keen birder had been out slightly earlier in the day, and also did not see it. I know when a Barred Owl showed up in Rondeau on our CBC several years ago, which my birding partner and I discovered, although it remained in the park for several weeks, it moved around quite a bit, so one was never sure where to find it. This next photo is of the one we discovered on that CBC in 2018.

A few years later, in January of 2023, I photographed this next one, in the village of Shrewsbury.

It was sometimes quite visible from one of the streets, and there were many people who got to see it. Again, it moved around so wasn't always found at the same spot, but a little bit of perseverance often paid off. It remained in the area for several weeks. Hopefully the one that was seen just a few days ago in the local conservation area will show up again!

Another even more northern owl species that may show up in southwestern Ontario in winter is the Snowy Owl. It isn't a guarantee every year, but some years there can be quite an influx. A couple of years ago, on the St. Clair NWA CBC, there was a total of 23 Snowies observed! But the following year, there were none. It has been mostly absent this late autumn, but one has shown up intermittently in the area not far from Mitchell's Bay. Sometimes they are sitting on a pole and quite photographic, but more often than not, they are well out in a field, and even with a high powered lens and lots of cropping, the photo is a good record shot only, such as this next one.

Moving on from owls, the late autumn is a good time to look for the fruiting bodies of lingering fungi. Here are some of the ones I have found.

Fan-shaped Jelly Fungus

A type of Inkap

Not sure about this next one, but it could be a Honeycomb Coral Slime Mould.

Aspen Oyster Mushroom

These next two are in the Bonnets (Mycena) group.

A Common Gilled Mushroom

Rosy Crust

Milk-white Toothed Polypore

Pear-shaped Puffball

These next two show different angles of the fairly common Turkey Tail.

A few birds were willing to be photographed on some of my travels.

Hairy Woodpecker

Horned Grebes are in their winter plumage, and scattered here and there, but are typically quite shy for photographers as they dive under and pop back up a little way from where they went down. I managed to get these next two photos in the marina at Erieau.

There were about 20 Killdeer seen on the above mentioned Christmas Bird Count. I photographed one of the 4 I found a day or two later, along the marsh trail of Erieau.

And while Rondeau Bay is mostly unfrozen, it means most waterfowl are well out from shore, probably with the lingering effects of the recent hunting season causing them to be cautious. However some birds, such as this male Redhead, lingered also in the marina at Erieau.

Not something I would usually find while out exploring, but this kayaker chose a day when Lake Erie was quite calm, and paddled quite a way along the east beach of Rondeau, heading to some unknown destination. Perhaps Erieau?

If you would like to subscribe, or unsubscribe, to Nature Nuggets, send an email to: prairietramper@gmail.com

Late November, early December highlights

 In spite of the warmer than normal weather in late November, one doesn't expect to see swallows still around. However Cave Swallows, if they are going to show up in southwestern Ontario, have a habit of showing up after the majority of the others in that family have gone south. Such was the case when I got a text message saying that a Cave Swallow was at the Erieau pier. Since I was almost ready to head out somewhere anyway, it made the decision of where to go very easy. 

As I got to the main channel, just as I was getting parked, I saw this swallow scoot by, heading for the pier that juts out into the lake. Bingo! And as I glanced towards the base of the pier a minute or so later, I saw 4 people looking intently at something, so with camera in hand, out I went. 

And there it was, resting at the edge of the lower section of the pier, trying to keep out of the brisk wind. You can tell by its posture and fluffed up feathers it wasn't really enjoying the cool wind.

It seemed quite tolerant of us. Every few minutes it would get up and fly around, and sometimes flew by almost within arms reach, before returning to the edge of the pier.

However after awhile, it got up and flew east towards Rondeau, and we never saw it again. What a great sighting in late November! This swallow species seems to show up quite regularly in small numbers. I have had one to five of them at Erieau on at least 3 occasions, and along the east beach of Rondeau.

I've been able to find, and photograph, other species which, although they are much more common, are always a delight to see as well. Here are some of the highlights.

Bald Eagles always get ones attention, especially a fully adult bird with its distinctive white head and tail, and its fierce look if one gets a close enough look.

The above bird was in a tree right along the roadside near St. Clair NWA and it didn't seem to be concerned when I got out and aimed my camera at it. The next photo is of a bird that was well out from the trail at Keith McLean Conservation Area, and it flew off as I got within several hundred metres of it.

On one of my several visits to Rondeau, I photographed some smaller, land birds. A Hermit Thrush, not all that common this time of year but usually there is the occasional one lingering, was feeding on some berries at the side of the trail.

Its spotted upper chest area and the rusty tail are good indicators to separate this species from others in its genus.

Northern Cardinals are year-round residents, and the males really show up well with their bright red plumage.

Less brightly coloured but perhaps even more attractive with a more subtle, warm brown plumage, is the female cardinal.

Not a small bird, of course, but Wild Turkeys are regularly seen in their family groups. There were four others in this group, but I just zeroed in on this one for a full frame photo.

Elsewhere on my Rondeau travels, I photographed some Cluster Flies even though the temperature was barely above freezing...

..and I noted this White Pine seedling also along the trail. White Pines are an important element of Rondeau's vegetation, and while they are often eaten by White-tailed Deer, hopefully some will survive to maturity. This past weekend the park was closed to the public, as a deer hunt/cull was in progress. In the absence of natural predators at the park, periodic culls are important to keep the population of both the deer, and the vegetation, in a healthy condition. At one point in the mid 1980s or so, and in the absence of any kind of cull for a decade or so, the winter population of deer approached 600! The vegetation was in horrible shape, and one winter there were about 20 deer that died of starvation and severe cold. Deer biologists that specialize in herbivory determined that the population in winter should not exceed about 125 animals.

In other travels, I have often been near wetland areas which have not been iced over. Not sure how long that will last, as it isn't officially winter for a few days yet. Waterfowl are always fun to focus on. This first photo is of a female Bufflehead at the lower left, and a female Hooded Merganser on the right.

Female Hooded Merganser

As is the case with some mergansers species, the females have a tufted head, as the hoodie shows. The next photo is of a female Red-breasted Merganser which is much larger than the hoodie.

I photographed these Ruddy Ducks at Erieau, which were taking advantage of the quiet water in the harbour area. This first one is of a male...

...and next is a female.

This next one is of a female Ruddy Duck that was not resting, but quite alert.

Typically in the St. Clair NWA vicinity at this time of year, there are lots of swans. Mute Swans, shown first, are not present in large numbers, but as long as there is any open water, are present throughout the year .

But what gets more attention due to their seasonal variation, and huge numbers are Tundra Swans. It is not uncommon to see upwards of 10000 birds in scattered flocks, especially if there is an unplowed field to feed in....

....or a wetland area to take refuge in.

Small groups are frequently seen flying from one field to another, or back to the NWA.

There are still some flocks of Sandhill Cranes reluctant to leave the area. I came across over 150 only a few days ago, in two separate areas. They were quite a way off in a field, so not easy to get the kind of photos that I was hoping for, but this is what it is.

Sometimes they are on the move as well, to a quieter or better feeding area.

And even though the main raptor migration is over for the autumn period, some raptors will be content to stick around. I was out looking and hoping for Snowy Owls, but didn't see any. However there are a few Northern Harriers, a.k.a. Marsh Hawks, around hunting in open fields or in wetland areas.

And Red-tailed Hawks, such as this immature one, are regularly seen along woodland edges and even on power line poles.

Not the greatest shot of this bird on a power line pole, but you do what you can to capture the setting!

If you would like to subscribe, or unsubscribe, to Nature Nuggets, send an email to: prairietramper@gmail.com