December 15, 2012 Ivory Gull at Arnprior, Ontario

Hi Everyone

I've said this many times " anything is possible"  in the bird world. Today, Michael Runtz, while birding in the Arnprior area discovered an immature IVORY GULL on the Madawaska head pond. A  super rarity in Ontario and anywhere south of the arctic circle. This bird caused lots of excitement in the local birding community's. Another highlight is it appears the Ivory Gull is within the 50km radius of the Ottawa-Gatineau district and will be a new species for the district. There are only a few records of Ivory Gull for eastern Ontario and all individuals were  in immature plumage. One was found on Lake Dore in Renfrew County on  November  12, 1995, another was found at Amherst Island near Kingston, January 3-17, 2001, one along the St.Lawrence River at Cornwall, Ontario/ Massena, New York in December 1977 and January 1978, Presqu'ile Provincial Park, January 2, 1967 and November 22-24, 1990. With all the local Christmas bird counts under way there is always a chance another one will be found. 

Update: Unfortunately the Ivory Gull wasn't relocated the following morning despite a small group of birders checking for most of the morning. 

Good birding, Bruce

 Directions: Courtesy Michael Runtz: To get to the site, take 417 to Arnprior and exit at White Lake exit. Go into Arnprior and turn right at the second lights onto Baskin Drive (just before turning right you will see McDonalds on your left. Proceed to the end of Baskin Drive and you will
see the Madawaska Headpond straight ahead. Scan the edge of the ice for the bird. DO NOT walk down the point past a closed gate . This is private land and the owners do not want anyone on the property.

A flight shot of the Ivory Gull as it flew by us.

The  immature Ivory Gull is easy recognized in flight by its black spotting's on the wings, back, tail and smudged dark face. 

In Newfoundland the Ivory Gulls local name is "Ice Partridge".

The Ivory Gull  was a lifer for Ben.  

December 12, 2012 More Birding Amherst Island

Hi Everyone

The birding on Amherst Island was again somewhat quiet with only a few raptors. We covered the Owl Woods first and had no small owls but 1 Long-eared Owl and 1 Barred Owl. A visit to the KFN property at the east end of the island produced 1 Snowy Owl on the gravel bar. The hawk numbers were low with only 2 Northern Harrier, 2 Red-tailed Hawk, 2 Rough-legged Hawk and 1 American Kestrel. There was a nice flock of 48 Tundra Swans off the gravel point too.

good birding, Bruce

Directions: Amherst Island: Located 18 km. west of Kingston. Exit off Hwy. 401 at exit 593 (County Rd. 4, Camden East) and drive south to the very end (Millhaven). Turn right on Hwy. 33 and drive 100 meters until you see the sign for the Amherst Island ferry. The ferry (20 minute trip) leaves the mainland on the half hour and leaves the island on the hour. Cost is $9.00 Canadian round trip. There are no gas stations on the island. There are restrooms on the ferry, and at the island ferry dock. The East End K.F.N. property is at the easternmost part of the island on the east side of the Lower Forty Foot Road. To reach the Owl Woods, turn left (east) at the four-way stop sign by the general store and drive 3.4 km along Front Rd. to the (seasonal) Marshall Forty-Foot Rd. Marshall Forty-Foot Rd. is across the road from house #2320. Drive along Marshall Rd. to the mid-way point, where there is an "S" in the road (1.2 km, look for the K.F.N. kiosk which had owl observing ethics). Park in the gravel lane or off the road edge.

Because of liability issues, visitors to the Kingston Field Naturalists' property at the east end of Amherst Island MUST be accompanied by a KFN member. For KFN contact information or how to become a member, please visit http://kingstonfieldnaturalists.org/ ."

Below are a couple of Snowy Owl photos from Amherst Island.

Snowy Owl

Snowy Owl

December 10-11, 2012 Birding Amherst Island and Presqu'ile Provincial Park

Hi Everyone
Spent the morning birding at Presqu'ile Provincial Park. Highlight was a Purple Sandpiper on Gull Island along the south side. There were 3 Snowy Owls in the area, 1 on Gull Island, 1 on High Bluff and and 1 on Sebastopol Point. Also had 3 flocks of Bohemian Waxwings totaling 250+ in Brighton along Princess Street near Cedar St. Yesterday, Dec.10th I spent a few hours birding during the afternoon on Amherst Island. Overall very quiet for hawks, only 2 Red-tailed Hawk, 1 Rough-legged Hawk and 1 American Kestrel. Had 3 Snowy Owls, 2 on the KFN property east end of the island, 8 Short-eared Owl southeast of Stella, 1 immature Golden Eagle and a very late Greater Yellowlegs.
Good birding, Bruce

Directions: (courtesy Fred Helleiner) To reach Presqu'ile Provincial Park, follow the signs from Brighton. Locations within the Park are shown on a map at the back of a tabloid that is available at the Park gate.   It should be noted that, because duck hunting is given priority on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, Gull Island, High Bluff Island, Owen Point, and part of the calf pasture are not available for bird-watching on those days.
Directions: Amherst Island: Located 18 km. west of Kingston. Exit off Hwy. 401 at exit 593 (County Rd. 4, Camden East) and drive south to the very end (Millhaven). Turn right on Hwy. 33 and drive 100 meters until you see the sign for the Amherst Island ferry. The ferry (20 minute trip) leaves the mainland on the half hour and leaves the island on the hour. Cost is $9.00 Canadian round trip. There are no gas stations on the island. There are restrooms on the ferry, and at the island ferry dock. The East End K.F.N. property is at the easternmost part of the island on the east side of the Lower Forty Foot Road. To reach the Owl Woods, turn left (east) at the four-way stop sign by the general store and drive 3.4 km along Front Rd. to the (seasonal) Marshall Forty-Foot Rd. Marshall Forty-Foot Rd. is across the road from house #2320. Drive along Marshall Rd. to the mid-way point, where there is an "S" in the road (1.2 km, look for the K.F.N. kiosk which had owl observing ethics). Park in the gravel lane or off the road edge.

Because of liability issues, visitors to the Kingston Field Naturalists' property at the east end of Amherst Island MUST be accompanied by a KFN member. For KFN contact information or how to become a member, please visit http://kingstonfieldnaturalists.org/ ."

Snowy Owls are on the move south.

You must be either a KFN member or with one to access the east end of the island, KFN property.  

Low water levels continue at Presqu'ile with a large wide gravel bar conecting owen point to Gull Island.

Up to 4 Snowy Owls have been observed hunting at Presqu'ile Provincial Park recently.

Presqu'ile P.P. is the best location to see Purple Sandpipers during late fall/early winter in southern Ontario.  

Some individuals are extremely tame as this one walked within 1 metre by me along the shoreline.

A highly sought after species for birders,  the Purple Sandpiper is a regular late fall migrant and can spend a week  or more feeding on the exposed shoals off Owen Point.  

December 9, 2012 Local birding. A late Red-throated Loon.

On December 9th I birded along the Ottawa River from Britannia to Shirley's Bay. The river is still wide open and I observed a number of late lingering species. The best was a winter plumage Red-throated Loon off Dick Bell Park. Also 1 Common Loon, 1 Red-necked Grebe, and 6 Greater Scaup. There was 1 Great Blue Heron flying south over Britannia and an adult Bald Eagle being harassed by American Crows.  At the Britannia Conservation Area a small flock of Bohemian Waxwings flew over heading south.  A Northern Shrike was observed hunting in a open field near the corner of Riddell Road and 6th Line Road.

take care, Bruce

The Northern Shrike enjoying sitting high on top of trees and shrubs for hunting.

December 7, 2012 Bohemian Waxwings on the move.

Hi Everyone
Still lots of Bohemian Waxwings in the Ottawa area. This afternoon I observed 5 flocks totaling 650+ birds. A couple of flocks were located north and east of the corner of Moodie Drive and Carling Ave. Another flock, Island Park Drive and the S.J.A.M. (Ottawa River) Parkway, and in the area of the Civic Hospital, Carling and Parkdale Ave. Most flocks were feeding on crab apples.
Good birding, Bruce

 

Bohemian Waxwings continue to move through the Ottawa area in large numbers.

December 4-6, 2012 Harlequin Duck on the Ottawa River at Ottawa.

The immature male Harlequin Duck was still present today, November 6th, as it spent most of the morning feeding in the fast moving waters north of Bate Island. I was able to view it from both Bate Island and from the Quebec shore line. The best viewing was from the Champlain Bridge where I took a number of photos as the duck would fly upstream, land, then drifted down stream and repeated this numerous times. At one point the Harlequin Duck landed with a group of Common Goldeneye and all the ducks began to preen as they floated in the calm water. In the Ottawa-Gatineau district the Harlequin Duck is a very rare late fall and early winter visitor. They occasionally overwinter and have stayed into April but most disappeared late winter. The first record for the Ottawa-Gatineau district was just down river from this site on November 20, 1971 at Berbuf Park. Below is a series of photos of the immature male in flight.

#1 immature male Harlequin Duck

#2 immature male Harlequin Duck

#3 immature male Harlequin Duck

#4 immature male Harlequin Duck

#5 immature male Harlequin Duck

Decemmer 1-3, 2012 Birding the Niagara River.

Definitely one of the highlights on our 3 day Niagara River tour was the probably the "Greenland" Iceland Gull. See earlier post. The overall gull numbers were excellent along the river and there were at least 10 species plus a couple of hybrids. We did a flyby count at dusk at NOTL both on Dec.1st (5300+) and on Dec.2nd (550+). The totals were low compared to the number of 1000's  of Bonaparte's Gulls on the Niagara River. They may have heading towards Fort Erie  at dusk instead! One of the rarest birds was a male Black-throated blue Warbler found above the falls immediately behind the old “Gate House” building found by Rick Thornton on December 2nd.  This is the latest record for the Niagara region based on the book, "Niagara Birds" by John Black and Kayo Roy.  I was fortunate to get one photo to document this occurrence.  For the second consecutive year there were at least 3 Black Vultures roosting on the American side of the river near Queenston along with a small group of Turkey Vultures. Other birds of note included 3 Tufted Titmice at Dufferin Park, 5 Eastern Bluebirds near Sir Adam Beck, 2 Carolina and 2 Winter Wren also at Dufferin Park, and a few Red-bellied Woodpecker. Overall an excellent trip! Our final sighting of the day was a family group of beavers feeding in a pond along Hwy.7 towards dusk.

 

Good birding, Bruce

 

 

 

 

Our last sighting of the day on December 3rd was a family group of Beavers along Hwy.7 near Kaladar.

 

A Tufted Titmouse at Dufferin Park

A Winter Wren was very active searching for food.



Normally a skulker this Winter Wren gave us excellent views.



A very tame Tufted Titmouse was a surprise. Normally we search around Chippawa and Niagara on the Lake for them.

A very late Black-throated Blue Warbler was searching for food low in the shrubbery above the falls.



A small flock of Eastern Bluebirds were observed near Sir Adam Beck Generating Station.

A male White-winged Scoter

A view of the Niagara River from Queenston.  

Above the falls 100's of Bonaparte's Gull were feeding and resting.

With low water levels 100's of gulls were resting on the exposed rocks above the falls.

The barge area is a popular location to look for Purple Sandpipers. Unfortunately none were found on the weekend.

Female Long-tailed Duck
 

December 2, 2012 Probable "Greenland" Iceland Gull at Niagara Falls, Ontario

Hi Everyone
While birding above the falls on Sunday at Niagara I observed an adult "white-winged" gull in flight.  My first thought was a Glaucous Gull because it had  immaculate white primaries  tips, but it was to small. Once it landed in a group of loafing Herring Gulls, I could see it had the size and proportions of an Iceland Gull ( rounded head, smaller bill, and long primary projection).  Ben and I and others in the group watched it closely for a hour. The gull spent most of the time preening and we had excellent close views through the scope. All the field marks indicated an adult "Greenland" Iceland Gull. As the OFO field trip arrived the gull took flight and headed up river towards the control gates and disappeared. The nominate subspecies or "Greenland " Iceland Gull is very rare in Ontario with a specimen record from Ottawa in the Canadian museum of Nature. Ben and I took numerous photos, which are on my blog below.  As we are all aware some identifications of gulls can be extremely difficult! Below is a link to Ontario Birds: Recognizable Forms: by Ron Pittaway covering the subspecies of Iceland Gulls in Ontario.
http://www.jeaniron.ca/2010/icelandgullRF.pdf
Good birding, Bruce and Ben

Probable Adult "Greenland" Iceland Gull with Herring Gulls.

Below are 5 photos of the probable "Greenland" Iceland Gull showing open wing 

 

 #1

#2 

#3

 

#4



#5

 

November 30, 2012 Local birding.

Hi Everyone
The number of Common Redpolls continue to increase in the Ottawa area. Today I counted a total of 350+ plus 1 Hoary Redpoll in the Dunrobin area. These birds were feeding in weedy fields. Ben observed 75+ Common Redpoll from the window of his high school classroom in Kanata south! Also had my first at the bird feeders.
good birding, Bruce

Directions: From Hwy.417 take March Road exit and turn right. Follow March Road to Dunrobin Road. Turn right and follow Dunrobin Road to Thomas Dolan Parkway. Turn right and check weedy fields along Thomas Dolan Parkway.

November 29,2012 Haory Redpoll near Ottawa.

Hi Everyone
This afternoon a observed a male Hoary Redpoll in a flock of 100+ Common Redpoll just north of Woodlawn along Dunrobin Road. The redpolls were feeding in a weedy field. Also observed a flock of 50+ Bohemian Waxwing at the corner of Carling Ave. and Moodie Drive and another group, 25+ near Carp.
Good birding, BruceDirections: Woodlawn is located along Dunrobin Road. From Hwy. 417 take March Road north to Dunrobin Road and turn right.

November 28, 2012 Local birding around Ottawa.

Hi Everyone
Spent a number of hours birding along the Ottawa River and a couple of nearby woodlots. Overall it was quiet except for numerous flocks of Bohemian Waxwings flying over. I observed one flock of 100+ near the corner of Moodie Drive and Carling Ave. and another flock of 50+  near Carleton University. With the number of fruit/berry trees in the Ottawa area I'm sure the waxwings will be around for some time.
 Still 1000's of Canada Geese along the Ottawa River and feeding in fields on the outskirts of the city. I've noticed on birding list servers there has been a few Pink-footed Geese in north-eastern United States and Newfoundland. I know it's tedious but it's worth checking all the flocks of geese. There is a spring record of Pink-footed Goose at Plaisance, Quebec back in late April 2004. This maybe the next new species for Ontario. With the Pink-footed Goose record from  Plaisance and a Barnacle Goose record (banded) further east at Bainsville near the Ontario-Quebec border be sure to check all Canada Geese flocks.   Anything is possible!

Good birding, Bruce

November 26, 2012 First snow fall of the season.

The first snowfall of the season produced very little activity at our feeder. It was more like everything left town except for the Black-capped Chickadees and White-breasted Nuthatches. Hopefully over the next couple of days things will change for the better!

On a brighter note, bird activity in areas with berries-any fruit was exceptional. There were good sized flocks of Bohemian Waxwings, Pine Grosbeaks and American Robins. At the rate they're eating, there may be no birds left to count on the upcoming local Christmas Bird Counts!  Also, keep an eye out for other berry eaters such as Varied Thrush. There are numerous records for eastern Ontario since the early 1970's. We even have a sight  record of  a Fieldfare, a Eurasian thrush, for Ottawa from the Arboretum back in  January 1967. Anything is possible!
 

Good birding, Bruce

 

The feeding frenzy begins!



Which one should I eat?

No fruit is left on touched.

 

These nomadic wanderers can travel in large flocks in search of food.
 

No problem!

Most of their winter diet is made up of berries and fruit. 

An American Robin also consumes many berries and other fruits during the winter months.

Many species of birds will use snow for a source of water during the winter.

This  American Robin with a leg injury picks up fallen fruit on the snow covered ground.

Even though this adult Ring-billed Gull is missing a foot it has fared well and will survive.

November 23, 2012 Another Cave Swallow near Ottawa,Ontario

The Ottawa-Gatineau district's second record of Cave Swallow was discovered this afternoon at Constance Bay by Jeff Skevington. The swallow was feeding along the edge of the Ottawa River off the end of Whistler Road. It was present til' dusk and on November 24th at dawn it was observed for a brief time before disappearing. I was able to take a number of photos to document this record of the southwestern subspecies P.f. pallida.  The first record also P.f. pallida was found on November 3rd feeding over the Ottawa River at Bate Island along with a Cliff Swallow. The Cliff was observed on November 4 and 5 but no Cave Swallow. On November 6 both swallows were reported again at the same location late afternoon and never seen again.  Below is a couple of photos of the 2nd record of a Cave Swallow for the Ottawa-Gatineau district.

Good birding, Bruce

 

Cave Swallow: P.f. pallida   November 23, 2012 Constance Bay,Ontario

Cave Swallow: P.f. pallida November 23, 2012 Constance Bay,Ontario