Hello Ontbirders The past three afternoons I've observed good numbers of gulls (a few hundred) on the ice of the Ottawa River. On Friday and Saturday they were near Remic Rapids, but yesterday Sunday they were at Kitchissippi (Westboro beach area). I'm assuming that essentially the same group was involved, as there were no gulls at Remic yesterday (note that the "roundup" posting for the Ottawa area was in error as to the location of the gulls yesterday). This morning I noticed several dozen gulls still near Kitchissippi as I went to work by bus. The gulls tend to disperse during the day, but may come back to roost at Kitchissippi this afternoon.
I was able to identify 5 species, mostly Herring and Great Black-backed. There are, however, good numbers of Glaucous and, to a lesser extent, Iceland. Also a few lingering Ring-billeds. Better gull watchers than I may be able to pick out rarer species, though I wasn't able to. The birds tend to be a bit distant--you'll need a good scope--but they were closer than they usually are at Britannia and the Moodie ponds. Note: Both Kitchissippi and Remic parking lots are now closed for the winter. For the former, I suggest parking at the west end of Lanark Ave on the west side of Churchill north of Richmond. You can then go under the Ottawa River Parkway overpass to Westboro beach. For Remic, you could park at the north end of Carleton Ave and head north to the river under another parkway overpass. If I didn't have to work, I'd try to arrive at around 3PM, maybe earlier. It gets dark early these days! No guarantees, unfortunately--these gulls seem to frequently change the location where they roost. Paul Matthews, Ottawa _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to ONTBIRDS mailing list ONTBIRDS@hwcn.org For instructions to join or leave ONTBIRDS visit http://www.ofo.ca/information/ontbirdssetup.php ONTBIRDS Guidelines may be viewed at http://www.ofo.ca/information/ontbirdsguide.php
