I stopped in at the Holland Landing lagoons this afternoon around 2:15 to see if there were any new shorebirds present and managed to find a few new arrivals. The first lagoon was characteristically high and empty but the second cell held approximately 100 shorebirds, about half of them being juvenile Lesser Yellowlegs. As I scoped from the southwest corner of the lagoon I also observed two Greater Yellowlegs, one of them a molting adult, the other a nicely spangled juvenile. There were a few molting adult Lessers and, at the southern end of the lagoon, several peeps that I knew I would have to get closer to if I wanted to make a proper identification. Stepping back from my tripod in order to fold it up, I stopped when several shorebirds suddenly scattered in a din of alarm calls, then most of the Bonaparte's Gulls (nearly 200 birds) in the third lagoon rose en masse into the sky. Feeling guilty (raised Catholic), I wondered if my own movements had caused the fuss, but realized the gulls couldn't have seen me yet so I looked skyward for birds of prey. It is not unusual to observe Red-tailed Hawk, Osprey, Harrier and/or accipiters at the Holland Landing lagoons. In late summer and fall Merlin is always a possibility too. Sure enough, behind the blizzard of gulls, a falcon was zooming past, rapidly rising to the treeline after a low pass. I expected it to be a Merlin but when I got my binoculars on the bird it looked larger than that. Still, size impressions can be misleading, so I scrambled for more specific details in the five or six seconds left to me before the bird would disappear over the trees. What clinched this falcon as a Peregrine was the sharp contrast between its dark, boldy marked face and its clear white throat and upper chest. It soon disappeared behind the trees without ever slowing down. Hoping the falcon would return, I spent the better part of the next two hours walking the perimeter of the lagoons but the bird did not reappear. Still, the slower pace I was proceeding at led to a few more discoveries that I could easily have missed, one a beautifully buffy Short-billed Dowitcher (juvenile), the other a White-rumped Sandpiper flying with a group of about 25 Least Sandpipers. I also observed two Semipalmated Sandpipers. I could not find the Stilt Sandpiper present on the weekend but should note that many of the shorebirds present were moving through vegetation on the east and south sides of the second lagoon and were often hidden from view. Interestingly, my last sighting of a Peregrine in this area was August 19th, 2006 at the Schomberg Lagoons west of Newmarket - almost a year ago to the day. The Schomberg lagoons, I should mention, are under extensive construction this year and are much compromised as a result. Unlike the HL lagoons, where access has been tacitly tolerated, entry to the Schomberg lagoons has always been discouraged and is now doubly so. Ron Fleming, Newmarket DIRECTIONS: The Holland Landing lagoons are in the north part of the town of Holland Landing, which is between Newmarket and Bradford. Take Yonge Street north through Newmarket and turn right at the stoplights north of Green Lane (you will see Brooklin Concrete and the Newmarket Inn on the east side). Take the long and winding road (credits to Paul McCartney) down to Holland Landing, keep going straight, then cross the bridge and the RR tracks. Continue north past the stoplights at Mount Albert Road, then keep going north through town, past the next lights. About 0.7 kms past Doane Road you will see two white wagon wheels, a Maximum 60 Km sign, and a red Toronto Sun newspaper box on the east side of the road. This marks Cedar Avenue. Turn right (east) and drive the short distance to its end. Park by the main gate (but don't block it) and walk past the green secondary gate on the north (left). Within a few metres you will see a metal post painted orange on the right side of the path, marking where you can step over the fence and walk back to the gravel road running into the lagoons. Watch for poison ivy, as there is a great deal of it here, especially on the northern margin of the gravel road.
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