On Friday, October 5th, 2007 this is the HNC Report: AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN PARASITIC JAEGER FRANKLIN'S GULL SABINE'S GULL NELSON'S SHARP-TAILED SPARROW
Cackling Goose American Wigeon Blue-winged Teal Northern Pintail Green-winged Teal Greater Scaup White-winged Scoter Ruddy Duck Pied-billed Grebe Horned Grebe Red-necked Grebe American Bittern Great Blue Heron Great Egret Osprey Bald Eagle Northern Harrier Peregrine Falcon Sora American Coot Black-bellied Plover American Golden-Plover Semipalmated Plover Killdeer Greater Yellowlegs Lesser Yellowlegs Least Sandpiper Baird's Sandpiper Pectoral Sandpiper Dunlin Stilt Sandpiper Long-billed Dowitcher Parasitic Jaeger Bonaparte's Gull Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Eastern Phoebe Philadelphia Vireo Red-eyed Vireo Barn Swallow Brown Creeper Carolina Wren House Wren Marsh Wren Golden-crowned Kinglet Ruby-crowned Kinglet Gray-cheeked Thrush Swainson's Thrush Hermit Thrush Brown Thrasher American Pipit Orange-crowned Warbler Nashville Warbler Northern Parula Magnolia Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Black-throated Green Warbler Palm Warbler Blackpoll Warbler Black-and-White Warbler American Redstart Common Yellowthroat Scarlet Tanager Swamp Sparrow White-throated Sparrow Rose-breasted Grosbeak Rusty Blackbird Purple Finch Migration continues to churn up new migrants this week even with the warm temperatures that we are experiencing in the Hamilton Study Area. This week the Dundas Marsh had a couple of rabbits to pull out of its hat. On Sunday morning, a FRANKLIN'S GULL was found resting amongst Ring-bills out at the Willows. The bird was only there a brief time but reappeared on Monday and then again yesterday. I would surmise that early morning is better and then the beast flies off to the fields with the other gulls for the day. While out looking for the Franklin's Gull some lucky observers found an AMERICAN WHITE PELICAN sitting out on the water. This pelican has also been seen all week, a little more reliable than the gull, but can remain hidden at times behind Rat Island out in Cootes Paradise. The pelican has been viewed from the Dundas Marsh, from Princess Point and from the High Level Bridge off of York Road. While out in the marsh there have been several sightings of NELSON'S SHARP-TAILED SPARROW this week which have remained extremely elusive and whose numbers are not yet peaked. Perhaps the next cold front will take care of this. Other birds reported from the marsh this week were Ruddy Duck, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Bald Eagle, Northern Harrier, Peregrine Falcon, Sora, Black-bellied and American Golden Plover, Semipalmated Plover, Killdeer, Pectoral and Least Sandpiper, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Dunlin, Bonaparte's Gull, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Eastern Phoebe, House Wren, American Pipit, Marsh Wren, Swamp Sparrow and Rusty Blackbird. While searching for this gull, I checked the Dundas Hydro Ponds. While no gull was found, American Wigeon, Blue-winged and Green-winged Teal, Great Egret, American Coot, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs were seen. For those interested in nice little escapees, there is a Northern Red Bishop making a home in the garden plots behind the Dundas Arena. While not countable it is a brilliant bird to see. A Brown Thrasher was also crawling around in these garden plots last weekend. Last Saturday at Van Wagner's beach, east southeast winds produced good conditions later in the day for migrating SABINE'S GULLS and PARASITIC JAEGER. Several of each species were seen along with a significant increase in waterfowl including American Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, Northern Pintail, Greater Scaup, White-winged Scoter, Horned and Red-necked Grebe. Another spot for shorebirds this week was Binbrook Conservation Area off of Tyneside Road in Hamilton. This week three Long-billed Dowitchers were seen here along with Great Egret, Black-bellied Plover, Killdeer, Lesser Yellowlegs, Pectoral Sandpiper, Dunlin , Least Sandpiper and Rusty Blackbird. At Windermere Basin this week, Semipalmated Plover, Killdeer, Greater and Lesser Yellowlegs, Least, Baird's, Pectoral and Stilt Sandpiper, Dunlin and Long-billed Dowitcher. Along the lakeshore, migrants continue to filter through throughout this week. At Shoreacres/Paletta Park, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Eastern Phoebe, Philadelphia and Red-eyed Vireo, Brown Creeper, Carolina Wren, Golden-crowned and Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Gray-cheeked, Swainson's and Hermit Thrush, Orange-crowned, Nashville Warbler, Northern Parula, Magnolia, Black-throated Blue, Yellow-rumped, Black-throated Green, Palm, Blackpoll, Black-and-White Warbler, American Redstart, Common Yellowthroat, White-throated Sparrow, Rose-breasted Grosbeak and Purple Finch. Further east on the lakeshore a Cackling Goose has been showing up at the harbour with the increasing number of Canada Geese gathering there. In the odds and sods, an Osprey was seen over the Skyway Bridge earlier in the week and a late Barn Swallow and Scarlet Tanager were seen near Spencer Creek in Dundas on Tuesday. Orange-crowned Warbler was well photographed at the Valley Inn. A report of an American Bittern came from Courtcliffe Park in Carlisle and two Pied-billed Grebe are present in the Desjardins Canal. That's the news for this week. Its supposed to be a beautiful weekend! Please report your sightings to the hotline! Happy Thanksgiving Cheryl Edgecombe HNC Hotline 905-381-0329 _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to ONTBIRDS mailing list [email protected] For instructions to join or leave ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/ontbirdshow.htm ONTBIRDS Guidelines may be viewed at http://www.ofo.ca/ontbirdsguide.htm
